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KeepKey vs Tangem Wallet

Comparing
two wallets
Decided by
Editorial rating
Last reviewed
2026-08-26
KeepKey2.6Warning

Cheap open source device with the most readable screen of its era, and a seed a thief holding it for 15 minutes can extract.

Tangem Wallet3.8

A smart card you tap against your phone, sold only in sets of two or three so your backup is another card rather than a written seed.

Verdict: Tangem Wallet

Tangem Wallet rates higher on our rubric: 3.8 against 2.6 for KeepKey.

Criterion
Editorial rating
KeepKey
2.6
Tangem Wallet
3.8

KeepKey and Tangem 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.

KeepKey and Tangem Wallet compared fact by fact from their reviews; a check marks the side a decidable criterion favours.
FactKeepKeyTangem Wallet
Editorial rating2.63.8 (favoured on this row)
StatusCaution: see the reviewAvailable
Made byKeepKeyTangem
Price$59.95$59.9
Who holds the keysself-custodial, keys generated and held on the device rather than on your computerself-custodial, keys generated and held inside each card's certified chip, with no seed phrase by default
Bitcoin-onlyNoNo
Runs onWindows, macOS, LinuxiOS, Android
Screen3.12 inch OLED, 256 x 64 pixelsNone. The card has no display, so you verify transactions on your phone
ConnectivityUSB cableNFC tap against a phone running the Tangem app
Released2015, though KeepKey's own site dates the brand to 2014Not stated
Countries on the maker's listNo published list201
Last reviewed2026-08-262026-08-25

Pros and cons, side by side

KeepKey

What works

  • The 3.12 inch OLED screen was the largest of its era and makes address checks easy to read
  • Firmware is still shipping: Taproot outputs in 2025, four more chains in 2026, on signed tags
  • Each release publishes the expected hash of a reproducible build, so you can verify the binary you flash
  • Schematics, PCB layout and bill of materials are published, and the chip is named: no other major vendor goes that far
  • One of the cheapest new hardware wallets at $59.95, with simple, sturdy, beginner-friendly hardware

What to watch

  • The seed can be extracted with 15 minutes of physical access, and Kraken found that no firmware update can close it
  • No secure element, which KeepKey presents as a design choice rather than a gap, so the seed lives in flash on a general purpose chip
  • The PIN is 1 to 9 digits, so once the encrypted seed is off the device it is trivial to brute force
  • The store advertises free firmware updates for life without linking the release history that backs the promise up
  • Releases are infrequent by the standards of the field: none at all between March 2024 and February 2025

Tangem Wallet

What works

  • Keys are generated inside a certified chip and never leave it, with no seed phrase to steal by default
  • Sold in sets of two or three, so the backup is a second card rather than a written phrase
  • Nothing to charge, connect or cable up: you tap the card against your phone
  • Tangem states that no Tangem server sits between your card, your phone and the blockchain
  • Buy and swap are built into the app

What to watch

  • No screen, so you verify transaction details on the phone rather than on the device itself
  • Lose every card in the set without having created a seed phrase and the funds are unrecoverable
  • Not bitcoin-only
  • Tangem refuses delivery to 40 named jurisdictions, Colombia, Laos and Vietnam among them

Frequently asked questions

Is KeepKey or Tangem Wallet better?

Tangem Wallet rates higher on our rubric: 3.8 against 2.6 for KeepKey. 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.

Which is cheaper, KeepKey or Tangem Wallet?

Tangem Wallet, at $59.9 against $59.95, on each maker's own store price as of the review date.

Is KeepKey or Tangem Wallet bitcoin-only?

Neither: both support assets beyond bitcoin. KeepKey: 11 native chains plus EVM tokens by the vendor's own count, with THORChain swaps in the app. Tangem Wallet: Multi-asset, with buy and swap built into the app.

Does KeepKey or Tangem Wallet carry a warning?

KeepKey: Kraken Security Labs published a voltage glitching attack in 2019 that lifts the encrypted seed off a KeepKey with about 15 minutes of physical access and roughly 75 dollars of equipment, then brute forces the short PIN that protects it. Kraken's own conclusion was that the weakness sits in the device's microcontroller and cannot be closed by firmware. The firmware itself is still shipping; the hardware is the problem, and a BIP39 passphrase is the mitigation.

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

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