In this article, we will take a look at the best zcash wallets. We will focus only on the best wallets for a cryptocurrency called zcash (ZEC), but you can also read our article about crypto wallets to get a generalized overview on the subject.

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What is Zcash

Zcash is a cryptocurrency that enhances privacy compared to other cryptocurrencies. Zcash was created in October 2016 as a fork of bitcoin. The payments are published on a public blockchain.

Users are able to use a privacy feature to conceal the information about the sender, recipient, and amount being transacted. 

Though it has to be said that the percentage of private (or shielded) transactions is currently still very small.

If you aren’t familiar with cryptocurrencies in general, then it might be a good idea to read some of the following articles:

• Learn more about the basics of bitcoin: What Is Bitcoin – Everything You Need to Know
• Learn more about bitcoin with the help of an informative infographic: What Is Bitcoin and Where Can You Buy It? An Infographic!
• Learn more about the blockchain technology: What Is Blockchain Technology and How Does It Work?

Wallets with a Transparent Zcash Address

Zcash has two types of address:

• a Z-address type zcash address is fully private (aka “shielded”) and uses something called a zero-knowledge proving system to shield a transaction and balance privacy,
• a T-address type zcash address (aka “transparent address”), which is similar to a bitcoin address.

We will first take a look at transparent ZEC wallets as they are generally easier to use, but most of them come with the caveat that they only allow transparent transactions.

Hardware ZEC Wallets

Zcash Wallet: Ledger Nano S

How to save your Zcash? We already talked about Ledger on a number of occasions, but it gets our recommendation once more. It is a hardware wallet that supports more than 20 of the most popular cryptocurrencies, and zcash is one of them.

As with dash, Ledger offers a detailed description of how to set up a zec wallet. We’re basically following the same procedure as with dash.

In summary – How to save ZEC?

1. After you properly set up your Ledger device, go and add the Ledger Wallet Bitcoin extension to your Chrome browser. This might be an inconvenience if you don’t use Chrome (or Chromium), but the extension is legitimate and safe to use.
2. Download and install the Ledger Manager application. This is required to download and install the Zcash app on your Ledger device.
3. You can use this app to send and receive zcash transactions and check your balance. The app is secure to use as it can be opened only by connecting your Nano S to your computer via USB. Without the device, the app won’t launch. But it is still a good idea to make sure that your computer isn’t infected by running a good antivirus.

For every withdrawal (sending transaction), the application will ask you to verify it on your Nano. The device will display all the necessary information about the transaction which includes the amount, recipient address and gas rate you will have to manually sign by confirming everything is alright on the device.

Zcash Wallet: Trezor

Aside from Ledger, Trezor is another very popular hardware wallet choice. Both devices are fairly similar in some ways and different in others. You can watch the following video to see how to set up Ledger for use with cryptocurrencies like zcash.

Please keep in mind that Ledger and Trezor wallets only support T-addresses. This is due to the hardware limitations of the devices and the special requirements of Z-addresses.

Website ZEC Wallets

Website wallets are generally less secure than hardware wallets, but they can be a very useful tool if you handle them correctly and make sure that your computer is clean from any viruses. Let’s take a look at a couple of the best and easiest to use zec wallets — by our personal choice and not endorsed.

Zcash Wallet: Exodus

Exodus is one of the most popular web wallets, supporting more than 50 cryptocurrencies. They recently added support for zcash, which was long overdue by most sentiments in the crypto community as zcash has been among the top cryptocurrencies by market cap for a long time.

Zcash Wallet: Guarda

The Guarda Zcash wallet is only available on Android. If you have an Android device, download the Guarda wallet app and set it up. The main benefit of the app is that it is easy to use. It is also fairly secure as it provides a full user-control of private keys and assets. It can backup and restore the wallet any time and check your current balance in fiat currencies. Our users will undoubtedly be glad to hear that it also provides multiple languages, such as German, Italian, French, Spanish and more.

Zcash Wallet: Kriptomat Exchange (coming soon)

Exchange wallets the easiest to set up because all you have to do is create an account on the exchange that supports zcash. It is very simple to generate a zcash address to buy, sell or store zcash.

The Kriptomat Exchange is planning to list zcash in the near future, and with it, support for a secure online storage of ZEC.

Wallets with a Private Zcash Address

The three wallets described below support zcash private addresses by running the Zcash client and a full network node on your computer. These wallets are a lot more difficult to set-up and use.

The Zcash company has official support for only Linux and they currently have no intentions to officially support other operating systems. They can only vouch for their own Linux zec wallet, but the community does a good job of reviewing the third-party software. In any case, we advise everyone to still practice caution and care by doing the due diligence of any software that you decide to use.

Zcash Wallet: Linux

As mentioned earlier, the official Zcash client is built only for Linux operating system. Installing and managing this wallet consequently requires more technical knowledge, not only because of the less widely used Linux (which we believe is the case among our readers) but also because the wallet doesn’t have a graphical user interface (GUI). This means that you have to use command line terminals, which probably aren’t for everyone. Follow the link above for a step-by-step guide on how to use this zec wallet.

Please keep in mind that you need at least 2GB of RAM to generate shielded zcash transactions.

Zcash Wallet: Windows

The Windows version is open source and created by David Mercer. Keep in mind that you can’t install WinZEC if Zcash4win (one of the older versions of a zec wallet for windows) is already installed. You will have to uninstall Zcash4win before you can proceed with WinZEC installation.

Zcash Wallet: Mac

In addition to Linux and Windows wallets, there is also an option to have a Mac zec wallet. Kozyilmaz is the most up-to-date Apple Mac version, but it also requires a lot of technical know-how.

Pick your wallet carefully based on your needs and stay safe!

NOTE

The text is informative in nature and does not count as an investment recommendation. It does not express the personal opinion of the author or service. Any investment or trading is risky, past returns are not a guarantee for future returns – risk only those assets that you are willing to lose.

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