The process may seem complicated at first, but it’s a total breeze as long as you have one key component: the crypto address of the receiving wallet. A crypto address, a long alphanumeric string of characters, tells the blockchain where your digital assets should go.

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The step-by-step guide below tells you how to figure out the receiving wallet’s address, allowing you to safely transfer your funds from Coinbase to your desired platform.

How to send crypto from Coinbase

How to send crypto from Coinbase

How to send crypto from Coinbase

As mentioned, the first step in sending crypto is determining the address of the receiving wallet. All crypto platforms have different user interfaces, however, most will have a “receive” or “deposit” button that reveals the address. Others, like MetaMask and the new GameStop Wallet, have the crypto address front-and-center on the UI at all times, ready to be copied. For this tutorial, we’ll be using MetaMask, the world’s most popular web 3.0 wallet, as the receiving wallet so you can get gist of how sending crypto works.

Precautions to take while sending crypto from Coinbase

Precautions to take while sending crypto from Coinbase

Precautions to take while sending crypto from Coinbase

There are several precautions you must take when sending crypto from Coinbase. The most important one is to ensure that you’re sending it on the right network. For example, you cannot send Bitcoin to MetaMask; MetaMask doesn’t support native BTC. To give you another example, if you’re sending USDC (a stablecoin) to KuCoin (a crypto exchange), you may be tempted to use a network called KCC because it’s cheaper, but unfortunately, you can only use ERC-20 (an Ethereum-based network) if you’re sending it from Coinbase. Fortunately, an error message will typically appear if you attempt to send a digital asset to the wrong network. As such, you won’t lose your funds. Lastly, watch out for fees! The Ethereum network is notorious for its expensive gas fees. Send Ethereum on Sunday nights (or the wee hours of Monday morning)  — fees are often lower during this time and your transaction may go through more rapidly.