One of the first questions anyone entering the cryptocurrency world has is “What can I buy with Bitcoin?”.
First, it is worth mentioning that although Bitcoin is evolving as an alternative store of value to traditional assets (gold being one of them), it was actually born as a means of payment.
Satoshi Nakamoto’s original goal put down in the whitepaper was to make it a form of electronic money for online payments.
In this sense, Bitcoin is widely used.
To begin with, it is possible to use Bitcoin to do online shopping as well as purchases in physical shops.
There are a number of platforms that allow you to locate online and offline shops that accept bitcoin, among them:
- Coinmap: is an actual map where you can enter your location and find places that accept bitcoin divided into various categories, from ATMs to clubs and shops.
- UseBitcoins.info: is a site that divides the categories where to spend Bitcoin on goods, services and leisure. From work to games, this platform lists everything.
- Spendabit: This is almost like an ecommerce platform: simply type in what you are looking for (e.g. Smartphone), and the platform redirects you to all possible smartphones that you can buy online (on other sites) and pay for with Bitcoin.
What can I buy with Bitcoin? From consoles to travel
In addition to the aggregation platforms of various websites and services, there are large and important companies that allow making purchases with Bitcoin.
For example, Microsoft‘s payment systems include the ability to pay with Bitcoin.
Travel can also be booked with Bitcoin. Not only Travala, which was created to allow cryptocurrency payments, but also the Expedia portal now accepts Bitcoin.
In the world of e-commerce, Amazon does not yet allow Bitcoin payments. But Shopify does. Etsy also accepts payments in Bitcoin. So does Overstock.
And then there is the restaurant supply chain. Some chains have started to accept Bitcoin as a payment system, as in the case of Domino’s Pizza or Pizza Hut.
It has to be said that everything depends on the countries where you are. Not all legislations allow cryptocurrency payments.
Curious thing
You can truly buy anything with Bitcoin. Even funerals. Indeed, Crescent Tide, a funeral service in Minnesota, United States, allows people to pay for funerals using cryptocurrencies.
Ultimately, shopping with Bitcoin has never been easier and more inclusive.
