How to Open A Crypto Wallet to Receive Airdrops

If you are interested in participating in airdrops, then you are going to need a wallet that can receive these airdrop tokens. To clarify, most airdrops are done on the Ethereum blockchain and use ERC20 tokens. Put differently, you can’t use just any wallet to receive airdrops tokens. To clear the confusion, here are some Ethereum wallets that are ERC/airdrop compliant: MyEtherWallet, MetaMask, Parity, Mist, and imToken. The following wallets should notbe used to receive airdrops because they are currently incompatible: Coinbase, Bitrexx, Exodus, Jaxx, Poloniex, Cex.io, Kraken, Bitfinex, and Bitstamp.

As a rule of thumb, do not participate in an airdrop or ICO using any crypto exchange wallet, otherwise, you may be wasting your time.

How to Open a MyEtherWallet to Participate in an Airdrop

MyEtherWallet is arguably the most popular Ethereum online wallet for participating in airdrops and ICOs. It is free, secured, and easy-to-used. Although there is a list of other possible wallets that can be used to receive airdrop tokens, this article will stick to MyEtherWallet (MEW) because of its popularity.

Although MEW is an online wallet, it provides both online and offline/hardware wallet support. What this means is that as a user, you can generate your public and private keys offline, adding an extra layer of security.

Getting Started

• Visit their Website, www.myetherwallet.com

Be sure to confirm that the wallet address is correct.

• Enter a Password and Create a New Wallet

It is advised that you use a combination of letters, symbols, and numbers to make your password as strong as possible. It is also expedient that you write down your password and keep it safe immediately. Once this is done, click on “Create New Wallet”

• Download and Store Keystore File

You can never be too security conscious. Once your wallet has been created, download and store your keystore file in a secured location. This is one of the ways you can access your wallet. Click continue.

• Save your Private Key

Another way to access your wallet is through your private key. It is a string of symbols that should be kept safe, and private (known only to you). Remember to have several secured backups, just in case you lose one. Here’s what their site says, just so you understand how important this is:

“MyEtherWallet.com does not hold your keys for you. We cannot access accounts, recover keys, reset passwords, nor reverse transactions. Protect your keys & always check that you are on correct URL. You are responsible for your security.”

• Access Your Wallet Using Keystore or Private Key

There are a number of available options to access your wallet; from Metamask, to Ledger, TREZOR, etc. However, Keystore and private key are the easiest and least secured. For convenience, stick to them (they still provide a remarkable level of security if your device is free from virus and phishing links).

Once you have your wallet address, you can participate in any airdrop program of your choice. Simply input your ETH address where needed and perform the tasks required.