Buying Cryptocurrency

This guide will walk you through buying your first cryptocurrency on the Paxful marketplace in just three easy steps. If you're looking to create your offer instead, check out our article on how to create offers.

Step 1: DEFINE YOUR SEARCH CRITERIA

1. Sign in or create an account on Paxful. Hover over the Buy button and select your preferred cryptocurrency. This will open a page displaying current offers to buy that cryptocurrency.

2. Click the Show All or Any Payment Method dropdown and choose your preferred payment option in the dialog box that appears.

Alternatively, select View offers for all payment options to browse a complete list of available payment methods.

3. Click Any Currency to choose your preferred currency. In the Any amount field, enter the amount you wish to trade, or leave it blank if you’re open to any amount.

4. Choose your country from the Location dropdown.

5. Click Find Offers. The list will refresh to show offers that match your selected criteria.

Step 2: CHOOSE AN OFFER

1. Browse the available offers. At the top of the list, you'll see:

• Sellers with the highest ratings and strongest reputations

• Sellers who are most active and available for instant trades

• Offers with the best profit margins

Review the tags and labels for extra details about each offer. Once you find one that suits your needs, click Buy to proceed.

Note: Your trade hasn’t started yet at this point.

The Offer page will then open.

Carefully review all the offer details, including:

• Buying limits: Is the trade amount within your acceptable range?

• Seller’s rate: Is the exchange rate favorable for you?

• Time limit: Can you complete the payment within the allotted time?

• Offer terms: Does the seller require any specific documents or have special conditions for the trade?

2. Enter the amount you wish to trade in either the traditional currency field or the cryptocurrency field, then click Buy Now.
 

If you're unsure about any step, click Take a Tour for a guided walkthrough of the process.

The Trade Chat page will then appear.

Note: At the moment when the trade starts, the cryptocurrency rate is fixed and will not fluctuate.

Step 3: TRADING

1. Use the trade chat to communicate with your trading partner, go over the necessary details, and follow their instructions closely.

2. Make the payment and click Paid.

3. The self-declaration dialog box then appears. Click Paid.

Note:

You can cancel the trade at any time by clicking the Cancel button.

However, do not cancel the trade if you've already made a valid payment. Canceling in this case will release the cryptocurrency from escrow and return it to the seller. Instead, click Dispute to freeze the crypto in escrow and alert our moderators, who will step in to help resolve the issue.

Only cancel a trade if you haven’t made a payment yet or if you disagree with the seller’s terms.

If you encounter any issues or disagreements during the trade, use the Dispute button to request moderator assistance.

Once the seller confirms payment, they will release the cryptocurrency from escrow to your Paxful wallet — completing the trade successfully.

💡TIP:

• Once the seller releases the cryptocurrency from escrow into your Paxful wallet, consider leaving feedback. This helps other traders get a sense of who they’re dealing with.
• To make future trades easier, click "Click to add Username to your contacts" to add the user to your Trade Partners list. This can help you build a network of trusted traders.
• If you need a public receipt of the BTC transaction, simply click Public receipt at the bottom of the page.

If you need any assistance from our Support team, do not hesitate to contact us. Check out this article on How to Contact Support.