ICP custody options

Options: Maximum ease or maximum control?

To custody your ICP, you have many options, each with different security and usability trade-offs. Choosing your setup is usually where people get most stuck.

Summary of the range of options available to you depending on your comfort level

Examples if you prefer to have third-party custody of your keys

Examples if you prefer to have maximum control of your keys

Maximum Ease Option

Use Internet Identity with the NNS frontend dapp.

ICP Custody with NNS frontend dapp

Traits

• Most convenient. Entirely web-based. No need to download or install anything.
• NNS frontend dapp has all the functionality you need
• This is a very common method
• Ideal for people who want to want the easiest path to control their ICP

Maximum Control Option

Use your seed phrase directly with a few options for self-custody tools.

Traits

• This option requires more technical understanding
• User has the most control over their ICP.
• This is the safest option from a software point of view because the user is relying on less software surface area, but it is the riskiest from a human point of view in that it puts the risk of the user's seed phrase and private key custody on them.
• Ideal for people who want as much control over their ICP as possible

Tutorials on how to use seed phrase directly

1. ICP custody with seed phrase and air-gapped machine
2. ICP custody with seed phrase and Ledger Nano