While many Bitcoiners prefer simply to hold their coin, plenty also love to spend it. Over its history, more and more companies have integrated support for Bitcoin. It’s not just for gambling anymore – you can purchase almost anything with it.
Here CCN provides a detailed list of companies which are currently accepting Bitcoin as of December 2018, as well as other methods of spending Bitcoin at locations which don’t accept it directly. We noticed a lack of such comprehensive lists out there, with many of the ones we came across being severely outdated and even referencing businesses that hadn’t accepted Bitcoin in more than 2 years or some that had been out of business altogether, like Grooveshark, for years.
You can book flights, buy web domains, pay for computer products, buy household goods, and so much more with Bitcoin, and places that use BitPay for crypto transaction processing generally all support Bitcoin Cash as well. We hope this guide makes it easier for you.
Online Companies Who Accept Bitcoin As Payment
General Merchandise
- Overstock.com – No list is complete without Overstock, the company run by crypto-believer Patrick Byrne which owns a Medici Ventures, an important mover and shaker in the blockchain space.
- Fancy.com – A feminine-focused site that sells household goods and fashionable merchandise. Everything from couches to high heels.
Computer related
- Microsoft – While not an option at checkout time, those with a Microsoft account wanting to use Bitcoin can go to “Billing and Payment Options” in their account and click “Redeem Bitcoin.” At this point they will be given the opportunity to add up to $100 at a time using BitPay.
- Newegg.com is one of the biggest computer parts stores online, and they sell virtually everything related to computers and electronics. If you want to buy a PlayStation 4, a new gaming computer, a good laptop, a sound system, a television, you name it, Newegg will let you do it at checkout – with good old Bitcoin or Bitcoin Cash.
Web Services
- Namecheap.com – Full-service domain registrar with hosting options, all of which you can use Bitcoin to pay for. Similar to Microsoft, you must first “top-up” your account with an amount of Bitcoin of your choosing and then you are free to use your account balance to pay for services.
- ExpressVPN – A reliable and reputable VPN service that accepts Bitcoin payments. The author uses this VPN service and can personally attest to its usability.
- Both Tutanota and Protonmail privacy-focused e-mail service providers accept Bitcoin as payment for their premium tier products.
- Shopify – While you cannot pay your professional fees to Shopify in Bitcoin, any store that uses Shopify can accept Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies with relative ease through the platform, so it’s worthwhile to contact such businesses if you’d like them to let you pay with Bitcoin.
- PureVPN – PureVPN is another well-established virtual private networking (VPN) service that currently accepts Bitcoin. They even offer a guide on how to acquire coins with which to pay, which is a sign they are fully on board.
- Several other VPNs including Private Internet Access, NordVPN, SurfShark, CyberGhost, and HideMyAss, also accept Bitcoin.
Travel Services
- CheapAir.com – One of the oldest companies on the web to accept Bitcoin, and a competitive travel-booking service to boot which allows you to book hotels, flights, and rental cars with Bitcoin. They like Bitcoin so much they never stop talking about it on their blog. Unlike other travel services such as Expedia which have integrated Bitcoin only to remove it months later, CheapAir.com has always accepted it and likely always will.
- Bitcoin.Travel has been around quite awhile as well, and they primarily act as a gateway to travel sites that will allow you to check out with Bitcoin. Potentially the easiest way to book a flight with digital cash.
Food
- PizzaForCoins.com allows you to order pizza pretty much anywhere, and you don’t have to strictly use Bitcoin. You can use their integrated ShapeShift conversion tool to use dozens of other options like Litecoin, Ethereum, or Monero.
- British website ordertakeaways.co.uk allows you to order from dozens of takeout restaurants in the UK using Bitcoin.
- Customers in many European countries can buy coffee from CryptoCoffee, a crypto-centric coffee distributor.
- Crypto-native Pex Peppers sells hot sauces for various cryptocurrencies.
- You can also buy wine from Misconduct Wine Company, though shipping restrictions may apply.
The situation at present is that food is mostly purchased by Bitcoin through gift cards pre-purchased online. While there are a limited number of restaurants in major metros around the world that accept and support Bitcoin, large outfits that exist around the world are a bit slower on the uptake, so we suggest using gift cards when wanting to spend coins on food.
Don’t See It Here?
Bitcoin is a global currency, and the landscape of merchant adoption is ever-changing. This being the case, running a website that directs people on where to spend their cryptocurrency is a sub-industry all its own. Perhaps the elder service in that space is called SpendABit. CCN once interviewed its founder, and the site was going strong at time of writing with over 3 million products listed and verified as being able to be purchased with Bitcoin.
A newer entrant into this space is called spendbitcoins.com, and they offer a similar service.
Other Ways to Spend Bitcoin
There are two indirect ways to spend Bitcoin. One is to get a Bitcoin-powered credit card from somewhere like Xapo, Bitpay, or Uquid. There are options coming and going from the market all the time in this department, though these three seem to be standing the test of time and regulation.
Doing the above, however, requires a good deal of commitment to the company offering the credit card, and often has regional and other restrictions resulting from the global lag in Bitcoin acceptance.
As a result, a few quality sites are devoted to selling gift cards for Bitcoin. While there are plenty of sites that do not accept Bitcoin directly, almost every site where people shop these days has some form of gift card program. Between eGifter, Gyft, GiftOff, and BitRefill, you can find most major retailers like Walmart and Target as well as many chain restaurants including Dominos, Burger King, and Legal Seafood.
BitRefill also offers bill payment services. Speaking of which, Australian users can use Bitcoin to pay bills using Living Room of Satoshi or PaidByCoins, while US persons can use CoinBills or BillPayforCoins. In the EU, there is BitBill.
Perhaps one of the most impressive ways to use Bitcoin online is to spend it at Amazon through Purse.io, for a healthy discount up to 33% off regular prices. The way it works is you find something you want on Amazon, put a link on Purse.io with the amount of discount you want, and then someone buys it for you and has it sent to your house in exchange for Bitcoin. Often the Bitcoin rates are much different on Purse.io than anywhere else, to the Bitcoiner’s advantage. Purse users take advantage of Prime shipping and other Amazon perks, and thus they have not yet expanded to any other retailers.
Featured image from Shutterstock.
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