Litecoin is a cryptocurrency like Bitcoin. It can be shipped globally around the world almost instantly, for very low fees.

Litecoin history

Litecoin was actually one of the first variants of Bitcoin. Its creator, Charlie Lee, was a former Google employee and created Litecoin when he entered cryptocurrencies.

Why does Litecoin have value?

Litecoin has value for many of the reasons that Bitcoin has value. The main reason that Bitcoin has value is that it is very useful and scarce. Litecoin is the same. Only 84 million LTC will exist, which creates a shortage. Litecoin is also very useful because it can be sent anywhere in the world instantly for very low fees.

Litecoin mining

Mining for Litecoin is very, very different than it used to be. At the time of writing, Litecoin is about $ 32. In its early days, Litecoin was very easy to mine because it was cheap and there was no competition.

How to buy Litecoin

Litecoin is one of the most popular cryptocurrencies, so it is actually quite easy to buy compared to many other small altcoins.

Coinbase is the easiest way to buy bitcoin in the US, Europe, UK, Australia, and Canada. You can buy with a credit card or a bank account.

If you live in South America, Africa or Asia, the easiest way is to buy bitcoins and then convert using Changelly.

Litecoin wallets

The number of Litecoin wallets is actually somewhat limited. Bitcoin is still the only cryptocurrency that people actually use on a daily basis. Therefore, the demand is not strong for many Litecoin wallets so there are not many.

Probably the best and most complete Litecoin wallet is Electrum LTC. It is a fork of the popular Bitcoin Electrum wallet. It is open-source software and can be used on Mac, PC or Desktop.

If you want secure storage of your LTC, we recommend using a hardware wallet like Ledger Nano S or TREZOR.

Those devices support litecoins and store the coins offline, and away from hackers or malware. Both devices are also compatible with Electrum LTC, so you can use that Electrum LTC wallet to communicate with your hardware wallet.

Hardware wallets are probably the best option for you if you really want long-term secure storage of your litecoins.

Litecoin vs Bitcoin

The only benefit that Litecoin really has over Bitcoin is that it has more features. Bitcoin miners were blocking a very beneficial upgrade to the system for the sole financial gain. Litecoin miners also tried to block this update but eventually relented.

The update is called Segwit, and it basically doubles the capacity of whatever network it is enabled on. Right now Litecoin has Segwit enabled and Bitcoin does not.

Litecoin already had 4 times the transaction capacity of Bitcoin, and with Segwit activated it now has 8 times more capacity than Bitcoin and potentially more. Of course, not many people use Litecoin at all, so this is theoretical. Bitcoin is the only crypto that has real use today.

Litecoin is also a bit faster than Bitcoin as the blocks are created on average every 2.5 minutes, while for Bitcoin the blocks are every 10 minutes. This simply means that you get a smaller amount of security faster with Litecoin.

Exchanges

Bitcoin is by far the easiest cryptocurrency to buy. Every crypto exchange supports Bitcoin. Most support Litecoin, but not all. Coinbase, the world’s largest Bitcoin broker, recently added Litecoin, which made it very easy for Americans, Europeans, Australians, and Canadians to buy LTC with a credit card or bank account.

The main problem for LTC, however, is that it is very difficult to buy Litecoin with cash. LocalBitcoins, BitQuick, and Wall of Coins are the biggest cash for Bitcoin exchanges and none are compatible with Litecoin.

Price

Bitcoin’s price is obviously higher than Litecoin, and so is its market capitalization. It may seem like Litecoin has more room to grow, but it is unlikely to happen unless Litecoin can take BTC use cases.

Speed

Average Bitcoin confirmation takes 10 minutes, while Litecoin confirmations take an average of 2.5 minutes. While this makes Litecoin seem faster, you will still need 4 Litecoin confirmations to reach the same level of security as Bitcoin.

With the activation of Segwit from Litecoin, you do have the Lightning Network, while Bitcoin does not. This means that Litecoin supports instant transactions, and Bitcoin does not.

It’s a tough decision, but Bitcoin is likely to gain these characteristics over time.

Security

Bitcoin’s network hash rate is much higher than Litecoin. Bitcoin mining also appears to be more decentralized than Litecoin. This is not really close competition.

Litecoin’s hash rate will grow if its price rises, but for now Bitcoin simply has a much more serious mining industry behind it.

Acceptance

BitPay, the leader in helping merchants accept Bitcoin, does not have support for Litecoin. This could change if BitPay adds support for Litecoin, but for now Bitcoin is the clear winner here.