Electrum

Electrum is the original and longest-running Bitcoin-only SPV (Simplified Payment Verification) wallet — launched in November 2011 by Thomas Voegtlin (ThomasV), in continuous open-source development for 15+ years (2011–2026), maintained under the spesmilo/electrum GitHub organization (MIT-licensed, 100% open-source) by Electrum Technologies GmbH. The official Electrum website headline (July 2026): "Latest release: Electrum-4.8.0" + "Our executables are reproducible, and are signed independently by several builders." + "Warning: Do not download Electrum from a source other than electrum.org. Verify GPG signatures." Electrum's positioning in this directory: the gold-standard Bitcoin-only wallet for power users, cold-storage, and privacy — the wallet of choice for Bitcoin maximalists, long-term hodlers, and users who want the most mature, most audited, longest-running Bitcoin software wallet with full control over fees, UTXOs, multisig, PSBT (hardware-wallet signing), and the Lightning Network.

Electrum is Bitcoin-only by design — it does NOT support Ethereum, EVM, Solana, or any altcoins. This is a deliberate philosophical choice: Electrum's laser focus on Bitcoin allows it to be the most feature-complete and most secure Bitcoin wallet in existence, with deep Bitcoin-specific features (full RBF replace-by-fee, CPFP child-pays-for-parent, full coin control, multisig, PSBT, watch-only + offline-mode cold-storage signing, custom derivation paths, custom fee in sat/vB) that multi-coin wallets (Coinomi, Atomic Wallet, Trust Wallet, OKX Wallet, Bitget Wallet) cannot match on the Bitcoin side. For users who only hold Bitcoin and want the strongest Bitcoin-custody tool, Electrum is the recommended pick in this directory; for users who hold Bitcoin + altcoins + EVM, Coinomi is the recommended multi-coin alternative with the strongest Bitcoin ecosystem support (SegWit + UTXO control + Trusted Node), and OKX Wallet is the recommended exchange-affiliated multi-chain alternative.

Electrum's core architecture is SPV (light wallet) — the wallet does NOT download the full Bitcoin blockchain; instead it connects to Electrum servers (ElectrumX in Python or Electrs in Rust — both open-source server implementations, runnable by anyone including the user themselves for maximum privacy + sovereignty) that index the Bitcoin UTXO set and answer the wallet's balance + transaction queries. This makes Electrum fast to set up (no multi-hour IBD sync like Bitcoin Core) while still being non-custodial (private keys stay on the user's device; the servers cannot steal funds because they don't have the keys). For users who want maximum privacy + sovereignty, Electrum can connect to the user's own Electrum server (ElectrumX or Electrs run on the user's hardware) — a feature called "running your own Electrum server" documented in the official Install Guide.

Electrum is desktop-first with native apps on Windows (10 1809+, x86_64 — standalone .exe + installer + portable), macOS (11+), and Linux (AppImage x86_64, glibc 2.31+, plus Python source install). An Android app (8.0+ — APK + Google Play + F-Droid) was added in 2019; there is no iOS app. This is a different platform profile than Coinomi (iOS + Android + Desktop) and Atomic Wallet (iOS + Android + Desktop) — Electrum is desktop-first with optional Android, no iOS. The desktop app is the flagship; the Android app is a port of the same codebase with the same Bitcoin features (multisig, PSBT, RBF, CPFP, custom fees, Electrum-server switching).

Electrum is the recommended pick in this directory for users who specifically want: (a) the oldest and most battle-tested Bitcoin wallet (2011 launch, 15+ years of continuous open-source development, never hacked at the wallet level), (b) 100% open-source with reproducible builds + multi-signer GPG signatures (executables signed by ThomasV + SomberNight + Emzy + felixb_f321x + svanstaa independently — the strongest supply-chain-security posture in this directory), (c) full Bitcoin power-user features (custom sat/vB fees, RBF, CPFP, UTXO coin control, m-of-n multisig, PSBT hardware-wallet signing, watch-only + offline cold-storage signing, custom derivation paths), (d) Lightning Network support (built-in since version 4.0, late 2021), (e) self-run Electrum server for maximum privacy (connect to the user's own ElectrumX or Electrs server). For users who want a multi-coin wallet (Bitcoin + altcoins + EVM) instead, the recommended alternatives in this directory are Coinomi (longest track record + no reported hacks + multi-coin), OKX Wallet (exchange-affiliated + 130+ chains), Bitget Wallet, and Rabby (EVM-only + 100% open-source). For users who want hardware-wallet cold-storage custody of their Bitcoin private keys, Electrum pairs natively with Ledger, Trezor, BitBox02, Coldcard (via HWI), KeepKey, and Digital Bitbox — see also our full hardware wallets directory at /best-hardware-wallets for the hardware-wallet-only cold-storage option.

Bitcoin-only SPV wallet — light + fast + non-custodial

Electrum is a Simplified Payment Verification (SPV) light Bitcoin wallet — it does NOT download the full Bitcoin blockchain (no multi-hour IBD sync like Bitcoin Core); instead it connects to Electrum servers (ElectrumX in Python or Electrs in Rust) that index the Bitcoin UTXO set and answer the wallet's balance + transaction queries. This makes Electrum fast to set up (seconds) while keeping private keys on the user's device (non-custodial — the servers cannot steal funds because they don't have the keys). For users who want maximum privacy + sovereignty, Electrum can connect to the user's own self-run Electrum server (ElectrumX / Electrs) — a feature documented in the official "How to run your own Electrum server" Install Guide on github.com/spesmilo/electrumx/blob/master/docs/HOWTO.rst. This is materially stronger Bitcoin privacy than Coinomi's "Trusted Node" (Coinomi connects to a user-owned full Bitcoin node; Electrum's SPV architecture + self-run server is the most private Bitcoin-light-wallet setup available).

Full custom fee control — sat/vB + RBF + CPFP

Electrum has the strongest Bitcoin fee control of any wallet in this directory. The user can: (a) set custom transaction fees in sat/vB (satoshis per virtual byte) directly, with a slider + manual entry + a real-time mempool-aware fee estimation; (b) use RBF (Replace-by-Fee) — bump the fee on a stuck unconfirmed transaction by replacing it with a higher-fee version; (c) use CPFP (Child-Pays-For-Parent) — spend an unconfirmed parent output with a high-fee child transaction to bump the effective fee of the parent. Coinomi, Atomic Wallet, OKX Wallet, Bitget Wallet, and Trust Wallet all have weaker Bitcoin fee control than Electrum. For Bitcoin power users who need precise fee control during network congestion, Electrum is the recommended pick.

UTXO coin control — full privacy + spending control

Electrum has full UTXO coin control — the user can manually select which specific UTXOs (unspent outputs) to spend in a transaction. This allows: (a) privacy control — spend only UTXOs that aren't linked to the user's identity, leave dusting-attack UTXOs unspent, freeze (Do-Not-Spend) specific UTXOs; (b) fee optimization — spend only low-value UTXOs that would otherwise bloat a future transaction; (c) address-type preservation — spend only SegWit (Bech32) UTXOs to keep transactions SegWit-only for fee efficiency. This is materially stronger Bitcoin coin control than Coinomi (which has basic UTXO control — dusting attack protection + Do-Not-Spend flags), and stronger than Atomic Wallet, OKX Wallet, Bitget Wallet, and Trust Wallet which have no coin control.

m-of-n multisig — full BIP-67 + PSBT support

Electrum has the most mature multisig implementation in this directory. The user can create m-of-n multisig wallets (e.g. 2-of-3, 3-of-5) where multiple keys (held on different devices / by different people / on different hardware wallets) are required to spend. Electrum supports: (a) cosigner key import (the user adds each cosigner's xpub / extended public key); (b) full BIP-67 (sorted-multipath multisig) for compatibility with other multisig wallets; (c) PSBT (Partially-Signed Bitcoin Transactions, BIP-174) — the signer wallet can produce a PSBT, the cosigner wallets sign independently (potentially on offline hardware wallets), and the final fully-signed transaction is broadcast. For advanced multisig custody setups (institutional custody, family inheritance, collaborative custody), Electrum + Sparrow Wallet are the leading open-source Bitcoin multisig wallets.

Hardware-wallet pairing — Ledger + Trezor + BitBox02 + Coldcard + KeepKey + Digital Bitbox

Electrum has the broadest hardware-wallet pairing support in this directory. Per the Electrum documentation, the following hardware wallets are supported natively via the HWI (Hardware Wallet Interface) standard: Ledger (Nano S, Nano S Plus, Nano X), Trezor (One, Safe 3, Safe 5), BitBox02 (Multi-edition), Coldcard (Mk3, Mk4, Q), KeepKey, Digital Bitbox, and several others. The user's seed phrase stays on the hardware wallet (cold storage); Electrum creates a watching-only wallet on the online computer and the hardware wallet signs transactions via PSBT. This is the recommended setup for high-value Bitcoin holdings — hardware-wallet cold-storage custody is materially more secure than any software hot wallet. See also our full hardware wallets directory at /best-hardware-wallets.

Cold-storage signing — offline mode + watch-only wallet

Electrum has a built-in cold-storage signing workflow separate from hardware-wallet pairing: (a) the user creates an "offline" wallet on an air-gapped computer (no internet, never connects to the network) — this wallet holds the seed phrase; (b) the user creates a "watching-only" wallet on the online computer — this wallet holds only the public xpub (no private keys), connects to Electrum servers, and constructs unsigned transactions; (c) the watching-only wallet exports an unsigned transaction (PSBT or unsigned hex), the user transfers it to the offline wallet (USB stick, QR code), the offline wallet signs it, the user transfers the signed transaction back to the online computer, and the online computer broadcasts it. This is the gold-standard cold-storage workflow for users who don't have a hardware wallet but want cold-storage custody of their Bitcoin private keys.

Lightning Network support — built-in since v4.0

Electrum has built-in Lightning Network support since version 4.0 (released late 2021). The user can open Lightning channels, send + receive Lightning payments, and manage channel liquidity directly inside Electrum — no separate Lightning daemon (LND, c-lightning, Eclair) required. Electrum's Lightning implementation is a built-in LND-like node that uses the same Electrum server infrastructure for on-chain UTXO queries. This makes Electrum one of the few Bitcoin wallets in this directory that combines on-chain + Lightning in a single desktop app (alongside Phoenix, Blixt, Breez, Mutiny, and Zeus). For users who specifically want Lightning, Electrum is the recommended desktop pick; Phoenix + Breez are the recommended mobile picks.

100% open-source + reproducible builds + multi-signer GPG signatures

Per the official Electrum website (July 2026): "Our executables are reproducible, and are signed independently by several builders." + "The current executables have been signed by ThomasV, SomberNight, Emzy, felixb_f321x, svanstaa." Electrum's supply-chain-security posture is the strongest in this directory: (a) the source code is 100% open-source MIT-licensed at github.com/spesmilo/electrum — anyone can audit it; (b) the binaries are reproducible — anyone can rebuild the binary from source and verify it byte-for-byte matches the official binary, so the user doesn't have to trust the binary distributor; (c) the binaries are signed with GPG signatures by 5 independent builders (ThomasV the founder + SomberNight the lead maintainer + Emzy + felixb_f321x + svanstaa) — the user can verify any binary against any of these 5 keys via independent Web-of-Trust channels; (d) the website warns "Do not download Electrum from a source other than electrum.org. Verify GPG signatures." — the team actively educates users on supply-chain security (Electrum has been a frequent target of fake-download phishing sites since 2018, and the team's response is to educate users on GPG verification rather than to weaken the verification model). This is materially stronger than every other wallet in this directory, including MetaMask (open-source but no reproducible builds + no multi-signer GPG signatures) + Rabby (100% open-source but no reproducible builds + no multi-signer GPG signatures) + Coinomi (closed-source) + Atomic Wallet (closed-source + had the 2023 hack).

Custom derivation paths + BIP-39 + Electrum mnemonic seeds

Electrum supports custom BIP-32 / BIP-44 derivation paths — the user can specify any derivation path (m/44'/0'/0', m/49'/0'/0', m/84'/0'/0', m/86'/0'/0', etc.) for any wallet. This is essential for compatibility with other wallets and with hardware wallets that use different derivation paths. Electrum uses its own 12-word mnemonic seed format (Electrum "versioned seeds") that includes a version byte + a checksum word — this is stronger than standard BIP-39 seeds because the version byte lets Electrum migrate the wallet to new address types (legacy → SegWit → Taproot) without losing the seed phrase compatibility. Electrum also supports standard BIP-39 seeds (the same 12-word / 24-word seed phrase format used by MetaMask + Coinomi + Atomic + OKX Wallet + Bitget Wallet + Trust Wallet) when the user explicitly selects "BIP-39 seed" at wallet creation — so users restoring a BIP-39 seed from another wallet can restore it in Electrum with the correct derivation path.

Address types — legacy + Nested SegWit (P2SH-P2WPKH) + Native SegWit (Bech32) + Taproot (P2TR)

Electrum supports all four Bitcoin address types: (a) Legacy (P2PKH) — addresses starting with "1", the original Bitcoin address format, highest fees; (b) Nested SegWit / P2SH-P2WPKH — addresses starting with "3", SegWit wrapped in P2SH, medium fees, broad compatibility; (c) Native SegWit / Bech32 (P2WPKH) — addresses starting with "bc1q", lowest fees, the recommended format for new wallets; (d) Taproot (P2TR) — addresses starting with "bc1p", lowest fees + improved privacy + improved multisig, the newest format (BIP-341, activated Nov 2021). Electrum added Taproot support in version 4.3 (2022). The user can switch between address types within the same wallet (via custom derivation paths). This is the broadest address-type coverage in this directory, ahead of Coinomi (legacy + SegWit + Bech32, no Taproot) and Atomic Wallet (legacy + SegWit, no explicit Bech32 + Taproot support).

Self-custodial SPV light wallet — private keys never leave the device

Electrum is non-custodial SPV (Simplified Payment Verification) software — private keys are stored AES-256 encrypted on the user's device (desktop: encrypted local file; Android: secure enclave / Android Keystore). Electrum (the company / the ElectrumX server operators) has no access to user private keys. Same recovery model as MetaMask + Coinomi + Atomic — losing the seed phrase is unrecoverable. The wallet app-level PIN / password unlocks the wallet; a watch-only wallet (public-xpub-only, no private keys) has no PIN requirement by design.

15+ year never-hacked track record (longest in this directory)

Electrum was launched in November 2011 by Thomas Voegtlin (ThomasV) and has been in continuous open-source development for 15+ years (2011–2026). In that time, no user has lost funds due to a wallet-level vulnerability in Electrum itself — the longest never-hacked-at-wallet-level track record in this directory (Coinomi since 2014 with no reported hacks comes second). Important context: Electrum users HAVE been the target of two well-known attack waves — but neither involved a wallet-level vulnerability: (1) 2018–2019 fake-Electrum phishing — malware posing as Electrum (downloaded from fake sites that mimicked electrum.org) stole seed phrases from users who installed the malicious software; Electrum's response was to publish the "Do not download Electrum from a source other than electrum.org. Verify GPG signatures" warning prominently on the official site and to publish the GPG-signature verification workflow for every binary — this supply-chain-security education is the strongest in this directory; (2) 2019 DoS bug in an older Electrum version — a bug in Electrum 2.7–3.3 allowed malicious Electrum servers to crash the client; Electrum patched this in version 4.0 (2019). Neither of these was a wallet-level private-key theft. Electrum itself has never had a private-key theft at the wallet-code level.

100% open-source MIT-licensed — the strongest community-audit posture

Electrum is 100% open-source under the MIT license — the full source code is at github.com/spesmilo/electrum, anyone can read it, audit it, fork it, or rebuild the binary from source. This is materially stronger than Coinomi (closed-source), Atomic Wallet (closed-source + had the 2023 hack), and the partial-open-source model of OKX Wallet + Bitget Wallet + Trust Wallet + Phantom. Only MetaMask (open-source MIT) and Rabby (100% open-source) come close; even those don't have Electrum's reproducible-builds + multi-signer GPG-signatures posture (below).

Reproducible builds + multi-signer GPG signatures — strongest supply-chain security in this directory

Per the official Electrum website (July 2026): "Our executables are reproducible, and are signed independently by several builders. The current executables have been signed by ThomasV, SomberNight, Emzy, felixb_f321x, svanstaa." This is materially stronger than every other wallet in this directory, for two reasons: (a) reproducible builds mean anyone can rebuild the official binary from the open-source code and byte-for-byte verify it matches the published binary — so the user doesn't have to trust the binary distributor (the binary is mathematically tied to the open-source code); (b) multi-signer GPG signatures mean the same binary is independently signed by 5 different builders (the founder + the lead maintainer + 3 long-time contributors) — the user verifies the binary against any / all of these 5 keys via independent Web-of-Trust channels, so even if one signer's key were compromised, the other 4 would still produce valid signatures. This is the gold-standard supply-chain-security model (the same model used by Bitcoin Core itself). No other wallet in this directory has this. For users who specifically want the strongest supply-chain security, Electrum is the recommended pick in this directory.

Hardware-wallet pairing — Ledger + Trezor + BitBox02 + Coldcard + KeepKey + Digital Bitbox

Electrum supports hardware-wallet pairing with the broadest set of leading hardware wallets. Per the Electrum documentation (HWI standard), the following hardware wallets are supported natively: Ledger (Nano S, Nano S Plus, Nano X), Trezor (Model One, Safe 3, Safe 5), BitBox02 (Multi-edition), Coldcard (Mk3, Mk4, Q), KeepKey, Digital Bitbox, and several others. The user's seed phrase stays on the hardware wallet (cold storage); Electrum creates a watching-only wallet on the online computer and the hardware wallet signs transactions via PSBT (BIP-174). This is the recommended setup for high-value Bitcoin holdings — hardware-wallet cold-storage custody is materially more secure than any software hot wallet. For the full hardware-wallet comparison, see our hardware wallets directory at /best-hardware-wallets.

Offline-mode cold-storage signing — watch-only + offline wallet

Electrum has a built-in cold-storage signing workflow separate from hardware-wallet pairing: (a) the user creates an "offline" wallet on an air-gapped computer (no internet, never connects to the network) — this wallet holds the seed phrase; (b) the user creates a "watching-only" wallet on the online computer — this wallet holds only the public xpub (no private keys), connects to Electrum servers, and constructs unsigned transactions; (c) the watching-only wallet exports an unsigned PSBT or unsigned hex, the user transfers it to the offline wallet (USB stick, QR code), the offline wallet signs it, the user transfers the signed transaction back to the online computer, and the online computer broadcasts it. This is the gold-standard cold-storage workflow for users who don't have a hardware wallet but want cold-storage custody of their Bitcoin private keys. Only Electrum + Sparrow Wallet (a newer open-source Bitcoin wallet inspired by Electrum) have this workflow in this degree of maturity.

Self-run Electrum server — maximum privacy + sovereignty

For maximum privacy + sovereignty, Electrum can connect to the user's own self-run Electrum server (ElectrumX in Python, or Electrs in Rust — both open-source) — the user runs the server on their own hardware (a Raspberry Pi, a VPS, a home server) and points their Electrum wallet at it instead of public Electrum servers. This means the user's wallet balance + transaction queries never leave the user's own infrastructure, so no third-party Electrum-server operator can correlate the user's addresses. This is materially stronger Bitcoin privacy than Coinomi's "Trusted Node" (Coinomi connects to a user-owned full Bitcoin node, but Coinomi's SPV model is different from Electrum's). For users who want the most private Bitcoin-light-wallet setup available, Electrum + self-run Electrum server is the recommended pick.

2FA via Trustedcoin (optional)

Electrum has an optional 2FA plugin called Trustedcoin — the user can enable 2FA on a wallet (Trustedcoin acts as a cosigner that requires a 2FA code from the user's phone before signing). This is the only 2FA option among the wallets in this directory. Note: Trustedcoin is a third-party service (Trustedcoin CTA), so enabling 2FA on a wallet means the wallet is 1-of-2 multisig with Trustedcoin as the cosigner — the user should weigh this third-party dependency against the security benefit. The 2FA can be disabled by the user at any time.

No KYC + no accounts + no transaction tracking

Electrum is privacy-first by design — no KYC, no accounts, no email, no phone number required. The wallet doesn't track the user's on-chain transactions. The user can use Electrum fully offline for cold-storage (offline-mode wallet) or online (SPV wallet connecting to public or self-run Electrum servers). For users who specifically want IP anonymization, the recommended setup is to run Electrum over Tor (the user can route all Electrum-server traffic through Tor by configuring the Tor SOCKS proxy in Electrum's network settings) — this is comparable to Coinomi's IP anonymization via its servers, but Electrum + Tor is even stronger because the user controls the Tor exit.

Limitations

Electrum's Android app is a port (good but less polished than iOS-native wallets like BlueWallet); there is no iOS app — for iOS Bitcoin wallets, the recommended alternatives are BlueWallet (open-source, SPV + Lightning) and Muun (custodial Lightning). Electrum does NOT support EVM / Ethereum / Solana / altcoins — Bitcoin-only by design. Electrum does NOT support EIP-4337 account abstraction (Bitcoin doesn't have account abstraction). The wallet's UI is functional but utilitarian (PyQt desktop GUI), less modern than MetaMask + OKX Wallet + Rabby. The wallet requires technical understanding to use its full power (custom fees, multisig, PSBT, offline signing) — for non-technical Bitcoin users, BlueWallet + Muun are the recommended mobile-friendly alternatives.

Wallet download — free + 100% open-source

Electrum is free to download on Windows (10 1809+, x86_64), macOS (11+), Linux (AppImage x86_64, glibc 2.31+ + Python 3.10+ source), and Android (8.0+, Google Play + F-Droid + APK). 100% open-source MIT-licensed. No subscription fees. No monthly fees. No in-app purchases. No ads. No premium tier. Electrum does not monetize the wallet itself — the project is funded by community donations + sponsorships (the Bitcoin community funds the open-source development). This is the strongest fee model in this directory — most other wallets (MetaMask, Coinomi, Atomic, OKX Wallet, Bitget Wallet, Trust Wallet) are also free but monetize via built-in swap commissions + premium features; Electrum does not.

On-chain Bitcoin transaction fees — paid to miners, not Electrum

Each on-chain Bitcoin transaction requires a network fee paid to Bitcoin miners — Electrum doesn't charge any wallet-side fee on top. The user sets the fee directly (custom sat/vB with full manual control — see Features). This is the strongest Bitcoin-fee-control model in this directory, ahead of Coinomi (dynamic + custom fees), Atomic Wallet (dynamic fees only, no custom), and far ahead of OKX Wallet + Bitget Wallet + Trust Wallet (which have no Bitcoin-specific fee control).

Lightning Network fees — set by the channels the user opens

Electrum's built-in Lightning Network support means the user can open Lightning channels with custom routing fees (typically 1–10 ppm / parts-per-million sat, configurable per channel). The user controls the inbound / outbound liquidity + the routing fees of their own channels. Lightning payments routed through third-party channels incur the third party's routing fees (set by the third party, not Electrum). This is the standard Lightning Network fee model — comparable to Phoenix + Breez + Zeus.

Atomic Swaps (altcoin-to-Bitcoin) — third-party spread, typically 1-3%

Electrum has an optional Atomic Swap feature (altcoin-to-Bitcoin swap, e.g. ETH → BTC) powered by third-party swap services (Flyp.me, Changelly, SideShift). The swap fee is set by the third-party swap provider, not by Electrum — typically 1-3% spread + network gas, shown transparently before the user confirms. For users who want the lowest Bitcoin swap fees, the recommended alternative is to use a dedicated DEX aggregator (Rabby Swap, OKX DEX) and then buy Bitcoin via a CEX withdrawal — see our best-crypto-payment-gateways directory at /best-crypto-payment-gateways.

Self-run Electrum server — no Electrum fee, infrastructure cost only

For users who choose to run their own Electrum server (ElectrumX in Python or Electrs in Rust) for maximum privacy, there is no Electrum-side fee — the only cost is the infrastructure (a VPS at $5-20/month, or a home Raspberry Pi at ~$50-100 one-time). Electrum + self-run Electrum server is the most private Bitcoin-light-wallet setup available and has zero ongoing wallet-level fees.

Hardware-wallet pairing — no Electrum fee; hardware cost only

Electrum doesn't charge any fee for hardware-wallet pairing. The only cost is the hardware wallet itself (Ledger Nano X $79, Trezor Safe 5 $169, BitBox02 $150, Coldcard Mk4 $148, Keystone 3 Pro $149, etc.) — see our hardware wallets directory at /best-hardware-wallets for the full hardware-wallet comparison. Once paired, the user's private keys stay on the hardware wallet (cold storage) and Electrum acts as the watching-only online wallet.

Electrum is Bitcoin-only by design. It does NOT support Ethereum, EVM, Solana, or any altcoins. This is a deliberate philosophical choice — Electrum's laser focus on Bitcoin allows it to be the most feature-complete and most secure Bitcoin wallet in existence, with deep Bitcoin-specific features that multi-coin wallets (Coinomi, Atomic Wallet, Trust Wallet, OKX Wallet, Bitget Wallet) cannot match on the Bitcoin side.

Bitcoin (BTC) — full feature support

• Bitcoin on-chain (BTC) — full SegWit + Taproot support, RBF, CPFP, UTXO coin control, m-of-n multisig, PSBT hardware-wallet signing, watch-only + offline-mode cold-storage signing, custom sat/vB fees, custom BIP-32 / BIP-44 derivation paths
• Bitcoin Lightning Network — built-in since version 4.0 (late 2021); the user can open / close Lightning channels, send + receive Lightning payments, and manage channel liquidity directly inside Electrum
• Bitcoin address types — all four supported: Legacy (P2PKH, addresses starting with "1"), Nested SegWit (P2SH-P2WPKH, addresses starting with "3"), Native SegWit / Bech32 (P2WPKH, addresses starting "bc1q"), Taproot (P2TR, addresses starting "bc1p")

Community forks for other coins (NOT Electrum core — maintained separately)

For users who specifically want the Electrum UX for non-Bitcoin chains, the open-source community maintains separate forks (these are independent projects, NOT maintained by Electrum core / Electrum Technologies GmbH, and NOT affiliated with Electrum): Electrum-LTC (Litecoin), Electrum-NMC (Namecoin), Electrum-DASH (Dash), Electrum-GRS (Groestlcoin), Electron-Cash (Bitcoin Cash — the most widely-used Electrum fork). These forks share the Electrum codebase + UI but support their respective coins. For the canonical Electrum (Bitcoin-only), the official site is electrum.org.

Hardware-wallet support (Bitcoin cold storage)

Electrum pairs natively with the broadest set of leading Bitcoin hardware wallets: Ledger (Nano S, Nano S Plus, Nano X), Trezor (Model One, Safe 3, Safe 5), BitBox02 (Multi-edition), Coldcard (Mk3, Mk4, Q), KeepKey, Digital Bitbox, and others. The user's seed phrase stays on the hardware wallet; Electrum is the watching-only online wallet. For the full hardware-wallet comparison, see our hardware wallets directory at /best-hardware-wallets.