How to Buy Litecoin (LTC): A Step-by-Step Guide for Beginners

Litecoin (LTC) is bought on a crypto exchange or broker app by the usual route: account, verification, deposit, order. The LTC-specific part comes when you move it. Litecoin has several address formats, and not every platform accepts all of them, so check the address format before any LTC leaves your account.

What you need before you start

Your ID, a payment method in your name, an email address, a phone for two-factor authentication (2FA) and a small budget. How to buy crypto covers each in detail.

How to buy Litecoin step by step

1. Choose a platform that lists Litecoin

   Which platforms you can use depends on where you live, so run the registration check first. Exchanges and broker apps are defined in the pillar steps.

   Next, read the fee page and help center. The platform should list Litecoin (LTC), and should let you send LTC to an outside address if you want your own wallet.

2. Open, secure and verify your account

   Create the account, switch on the strongest 2FA option offered and do the identity check only in the platform's own app or site.

3. Add money to your account

   Compare fees and holds before you choose how to pay (payment methods compared). A deposit that arrives short of the amount minus the shown fee is a reason to ask support before depositing again.

4. Buy Litecoin and check the order

   To buy LTC, choose Litecoin on the buy screen and enter the amount to spend. The order should say LTC, and show the fee, the total and the LTC you will receive. A missing number means stop and ask support. Order types, holds and record-keeping are in the pillar's checklist, and tax differs by country (crypto taxes by country).

5. Decide whether to keep it or move it

   Once the order fills, the LTC stays in your account unless you withdraw it. Before you move anything, read Litecoin address formats and how to store Litecoin safely.

Example with made-up numbers

All figures below are invented, including the price of 100 per LTC and the platform's fee. The point is the withdrawal at the end.

• You deposit 200 by card. A 4 deposit fee is taken, so 196 arrives.
• A 2 trading fee is taken from your 196 order, leaving 194 to spend. At 100 per LTC, that buys 1.94 LTC.
• You paid 200 in total, about 103.09 per LTC.
• You withdraw all 1.94 LTC to your own wallet. Its receive screen shows two addresses, one starting ltc1 and one starting ltcmweb1. The platform's help page lists L, M and ltc1 addresses, so you copy the ltc1 one.
• The network fee in this example is 0.001 LTC, taken from the amount sent, so 1.939 LTC arrives.
• Later you send 1 LTC back to an exchange. Your wallet holds regular and MWEB balances, and the exchange's deposit page does not mention MWEB, so you send from the regular balance and do not peg out of MWEB.

The two choices that matter here are which address you copy and which balance you send from.

Where to buy Litecoin

Look for LTC at a crypto exchange or a broker app. For your own wallet, check first whether the place lets you withdraw LTC, since an app that only holds it cannot send it out. Read how to choose a crypto exchange before you pick one.

Litecoin ETF: a share, not coins

A Litecoin ETF is a fund share you buy in a brokerage account. In the US, as of October 2026, the Canary Litecoin ETF trades on Nasdaq under the ticker LTCC. According to its SEC filings (opens in a new tab), its goal is exposure to the price of Litecoin held by the trust, less its expenses and other liabilities.

The trust pays its sponsor an annual fee of 0.95% of its LTC holdings, as of its quarterly report for the period to June 30, 2026. Outside the US, ask your brokerage whether it offers the fund. You own a share, not LTC, which makes the address and wallet sections below irrelevant to it.

Fees to expect

Trading fees, the spread, deposit or card fees and currency conversion work as in crypto exchange fees explained. What is specific to LTC is the cost of sending it out: a platform may charge a withdrawal fee, and every transaction carries a network fee.

A fixed LTC figure would go stale, so as of October 2026 here is how two US platforms describe it. Robinhood in the US says (opens in a new tab) it charges no extra fee to send or receive crypto, though every transaction carries a network fee that depends on the coin and on how busy its network is. On its fee page (opens in a new tab), Binance.US says crypto withdrawal fees in the US are shown before your transaction and can change from one transaction to the next. Before you confirm a withdrawal, find the fee on the withdrawal screen and the amount of LTC that will arrive.

Litecoin address formats

A Litecoin address is the string you copy to receive LTC. As of October 2026, Robinhood in the US says (opens in a new tab) it supports Litecoin addresses that start with L, M or ltc1.

M is Litecoin's own prefix for script addresses (opens in a new tab), and ltc1 is the native SegWit format. Ask the receiving wallet or platform for one of these.

Older script addresses starting with 3 are still valid on the Litecoin network (opens in a new tab), but Robinhood in the US does not support them, and other platforms may differ.

They also look like Bitcoin addresses: Litecoin Core's source code (opens in a new tab) gives them version byte 5, and Bitcoin's standard (opens in a new tab) turns byte 5 into a leading 3. For how those look, see Bitcoin addresses. Do not use a 3 address unless both sides accept it.

MWEB addresses

MWEB (MimbleWimble Extension Blocks) is an opt-in layer (opens in a new tab) that runs alongside Litecoin's main chain. Its addresses start with ltcmweb1. Peg-out means moving coins from MWEB back to the main chain.

On Kraken, the deposit page says (opens in a new tab) deposits sent via MWEB on Litecoin, including peg-outs, are not credited and may be lost.

Read the deposit page of the platform you will use. Unless it says it accepts MWEB, send only to an L, M or ltc1 address, and only from a regular (non-MWEB) balance, never by pegging out of MWEB straight to the platform.

Send LTC out safely

How to store Litecoin safely

You have one decision: leave LTC on the platform, or move it to a Litecoin wallet you control. On a platform, it holds the keys that control your coins. In your own wallet, you hold them, so pick a wallet that supports LTC and the address format you need.

More in how to store crypto safely.

Risks to understand

• Price swings. LTC prices move, and you should risk only what you could lose in full.
• Platform rules change. Supported address formats, MWEB handling and withdrawal fees can change, so read the deposit and withdrawal screens each time.
• Platform risk. Coins left on a platform depend on that company holding them and letting you withdraw; see if you keep crypto on an exchange.
• Scams. Read how to spot crypto scams before you send LTC to anyone.

If you plan to keep LTC in your own wallet, read how to set up a hardware wallet before you buy.