The Best Crypto IRA Companies, Compared

The best crypto IRA companies for 2026: iTrustCapital, Fidelity, BlockTrust, Public (ex-Alto), and BitcoinIRA compared on fees, custody, and coin selection.

Updated June 2026 · Educational only, not financial advice

There is no single best crypto IRA company — iTrustCapital and Public's Crypto IRA lead on coin selection, Fidelity Crypto IRA is the cheapest entry point if you already bank there, and BitcoinIRA and BlockTrust IRA target different structures entirely

Fee stacks in this category range from a flat 1% per trade with no monthly fee to layered percentage-based fees that can run several times higher on the same account size, and the underlying company behind a provider can change without much notice, as Alto's sale of its CryptoIRA business to Public showed in late 2025.

About this topic

The best crypto IRA company depends on what you are optimizing for. iTrustCapital and Public's Crypto IRA (the product built from Alto's former CryptoIRA business) compete on the broadest coin selection. Fidelity Crypto IRA is the cheapest entry point if you already have a Fidelity account, since it charges no setup, monthly, or custody fee. BitcoinIRA and BlockTrust IRA serve narrower use cases: a percentage-fee, tiered structure in BitcoinIRA's case, and a Bitcoin-only, algorithmically managed structure in BlockTrust's. This page is educational only, not financial advice, and every fee figure below should be reconfirmed on the provider's own current pricing page before you fund an account, since crypto-IRA fee schedules, and even company ownership, change without much notice.

Every provider compared here except Fidelity uses the same underlying legal structure: a self-directed IRA (SDIRA) opened through the platform, with an IRS-recognized qualified custodian actually holding the crypto. None of them let you hold your own private keys inside the account. The 2021 Tax Court case McNulty v. Commissioner (which involved American Eagle gold coins, not crypto) established that taking personal possession of IRA-owned assets, even through a wholly-owned LLC, counts as a taxable distribution, the same physical-possession principle crypto-IRA custodians apply to private keys. For the full mechanics of that structure and why the custodian model isn't optional, see /invest/retirement/what-is-a-crypto-ira.

Three of the five providers compared here already have their own full review on this site: iTrustCapital (see /invest/retirement/itrustcapital-review), BlockTrust IRA (see /invest/retirement/blocktrust-ira-review), and Fidelity Crypto IRA (see /invest/retirement/fidelity-crypto-ira). This page is the side-by-side comparison, not a repeat of that depth; read the individual review for the provider you're seriously considering before opening an account.

One genuinely useful thing to know before comparing fees: this category has been consolidating. Public.com, a stock and options trading app, acquired Alto's CryptoIRA business for $65 million in a deal announced November 13, 2025, and folded it into its own platform through 2026. Older reviews across the web that still describe "Alto CryptoIRA" as an independent product are describing a business that has since changed ownership, billing, and branding, while the underlying custodian relationship carried over. That is the kind of change a fee comparison written even a year ago can miss entirely, which is a good reason to verify current terms directly rather than trust any single roundup, including this one, as a permanent record.

How it actually works

Here is the same five data points for each provider, in the same order every time: per-trade or per-transaction fee, any recurring monthly or annual fee, the account minimum, who actually holds custody, and how many coins are supported. Compare the actual numbers below rather than headline marketing claims, since two providers each advertising "1%" can still cost very differently once minimums, monthly fees, and custody fees are added in.

iTrustCapital charges 1% per transaction with no setup fee and no monthly or annual fee, plus a $1,000 account minimum. Custody sits with Fortress Trust Company, and the platform supports more than 60 coins, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, and Avalanche, well beyond what a spot ETF can offer since ETFs only cover Bitcoin and Ethereum as of 2026. Full review: /invest/retirement/itrustcapital-review.

Fidelity Crypto IRA has no setup fee, no monthly fee, no custody fee, and no account minimum. Its entire cost is a 1% fee built into the execution price of every buy and sell, similar in size to iTrustCapital's per-trade fee but without iTrustCapital's $1,000 minimum. Custody sits with Fidelity Digital Assets, which has run institutional crypto custody since 2018. The coin list is narrower: Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, and Solana only, and the product is not available to residents of California or Oregon. Full review: /invest/retirement/fidelity-crypto-ira.

Public's Crypto IRA, the product built from Alto's former CryptoIRA business following the November 2025 acquisition, charges a dynamic transaction fee with a 1.25% minimum built into the order, plus a 0.05% monthly custody fee. Transaction fees paid in a given month are credited against that month's custody fee, so an active trader's custody fee can shrink toward zero while a completely inactive account pays the full 0.05% monthly. Custody sits with Alto Trust Co., a New Mexico trust company, and the platform supports more than 40 coins, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, and Dogecoin. Public has not published a specific account minimum for the Crypto IRA on its public fee page as of this writing.

BitcoinIRA's published fee schedule has listed a transaction fee of up to 5.99% on buys, declining at higher purchase tiers, roughly 2% on sells, and a monthly custody fee around 0.08% charged through its custodian, BitGo. That structure makes BitcoinIRA the most expensive provider in this comparison at typical retail trade sizes, though the percentage-based buy fee is explicitly tiered down for larger transactions. Confirm the exact current tiers on BitcoinIRA's own pricing page before funding an account; this is the area where the gap between headline and effective fee is widest across the category.

BlockTrust IRA is Bitcoin-only and layers an AI-driven trading algorithm on top of a third-party qualified custodian, rather than offering simple buy-and-hold like the other four providers. Its fee schedule varies by tier and isn't published as a single flat number, so confirm current terms directly with the provider. BlockTrust is also the newest company in this comparison, founded in 2024, without the multi-year track record the other providers have. Full review: /invest/retirement/blocktrust-ira-review.

How to actually pick between them comes down to what you're solving for. If you want the lowest cost for Bitcoin or Ethereum only, compare all of these against a spot Bitcoin or Ethereum ETF sitting inside a completely ordinary Roth IRA at Fidelity or Schwab first (see /invest/retirement/what-is-a-crypto-ira for that comparison); a 0.19-0.25% annual ETF expense ratio beats every per-trade fee in this roundup for a true buy-and-hold investor. If you specifically want altcoin exposure beyond Bitcoin and Ethereum, iTrustCapital and Public's Crypto IRA are the two with meaningfully broad coin lists. If you already have a Fidelity account and want real coins, not an ETF wrapper, with the simplest possible fee structure, Fidelity Crypto IRA removes the need to open anything new. If you want a managed, algorithmic approach rather than choosing your own trades, BlockTrust is the one product here built around that idea, at the cost of being the least established company in the comparison.

Step by step

1Decide which coins you actually want exposure to: Bitcoin and Ethereum only, or a broader altcoin list. That single decision eliminates some options immediately.
2If you only want Bitcoin or Ethereum, price out a spot ETF inside a regular Roth IRA at Fidelity or Schwab before opening any dedicated crypto IRA (see /invest/retirement/what-is-a-crypto-ira).
3Model your own expected trade frequency against each provider's actual fee stack; a 1% per-trade fee costs very little for a buy-and-hold investor and a lot for someone who rebalances often.
4Pull each provider's current fee schedule directly from their own site immediately before funding, since the figures on this page are a snapshot and this category changes ownership and terms without much notice.
5Confirm the named custodian independently (Fortress Trust, Fidelity Digital Assets, Alto Trust Co., BitGo) rather than assuming the trading platform itself holds your crypto.
6Check state availability before applying; Fidelity Crypto IRA specifically excludes California and Oregon residents.
7Read the dedicated full review for whichever provider you're seriously considering, iTrustCapital, BlockTrust IRA, or Fidelity, before funding an account.

What works in your favor

Real competition exists in this category now: fees, coin selection, and structures differ enough between providers that the right pick genuinely depends on your situation rather than there being one obvious winner.
Fidelity Crypto IRA and Public's Crypto IRA both show mainstream, well-capitalized companies building real crypto-IRA products, not just crypto-native startups.
Custody in every case here sits with a named, identifiable institution (Fortress Trust, Fidelity Digital Assets, Alto Trust Co., BitGo), not with the trading platform itself holding coins informally.
Several providers, iTrustCapital and Public's Crypto IRA especially, now support altcoins that have no spot ETF equivalent, closing a real gap for investors who want more than Bitcoin and Ethereum exposure in a retirement account.

Watch out for

None of these providers let you hold your own private keys inside the IRA; McNulty v. Commissioner established that personal possession of IRA-owned assets, even through a wholly-owned LLC, is a taxable distribution, the same principle applied to private-key custody across every structure compared here.
Fee structures are genuinely hard to compare at a glance: percentage-based trade fees, flat setup fees, and monthly custody fees stack differently across providers, and a low headline number doesn't always mean the lowest effective cost.
None of this is SIPC or FDIC insured; qualified custodians typically carry private crime insurance, but coverage limits are usually well below total client assets under custody.
Company ownership in this category can change with little warning to existing customers, as the Alto-to-Public transition showed; the provider you open an account with today may operate under a different name and fee structure in a year.
Even the cheapest dedicated crypto IRA compared here still costs more than a spot Bitcoin or Ethereum ETF held inside a completely ordinary Roth IRA, for buy-and-hold investors who only want those two assets.

Common questions

What is the best crypto IRA company in 2026?

There is no single best option; it depends on what you're optimizing for. iTrustCapital and Public's Crypto IRA lead on coin selection, Fidelity Crypto IRA is the lowest-friction option if you already bank there, and BitcoinIRA and BlockTrust IRA serve narrower use cases (percentage-tiered fees and algorithmic Bitcoin trading, respectively). This is educational only, not financial advice; compare the specific numbers above against your own situation.

What happened to Alto's CryptoIRA?

Public.com, a stock and options trading app, acquired Alto's CryptoIRA business for $65 million in a deal announced November 13, 2025, and integrated it into its own platform through 2026. The product now operates as Public's Crypto IRA, still custodied by Alto Trust Co., but with Public handling the trading platform and billing. Reviews that still describe an independent "Alto CryptoIRA" product predate that change.

Which crypto IRA has the lowest fees?

For a buy-and-hold investor who only wants Bitcoin or Ethereum, none of the dedicated crypto IRAs beat a spot ETF inside a regular Roth IRA at roughly 0.19-0.25% per year. Among the dedicated crypto IRA providers themselves, Fidelity Crypto IRA and iTrustCapital both charge a flat 1% per transaction with no recurring monthly fee, which is typically the cheapest structure for someone who trades infrequently.

Which crypto IRA supports the most coins?

iTrustCapital lists more than 60 coins and Public's Crypto IRA lists more than 40, both well beyond the Bitcoin-and-Ethereum-only coverage of spot crypto ETFs. Fidelity Crypto IRA supports only four coins (Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, Solana), and BlockTrust IRA is Bitcoin-only.

Is Fidelity Crypto IRA better than iTrustCapital?

It depends on what you already have and what you want to hold. Fidelity Crypto IRA has no setup fee or minimum and is simpler if you already have a Fidelity account, but it only supports four coins. iTrustCapital charges a similar 1% trading fee with no setup fee but a $1,000 minimum, and supports more than 60 coins. Pick based on coin selection and whether opening a new account is worth it to you.

Is BlockTrust IRA a good choice?

BlockTrust IRA suits a specific investor: someone who wants Bitcoin-only exposure managed by an algorithmic trading strategy rather than choosing their own trades. It's a newer company (founded 2024) without the multi-year track record of the other providers compared here, and its fee schedule varies by tier rather than being a single published number, so confirm current terms directly before funding. For simple buy-and-hold Bitcoin exposure, a passive provider or a spot ETF is usually cheaper and simpler.

Are crypto IRA companies insured like a bank account?

No. FDIC insurance covers bank deposits and SIPC covers securities at broker-dealers; neither covers cryptocurrency. The qualified custodians used by the providers in this comparison (Fortress Trust, Fidelity Digital Assets, Alto Trust Co., BitGo) typically carry private crime or theft insurance on their custody systems, but policy limits and exclusions vary and are usually well below total assets under custody.

How do I actually choose between these providers?

Start with what you want to hold: if it's only Bitcoin or Ethereum, compare against a spot ETF in a regular Roth IRA first, since that's usually cheaper. If you want broader coin exposure, compare iTrustCapital and Public's Crypto IRA directly on their current fee pages. If you already bank with Fidelity and want the simplest setup, Fidelity Crypto IRA removes the need to open anything new. Read the dedicated review for whichever provider you're seriously considering before funding an account.

Sources

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