24/7 Support and No Setup Fees for Crypto IRAs

Crypto IRA

• Long-established cryptocurrency IRA history with BBB accreditation 
• 24-hour chat support helps you get answers to questions about your crypto ASAP
• Free to open an account, and includes both IRA and non-IRA accounts for anyone who wants to investigate what it’s like to invest in cryptocurrency

• Small, poorly reviewed presence on Trustpilot
• Unique pay structure where buy trades cost more than sell trades, potentially tilting the way you make your crypto decisions

Types of crypto IRAs	All standard IRA types, including Roth IRAs; also includes non-IRA crypto trading accounts
Supported cryptos	Bitcoin, solana, uniswap, ripple, ethereum, litecoin, and around a dozen more
Fees	1.25% on buy trades, 1% on sell trades; no account setups or monthly maintenance fees
Customer satisfaction	3.0/5 (Trustpilot)

Interested in crypto? Great. Not interested in doing tons of homework about crypto security, tax implications, or figuring out where to start? Just as good, because you’re in good company. Services like Coin IRA exist for crypto-newbies, helping you invest in cryptocurrencies like bitcoin and ethereum through tax-advantaged retirement accounts.

You don’t need to be a crypto expert to start investing this way. But if you’re still wondering whether Coin IRA is worth it, the answer is that is: it depends. If you’re set on holding crypto in an IRA and need a company to walk you through the process, Coin IRA will keep you in good hands. But there are other factors to consider (like fees and flexibility) before we make a full-throated recommendation in our Coin IRA review.

How does Coin IRA work?

Our Coin IRA review starts by explaining how an IRA works. A tax-advantaged account (like a Roth or traditional IRA) lets you make tax-protected investments. Many people use those accounts for stocks, bonds, or funds. 

But here’s the part many people don’t get: You’re not limited to those options.

Sure, you can’t keep your Mickey Mantle rookie card in a retirement account because that’s a personal collectible. But legitimate investments like real estate, cryptocurrencies, and stocks all qualify as potential retirement assets. You’d simply work with a firm like Coin IRA to let it handle the administrative side of your crypto IRA.

What does it look like in practice? Let’s break Coin IRA down by its basic services and features:

Crypto and precious metals IRAs

Coin IRA’s specialty is self-directed IRAs, so you can invest in cryptocurrency and precious metals, everything from bitcoin to gold—all in one account. The benefit: those sweet retirement account tax advantages. 

And since Coin IRA holds these accounts with Equity Trust, you have an IRS-approved custodian on your side, maintaining your investments securely.

Non-IRA crypto trading accounts

This Coin IRA review isn’t only about IRAs, of course. There are some non-IRA trading accounts if you want to buy, sell, or store crypto without the aforementioned tax advantages. Yeah, the taxes are the downside here—but you’ll still get access to the secure trading platform. 

Coin IRA also throws in secure cold storage and customer support. This eliminates much of the guesswork in crypto trading if you don’t want to store the crypto in a retirement account but need access to the funds in the short term.

Secure storage and custody

One big concern everyone seems to have with crypto investing is security. Most people don’t really understand how crypto works, after all. So, how do you secure something if you barely understand it?

Coin IRA works with Ledger Enterprise for insured cold storage of all your digital assets. Ledger offers cold storage products if you want to keep your storage independent. But if you’re stuck asking ChatGPT how to do all that for you, and you can’t make heads or tails of cold storage, you can simply outsource the security to Coin IRA.

Low fees and 24/7 support

So what are you paying for all the services above? Buy trades come with a 1.25% fee, and sell trades come at 1%. These aren’t the most affordable you’ll see—we’ve seen flat 1% fees before, and we’ll highlight some below—but they’re still on the reasonable end for traders. 

You won’t find any sales commissions or hidden charges here. The pricing is transparent and predictable—though we wouldn’t mind if the fees were reversed to encourage you to buy and hold.

Another perk of Coin IRA is its 24-hour daily customer support. So, if you have any questions about your account or specific trades, help is always within reach.

Is Coin IRA legit?

Yes! Coin IRA is a legitimate company that has been in operation since 2017. It’s BBB-accredited and features an A+ rating. It partners with Equity Trust, a regulated and IRS-approved entity. 

Some people really deep into the crypto community aren’t always thrilled with Ledger products for cold storage. But since Coin IRA works with Ledger enterprise for insured cold storage, you’re not using those devices on your own. You’re working with a third party to help protect your assets from hacks.

This is a bird’s-eye Coin IRA review. Of course, every individual’s experience may be different. That’s why we researched social media and reviewed websites to get a better sense of what people are saying about the legitimacy of Coin IRA’s services.

We can’t say we’re thrilled about the lack of reviews on Trustpilot or BBB—the more, the merrier there—but BBB’s A+ rating and Google Reviews, which rate Coin IRA 5/5 on average, help. 

What are Coin IRA fees?

Anytime you’re talking about a third-party administrator that might charge you fees to make purchases, fees are a concern. We found that Coin IRA makes it quite simple.

Though a flat fee on all transactions would be more straightforward, we find little to complain about with its 1.25% fees on buys and 1% fees on sells. This is typically on the lower end of what you’ll find in the crypto IRA industry. (And you never know what hidden fees other companies might spring on you).

With Coin IRA, there don’t appear to be hidden fees or even customer complaints about hidden fees. Plus, Coin IRA doesn’t charge sales commissions or high maintenance fees. Since companies like these may hold cryptocurrency for years or even decades, they can sometimes try to slap on additional maintenance fees. Coin IRA’s fee structure doesn’t do that.

The incentive to sell rather than buy might seem a little strange, particularly if you want to view cryptocurrencies as part of your retirement plan. Our guess? Coin IRA wouldn’t mind if you bought and sold more often, meaning it can charge those fees. But if you plan on buying and holding, nothing is stopping you from an affordable experience working with Coin IRA.

Coin IRA pros and cons

Here’s what to consider before you decide to work with Coin IRA.

How does Coin IRA compare to alternatives?

Coin IRA’s accreditation with the BBB is a major selling point. After all, not every cryptocurrency IRA provider will have earned a similar reputation. 

But when it comes to establishing and maintaining a cryptocurrency IRA, we’d say Coin IRA’s major selling point is its 24-hour customer service.

Why? For starters, the fees at Coin IRA are relatively low, but not so low that you’ll notch them as a major selling point against, say, iTrustCapital (see below). The relatively few tradable assets offered by Coin IRA pale in comparison to the options available at a company like Alto CryptoIRA.

With that in mind, let’s zoom in on some specific matchups—and see how Coin IRA compares.

Coin IRA vs. iTrustCapital

Our iTrustCapital review highlights some similarities with Coin IRA. The transaction fees for crypto buying and selling are both 1%, which makes them easier to calculate and a tad lower than Coin IRA’s. 

Additionally, iTrustCapital has at least 40 cryptocurrency assets available for buying or selling. It also offers precious metals IRAs, just as Coin IRA does. 

The main difference? Hours of customer support are available. Coin IRA’s 24-hour support beats iTrustCapital’s support line, which is a traditional 8-to-5 shift on Pacific time. So if you’re a crypto trader who needs an answer to your question now, Coin IRA might edge out iTrustCapital.

Coin IRA vs. Bitcoin IRA

Bitcoin IRA’s higher transaction fees—running in the 2% area—make Coin IRA sound like a more appealing alternative out of the gate. However, Bitcoin IRA also offers more than 75 cryptocurrencies for trade, which means if you want to dig into the weeds of the crypto markets and trade something beyond bitcoin and ethereum, it still warrants your consideration.

Why might you find Bitcoin IRA worth paying that premium? It has stellar reviews for its trading apps, which can keep you trading cryptocurrencies 24/7—and that’s a big selling point of crypto in the first place. So if you view yourself as a bitcoin or ethereum trader, you should at least look into Bitcoin IRA—though we’d imagine the higher fees might be a non-starter for most people.

Coin IRA vs. Alto CryptoIRA

Alto CryptoIRA offers one of the highest selections of cryptocurrencies we’ve seen, with over 200 available for trade. And given that Alto Crypto charges 1% fees on both buys and sells, you’ll need to look into the other categories if you want to see where Coin IRA might compare favorably. So far, it’s 2-0, Alto.

Alto CryptoIRA’s reviews were strong—including 4.2 on Trustpilot with thousands of reviews in—but there is still space there to improve. And if you don’t like the Coinbase security infrastructure and would prefer Coin IRA’s use of Ledger, there’s an argument to be made for going with the slightly higher fees of Coin IRA.

How to invest with Coin IRA

Happy with what you’ve read in the Coin IRA review thus far? Good. We found that getting started with Coin IRA is an easy process. 

Before you begin, you’ll need to answer a few questions, most notably on step 2 here: How do you plan on funding it? 

If you’re funding your account with a rollover or transfer from another retirement account, you may need to reach out to Coin IRA first. However, if you plan on making simple retirement contributions to kick-start the account, you’ll be surprised at how easy it is.

1. Open an account. You’ll need to meet a few basic requirements, like being at least 18 years old and a U.S. citizen. You enter your email address, and the Coin IRA website promises it only takes a few minutes to complete this step of the process.
2. Link your payment. If you’re funding the account using non-IRA funds, you’ll need to link a method of payment. You might also fund your IRA from an existing IRA via a transfer or a rollover from a different type of plan, such as a 401(k).
3. Log in to the trading platform. Once you have your IRA registered and funded, you can start trading cryptocurrencies using the Coin IRA trading platform. This will link with your Coin IRA account, at which point you can immediately start issuing the buy orders that will kick off your crypto investing journey.

FAQ

Is Coin IRA safe?

Coin IRA uses industry-standard security measures to help protect customer assets, including multi-factor authentication, secure offline storage, and trusted custodians. It partners with regulated custodians like Equity Trust Company and uses secure storage solutions to keep digital assets offline and protected from hackers. 

However, as with any cryptocurrency investment, there is inherent risk, including price volatility and regulatory uncertainty. While Coin IRA can help you hold crypto in a tax-advantaged retirement account, it’s still important to do your own due diligence and understand the risks before investing.

Is Coin IRA a good idea?

Coin IRA could be a good idea if you’re interested in adding cryptocurrency to your retirement portfolio and want to take advantage of the potential tax benefits of a self-directed IRA. It offers access to several popular digital assets and provides guided support for setting up and managing your crypto IRA. 

However, crypto is still a speculative asset class, and prices can swing significantly. Consider your risk tolerance and retirement timeline before committing—especially since alternative investments like crypto are best suited for experienced investors with long-term horizons.

Do you pay taxes on a Coin IRA account?

Like traditional and Roth IRAs, Coin IRA accounts offer tax advantages depending on the account type. With a traditional crypto IRA, you won’t pay taxes on contributions, but you will pay taxes on withdrawals in retirement. 

With a Roth crypto IRA, your contributions are made with after-tax dollars, but qualified withdrawals are tax-free. You won’t pay taxes on crypto gains as long as the assets stay within your IRA, but taking early withdrawals or failing to follow IRS rules could trigger penalties. Consult a tax advisor to make sure you’re managing your crypto IRA properly.