MetaMask vs. Coinbase Wallet — A Comprehensive Comparison

Choosing the right cryptocurrency wallet to use is an important step for any cryptocurrency investor. You’ll need a wallet to interact with DApps, swap tokens or simply hold crypto. Two of the most popular cryptocurrency wallets on the market today are MetaMask and Coinbase Wallet.

Both of these wallets are quite similar to each other, although they have some key differences which could be of great importance depending on your needs. 

In this article, we’ll compare MetaMask vs. Coinbase Wallet to help you decide which cryptocurrency wallet is the best choice for you. We’ll evaluate the MetaMask wallet vs. Coinbase Wallet in terms of availability, security, supported cryptocurrencies and other key areas.

MetaMask vs. Coinbase Wallet : Side-by-side comparison

Before we take a closer look at how MetaMask and Coinbase Wallet stack up against each other, let’s go through a quick overview of their biggest differences and similarities.

Availability

Both MetaMask and Coinbase Wallet are available in two formats, as a mobile app or browser extension. Both mobile apps are available on mobile devices running iOS and Android operating systems.

When it comes to the browser extensions, MetaMask is available to a wider range of users. This is because it supports Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Brave and Opera browsers, while Coinbase Wallet is only available to users of Chrome and Brave. 

Both wallets are free to download and very easy to set up. 

Supported cryptocurrencies

The MetaMask wallet is focused on Ethereum, although it can also be used with EVM-compatible blockchains such as BNB Chain. However, you’ll need to add any networks other than the Ethereum mainnet manually. MetaMask also supports all ERC-20 tokens on the Ethereum tokens, as well as tokens issued on EVM-compatible blockchains.

Coinbase Wallet also supports Ethereum, Ethereum-based tokens, and EVM-compatible chains. Just like with MetaMask, you can also add custom blockchain networks to Coinbase Wallet manually. 

However, Coinbase Wallet also supports a few other cryptocurrencies that MetaMask doesn’t support. You can use Coinbase Wallet to store and transact with Bitcoin, Solana, Dogecoin and Litecoin.

Security

MetaMask is a non-custodial wallet, which means that only the user has control over their private keys. This means that you don’t have to trust anyone else to keep your cryptocurrency safe, but also means that nobody will be able to help you if you lose access to your wallet.

The Coinbase Wallet is also non-custodial. It’s important to point this out since there’s a misconception among some users that if you use Coinbase Wallet, your coins and tokens are held by Coinbase.

Coinbase Wallet also has some additional security features. For example, the wallet will warn you if you’re trying to access a decentralized application that has been flagged as malicious. Coinbase Wallet also has a feature that helps protect users against malicious spam tokens. 

When using either MetaMask or Coinbase Wallet, it’s crucial that you securely back up your 12-word secret phrase. This phrase will allow you to access your crypto even if you forget your password or lose the device you installed your wallet on.

Both MetaMask and Coinbase Wallet are examples of hot wallets. Hot wallets are cryptocurrency wallets on devices that are connected to the internet. 

Such wallets are useful if you’re actively using cryptocurrencies, but are less secure than cold wallets, which are on devices that aren’t connected to the internet.. If you’re planning to hold a significant amount of cryptocurrency over the long term, we recommend you opt for a hardware wallet such as Ledger or Trezor.

Other features

Now, let’s take a quick look at how MetaMask and Coinbase Wallet compare to each other when it comes to extra features.

NFT support

Both MetaMask and Coinbase Wallet support NFTs. In both wallets, you can not only store and transact with your NFTs, but you can also appreciate your NFT collection visually. 

Hardware wallet integration

When it comes to hardware wallet integrations, MetaMask is well ahead of Coinbase Wallet. MetaMask can be used with AirGap Vault, Keystone, Lattice, Ledger and Trezor devices. Meanwhile, Coinbase Wallet only offers an integration with Ledger hardware wallets.

Token swaps

Both MetaMask and Coinbase Wallet allow users to make token swaps through decentralized exchanges directly from the wallet interface. So, if you’re looking for a convenient way to swap between different tokens, both wallets are a solid option. 

However, you need to keep in mind that Coinbase Wallet doesn’t charge any additional fees for token swaps, while MetaMask charges an additional 0.875% fee. Of course, you’ll need to also pay gas fees when you’re swapping between tokens, regardless of which wallet you’re using.

The bottom line — Should you choose MetaMask or Coinbase Wallet?

After evaluating Coinbase Wallet vs. MetaMask, we can conclude that both are high-quality cryptocurrency wallets, and most users can’t go wrong with choosing either of them. 

MetaMask is the obvious choice if you have a hardware wallet other than a Ledger or use a web browser other than Chrome or Brave. The wallet is also supported by a wider variety of decentralized apps, although we’re seeing Coinbase Wallet also being offered by a growing number of DApps.

If Coinbase is your centralized exchange of choice, choosing Coinbase Wallet over MetaMask is a no-brainer. Even though the Coinbase Wallet is non-custodial, it has a number of integrations that will make life easier for you if you have an account with Coinbase.

For example, you can buy cryptocurrency on Coinbase and automatically transfer it your Coinbase Wallet via a simple integration. The wallet also makes it simple for you to bridge funds between your account on the Coinbase exchange and your Coinbase Wallet.

A nice feature of Coinbase Wallet is that when you’re setting up your wallet you can create a .cb.id username for free. The username is human-readable address to receive crypto, and it’s much more convenient than using typical Ethereum addresses, which are not human-readable. However, be careful with the username you pick, as you can only change it once per year.

If you’re still unsure about which cryptocurrency wallet you should choose, check out our article comparing Trust Wallet vs. MetaMask.

FAQs

Is MetaMask better than Coinbase Wallet?

The main advantages of MetaMask is that it’s available as an extension on a larger variety of web browsers and that it supports five different types of hardware wallets. Meanwhile, the Coinbase Wallet extension is only available on Chrome and Brave, and only supports the Ledger hardware wallet.

On the other hand, Coinbase Wallet has more features overall than MetaMask and supports additional cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin, Solana, Dogecoin and Litecoin.