What goods and services can you buy with cryptocurrency?Insurance, consumer goods, luxury watches, and event tickets are all items purchased with cryptocurrencies. If you want to shop with cryptocurrency, start by applying for a debit card. The card can be purchased at major crypto exchanges and other vendors, and cardholders can participate in atm to withdraw cash from the machine.

Why do so many merchants now support cryptocurrency payments?

There are two reasons:

The first is the improvement of cryptocurrency technology. Innovations like the Lightning Network are touted as expanding the number of transactions in a cryptocurrency network, making it faster and more efficient.

Second, cryptocurrencies are no longer confined to a small corner of the financial services industry. The public listing of cryptocurrency trading platform Coinbase, new price records, and positive mentions from regulators and policy makers all testify to their potential.

As such, the vision of Satoshi Nakamoto, the mysterious inventor of Bitcoin, is likely to come true, and Bitcoin will fulfill its original promise of a currency for everyday transactions.

Just in the U.S., more than one-third of small businesses now accept cryptocurrencies as a form of payment, and the list of products and services you can buy with Bitcoin is growing every day.

The advantages from companies like Microsoft and AT&T as a payment method - the ease of cross-border transactions, anonymity and irreversible transactions - have been welcomed by businesses in many industries.

From big tech companies to airlines, more and more companies are accepting cryptocurrencies, allowing customers to use it as an official payment method for their goods and services.

Art and Collection

After the non-fungible token craze flooded the art world, high-profile auction houses began accepting cryptocurrencies as a form of payment. Renowned Hong Kong auction house Phillips recently listed $2.82 million to $4.1 million in Banksy works to buy bitcoin and ether. In the U.S., the list of galleries that accept bitcoin as a payment method has also expanded nationwide. Currently, it is mainly concentrated on the east and west coasts.

Maecenas allows you to use Bitcoin to buy stocks of some famous artworks as an investment. In 2019, Andy Warhol's 14 small electric chairs were 31 percent of his paintings at auction for $1.7 million.

Even the biggest names in the art world are now dabbling in bitcoin; in May 2021, ancient auction house Sotheby’s is auctioning a piece of art from Banksy, with the option to pay in bitcoin or ether.

If your budget is not that big, there are still many options for buying art with Bitcoin. Singulart, the online art store offers free worldwide shipping and returns on all orders, and accepts bitcoin payments. Singulart, where established and emerging artists can sell their paintings, drawings, sculptures and other artworks through an online gallery.

Online Stores That Accept Bitcoin

Overstock - A well-known online retailer accepts and fully supports Bitcoin payments.

Home Depot - America's largest chain of home improvement stores.

Newegg - An e-retail giant that accepts bitcoin for most of its stock.

Shopify - An e-commerce platform that allows users to create their own online store, similar to Etsy and eBay.

Microsoft, one of the largest companies in the world, allows users to top up their accounts with bitcoin.

Most major online retailers still don't accept BTC as a payment method, but there is a way to buy products from them using digital currency: You can use bitcoin to make purchases using gift cards.

In fact, a large portion of bitcoin-related transactions are gift card purchases. Gift cards are the easiest way to use cryptocurrency to buy products online and offline from global companies and local small businesses.

Service Providers That Accept Bitcoin

The acceptance of Bitcoin as a payment option varies from company to company. Therefore, BTC specific markets are generally not accepted. On the other hand, companies in many different industries are looking to expand their customer base by introducing digital currencies as a new payment option:

AT&T - cellular service provider.

Twitch - The live streaming platform.

DishNetwork - American live satellite service provider.

ExpressVPN - High-speed, secure VPN network.

NordVPN - Malta no logs VPN provider.

ProtonMail - Email provider end-to-end encryption.

Vultr - Web hosting company.

WordPress - An open source content management system that allows users to create websites and blogs.

Reddit - Premium features can be purchased with Bitcoin.

Namecheap - Web hosting and domain name provider.

Bloomberg, Chicago Sun-Times - Use Bitcoin to subscribe to online news outlets.

Buy Video Games with Bitcoin

In the past, you had to go to a brick-and-mortar store to buy video games. Today, however, most players are shopping online. Like digital currency itself, video games are becoming a digital property. Therefore, more and more leading game sales platforms will naturally accept Bitcoin.

Xbox - Use Bitcoin to pay for games, add-ons and Xbox Live subscriptions.

HumbleBundle - A digital store donates a portion of its revenue to charity.

BigFishGames - Casual gaming company based in Seattle, Washington.

Restaurants and supermarkets accept bitcoin

Subway - You can buy sandwiches with bitcoin anywhere in the world.

Burger King - A large multinational fast food chain that sells burger restaurants.

WholeFoods - Organic foods sold in supermarket chains.

Taxi

Some taxi dispatch and airport transportation services around the world accept Bitcoin as a payment method.

The luxury of using bitcoin

BitCars - Online marketplace for selling cars with bitcoin.

AutoCoinCars - Online marketplace for selling cars and cars BTC and other cryptocurrencies and fiat currencies.

Bithome - an online real estate marketplace based in Switzerland where you can buy and sell real estate with bitcoin.

PrestigeCarsKent - Dealers allow customers to buy cars with Bitcoin.

PrestigeTime - A store that allows you to buy luxury watches with bitcoin.

DenisonYachtSales - A company that allows you to buy yachts with bitcoin.

Many large companies also accept cryptocurrency payments

MasterCard

In November, Mastercard said its partners would be allowed to buy, sell and hold cryptocurrencies using digital wallets and reward them under their loyalty program.

This allows rewards to be earned and spent through cryptocurrency rather than loyalty.

The credit card giant will partner with New York Stock Exchange owner Bakkt Holdings Inc, a digital asset platform, in 2018 to offer customers new crypto services.

Microsoft

As one of the largest software companies in the world, it is significant that Microsoft accepts bitcoin payments, which to a certain extent enhances people's confidence in using the cryptocurrency. Bitcoin can be used to pay for a range of services, including redeeming for credit when topping up user accounts, Xbox Live and Skype.

The company's interest in encryption doesn't stop there. Using blockchain, Microsoft also launched in late March. ION, a two-layer authentication platform on the Bitcoin network. Instead of making payments, the technology creates digital IDs for online authentication.

Starbucks

After an extensive trial, Starbucks customers can now use the new Bakkt app to pay for beverages and merchandise with converted bitcoin at the coffee chain. According to the app's creators, 500,000 people participated in the early access program, which is limited to invitees and uses a test digital wallet as a payment method.

Tesla

Tesla electric car maker Elon Musk CEO has had a rocky relationship with Bitcoin. Originally, the company announced earlier this year that it would accept bitcoin for car purchases in the United States. Twenty percent of Elon Musk's companies backed $1.5 billion (€1.2 billion) in cryptocurrency investments in February. However, that has now changed, with Tesla announcing that it will suspend Bitcoin trading until more than 50% of the coin is mined using renewable energy.

Amazon

Earlier this year, it was reported that Amazon was joining the ranks of other tech giants, including Facebook, laying the groundwork for their exclusive cryptocurrency. In other words, the e-commerce company has yet to directly accept cryptocurrencies. However, you can make life easier with cryptocurrencies by converting bitcoins to buying Amazon vouchers through the Bitrefill platform, a cryptocurrency-only company that purchases Amazon vouchers.

Coca Cola

Asia-Pacific beverage giant and distributor Amatil has partnered with Centrapay cryptocurrency as a payment method for the platform. As of 2020, there are more than 2,000 vending machines in Australia and New Zealand where cryptocurrency can be used to pay for drinks.

Cryptocurrency is not only used for investment, but also for payment. With so many merchants supporting cryptocurrency as a payment method, will you use cryptocurrency to buy the goods you need?