Getting started
Crypto wallet vs web3 wallet: what is the difference?
In everyday use they mean the same thing, and the distinction people are reaching for is about capability rather than category. A plain crypto wallet holds a balance and sends it. A web3 wallet does that and also signs into applications - approving swaps, proving you own an address, interacting with contracts - which is what makes onchain trading possible at all.
The distinction that actually exists
- Exchange account. A balance on somebody's ledger. It can send and receive; it cannot sign into an application.
- Basic wallet. Holds keys, sends and receives. Fine for holding, not enough for trading onchain.
- Web3 wallet. Holds keys and signs arbitrary transactions and messages, so it can connect to a swap, a launchpad or a terminal.
Why the capability matters
Every onchain action - a swap, an approval, proving ownership of an address - is a signature from a private key. A wallet that cannot produce those signatures on demand can hold a token but cannot trade one. That single capability is the whole difference between having crypto and using it.
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