On May 22, 2010, a programmer purchased two large pizzas for 10,000 bitcoins that were worth $30 at the time. That transaction is considered the first-ever transaction done using bitcoins. Since then bitcoin has come a long way, today 10,000 bitcoins are worth over $75 million.
Several crypto enthusiasts have claimed that bitcoin has the potential to overtake the fiat system in the future. These claims are not just based on hope. If features of a fiat system are compared with bitcoin, the cryptocurrency has definitely its nose ahead. The decentralized cryptocurrency is proving to be a technological revolution that can change the financial system as we know it.
Some companies stopped accepting bitcoin as payment because of cryptocurrency’s volatility in the past few years.
The companies include:
- Dell
- Stripe
- Steam
- Fiverr
- PayPal
- Twitch
Bitcoin and the darknet
Bitcoin has been labeled as a currency that facilitates illicit activities by many governments in the world. But it can not be the reason alone to dismiss the innovation that has an unimaginable potential. Tim May, who wrote the Crypto-Anarchism manifesto in 1988 had warned that authorities would try to dismiss the crypto revolution as it threatens their own existence, which has been turning out to be quite accurate.
Note: Countries like Malta and Finland have embraced the use of bitcoin.
Bitcoin has several utilities, and in recent times, many merchants have started to accept the leading cryptocurrency. In this article, we will provide you with different ways where you can spend your bitcoins. The leading cryptocurrency is mainly used as a long term investment asset rather than as a mode of payment mainly because of the scalability issues as the network behind bitcoin can only process seven transactions per second, but this will change as the technology grows.
Where can you spend your bitcoin?
There are several services that you can avail using bitcoins, including online-newspaper subscription of Bloomberg, Chicago Sun-Times, and others. Bitcoin is not accepted universally; instead, it is accepted by different companies in different fields.
Some of the services you can avail using these merchants via bitcoin:
1. Dish Networks that accept bitcoin
Dishnetwork is an America-based direct-broadcast satellite provider that accepts bitcoin as a mode of payment. Visit the website here.
2. Dating services that accept bitcoin
These are the dating websites that accept bitcoin as a mode of payment.
3. Pay for VPN using bitcoin
ExpressVPN, PureVPN, and AirVPN are some of the VPN companies that support bitcoin transactions. AirVpn does not only accept it also supports Litecoin, Ripple, Ethereum, and Bitcoin Cash.
These are only a few of the services that you can avail yourself by using the leading cryptocurrency. But that is not all. There are several major merchants that accept bitcoin.
Note: Apple has banned all apps that engage in coin mining.
Some major merchants that accept bitcoin:
1. Microsoft
Microsoft is the biggest company that accepts bitcoin as a mode of payment. In 2014, Microsoft allowed users to pay in bitcoin for the purchase of Xbox. For a while, Microsft took a pause from accepting bitcoin because of the volatility, but it shorty resumed the service back. Visit the website here.
2. Overstock
Overstock is an American-based retail company. Overstock is one of the few major companies that accept multiple cryptocurrencies as a mode of payment. Overstock partnered with Coinbase to accept bitcoin and other digital currencies. However, crypto payments are not yet accepted on the mobile website. Visit the website here.
3. NewEgg
NewEgg is an electronic retail giant that accepts bitcoin as a mode of payment. However, it has some restriction on what you can buy using the digital currency. Bitcoin can not be used to purchase gift cards, subscriptions, pre-orders, and more. But it accepts bitcoin for a majority of its products. Visit the website here.
Note: Currently, there are 260,000 commercial facilities, and retail locations in Japan are accepting bitcoin as a mode of payment.
4. Shopify Stores
Shopify is an e-commerce platform that allows merchants to set up their own online shops to sell their products, similar to eBay and Etsy. In 2013, all 75,000 plus merchants received the option to accept bitcoin as a mode of payment with the help of Bitpay. Visit the website here.
5. eGifter
EGifter allows you to buy e-gift cards that can be used for several services. Currently, the world’s largest company, Amazon, does not accept bitcoin as a mode of payment, but you can use an e-gift card to purchase things on Amazon. eGifter’s vouchers are accepted on Amazon, Home Depot, JCPenny, and several other retailers. Visit the website here.
Note: Gyft, purse.io, Cryfter, Instagift are other websites that allow you to buy gift cards using bitcoins.
6. WordPress
The online company that allows users to create websites and blogs also gives the option to its user to create a gateway to accept bitcoins as a mode of payment. Visit the website here.
7. Expedia
Expedia is a booking platform that allows its users to book hotels, flights, and other things. Currently, Expedia accepts bitcoin as a mode of payment for hotel bookings, but it is planning to introduce the payment option for other services as well. Visit the website here.
8. Air Baltic
Air Baltic is an airline company based in Latvia. It became the first-ever airline company to accept bitcoin as a mode of payment. Visit the website here.
9. Wikileaks
Wikileaks, founded by the controversial Australian editor, publisher, and activist Julain Assange in 2006, is a non-profit organization that accepts bitcoins in donations. The Wikileaks got famous for outing secret government documents, but this a place where whistleblowers anonymously can publish documents in public interest. Visit the website here.
9. Subway
The multinational company famous for sandwiches accepts bitcoin. However, not all of its outlets accept the cryptocurrency, but some of them do. Visit the website here.
10 Old Fitzroy
Old Fitzroy is a pub in Sydney, Australia, that accepts bitcoin as a mode of payment. It became the first-ever pub in Australia to accept bitcoin. The proprietor of the pub, Garry Pasfield, believes that this service is easier for the users and patrons to utilize. Visit the website here.
11. Roadway Moving Company
The New York-based moving company started to accept bitcoin in late 2017. The company cites the lack of sales tax as a plus for the payment system. However, Roadway Moving Company accepts bitcoin payments for customers who have a hot wallet and not cold wallets. Visit the website here.
12. Cheap Air
Cheap Air is another booking platform that allows users to book flights and hotels on the web and mobile and accepts bitcoin as a mode of payment. Cheap Air supports not only bitcoin but also other cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, Litecoin, and Dash. Visit the website here.
13 Reeds Jewelers, Inc.
Reeds Jewelers is based in America and has stores in 13 states with online presence all over the country. All of its stores accept bitcoins as a mode of payment. The refund can also be initiated in bitcoin at Reeds Jewelers. Visit the website here.
14. Virgin Galactic
Virgin Galactic is a spaceflight company within the Virgin Group, owned by the knighted Richard Nicholas Branson. The company became the first-ever spaceflight company to accept bitcoin payments. Visit the website here.
15. Bitcoin.Travel
According to Forbes, Bitcoin Travel has one of the most comprehensive list of businesses that use bitcoin. Users can book flights, hotels, and vacation rentals using the leading cryptocurrency. Visit the website here.
16. Webjet
Webjet is another travel booking website that supports bitcoin. Users can book flights, hotels, cruises, car hire, and so on. Webject became the first-ever online travel agency in Australia to offer bitcoin as a payment method. Visit the website here.
Video Games company that offer bitcoin as a payment method:
17. Playstation Network
Playstation Network accepts bitcoin for games, add-ons, and PS Network Subscription. Visit the website here.
18. Humble Bundle
Humble Bundle is an independent gaming website that accepts bitcoins as a payment method. Visit the website here.
19. Green Man Gaming
Green Man Gaming is a gaming company that sells games keys and digital games in exchange for bitcoin. The company allows customers to sell the digital rights of their game back to Green Man Gaming if it is purchased on the affiliated Playfire distribution platform. Visit the website here.
20. Big Fish Games
Big Fish Games is among the earliest adopter of bitcoin as it integrated the bitcoin payment method back in 2014. The company CEO had said that transaction fees wasted almost 8% of the gross revenue and that why they adopted bitcoin payment. Visit the website here.
Other major merchants:
21. Bloomberg
One of the major online news outlets, Bloomberg, started to accept bitcoin as a payment method this year. Users can now subscribe to Bloomberg using the leading digital currency. Visit the website here.
22. Treehouse
Treehouse provides technology education to people all around the world. The company started to accept bitcoin back in June 2014 to give it’s business a boost. Visit the website here.
23. Famsa
Famsa is one of the largest furniture manufacturing units in Mexico. The company started accepting bitcoin as a payment method back in October 2015. Visit the website here.
24. Lionsgate Films
Lionsgate Films, founded in 1997, is a well-known entertainment company. It earlier announced to accept bitcoin as a mode of payment for the sale of its merchandise. Visit the website here.
25. Mega
Mega provides security solutions to the cloud storage services since its inception in 2013. It started accepting bitcoin quite early. Visit the website here.
26. Mint
Mint provides its users a useful tool for calculating many financial factors such as credit card score, budget bills, receive alerts for suspicious transactions. Users can pay for it through bitcoin. Visit the website here.
27. Monster Megs
Monster Megs is a web hosting service platform that started accepting bitcoin as a payment method back in 2013 when bitcoin was in its infancy. Visit the website here.
28. Nothing Fishy
Nothing Fishy sells eco-friendly healthcare products. It is focused on selling products alternative to fish-based Omega 3 products. The company accepts bitcoin on checkout. Visit the website here.
29. Peach Aviation
Peach Airline is a Japan-based airline company specializing in flights to north-east Asia. It became the country’s first airline to allow customers to pay directly for tickets using bitcoin. Visit the website here.
30. RE/Max London
Re/Max is a well known real estate company in the world. In 2015, Re/Max London delegation announced that it would accept bitcoin as a payment method for property rentals. Visit the website here.
31. San Jose Earthquakes
The San Jose Earthquakes are an American professional soccer team based in San Jose, California, United States. It became the first major soccer team to accept bitcoin for tickets back in 2014. Visit the website here.
Bitcoin can also be spent on different charity organizations that work on various social issues. Some of these non-profit organizations are the Water Project, Omni Nano, Save The Children, and several others. You can find more details on these charity organizations here.
Note: Tor and Wikileaks also accept donations in bitcoins.
Bitcoin is still growing and is in an early stage, and there is a long time for bitcoin to replace the fiat system. But according to several experts, it is inevitable. In countries like Venezuela, where hyperinflation has been a record high, bitcoin could prove to be a life-saver for the citizens. A fiat currency is deflating in nature as its value keeps on declining over time, but bitcoin does not have this problem. Many people wonder, “what can I buy with bitcoin?” we have provided a list of some of the prominent merchants where you can use bitcoin.
