What do I need to have ready before I try my first crypto swap

07 September 2026

You need three things ready: a wallet that holds the crypto you want to swap, a receiving address for the crypto you want to get, and enough funds to cover the network fee. That is the short answer. The longer answer explains why each piece matters and what can go wrong if you skip a step.

A wallet that holds your crypto

Your crypto must live somewhere you control. That somewhere is a wallet. It might be a browser extension, a mobile app, or a hardware device. The wallet holds your private keys, which are the passwords that let you send crypto.

Before you start a swap, open your wallet and confirm two things:

• The crypto you want to swap is actually in the wallet.
• The wallet is connected to the correct network.

The second point trips up many first-timers. A single wallet can show balances on multiple blockchains. For example, USDT exists on Ethereum, Tron, Binance Smart Chain, and others. If your wallet shows USDT but you are looking at the Ethereum balance, and the swap expects USDT on Tron, the swap will fail. Check the network label next to the balance.

A receiving address for the crypto you want

A receiving address is a long string of letters and numbers. It is where the swapped crypto will land. You must get this address from your own wallet before you start the swap.

Do not type an address from memory. Copy it. Paste it. Then check every character. Some crypto addresses are case-sensitive. Some use checksums that flag a typo. Others do not, and a single wrong letter sends your funds to a dead address.

You need one address per swap. If you plan to swap Bitcoin for Ethereum, you need an Ethereum address. If you plan to swap Litecoin for Bitcoin, you need a Bitcoin address. The address must be on the correct network. An Ethereum address starts with "0x". A Bitcoin address starts with "1", "3", or "bc1". If your receiving address does not match the format of the crypto you expect, the swap will fail or your funds will be lost.

Enough funds for the network fee

Every crypto transaction costs a fee. The fee goes to the network, not to the exchanger. You pay it to have your transaction included in the next block.

The fee is paid in the crypto you are sending. If you are swapping Bitcoin, you pay the fee in Bitcoin. If you are swapping Ethereum, you pay in Ethereum.

This creates a trap. Suppose you have exactly 0.01 Bitcoin and you want to swap it all. The network fee might be 0.0002 Bitcoin. You cannot send 0.01 Bitcoin because 0.0002 of it must go to the fee. The swap will fail. You need to keep a small amount in your wallet to cover fees.

How much? It varies. Bitcoin fees change with network congestion. Ethereum fees change with gas prices. A safe habit is to keep at least a few dollars worth of the sending crypto in your wallet after the swap amount is deducted. For Bitcoin, that might be 0.0005. For Ethereum, it might be 0.01. Check current fee estimates before you start.

Optional but helpful: a test transaction

If you are nervous, send a tiny amount first. Swap the smallest possible quantity. See if the process works. Then do the real swap. The fee on the test transaction is wasted, but it is cheap insurance against a mistake that loses your whole balance.

What comes next

Once you have these three things ready, you are prepared to follow the steps on the hub page titled "Your first crypto swap, step by step." That page walks you through entering the swap details, reviewing the quotes, and confirming the transaction. The preparation you do now is the part that most errors come from. The swap itself is mostly clicking buttons and waiting for confirmations.

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