Best Metal Plates To Secure Your Seed Phrase | Cold Storage Solutions

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When it comes to securing your cryptocurrency investments, the importance of protecting your recovery seed phrase cannot be overstated. This vital piece of data is the only thing you need to worry about. Even more than safeguarding your hardware wallet, the seed phrase (otherwise known as mnemonic or recovery phrase) is the most important thing to protect. It is typically a set of 12, 18 or 24 words, generated by random when you set up the wallet for first time. With this sequence of words you can restore your accounts on a different device in the case of theft, loss or damage to your hardware wallet device (and even some hot wallets have seed these days). The seed phrase acts as the key to accessing and restoring your accounts on another device, even if it’s by a different brand or different model to the one you lost.
And while many people rely on digital or paper backups, using a metal plate for safekeeping offers a higher level of security and durability. Digital backups can be compromised or malfunction, while paper backups are too delicate to trust for the long term. Water and fire damage can completely destroy them (or render them useless.)

This is why in this article, I will explore the best brands and products that are currently available on the market for safeguarding your seed for your lifetime.

The Benefits To Using a Metal Plate:

• Enhanced Security:

Unlike paper or digital backups, metal plates provide an added layer of physical security. Metal plates offer protection against potential hazards such as water damage, fire, dust and pests. Moreover, metal plates are less susceptible to being misplaced or accidentally discarded, reducing the risk of unauthorized access to your funds.

• Durability and Longevity:

Metal plates are designed to withstand various environmental conditions, making them highly durable for long-term storage. They are often made from materials like titanium or stainless steel, known for their robustness and corrosion resistance. By using a metal plate, you can ensure that your seed phrase remains intact and readable for years, providing a reliable backup solution that stands the test of time.

• Tamper-Resistance:

Metal plates can feature tamper-evident designs or protective measures to deter and detect unauthorised access. Some plates come with seals or unique markings that reveal any attempts at tampering. This adds an extra layer of assurance that your seed phrase remains secure and uncompromised.

• Portability and Convenience:

Metal plates are typically compact and lightweight, allowing for easy portability. They are often designed to be wallet-sized or keychain-friendly, enabling you to carry them with you if you need to do that. This ensures that you have your seed phrase backup readily available in case of emergencies or the need for wallet recovery. I use various types of plates, some are really tiny and contain a grid with dots, making it seemingly impossible to decipher the contents.

• Compatibility:

Metal plates are designed to be compatible with popular hardware wallets and follow the BIP39 standard for seed phrases. This means you can use them with various cold wallet brands, like Ledger, Trezor, OneKey, Keystone, Ellipal, and basically all popular brands (which are based on the BIP39 standard). I posted a recent article dedicated to all the major cold wallets on the market, so if you want to know more about those, you can read it here.

So, How To Choose?

There are quite a few metal plate options available on the market already. Of course, the main thing most people would care about is quality and value for money, but I will touch on a few other aspects, like design, ease of use and size. I will give you a brief breakdown on each, so you can make your choice accordingly.

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Ellipal Seed Steel

The Ellipal metal plate is a pocket-sized stainless steel device providing fireproof, waterproof, mould-proof, and insect-proof protection for your seed. It’s one of the most user-friendly and compact products in this range. It’s my first choice for obvious reasons: ease of use and size.

Compatibility: Ellipal Seed Steel strictly follows the BIP39 standard seed phrase allowing users to store 12/15/18/21/24-word seed phrase. Quite a large range. The best part is: you only need to slide the provided letters, so no hammering or stamping involved. You don’t need the complete words, just the first 4 letters of each word is enough since each wallet shows you suggested words when you enter 4 letters of any of the seed words. Easy.

Material: This stainless steel storage solution is waterproof, insect-proof, mould-proof, and fire-proof. 

Design and Ease of Use: The Ellipal Mnemonic Metal comes disassembled, which makes it easy to set up and use. What’s different in this product, is that you only stamp the first 4 letters of each word rather than the full word. In most cases, wallets show you suggested words as you start typing and after the 4th letter, you typically get the correct word. Some words are just four letters, so either way, with only the first 4 letters, you get to do less stamping, so it’s convenient. Pretty much all wallets use this method, so you really just need these first 4 letters.

Additional Benefits: For added convenience, the Ellipal Mnemonic Metal is also available in a duo pack. This option allows you to store multiple seed phrases or have a second backup for extra peace of mind.

Pricing: The Ellipal Mnemonic Metal is currently priced at $99, (but originally priced at $118, so I’m not sure if this is a limited time price offer). Either way, it offers a competitive value for its features and quality.
*Please note that pricing may vary, and it’s advisable to refer to the company’s website for the most up-to-date information.

Availability: You can order yours from here: https://bit.ly/shop-ellipal

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 Keytag by OneKey 

The OneKey KeyTag is a recovery phrase backup kit made of aircraft-grade titanium alloy. It is a powerful wallet backup kit that comes with two KeyTag plates. These plates are small and can be taken everywhere, as they are 1/4 the size of a credit card. 

Material: Titanium Construction. The KeyTag plates are made of fire-resistant and durable titanium, an aerospace-grade alloy known for its strength and longevity. This premium material ensures maximum protection for your seed phrase, making it resistant to physical damage and extreme temperatures up to 1668°C.

I really like the approach by this brand to making things extra secure with the help of encryption.
Simply explained, with these plates, you will not be stamping your seed phrase in its original form. You use encrypted version of each word in a very clever and easy to follow method: every word in the BIP39 standard for seed generation has a corresponding number, which you will stamp onto the plate with a stamping tool (provided.)

If you have the OneKey hardware wallet, it will display for you the visual order of the dots you need to stamp onto the plate for your seed. This makes it really quick. But even if you’re using a different brand wallet, this kit comes with a booklet with all words and corresponding numbers. This is a standard guide for all BIP39 derived seeds, so even if you lose this booklet, you can find it on their github and it’s freely available on other wallets’ websites too. You are stamping each word’s number onto the plate, so even if you’re carrying that plate with you on a flight, the x-rays (when scanning your luggage) will not reveal your seed phrase. The plate is really tiny, so it’s really hard for anyone to simply read what’s on it without special tools and a lot of effort. This way you have an extra step of protection. I did a complete video about these titanium plates, so if you’re looking to buy this product, make sure to watch that video so you know exactly what to expect, how to use them. I’ll drop the link to that video in the description too.

Compatibility: The KeyTag plates are designed to be compatible with leading hardware wallets, including Ledger, Trezor, Safepal, Keepkey, and all other BIP39 based wallets. This wide-ranging compatibility allows you to use the OneKey KeyTag with your preferred wallet and securely store your seed phrase.

Design and Ease of Use: Portable and Compact: The KeyTag plates are the smallest plates on the market, measuring only 1/4 the size of a credit card. Their small form factor makes them highly portable, allowing you to conveniently carry your backup everywhere you go. They’re also protected from x-ray due to using a coded form of scripture as I explained already. They also come with a punch tool, so you can do everything yourself – you don’t want to be using any third party for this, right?

Pricing: The Keytag product is priced at $59 making it the most affordable option, hence the best value for money.
*Please note that pricing may vary, and it’s advisable to refer to the company’s website for the most up-to-date information.

Additional Benefits: Backup Kit with Two KeyTag Units
The OneKey KeyTag package includes two KeyTag plates, providing you with an additional backup option for your seed phrase. Having multiple copies ensures redundancy and peace of mind knowing that you have extra protection against potential loss or damage.

In summary, the OneKey KeyTag is a secure and portable titanium backup kit designed to safeguard your 24-word recovery seed phrase. With its fire-resistant titanium construction, compatibility with leading hardware wallets, and the convenience of a punch tool for secure stamping, it provides a reliable and durable solution for protecting your digital assets. The compact design and inclusion of two KeyTag units further enhance its practicality, making the OneKey KeyTag a valuable choice for individuals seeking a robust backup solution.

Availability: Directly on the OneKey website and you can get my special discount with this code: ONEKEY&OJ from this link: https://bit.ly/0nekey

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X-Seed by SecuX

This is another product that I own and use for my seed storage. There are two products by this brand: X-Seed Plus and X-Seed Pro.

X-Seed Plus 

Design and Ease of Use: This kit comes with three stainless steel plates, one aluminium plate, a leather card holder, and a steel letter tool punch set. You hammer each letter directly onto the plate, thus, if found, anyone will be able to read the words in their entirety, so it’s easy to use, but you omit that extra step of encryption that you get with OneKey’s plates, hence why it’s not my top choice despite using these myself.

Compatibility: Offers storage for up to 8 wallets/backup sets of 12 recovery words or 4 wallets/backup sets of 24 recovery words and is compatible with all BIP39 standard wallets (hot and cold).

Pricing: The XSEED Plus is competitively priced at $59.00 making the best value for money, considering it comes with 4 plates (3 steel + 1 aluminium). This is the reason why I decided to get this one, albeit, not the easiest to handle.

Availability: You can order these directly from the SecuX website: https://bit.ly/shop-secuX

X-Seed Pro 

This is a more sophisticated model and it’s a more bulky and sturdy unit. It’s definitely a step forward from the Plus model and the one that I prefer.

Material: The kit comes with 1 stainless steel plate, engraver pen, 1 aluminium plate and tamper-proof stickers. 

Design and Ease of Use: This model allows users to insert the laser-engraved tiles effortlessly, and the 6mm thick structure prevents any bending or warping under high pressure impact such as explosions. This is more user-friendly than the Plus model, so it’s one that I would recommend.

Compatibility: This model is also compatible with all BIP39 standard software and hardware wallets.

Pricing: The XSEED Pro is priced at $89.00, offering a cost-effective solution for securing your private key and digital assets. Compared to other products of the same quality and design, it is much cheaper, so it’s an ideal choice.

Availability: You can order these directly from the SecuX website: https://bit.ly/shop-secuX

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Domino by Bitplates

Bitplates offers really durable, heavy-duty metal plates with their flagship Domino and Domino Grande products. These metal plates are designed to withstand extreme conditions, especially in the face of disasters.

Material: These are made from 316L stainless steel, which has enhanced corrosion resistance compared to standard 316 stainless steel due to its lower carbon content. This is beneficial in harsh environments, such as fire and water, particularly saltwater.

Design and Ease of Use: The Domino plate is compact and allows for easy encoding of seed phrases using a dot system, where each square can represent two letters. This innovative approach simplifies the setup process compared to traditional letter stamping methods.
The Grande version features a larger surface area with an alphabet template, making it easier for users to punch in their seed phrases quickly.

Compatibility: The plate can securely store up to 24 seed words, which is sufficient for most hardware wallets.

Durability Testing: Bitplates products have undergone rigorous stress tests to evaluate their performance under extreme conditions.

Crush Resistance: A hydraulic press test applied a force equivalent to a building collapsing on top of the devices. Both the Domino and Domino Grande plates exhibited no data loss, confirming their robustness against crushing forces.

Heat Resistance: Both the Domino and Domino Grande plates were subjected to temperatures around 2000°F (1093°C) for 10 minutes. Remarkably, there was no data loss, demonstrating their ability to withstand intense heat, which mimics conditions during a house fire.

Water Resistance: Following the heat tests, the plates were submerged in water, simulating firefighting efforts. Again, both products showed no data loss, underscoring their resilience against water damage.

The 3 images above show their durability after: 1-Acid test | 2-crush test | 3-heat test
And again, despite the surface damage, the seed was still preserved and readable.

These are available directly from Bitplates official website.

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Cryptosteel 

Cryptosteel is another renowned brand that specializes in producing high-quality, durable seed phrase backup tools made of stainless steel (hence the name). 

Here are some key advantages to using their products:

Material: Made out of steel, these plates are built to withstand physical damage. They offer maximum resistance to fire, flooding, corrosive conditions, electric shock, and impact from accidents. Steel is not as resilient as titanium, but it’s still a very long-lasting material.

Design and Ease of Use: The Cryptosteel Capsule is their most popular product. It’s a very compact and slim unit that is easy to store and more importantly, easy to hide.Its shape makes it inconspicuous as it doesn’t look like a card or a plate, so it can be a good choice too. 

Compatibility: The Cryptosteel Capsule has a very large seed phrase capacity, allowing you to store up to 48 recovery words. In other words: you can store up to two 24-word seeds or four 12-word seed phrases. Or you might want to store complex and lengthy seed phrases.

Range of Products: Cryptosteel offers a range of products, including the Capsule, Cassette, and MIX, catering to different preferences and requirements. Each product is designed with the same focus on durability and security.

Pricing: Cryptosteel products are available at various price points starting from €108 for the single Capsule, so compared to Keytag, still not the best value for money.

Lifetime Warranty: Cryptosteel products come with a lifetime warranty, demonstrating the brand’s commitment to quality and customer satisfaction.  The characters on Cryptosteel plates are deeply stamped, ensuring maximum longevity and resistance to wear over time. 

Availability: You can find them on their websiteor through Ledger’s online store: click here and navigate to the accessories on this page.

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CRYPTOTAG 

CRYPTOTAG is a company renowned for producing high-quality seed phrase storage devices made of titanium. These seed phrase storage devices are meticulously crafted in the Netherlands, known for its precision engineering and attention to detail in manufacturing.

Material: The CRYPTOTAG Titanium Seed Phrase Storage is also crafted from 6mm thick, space-grade titanium, providing maximum protection for private keys and recovery seed phrases.

Best-Selling and Highly Rated: The CRYPTOTAG Titanium Seed Phrase Storage is widely recognized as the best-selling seed phrase storage in the world. It has been thoroughly tested and reviewed, reaffirming its quality and reliability. These were in fact the first titanium products on the market, so it’s no wonder that they’re the market leader as of right now, but as more and more competitors come in, this might change. 

Compatibility: The CRYPTOTAG Titanium Seed Phrase Storage is capable of securely storing up to 24 recovery words. 

Design and Ease of Use: The storage kit includes an automatic centre punch, which facilitates the marking process on the titanium plates. There are a 3 products currently from this brand with the Cryptotag Zeus, being the most popular. It’s composed of two rectangular metal sheets, using the same encrypted backup in numerical format just like with the OneKey plates, but the reason I placed this as a second best, is that it’s a larger, heavier product and it’s double the price of the OneKey plates, so not the best value for money.

Wallet Compatibility: The CRYPTOTAG Titanium Seed Phrase Storage is compatible with all major wallets currently on the market. 

Pricing: The CRYPTOTAG Titanium Seed Phrase Storage is priced on the higher end of the market. The Zeus plate costs €129, the Odin3 is priced at €199, and the ultimate package named Thor comes at a higher price of €350.
*Please note that pricing may vary, and it’s advisable to refer to the company’s website for the most up-to-date information.

Availability: It’s sold on the Ledger website. Just click here and navigate to the accessories on their shop page.

There are several other brands that are offering metal plates too, like Safe Seed, Stamp Seed, Steelwallet and Blockplate 24 but they’re not much different to the ones I already reviewed here, nor are they any cheaper, so I don’t think we need to make this post any longer. If none of the choices I provided here appeal to you, feel free to continue your research into the other products on the market.

Remember, the security of your seed phrase is crucial, so it is recommended to store multiple backups in different secure locations. Consider using a combination of metal plates, paper backups stored in a secure location, and maybe even encrypted digital backups to ensure comprehensive protection for your seed phrase. I use all of the above although digital backups are too risky in my opinion. But if you know what you’re doing, then fine.

With that said, make sure to follow this blog and if you have any questions or suggestions, please comment below.

If I had to pick just one from all of these, it will be the OneKey product: “Keytag”.
You can order it with a discount from this link:https://shop.onekey At checkout, just apply DISCOUNT CODE: ONEKEY&OJ 

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You can check out my reviews of all the top crypto wallets on this page.

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☝These are my opinions, not financial advice, always DYOR.

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The information contained in this video is for informational purposes only. Nothing herein shall be construed to be financial or legal advice. The content of this post reflects solely my own opinions. Purchasing cryptocurrencies poses considerable risk of losses.