A wallet is where your money lives
Think of it like a bank account that only you can open. You hold the keys, no one else. If you lose them, no one can recover the money for you. That's the trade: full control, full responsibility.
New here?
Getting started
Crypto for people who carry purses.
If this is your first time, start here. Five steps, fifteen minutes. No jargon without a translation.
Pick a wallet to install
We recommend Phantom or Solflare. Both are free, both work in your browser and on your phone. Pick one. They do the same thing. We're partial to Phantom for first-timers because the design is friendlier.
Back up your seed phrase
When you set up your wallet, it gives you a list of 12 random words. This is your seed phrase. Write it on paper. Put it somewhere safe. Don't email it to yourself. Don't take a screenshot. Anyone who gets this list can take your money.
Buy some SOL
SOL is the currency on the Solana network, like dollars in the U.S. You need a little SOL to do anything. Inside Phantom, tap Buy and choose a payment option (Coinbase, MoonPay, or your debit card). $25 is plenty to start.
Open Purses and connect
When you arrive at Purses, tap Connect Wallet at the top right. Phantom (or Solflare) will pop up and ask you to approve. That's it. You're in.
Words you will see
- Token
- A coin on the network, like the dollar, but issued by anyone.
- Fee
- A small charge taken every time you trade. On Purses, fees flow back to the community.
- Claim
- Moving earnings from your token's pool into your own wallet. Like cashing a check.
- Lock
- Putting tokens on hold for a fixed time, in public, to show long-term commitment.
- Mint
- Launching a new token: making the first one and putting it into the world.