What Can I Use Bitcoin For?

What Can You Buy with Bitcoin?

We’ve talked about various websites and brick-and-mortar stores where you can spend your bitcoin. But surely there must be more options?

Well, the truth is you can buy almost anything with bitcoin. Seriously!

While this can’t always happen directly (yet), numerous online gift card services let you use bitcoin (as well as sometimes select altcoins) to purchase gift cards, which in turn allow you to purchase pretty much whatever you want.

Gift Cards for Almost Anything!

Many gift card sites let you buy discount cards to save money while shopping at your favorite retailer or using your favorite service. But they don’t all accept bitcoin and/or other cryptocurrencies.

We dug through a pile of the best ones, rejecting those that don’t actively promote or document the ability to use bitcoin for purchases.

Here’s the list of the winners: Four places you can buy gift cards for almost anything, and pay with bitcoin (and sometimes other virtual currencies as well).

Bitrefill

Bitrefill is designed to let you “live on crypto.” The site takes payment in Bitcoin as well as Ethereum, Dash, Dogecoin, and Litecoin. You can now also use USD or EUR.

The site offers a catalog of digital gift cards to 30+ services, including Amazon, eBay, Walmart, Google Play, Best Buy, Apple, Xbox, Grubhub, DoorDash and Uber Eats. You can also purchase mobile refills for prepaid phone plans on all major carriers, and Lightning networking services.

Bitrefill gives you 1%-10% rewards in BTC on all your purchases, and you can refer a friend to earn $5 in BTC when they spend $50.

eGifter

eGifter lets you buy gift cards with crypto including BTC, BCH, XRP, ETH, LTC and Dash, as well as PayPal, Venmo, ApplePay, Visa, MC, AmEx and Discover.

The site offers digital and physical gift cards for 300+ brands, including Target, Macy’s, Walmart, Wayfair, Groupon, Adidas, Apple, Google Play, Domino’s and Southwest Airlines. You can purchase Amazon gift cards but only with eGifter points, which are rewards earned from your other purchases.

“Long-time users of bitcoin use eGifter, because they know we have been involved with the bitcoin community since the beginning,” the FAQ states. “We’re not jumping on the bitcoin bandwagon, we’re in it for the long haul.” eGifter also powers the gift card section on Bitcoin.com.

Gyft

Gyft lets you purchase with Bitcoin as well as ApplePay, PayPal, Visa, MC, AmEx and Discover. You can buy digital gift cards from over 200 retailers, including Target, Sears, Whole Foods, Sephora, eBay, Best Buy, Walmart, Lowe’s, Domino’s and Southwest Airlines.

You can also buy a Gyft Card … to buy other gift cards with (probably makes the most sense if you’re giving this as an actual gift — and the site does emphasize the ability to send gifts to friends and family instantly).

MyBitcards / CardCash

These websites are connected, and while the payment methods are limited (just Bitcoin, PayPal or credit card), the reported card selection wins first place. They claim to offer cards for 1100+ retailers, including Target, Home Depot, Starbucks, TJ Maxx, American Airlines, McDonald’s, CVS and many more. But the selection varies depending on what people have sold to the site.

At MyBitcards you can buy a Bitcoin Gift Card to give bitcoin as a gift, or store your crypto for future use. But you need to click through to CardCash to purchase discounted retail gift cards — either new or used, in both physical and digital formats.

Peer-to-Peer Marketplaces

You can also sometimes buy or sell select gift cards for crypto at peer-to-peer (P2P) exchanges. But this is a lot more challenging to navigate, and you’re dealing directly with the seller, which has pros and cons.

If you’re not very experienced in using this type of marketplace, we recommend sticking with the easier gift card dedicated sites. Plus, the selection is often hit and miss if you go the P2P route.

Nonetheless, here are three P2P sites where you can buy gift cards with bitcoin for almost anything:

Paxful

Paxful is a well-known P2P exchange, but consider this type of platform a bit of a Wild West. You know … rules don’t apply. “You pays your money and you takes your chances.”

You can buy bitcoin with gift cards that sellers specify, or you can buy gift cards with your bitcoin. But the individuals choose the prices, and often you’ll spend more than the face value. For example, we checked out an offer for a $25 Amazon gift card, which costs $26.27 worth of BTC to purchase.

Purse

A new twist on P2P, Purse has one purpose: to trade crypto for Amazon purchases. Yes, just Amazon, and yes, you have to buy with crypto. And yes, you’re buying the item, not the gift card. We’re not sure why, but that’s the model. Purse is basically an Amazon shopping interface with a discounted personal shopper.

Of course, you can buy almost anything at Amazon … but if you want a wider selection of gift cards, you won’t find it here. And if you want to do your own shopping without involving a third party, this isn’t your best choice.

“When you shop on Purse your order is matched with an Earner,” the Purse FAQ explains. “Earners own Amazon giftcards and will complete your order in return for your cryptocurrency. Shoppers enjoy a discount for providing this opportunity while Purse ensures this process is smooth and frictionless. By paying with cryptocurrency, Shoppers get a discount and Earners cash in their gift cards.”

You have the choice between taking the standard 5% discount with “Buy Now” option, or you can “Name Your Discount” between 6% and 33%, in which case you have to wait for an Earner to bite on your deal and make your purchase for the agreed amount.

Redeeem

Redeeem is basically a P2P version of a standard gift card site … the difference being you are negotiating with the seller directly and not purchasing from Redeeem.

Gift cards from 50+ retailers are advertised, including Amazon, eBay, Walmart, Target, Best Buy, Google Play, iTunes, Steam and StubHub. But you don’t get to check what’s actually on tap without creating an account first.

One of the perks here is the “refer a friend” affiliate program that nets you 1% back on all their purchases for life.

What is Coin Cloud?
Coin Cloud is a digital currency machine (DCM) company founded in 2014 in Las Vegas, Nevada. With over 1,500 locations nationwide, Coin Cloud is the world’s largest and fastest-growing network of two-way DCMs, a more advanced version of the Bitcoin ATM. Over 60% of all two-way bitcoin machines in the US are Coin Cloud DCMs, empowering you to quickly and easily buy and sell 30+ virtual currency options with cash. You can find your nearest Coin Cloud DCM here.