Thinking about getting started on your journey HODLing Bitcoin? Good for you. But how does someone actually get exposure to this cryptocurrency without breaking the bank?
The most straightforward ways of getting BTC are as follows: receiving it as a reward for mining, or using existing capital to buy some. The first option is quite out of reach for newcomers in 2021, but the second is easier than it ever has been before. With 100,000,000 satoshis in each BTC, the cryptocurrency is extremely granular and easy to add to your portfolio at any scale.
But what if you’re not ready to drop money yet? What if you want to dip your toes in before taking the plunge?
I’ll be sharing three ways to get Bitcoin without mining or investing. (And also without taking it as payment.) These won’t make you rich anytime soon (well, unless BTC moons beyond all human comprehension), but they’re perfect for whetting your appetite.
Play games that offer Bitcoin rewards
There are games that either directly give you BTC, or have an in-game currency readily exchangeable for it. Spells of Genesis is one such game — the very first blockchain-based mobile game ever made, they say on their site. If you’re a fan of point-and-shoot arcade games and enjoy games with collectible in-game items, then definitely give it a shot! (No pun intended.) Cards in this game can be withdrawn to an Ethereum wallet and sold on digital marketplaces.
Also check out this list of other cryptocurrency games here! There’s also Blockchain Poker, which will let you play for free using tiny amounts of Bitcoin Cash (BCH).
Watch videos and click ads
Remember those sites that let you get quick cash by viewing sponsored material? The same exists for Bitcoin. Participating in a “Bitcoin faucet” has a very low barrier of entry, and only requires you having some time to kill. Making a handful of satoshis on the toilet seat is better than nothing, I guess?
Usually, these sites only let you withdraw after a certain amount of accrued satoshi. Otherwise, there’s no way they’d be able to operate profitably. The flip side is that if you go into one of these, you should commit to collecting enough satoshi to actually cash out. Otherwise, you’ll end up feeling like you wasted your time. Like I did while researching for this article.
Use a Bitcoin rewards app
Imagine getting cashback in the form of Bitcoin… well, that’s possible using these apps. With partners like Wal-Mart, Amazon, Burger King, Macy’s, and Uber, there’s probably at least a few opportunities available on these apps for you to get a nice little bonus the next time you go to checkout.
The trick is to not change your spending habits, and just use one of these apps to get some easy rewards for your everyday purchases. Otherwise, you might as well have put the wasted money directly into BTC.
As they say, time is money. And it’s doubtful that any of these options are really worth those precious seconds, minutes, and hours of your life. Really, you’d probably get orders of magnitude more Bitcoin from just working a part-time job for the same amount of time.
But for those who just want a little taste of crypto — and for those who want to see what creative crypto-related applications there are out there — trying out these three ways to get free Bitcoin might be a fun experience, at least. And who knows, maybe stacking the first few sats will get the train going for you!
