While cryptocurrency doesn’t serve as a complete fiat alternative just yet, you can use it as a payment method in many locations. Today you can buy not only goods online using crypto, but you can also make bigger purchases. Did you know you could buy a house using cryptocurrency? This may have your wondering “Can I buy a car with cryptocurrency?”, and the answer to this question is also yet. If you’re curious to find out how to purchase your new vehicle with digital money, we’ll provide you with the information needed to start your search. You’ll be able to learn how to buy a car with crypto, what you should consider, and some additional interesting information about the potential connection of cars and digital currencies in the future.
Why Can I Buy a Car With Cryptocurrency?
If you’re not familiar with the popularity of cryptocurrencies and their growing adoption, you may be wondering why it’s possible to use them as a payment for such big things as cars. To briefly fill you in, for more than five years now, cryptocurrencies have been a way to pay for big and small purchases because people have recognized their potential and started using them more actively. This has brought not only a rise in the prices of certain assets, but it also made more businesses consider them as a way for their customers to buy goods from them. Crypto is no longer considered a joke or used only for virtual payment in a computer game that you can’t have real use of, though it still can be used for that.
More than a decade after Bitcoin was released, institutions adopt cryptocurrencies into their holdings or incorporate them into their businesses. You can legally use digital assets to purchase bigger things.
That is also why you can buy a car with cryptocurrency today.
Here you’ll find the information around the purchase summarized, to help you decide if you want to research more and potentially buy your own car with cryptos.
How Can I Buy a Car With Cryptocurrency?
You now know that you can buy a car with cryptocurrency and why you can do it – because crypto is an increasingly popular way to pay for things. But it comes the time to answer “How can I buy a car with cryptocurrency?” and also “Where can I buy a car with cryptocurrency?”. We’ll now cover this information.
What Cryptocurrencies Can I Buy a Car With?
The ways you can buy a car with cryptocurrencies are different. But before you look for them, you should first have digital assets in your holdings. The easiest way you can buy cryptocurrencies is at a platform for crypto trading. There are several assets that are likely to be accepted for your car deal. They include Bitcoin and Ethereum as the most likely candidates and then some other altcoins. Bitcoin is most likely to be accepted by places that accept crypto as a car payment since it’s still the most popular cryptocurrency. Its biggest competitor, Ethereum, is also widely used so you may be able to pay for a car with it too. Other more adopted altcoins could be an option too. Among them, you may find it common to pay for a car with stablecoins. That is a type of cryptocurrency with a price pegged to a fiat currency, for example, the US dollar or Euro, which gives them the name “stable”, in comparison to other cryptos, considered much more volatile in their price movements. That’s why some merchants will be more willing to accept stablecoins for a big purchase as a car, because they may be trusting this type of digital asset more, than even big-cap cryptocurrencies that may rise or drop in price every minute.
What Are the Ways to Buy a Car With Cryptocurrency?
Today, there are two possible ways to buy a car using cryptocurrency: convert your digital assets into fiat money or find a dealer that directly accepts crypto transactions. Here we’ll explain how both ways work.
How to Buy a Car With Cryptocurrency Converted to Fiat
If you have money in cryptocurrency but the car you want to buy can’t be paid for using this method, you are probably wondering “How can I buy a car with cryptocurrency when the dealer doesn’t accept it?”. It is possible though it may cost you a little more. You can convert your crypto to the fiat currency the car seller accepts and pay that way, using indirectly your digital assets.
- Find a car you want to buy
- If the dealer doesn’t accept crypto, convert your digital assets into fiat currency – In this step, you need to communicate with the seller to agree on which fiat currency they’re willing to accept. After that, you can go on and convert your digital assets into the agreed currency.
- Transfer the money to the seller’s account
- You have bought a car using your cryptocurrencies (indirectly)
You have to keep in mind that if you decide to use crypto in that way when paying for a car, you’ll have to also pay a considerable amount of conversion fees and high taxes. If you’re withdrawing the money from an unregulated exchange and the sum is a larger one, you also may face a risk there. However, this way of using your crypto to pay for a car is the easiest, since you’ll be paying in fiat and that’s currently the way that’s most accepted everywhere.
How to Buy a Car Directly With Cryptocurrency
If, however, you’re interested in buying a car using your crypto assets without additionally converting them, it’s possible and growing in popularity. Today more and more dealers emerge who offer cars for sale in cryptocurrencies. Here we’ll answer “How can I buy a car with cryptocurrency directly?”.
- Find a car dealer that accepts cryptocurrencies as a payment option
- Look at the cars they offer and select the one you like
- Transfer the money to the dealer’s wallet address – Today dealers who accept crypto as car payment use specialized software or payment apps that will facilitate the transactions.
- That’s it – you’ve bought your car using cryptocurrencies only!
Here you should consider that in many countries cryptocurrencies are taxed differently than fiat money so the deal may also be structured differently. You should always be informed of your country’s regulations about crypto trading, and even consult with a specialist, such as a cryptocurrency lawyer, if you need help legally.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Buying a Car With Crypto
Now that you know that the answer to “Can I buy a car with cryptocurrency” is yes, and the possible ways to do it, we’ll take a look at what are the pros and cons of doing it. If you’ve decided to use your cryptocurrencies to buy a car directly, consider the following things.
Can I Buy a Car With Cryptocurrency: Advantages
- Cryptocurrency transactions are secured and private. If you don’t convert your assets into fiat currencies and choose an exchange with smaller fees, you could avoid additional costs of the process.
- If you transfer the money directly to the seller’s digital wallet, you’ll also be able to avoid bank fees that may apply to the traditional deal for a car.
- If you use cryptocurrencies to pay for your car, you can do it from practically anywhere, you only need an internet connection. With this, you should keep in mind that you should be very careful when sending big sums of money.
Can I Buy a Car With Cryptocurrency: Disadvantages
- Fiat currencies are still the most widely accepted way to buy a new car. That means that you may have difficulties finding a dealer or seller who accepts digital assets.
- The car seller may accept cryptocurrencies but not the exact ones you’re holding. In this instance, you will again have to change your cryptocurrencies and pay extra fees. Your options are to convert your cryptos to fiat and buy the digital assets the seller accepts, or to buy the accepted cryptos using your own but on a decentralized exchange.
- It’s possible to overpay for a vehicle using cryptocurrencies. Since digital assets are known for their volatility, their price drops are just as frequent as the rises. This means that if you’ve paid with crypto for your car and the crypto’s price decreases, you’ll have overpaid for the vehicle.
What Car Companies Can I Buy a Car With Cryptocurrency At?
As established you can use your cryptocurrencies to buy a car either from a seller or specialized dealers who accept it as payment. Some popular car companies have also started adopting digital assets, though. The popular German company BMW accepts crypto as payment but also is interested in the technology behind digital money. The company has stated that they’d like to incorporate blockchain into their business to help drivers of their cars in the future.
Can I Buy a Car With Cryptocurrency at Tesla?
Many people started asking “Can I buy a car with cryptocurrency?” at the beginning of 2021 when the popular company for electric cars Tesla announced it will be accepting Bitcoin as a payment. It was first stated that the company has holdings in the first crypto, and later that it’ll be possible to buy your own Tesla car with bitcoins. However this was short-lived as Elon Musk and other Tesla investors, and environmental activists expressed concern about the energy it takes for bitcoins to be created. This halted the process and Tesla stopped accepting crypto as payment for its vehicles.
Currently the answer to the question “Can I buy a car with cryptocurrency at Tesla” is “no”. The company has said that its likely bitcoins will be accepted again, but it remains to be seen when. However, you can still use cryptocurrencies at the company. Influenced by Elon Musk’s crypto power, his company started accepting Dogecoin cryptocurrency as a payment method for its merchandise.
How to Get a Car With Cryptocurrency Without Buying It
If you can’t afford to buy a car at the moment but want to use your digital assets to still get one, there are possible ways. You can either rent a car or get a car lease, using your cryptocurrencies.
There are car rental services that now accept digital money. You can also pay for a car lease with them. The way this method works is that you pay in crypto to get a newer vehicle for an agreed period of time, typically up to four years, and after the period is over, you return the car.
Can I Sell My Car With Crypto?
If you can buy a car with cryptocurrency, then you may be wondering “Can I sell my car with cryptocurrency?”, and yes, you can sell your car and get paid in cryptocurrencies. You must be very careful when if you decide to do it, though. There have been reported scams, sellers have voiced that buyers contact them for their wallet address even before seeing the cars they’re offering. While your cryptocurrencies can’t be stolen from just your wallet address, it’s possible that people can try to use them to locate you and blackmail you for the assets. It may sound unlikely but you should consider it, along with other possible frauds or risks, if you decide to sell your car, using cryptocurrency.
Other Ways How Cryptocurrencies and the Automotive Industry Interact
Having answered the question “Can I buy a car with cryptocurrency?” and listed the ways and the pros and cons of doing it, we’ll also provide some information on how digital money and the automotive industry are connected.
As mentioned with the company BMW, some car manufacturers want to incorporate blockchain technology in their processes. Another way for cryptos and cars to be connected is through NFTs. Non-fungible tokens or NFTs are based on a blockchain where the copyright of the asset is recorded. This means that you’re able to track them and also get paid for buying or owning them. Although one of the most popular uses of NFTs is for selling digital art, they can also be used in the automotive industry.
NFTs have been on the market for a while now but their popularity really raised in 2021. Car companies seem to have noticed this and some have already joined this trend. The website Tokenized points out a few different instances of how NFTs and cars can be connected:
- NFT artworks that feature the car branding
- NFT video of the cars in a racing event
- NFT as a proof of car ownership
- NFT as a place where the service history and the records of the car are help
- NFT as the key for the car
Companies like Nissan, Lamborghini, and Alfa Romeo Tonale have already used non-fungible tokens in some of the listed ways. The adoption of blockchain technology, including cryptocurrencies and NFTs, in car companies, could mean that soon enough you won’t be wondering “Can I buy a car with cryptocurrency” because this option will be more widely offered.
Should I Buy a Car With Cryptocurrencies?
A decade ago most people would think you were joking if you asked “Can I buy a car with cryptocurrency?”, or at least consider you were talking about a car in a computer game. Today, you know you can buy your new vehicle using crypto. You can either convert your crypto to fiat currencies or directly send it to the seller’s digital wallet. The processes differ and they both have their pros and cons. We advise you to research not only the car you’re buying but the payment method and the process around it. Make sure that this is the most suitable option for your own purchase and don’t just do it because you can.
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