# Electrum review: KYC policy, privacy and safety grades

> Electrum is a wallet operating since 2011. Its terms put it at KYC level 0 of 4: ID never required. NoKYC Score grades it 8.6/10 for privacy (excellent) and 8.5/10 for safety (excellent). In its favour: no account needed, no email needed and no phone number. No incidents are on record.

Source: NoKYC Score, "Electrum review", reviewed 22 Oct 2026, https://nokycscore.com/service/electrum

## Key facts
- **Category:** Wallets
- **KYC level:** 0 of 4: ID never required
- **Grades:** Privacy 8.6/10, Safety 8.5/10
- **Sign-up:** No account needed
- **Custody:** non-custodial
- **Jurisdiction:** Germany
- **Incidents on record:** 0
- **Last reviewed:** 22 Oct 2026
- **Official website:** https://electrum.org

## What it is
Electrum is one of the oldest Bitcoin wallets still maintained, first released in 2011, and is open-source software for desktop and Android. It is a lightweight wallet that connects to Electrum servers rather than downloading the full blockchain, supports hardware wallets, multisignature setups and Lightning payments, and has a plugin system. The official site warns users to download only from electrum.org and to verify GPG signatures, because fake copies have circulated for years. The software is provided by Electrum Technologies GmbH at no cost. It has no accounts; privacy depends partly on which server the wallet connects to.

## What the terms say about ID
Self-custodial wallet software with no accounts or identity collection.

## Features and warnings
- **Identity:** ID never required: yes; No account needed: yes; No email needed: yes; No phone number: yes
- **Payment:** Accepts Monero: not stated; Accepts Lightning: yes
- **Access:** Tor onion address: not stated; Works without JavaScript: not stated
- **Trust:** Never holds your funds: yes; Open source: yes; Independent audit: not stated; Company named: yes; 5+ years operating: yes
- **Warnings:** May ask for ID: not in terms; Screens deposits: not in terms; Holds your funds: not in terms; Email required: not in terms; Phone number required: not in terms; Closed source: not in terms; Nobody accountable: not in terms

## Questions
### Does Electrum require KYC?
Electrum is rated KYC level 0 of 4 on this site: ID never required. Self-custodial wallet software with no accounts or identity collection.

### Is Electrum safe to use?
Electrum has a Safety grade of 8.5 out of 10 and a Privacy grade of 8.6 out of 10. No incidents are on record. Evidence level: documentation reviewed.

### Is Electrum legit?
Electrum is a working wallet that has operated since 2011. It publishes the company that runs it, in Germany. Being real is not the same as being safe: its Safety grade here is 8.5 out of 10, built from custody, liquidity, track record and incidents.

### Is Electrum a scam?
NoKYC Score does not label services as scams; it records documented incidents with their sources and outcomes. No incidents are on record for Electrum.

### Do I need an account or email to use Electrum?
No account needed.

### Does Electrum have a Tor onion address?
No official onion address was found on Electrum's own pages.

### Which cryptocurrencies does Electrum support?
Electrum supports BTC.

### Can I use Electrum over Tor?
Electrum does not publish an official onion address.

## Sources
- https://electrum.org
- https://github.com/spesmilo/electrum

How grades are calculated: https://nokycscore.com/methodology