How to sell cryptocurrency and cash out to your bank
You sell crypto by placing an exchange order and withdrawing the dollars to your bank. The sale is taxable, and bank transfers take a few business days.
Vahe HakobyanEditor-in-chief
Updated Oct 5, 20263 min readFact-checked
On this page
- Selling on an exchange usually means paying a trade fee and a withdrawal fee.
- Market orders are meant to fill at once; limit orders wait for your price.
- Keep the sale date, proceeds, cost basis, and fees for your taxes.
- Turn on two-factor authentication and watch for phishing messages.
Selling is the reverse of buying, and most people use the same account they bought from. The trade takes seconds, while the bank transfer and the tax records take longer.
What do you need before you sell?
US rules require centralized exchanges that serve US customers to verify each customer's identity, usually with a government ID. You also link a US bank account in your own name, because that is where the dollars land. Rules on states and payout times vary by exchange, and Crypto Exchanges lists them.
How do you sell crypto step by step?
An order tells the exchange what to trade and on what terms. You choose the coin and the amount, and then you choose how the order should behave. Prices move between the time you look and the time you sell, and a Crypto Converter gives a dollar figure for the amount you plan to trade.
- 1Open the sell screenChoose the coin you want to trade and open its sell screen in your account.
- 2Enter the amountUse a dollar amount or a quantity of coins.
- 3Pick the order typeA market order is meant to fill right away at the best available price. A limit order fills only at your price or better, and it can fill at once if the market is already there.
- 4Check the fee and confirmThe exchange shows its fee before the order goes through.
- 5Send dollars to your bankWithdraw to your linked bank account and check the account details first.
What should you do after selling?
A sale is a US tax event. The IRS treats crypto as property, and a profit generally counts as a capital gain that you report for that tax year.
- Keep the date, proceeds, cost basis, and fees for each sale.
- Report the gain or loss on your federal return for the year you sold.
- Turn on two-factor authentication with an app rather than text messages.
- Type the exchange address yourself instead of clicking links in messages.
- Remember that a completed crypto transfer cannot be reversed.
Frequently asked questions
A market order usually fills in seconds, but the bank withdrawal can take a few business days.
Yes. A decentralized exchange lets you trade with another person directly, and some brokerages sell crypto too.
The loss is generally a capital loss, which can offset capital gains and up to a limited amount of ordinary income.
Yes. The IRS treats a swap as a sale of the coin you give up, so any gain is taxable.
