update 10-2023: THE SELFCUSTODIAL LIGHTNING WALLET AND NODE IS NOW IN THE PHONE --> WITH ZEUS <--
So, you're new to Nostr and want to enable Zaps on your account..
This mini-guide aims to help you choose between a selection of Bitcoin lightning network (LN) wallets with an additional focus on working toward self-custody. Self-custody means: holding your own private keys to avoid losing your funds to trusted third-party trade-offs. No need to overthink, self-custody is a matter of writing down and safely storing 12/24 words (aka 'seedphrase') offline, on paper/metal.
LN wallets (a selection)
self-custodial LN wallets, kyc-free:
a. Phoenix app (๐ฑ, acts as a LN node*) b. Breez (๐ฑ, acts as a LN node*) c. Muun (๐ฑ, acts as a LN node*) d. Zeus (๐ฑ, LN url)**
custodial (by default) LN wallets, kyc-free:
a. Alby ( ๐ป-extension, LN url)** b. LN.tips (Telegram bot, LN url)** c. Wallet of Satoshi (๐ฑ, LN url, use new email to sign-up) d. ZBD (๐ฑ๐ป, LN url, kyc-free up to 500k sats)
sats= satoshi's (fractions of a bitcoin, e.g. 21.000 sats is 0.00021 BTC) LN url = Lightning address to add to your Nostr account to enable Zaps
*uses e.g. a big company LN node or submarine swaps **lightning node remote control apps: can connect to self-hosted LN node (update 10-2023: THE SELFCUSTODIAL LIGHTNING WALLET AND NODE IS NOW IN THE PHONE)
Why choose custodial? Be aware that there are major security/privacy trade-offs when using custodial (LN) wallets. However, if you're someone who's new to Nostr and bitcoin, and you want to enable receiving Zaps, it's obvious you play around with a custodial one with a smaller amount of sats first (let's say, up to ~ 21k sats/ 50$). It is advised to have your sats divided on more than one custodial wallet in case one of the hosted LN nodes temporarily goes down and you still want to transact at that moment.
Why choose self-custodial? When you've warmed up to the custodial wallets, are looking to learn more and/or if you plan to send/receive more substantial amounts of sats (e.g. for business) then you're ultimately going to want to learn to run a self-hosted node, preferably through Tor. Find trustworthy tutorials here.
A self-hosted node allows you to save on transaction fees; truly be in control of your bitcoin; and, protect yourself wrt third-party privacy violations. Know that you'll have to invest some time in learning and money in gear/gadgets in order to run your own (LN) node (~$200-$400).
What other choices do I have? If you're not ready to run a LN node just yet, you can also choose to go for one of the self-custodial wallets listed below that act as a LN node on your mobile. The transaction fees are a bit higher than with custodial wallets but this is related to the wallet acting as a lightning node on your phone (e.g. with Phoenix you have to top-up the wallet with 10.000 sats initially of which 3000 sats will be deducted in order to have the system open up lightning channels for you). A small price to pay for not having to have to run your own, self-hosted Bitcoin Lightning Node and managing it. Know that running your own lightning node has similar costs.
Summary This blog covers a selection of LN wallets to choose from that support receiving and/or sending Zaps. There are many more options that enable receiving zaps and you are free to chose the one you prefer. However, if you do not run your own Bitcoin Lightning node and care about self-custody, you're going to want to make use of a LN wallet app that acts as a LN node on your phone in order to achieve self-custody. Unfortunately, most of these self-custodial LN node-wallets do not yet(!) support a lightning url address for receiving zaps. This means that you cannot receive Zaps to it directly, but you can still use it to save a bigger amount of sats in.
Here's a recommended Bitcoin wallet setup focussed on self-custody without having to have to run your own, self-hosted Bitcoin LN node:
Sending and receiving bitcoin (active๐ฑ): Wallet of Satoshi and LN.tips only use temporary, small amount of sats; custodial, but supports LN url โ Saving bitcoin, Layer 2 (passive๐ฑ): Phoenix wallet self-custodial, can swap LNโon-chain โ Saving bitcoin, Layer 1 aka on-chain (passive๐ป): deep, air-gapped, cold storage (e.g. Seedsigner, Coldcard)
Link to this blog: lnshort.it/lnwalletguidenostr Find me on Nostr: matata@nostrplebs.com
For a more extensive LN wallets comparison guide (outside the scope of only Nostr), click here