There are several emerging coins in the crypto market and each of them holds different values and features. As more people invest in these, more countries adopt their use as they embrace its massive potential. With the rise of assets such as Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), and Ripple (XRP), people can enjoy the advantages these coins provide.
Investors should constantly secure the protection of their crypto coins, regardless of what they have invested in. That way, they won’t have to be worried about losing a huge amount of money in the long run. There are several ways people can protect their crypto coins. This includes storing them in a crypto wallet.
A cryptocurrency wallet is a type of digital storage or device that protects private keys and assets. It allows users to spend, spend, and receive crypto safely. There are a lot of crypto wallets online and two of them are MetaMask and Coinbase. For those who are caught up in choosing between the two, here is a side-by-side MetaMask vs Coinbase comparison that will help determine which of the two is a better wallet.
What is MetaMask?
MetaMask is a popular browser extension that works similar to an Ethereum wallet because it’s linked to the popular blockchain. This wallet gives users access to the Ethereum ecosystem, including a number of decentralized applications (dApps). To safeguard the safety of their coins, users can use MetaMask’s key vault, acquire their wallet address, and secure log-in methods.
It was founded in 2016 by Aaron Davis and ConsenSys, a blockchain software technology company. Now, it’s recognized as one of the best Ethereum wallets for decentralized exchanges (DEX), gaming sites, and other services quickly. This crypto wallet has also surpassed over a million users in 2021.
What is Coinbase?
The Coinbase Wallet is a non-custodial or self-custodial wallet widely recognized as one of the best mobile wallets on both Android and iOS app stores. What users should keep in mind is that Coinbase Wallet is not the same as Coinbase.com.
The latter is a cryptocurrency exchange that uses a wallet to store the user’s private keys on a server, whilst the former does it on a user’s mobile device. Coinbase Wallet is also available as a desktop browser plugin that is supported on Google Chrome and Brave.
Similarities
Aside from being known as beginner-friendly wallets, these two renowned crypto wallets have several features in common. Some of them are:
- By having an account on any of these two, crypto holders can use separate devices to access their accounts, all while keeping their private keys safe. This serves as a protection against hackers.
- Both MetaMask and Coinbase Wallet can hold Ether (ETH) and ERC-20 tokens, which are Ethereum-based coins. They also offer interfaces for interacting with Ethereum-based applications, allowing users to access DeFi services.
- Given that both of them function as browser extensions, they allow users to connect to Web3.0, a blockchain-based decentralized version of the internet.
Differences
Though the two may have shared a handful of similarities, MetaMask and Coinbase are different in several ways. To learn which one is a better option, here are some of their differences that investors should know:
- MetaMask is an open-source wallet while Coinbase is closed-source. This means that MetaMask’s codes can be checked and supported by its community so that some can propose some tweaks if necessary. Meanwhile, Coinbase only allows its users to contact their customer support for any concerns.
- MetaMask is only exclusive to Ethereum while Coinbase supports several other cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC), Bitcoin Cash (BCH), Ripple (XRP), and Dogecoin (DOGE).
- MetaMask uses a hard drive to protect its users’ private keys. Meanwhile, Coinbase Wallet uses 2-factor authentication and time-based one-time passwords (TOTP).
These are just some interesting information that crypto holders should know about these two reputable crypto wallets. Regardless of what option users think won the MetaMask vs Coinbase comparisons, there is no doubt that their assets will be kept safe by using any of these two.