Bitcoin is the most popular cryptocurrency on the market, and its reputation as a digital currency is growing as time goes by. There are many businesses and nonprofits around the world that accept Bitcoin (BTC) payments and donations. We put together a list of reputable companies that accept BTC, in order to give you a sense of the digital currency’s reach, and how it is shaping the future of money:
Major Companies and Retailers that Accept Bitcoin
Overstock
Overstock is the first major US retailer that started accepting Bitcoin. Overstock is an online market where you can find everything you need for your home, from furniture to clothing, jewelry, and pet supplies. Overstock invested in blockchain technology early on, blazing the trail for many other stores that would follow its footsteps to a cryptocurrency retail revolution.
PayPal
It’s only natural that the internet’s favorite payment processor company, PayPal, joined the crypto-sphere, considering it has always been one step ahead of the competition when it comes to digital payments. PayPal allows US customers to make payments with Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Litecoin, and Ethereum. PayPal provides an advantage to business owners as well, since it offers lower cryptocurrency transaction fees than the fees credit card companies charge.
Venmo
Our favourite social payment app now supports digital currency purchases! Following in the footsteps of its parent company PayPal, Venmo rolled out a crypto program earlier this year, in collaboration with the trading service provider Paxos. All verified US users can buy Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Litecoin and Ethereum with the Venmo App. Venmo credit card users also have the chance to use their cash backs to buy crypto without paying any transaction fees. The program is being rolled out gradually, so don’t worry if you haven’t seen the option on your app yet!
BitPay
BitPay is a payment processing company that facilitates payments with Bitcoin. You can buy gift cards with BTC for several companies on the BitPay website, including Amazon. BitPay also has its own cryptocurrency wallet and offers a BitPay prepaid MastercCard. You can connect BitPay Mastercard to your BitPay crypto wallet and convert your Bitcoin funds to USD to load the prepaid card and spend your funds on anything you want to!anywhere that accepts MasterCard.
Social media darling Twitter announced in September 2021 that it is rolling out a new tipping feature on its app, allowing users to send bitcoins to their favorite creators as tips! Twitter has been testing its tips feature since May 2021 and the feature will roll out globally in the upcoming weeks. Apple iOS users are expected to be able to send Bitcoin tips as early as October 2021, and Android users will quickly follow suit. Thanks to Twitter’s integration with the Strike Bitcoin Lighting wallet, users will be able to add Bitcoin addresses to their profiles and send BTC to support each other.
American Red Cross
The American Red Cross is a non-profit organization that provides disaster relief and emergency aid during natural and man-made disasters such as hurricanes, accidents, and explosions. You can donate Bitcoin to the American Red Cross through BitPay, one of the biggest cryptocurrency payment services in the world. BitPay also facilitates payments with Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, and a few other altcoins.
Newegg
International electronics supplier Newegg is one of the first companies that started accepting Bitcoin and other digital currencies as payment. As the American Red Cross, Newegg uses the BitPay infrastructure to accept Bitcoin payments. While you can’t use BitPay for subscription orders or pre-orders, pretty much everything else is available. Just keep in mind that all sales through BitPay are final. You can read about its terms and conditions here.
NordstromFlexa
The Gemini-supported Flexa app allows cryptocurrency users to spend their Bitcoins on more than 40,000 locations across the US. Users can download the Flexa app from Google Play or Apple Store and integrate their cryptocurrency funds to Flexa’s wallet in order to make purchases simply by scanning QR codes on their mobile phones. Whole Foods did a test run on the app, and you can use digital currencies to shop from Nordstrom and Dunkin Donuts. You can download the Flexa app to see the full list of locations where you can spend your Bitcoins.
Etsy
The independent trading platform Etsy allows sellers to accept cryptocurrency payments if they wish to do so. If you see that your favorite handcrafts store allows “other” payment methods, there is a chance that they accept Bitcoin payments too. Message the seller to inquire whether they accept digital currencies and they can easily provide you with a Bitcoin address.
Rakuten
Rakuten launched its own cryptocurrency payment service in 2021. Rakuten customers in Japan can trade Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Bitcoin Cash for Rakuten Cash without paying fees, and use their Rakuten points to shop for online and offline services throughout Japan. Previously, Rakuten charged 300 Yens on bank transfers.
AirBaltic
AirBaltic Airlines started accepting Bitcoin for their services back in 2014 and they are still going strong. The airline offers cheap flights across Europe and the Middle East. You can buy flight tickets from AirBaltic with your Bitcoin through BitPay.
ExpressVPN
ExpressVPN is a popular virtual private network service that ensures your online privacy. It is also one of the rare subscription services that accept Bitcoin as payment. ExpressVPN accepts Bitcoin for yearly subscriptions. You can get a 12-month plan that comes down to an average of $8.32 per month. Payments can be made through BitPay.
Wikipedia
We can’t praise the world’s largest open-source encyclopedia enough, but those who really appreciate this free resource can support it by making Bitcoin donations! Wikimedia Foundation, the parent company that runs the free encyclopedia accepts Bitcoin donations through BitPay.
Gyft
Gyft is a digital gift card platform that accepts Bitcoin. You can buy gift cards from over 200 retailers with Bitcoin through the platform, including Target, Starbucks, and Whole Foods. Gyft doesn’t charge additional fees for Bitcoin payments.
AMC
AMC entertainment owns the world’s largest movie theater chain. The AMC CEO, Adam Aron, has announced plans for accepting Bitcoin payments for movie tickets. AMC’s US theatres are expected to start accepting Bitcoin towards the end of 2021.
Amazon Gift Cards
While Amazon itself doesn’t accept Bitcoin, you can still use BTC to buy Amazon gift cards at Purse.io. Purse is a marketplace that meets Bitcoin owners with gift card sellers. The platform has a handy search engine that allows you to search for any Amazon product, or better yet, allows you to copy the product link directly to the search bar.
Walmart
Finally, Walmart recently posted a job opening on its website back in August, seeking to hire a blockchain expert responsible for developing a cryptocurrency project for the US based retail giant. The position will be responsible for planning ‘crypto-related investment and partnerships,’ opportunities for Walmart. The official posting is now closed, presumably because they already hired the expert they are looking for! We think a cryptocurrency future for Walmart might be on the horizon very soon.
Here’s an important tip
If you are looking for a specific product to buy with your cryptocurrency, or if you are merely curious about whether your favorite brands are available to buy with Bitcoin, check out the spendabit search engine to discover the wealth of available options for spending your BTC.
A Few Words Before You Go…
New ways of incorporating blockchain and digital currencies into retail structures are emerging every day, encouraging retailers to consider accepting Bitcoin as the technological infrastructure evolves and the public demand increases. The numbers are already growing and we will make sure to update you when that happens.
Hopefully, now you have a better understanding of where you can use Bitcoin as a digital payment method. There are thousands of online and offline retailers around the world that accept these payments and the numbers are growing every day.
If you want to learn more about Bitcoin and how it can change the way you handle your finances, get in touch with our Coin IRA crypto specialists who can help you put together a cryptocurrency portfolio.