- NEO is a China-based blockchain and cryptocurrency which has enjoyed a 500% rise in value since June 2017. (Despite 2018’s highly volatile market conditions)
- Often described as a Chinese ‘Ethereum killer,’ NEO uses blockchain technology to facilitate everything from basic smart contracts to a full ‘Smart Economy.’ Namely, one where physical commodities can be digitized and traded
- NEO benefits from heightened investor interest, thanks to the inclusion of ‘Digital Identity’ technology which helps NEO stay compliant with local Chinese and international regulators
- NEO is well-poised to benefit from the Chinese government’s encouraging of blockchain technology, and it is also vulnerable to a potential crackdown in the country
In this article, we take a look at the best NEO wallets, including online, desktop, mobile, paper and hardware wallets for NEO & GAS cryptocurrency.
What is NEO, GAS & Which Are The Best NEO Wallets of 2018?
Having risen exponentially in value since early 2017, NEO is one of the hottest coins on the 2018 cryptocurrency market.
Valued in July at between $30 – $40, NEO has smashed through even the most optimistic investor expectations (especially considering 2016 price highs of just $0.55).
Fortunately or unfortunately, depending on who you are, NEO is also one of the most technologically complex cryptocurrencies on the market.
NEO was recently ranked the 3rd best blockchain network in the world by the China Electronic Information Industry Development (CCID) of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology in Beijing.
What is NEO and What is GAS?
To process thousands of transactions per second, NEO uses a (thus far) unique Delegated Byzantine Fault Tolerance (dBFT) consensus algorithm. The blockchain is also capable of smart ‘NeoContracts’ and user digital identity verification.
Unlike most other coins, NEO uses two distinct forms of cryptocurrency: NEO & GAS tokens.
NEO itself essentially represents a share or stake in the NEO blockchain. Because of this, NEO coins cannot be divided into smaller increments like Bitcoin can. GAS tokens, on the other hand, are generated at a rate of 8 GAS coins per new transaction block and are used to reward NEO network node operators who help maintain the NEO blockchain.
Another way to think about it is that GAS tokens are like dividends for NEO coins.
Currently, the best places to buy NEO tokens are:
- Binance (our 1st chouce because this is where there is the most liquidity currently)
- Gate.io
- Bitfinex
Because NEO is currently a top 15 cryptocurrency by market cap, there are a decent number of choices for wallets. However, considering it’s position it is surprising that there aren’t more choices. Below we take a look at the 5 top NEO wallets.
2018’s Best NEO & GAS Wallets
Because NEO utilizes two different tokens with very different use cases, storing NEO safely requires something of a learning curve. The good news, though, is that several wallets can be used to store both NEO and GAS tokens with relative ease.
1. Ledger Nano S – The Best NEO Hardware Wallet
The Ledger Nano S is the world’s most popular hardware wallet and is currently the only hardware wallet that features inbuilt support for both NEO and GAS.
When using a Ledger Nano S, NEO investors can safely store NEO tokens just like they would Bitcoin, Litecoin, or Ethereum.
GAS tokens themselves can’t be stored on the Ledger Nano S itself, but can instead be stored on the NEON web wallet which works together with the Ledger (see section on NEON wallet below).
Once this is done, sending NEO or GAS will require the physical use of the Ledger device, making both coin variants 100% secure.
Ledger Nano S Pros:
- Hardware wallets are typically considered to be the most secure way of storing cryptocurreny
- Users of the Ledger Nano S can set up a recovery phrase, allowing them to recover their funds if the device is lost or destroyed
- Thanks to state-of-the-art encryption technology, you can even safely use the Ledger Nano S of a computer that is infected with malware or viruses
- A Ledger Nano S wallet can store bitcoin and 25+ different altcoins
Ladger Nano S Cons:
- Hardware wallets like the Ledger Nano S are not free. Currently the Ledger costs about $93.
- Cannot store GAS tokens natively – must link it together with the NEON wallet, which isn’t hard, just an added complication
2. The Official NEO Desktop Wallet GUI
Like all reputable cryptocurrencies, NEO makes available an official desktop wallet client.
Using this client, NEO investors can store both NEO and GAS, almost as safely as on a hardware wallet. With the NEO GUI wallet, though, users will need to ensure that they have enough physical disk space available to download, sync, and update the entire NEO blockchain.
NEO GUI Pros:
- The official GUI wallet, it syncs with the NEO blockchain itself
- Can store both NEO and GAS tokens
- Quite secure (assuming your computer is not infected with malware or viruses)
NEO GUI Cons:
- A bit complicated for those who are not tech-savvy or used to dealing with wallets such as this
- Currently only available on Windows (no Mac or Linux version)
- This wallet will take up many Gigabytes of storage on your computer
- If your computer is infected with malware or viruses then this wallet may not be secure
Get the NEO GUI Desktop Wallet Client
3. The NEO ‘Ansy’ – The Best NEO Paper Wallet
Considered by some to provide just as robust security as hardware wallets, NEO users can elect to use the only paper NEO and GAS wallet listed on the NEO site to store coins.
A NEO paper wallet is a piece of paper which has both the public address and private key printed on it.
To get started with an Ansy paper wallet, NEO users will need to visit the Github page and either generate a brand new wallet or convert their existing NEO private keys into a new paper wallet by following the provided instructions.
Ansy Wallet Pros:
- Paper wallets are typically a secure way to store cryptocurrency
- This is a free way to store tokens
- You can safely store it by printing multiple copies, laminating them and storing them in different secure locations
Ansy Wallet Cons:
- Paper Wallets can sometimes be a bit tricky for those who are not very tech-savvy
- It is still just a piece of paper and can be lost or destroyed if not taken care of properly
Check out the Ansy paper wallet
4. NEON – The Top NEO Online Wallet (With GAS Support)
For those with limited disk space or computer resources, running a full GUI wallet won’t always be possible. Thankfully, developers have made available a NEO web wallet which can be used to store both NEO and GAS coins.
All that users of NEON need to remember, is that neither the NEON wallet nor GUI wallets should ever be accessed via virus or malware infected devices.
NEON Pros:
- Can store both NEO and GAS tokens
- Can claim your automatically generated GAS if you hold NEO tokens in the wallet
- Will not take up lots of space on your hard drive like the GUI wallet
- It is open-source
- Support for Windows, Mac & Linux
- Can be integrated with the Ledger Nano S for extra security
NEON Cons:
- Cannot securely be used on computers which are infected with viruses and malware – is only as safe as the computer you are using it on
5. O3 – The Best NEO Mobile Wallet
There are only a few NEO mobile wallets and, based on features and app reviews, the best mobile NEO wallet seems to be O3 (pronounced “Ozone”).
O3 is a simple, easy to use app available on both Android and iOS that allows you to easily store both NEO and GAS tokens, and allows you to claim you GAS “dividends”.
It is specifically tailored to the NEO blockchain and currently can only store these two tokens.
Your private keys are stored on the phone itself, which means only you have access to them, but is not as safe as a hardware or paper wallet since your phone is vulnerable to malware and virus infection.
O3 Wallet Pros:
- Can Store both NEO & GAS, as well as claim GAS directly from the O3 wallet
- Being a mobile wallet, you can have access to your funds on the go
- O3 is open source
- The app will provide you with the latest NEO-related news to help keep you up-to-date and informed
- Available in both iOS and Android
O3 Wallet Cons:
- Security is an issue since the wallet is only as safe as your mobile device itself
- Currently you can only store NEO and GAS tokens
Get the O3 NEO wallet on Android or iOS:
Other Neo Wallets
Thanks to the popularity of NEO, several other NEO & GAS wallets are starting to come to market. Of these, some like NEO Tracker and NEX are arguably secure. In every case, though, investors should only ever use wallets and apps which have been tested and approved of by the majority of the NEO development community itself. The 5 mentioned above here are currently among the best NEO wallets for storing your NEO and GAS tokens.
Get some NEO and GAS on Binance.
What’s your favorite NEO and GAS wallet? Share in the comments below.
Richard has developed and ran multiple online websites and communities with tens of millions of monthly visitors. He first discovered bitcoin and blockchain in 2012 and has been helping to educate others on its potential since then. Richard is very passionate about the crypto community. Read his inspiring story into cryptocurrency here.