How to Sell Bitcoins
Selling bitcoins is not much different from buying bitcoins. Finding a Bitcoin exchange or trading partner that will pay you with your desired payment method is the first step. From there, you can complete a trade to sell your bitcoins.
Selling Bitcoins for Cash
There are three ways to get cash for bitcoins:
1. Sell bitcoins in person for cash
2. Sell bitcoins at an ATM for cash
3. Sell bitcoins online for cash deposit
Sell Bitcoins in Person for Cash
Selling bitcoins in person for cash is a private way to sell bitcoins. In most cases no information is requested by the buyer, nor is there KYC or AML involved. LocalBitcoins is the most popular of many services that will help you find local buyers to meet in person.
You may be able to find a cash trading partner at your local Bitcoin Meetup Group. Since these meetups are filled with fellow Bitcoin users, it’s not hard to find someone willing to make an exchange. If the meetup group in your area meets often, it may be a good way to find a trade partner to buy from on a regular basis.
If there’s no meetup group in your area, checking Facebook for local groups is another way to find local traders. This is how many people find trade partners in countries like Venezuela or Israel.
Mycelium Local Trader is part of the Mycelium Android Wallet. It works like LocalBitcoins but has less users. If in a large city with lots of users, Local Trader may helpful for finding trade partners. Cash trades only.
For any cash exchanges, use the best practices explained at the end of this post.
Selling for Cash at a Bitcoin ATM
Bitcoin ATMs are another easy way to sell bitcoins for cash, if you’re lucky enough to have a Bitcoin ATM in your area. Some ATMs only allow for the buying of bitcoins, while some offer both buying and selling. You can use Coin ATM Radar to check locations and determine whether or not your local ATM offers both.
Sell Bitcoins for Cash Online
Services like LocalBitcoins and BitQuick can help you accept cash payments for bitcoin online. You create a sell order on one of the sites. Once a buyer accepts your offer, they are given your bank account details. Buyers then make a cash deposit to your bank account. Once you confirm payment, the bitcoins are released from escrow to the seller.
Selling Bitcoins Online
Selling bitcoins online is convenient but much less private than selling bitcoins for cash. Using services like Coinbase or Circle it’s possible to sell bitcoins to your bank account (both) or to your credit or debit card (Circle only). Coinbase is available in the United States, most of Europe, Canada, and Singapore. Circle is only available in the U.S.
Kraken and BitStamp are good options for Europeans. BitStamp’s newest feature lets its users cash out bitcoin for gold.
LocalBitcoins is another option for selling online. Since LocalBitcoins is an escrow service, buyers and sellers are free to agree on trade terms. LocalBitcoins has no control over which payment methods are available. Users are free to use other common payment methods like Skrill, NETELLER, PayPal, or cash deposit.
Visit the buy page of this site for more help finding an exchange in your country.
Sell Bitcoins by Spending
There’s no reason that selling bitcoins must be limited to receiving fiat money. Now that it’s possible to buy just about anything with bitcoins, selling by buying goods may be a better option for some.
You can for example pay your monthly bills with bitcoins. Cashila, a European licensed payment processor, is a good option which lets you pay for bills or other services that accept a SEPA bank transfer.
Even if you don’t need merchandise, buying gold with bitcoins is a creative way to “sell” bitcoins without using an exchange.
How to Sell Large Amounts of Bitcoin
Bitcoin remittance companies, merchants, and traders may find themselves with large amounts of bitcoin. Using OTC trading it’s possible to cash out millions of dollars worth of coins.
Genesis and itBit currently offer the most liquidity among Bitcoin OTC trading. These companies, however, are geared more towards institutions rather than individuals. If you are simply a Bitcoin holder and want to cash out then an exchange with high liquidity like Bitstamp, BitFinex, Kraken, or Coinbase may be a better option.
Best Practices for Selling Bitcoin
Getting a Good Price
Selling bitcoins for cash on LocalBitcoins will often yield the best sell price. LocalBitcoins buyers are eager to buy bitcoins privately, and are willing to pay up to 10% more. Selling in person requires more effort than other methods but is worth it if you intend to get the best price for your coins.
Selling at a Bitcoin ATM usually isn’t a good idea as most charge 5-10% per sale. You can use Coin ATM Radar to check ATMs in your area to compare fees.
Selling online to a brokerage or on an exchange is a decent way to cash out. Fees using these methods are usually 0.2-1% per trade.
Cash Trading Safety
If trading for cash in-person, meet in a public space. There’s no reason to risk getting jumped or stolen from. Both LocalBitcoins and Mycelium Local Trader profiles show each user’s history and feedback, so only trade with buyers who have positive feedback over many trades.