---
title: Wallet Basics
description: Ocean users need a wallet to manage their Ocean Tokens and Ether. This page explains the basics of wallets.
---

## Introduction

If you want to use the Ocean Network, then you need Ocean Tokens ([ERC-20 tokens](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ERC-20)) and Ether. To get and manage Ocean Tokens and Ether, you need a _cryptocurrency wallet_ or _crypto wallet_.

## What Crypto Wallets Can Be Used with Ocean?

1. [MetaMask](https://metamask.io/) with on-disk storage of private keys (the default). See the [MetaMask setup tutorial](/tutorials/metamask-setup/).
1. [MetaMask](https://metamask.io/) with a [TREZOR](https://trezor.io/) hardware wallet to store private keys.
1. [MetaMask](https://metamask.io/) with a [Ledger](https://www.ledger.com/) hardware wallet to store private keys.
1. Maybe others?

**Not MyEtherWallet, except to get Ethereum account addresses from a hardware wallet.**

Why only those ones?

You need a crypto wallet that can:

1. connect to both the Main Ethereum Network or the Main Ocean Network (or a custom network), and
1. manage Ether and Ocean Tokens (or custom tokens).

At the time of writing, the Main Ocean Network was not in the list of networks that MyEtherWallet could connect to, and you couldn't connect to a custom network (custom RPC). MetaMask _did_ allow connecting to a custom network, such as the Main Ocean Network.

## Terminology

When you set up a new (crypto) wallet, it might generate a **seed phrase** for you. Store that seed phrase somewhere secure and non-digital (e.g. on paper in a safe). It's extremely secret and sensitive. Anyone with your wallet's seed phrase could spend all the Ether and Ocean Tokens in all the accounts in your wallet.

Once your wallet is set up, it will have one or more **accounts**.

Each account has several **balances**, e.g. an Ether balance, an Ocean Token balance, and maybe other balances. All balances start at zero.

An account's Ether balance might be 7.1 ETH in the Ethereum mainnet, 2.39 ETH in the Kovan testnet, and 0.1 ETH in the Nile testnet. You can't move ETH from one network to another (unless there is a special exchange or bridge set up). The same is true of Ocean Token balances, with one exception: there will be a token bridge allowing you to move Ocean Tokens back and forth between the Ocean mainnet and the Ethereum mainnet (so that the sum of the two Ocean Token balances stays constant).

Each account has one **private key**, one **public key** and one **address**. The public key and address can be calculated from the private key. You must keep the private key secret because it's what's needed to spend/transfer Ether and Ocean Tokens. You can share the address with others. In fact, if you want someone to send some Ether or Ocean Tokens to an account, you give them the account's address.

Notes:

- The blockchain has a record of every spend/receive transaction ever and it's public, so anyone can determine all the balances of all the accounts.
- Unlike traditional pocket wallets, crypto wallets don't actually store the tokens or Ether. They store private keys and maybe other things. (An account's public key and address can be calculated from its private key.)

## Types of Wallets

It's easy to get confused or overwhelmed by all the types of wallets. However, there are really only a few questions you need to ask about a given wallet:

1. Where are my private keys stored? How secure is that?
1. Can the wallet software connect to the networks I care about (such as the Main Ocean Network)?
1. Can the wallet software manage the cryptocurrencies I care about (such as Ocean Tokens)?

Hardware wallets store private keys inside a "secure enclave" (on a special device) so they can't be read out easily. All you can do is send a transaction to the hardware wallet to get the transaction signed by the private key. It then returns the signed transaction. The private key never leaves the hardware wallet.
Other wallets store private keys on a hard drive, in memory, on a remote server, or on a piece of paper.
Each option gives you a tradeoff between security and ease of use / convenience. It's easier to steal or delete a private key if it's stored on a computer, especially a computer that's connected to the internet.

We encourage you to search around and read about wallets to understand the options. This page isn't a deep dive; it's just a primer.