Skip to content
buybitcoinsmart
Menu

Electrum vs Wasabi Wallet

Comparing
two wallets
Decided by
Editorial rating
Last reviewed
2026-08-25
Electrum4.4Bitcoin-only

The oldest bitcoin wallet still in active development, and the one whose users are hunted by a fake-update scam running since December 2018.

Wasabi Wallet3.6Bitcoin-onlyWarning

Still a working bitcoin wallet, but the coinjoin coordinator that made its name was switched off by zkSNACKs on June 1, 2024.

Verdict: Electrum

Electrum rates higher on our rubric: 4.4 against 3.6 for Wasabi Wallet.

Criterion
Editorial rating
Electrum
4.4
Wasabi Wallet
3.6

Electrum and Wasabi Wallet, fact by fact

Every row is from the two reviews as of their review dates, with sources on each. A check marks the side a decidable criterion favours; rows without one are information, not a score.

Electrum and Wasabi Wallet compared fact by fact from their reviews; a check marks the side a decidable criterion favours.
FactElectrumWasabi Wallet
Editorial rating4.4 (favoured on this row)3.6
StatusAvailableCaution: see the review
Made byElectrum Technologies GmbHzkSNACKs
PriceFree downloadFree download
Who holds the keysself-custodial, keys generated and encrypted on your own machine, with transactions checked by SPVself-custodial, keys generated and stored on your own computer, never held by zkSNACKs
Bitcoin-onlyYesYes
Runs onAndroid, Windows, macOS, LinuxWindows, macOS, Linux
ScreenNot statedNot stated
ConnectivityConnects to public Electrum servers or one you run yourself, verifying your transactions by SPVAll traffic over Tor by default, compact block filters instead of a server that learns your addresses, and hardware signing through HWI for Trezor, Coldcard, Ledger, Blockstream Jade and BitBox02
ReleasedNovember 2011, written by Thomas Voegtlin2018; the download page serves version 2.8.1 for Windows, macOS and Linux
Countries on the maker's listNo published listNo published list
Last reviewed2026-08-252026-08-25

Pros and cons, side by side

Electrum

What works

  • Continuously maintained since November 2011, which nothing else on this list can claim
  • Lightweight: it checks your transactions by SPV instead of downloading the whole chain
  • Reproducible builds, signed by several independent builders, with signatures published next to every download
  • Hardware wallet support for Ledger, Trezor and KeepKey, plus multisig and watch-only cold storage
  • MIT licensed, and anyone can run the server software it talks to, so no company controls the network
  • An official Android build on both Google Play and F-Droid

What to watch

  • Users are the target of a fake-update scam that ZDNet traced to more than 22 million dollars of thefts by October 2020
  • The interface assumes you already know what a change address and a derivation path are
  • Windows builds are often flagged by antivirus heuristics, which the project says it cannot do anything about
  • No iOS version, and no built-in way to buy bitcoin
  • Two-factor signing runs through a third party, Trustedcoin, rather than the wallet alone

Wasabi Wallet

What works

  • Bitcoin only and open source under an MIT license, with a public repository that is still actively developed
  • Self-custodial: keys are generated and stored on your own computer, and zkSNACKs never held funds
  • Every connection runs over Tor by default, and compact block filters mean no server learns which addresses are yours
  • Hardware wallet signing through HWI for Trezor, Coldcard, Ledger, Blockstream Jade and BitBox02
  • Full coin control, transaction labeling and privacy suggestions that name who will learn about a payment
  • Coinjoin is still in the software: you add a third-party coordinator in place of the one zkSNACKs ran

What to watch

  • zkSNACKs switched off its coinjoin coordinator on June 1, 2024, so the feature Wasabi was known for no longer works out of the box
  • Choosing and vetting a third-party coordinator is now your problem, and each sets its own fees and terms
  • Desktop only: Wasabi's own site states it is not available on mobile
  • Trezor Suite coinjoin and BTCPay Server integrations that used the same coordinator broke on the same day
  • Silent payments are send-only: Wasabi cannot yet generate or receive to a silent payment address

Frequently asked questions

Is Electrum or Wasabi Wallet better?

Electrum rates higher on our rubric: 4.4 against 3.6 for Wasabi Wallet. The rating follows the product rubric published on our about page; the rows above set custody, price and platforms side by side so you can check it.

Are Electrum and Wasabi Wallet free?

Yes, both are free to download. What differs is who holds the keys: Electrum is self-custodial, keys generated and encrypted on your own machine, with transactions checked by SPV; Wasabi Wallet is self-custodial, keys generated and stored on your own computer, never held by zkSNACKs.

Is Electrum or Wasabi Wallet bitcoin-only?

Both are bitcoin-only: neither supports another coin, which is a deliberate design choice for a smaller codebase.

Does Electrum or Wasabi Wallet carry a warning?

Wasabi Wallet: zkSNACKs announced on May 2, 2024, days after US prosecutors charged the founders of Samourai Wallet, that it would discontinue the coinjoin coordination service behind Wasabi's headline privacy feature, and switched it off on June 1, 2024. The wallet is still developed and still works as a self-custodial, bitcoin-only desktop wallet, and coinjoin remains in the software, but you now have to find and trust a third-party coordinator to use it.

The full reviews: Electrum and Wasabi Wallet, each with its sources, and every wallet we review.

More comparisons

Every other head-to-head Electrum or Wasabi Wallet appears in.