Why Perform Stress Tests?
Stress Test Methodology
Note: after testing 70 devices, I probably won't be testing many more - nearly every device these days is a similar design to some that have already been tested. If you want to have a good idea of how well an untested device will perform, read my Treatise on Bitcoin Seed Backup Device Design.
You may also find this sortable spreadsheet useful.| Device | Overall Grade | Heat Grade | Corrosion Grade | Crush Grade | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Attenuo | A | A | A | A | £50 |
| Bitkee | A | A | A | A | $40 |
| Bitplate Domino | A | A | A | A | £70.50 |
| Bitplate Domino Grande | A | A | A | A | £80.50 |
| Black Seed Ink | A | A | A | A | $27 |
| Blockplate | A | A | A | A | $79 |
| Bravo Seed Card | A | A | A | A | €40 |
| Bravo Seed Coin | A | A | A | A | €60 |
| Bulletproof Bitcoin (DIY) | A | A | A | A | ~$50 |
| Codl Punchplate III | A | A | A | A | $30 |
| Codlkeys S | A | A | A | A | $30 |
| Coinplate Alpha | A | A | A | A | $79 |
| Coinplate Grid | A | A | A | A | $75 |
| Coinplate Punch | A | A | A | A | $65 |
| Coldbit Steel | A | A | A | A | €82 |
| CRYO | A | A | A | A | $50 |
| Crypto Keys | A | A | A | A | $30 |
| Crypto Key Stack | A | A | A | A | $45 |
| Cryptoetch | A | A | A | A | 50 CHF |
| CryptoNumeris Board S | A- | A | B | A | $32 |
| CryptoNumeris Plate S | A | A | A | A | $35 |
| CryptoTag Odin | A | A | A | A | $200 |
| CryptoTag Thor | A | A | A | A | $350 |
| CryptoTag Zeus | A | A | A | A | $130 |
| DIYSeed | A | A | A | A | $20 |
| Hodlinox | A | A | A | A | €30 |
| Hodlinox Interlocking | A | A | A | A | €34 |
| Hodlinox Single Plate | A | A | A | A | €13 |
| Hodlrock Rock96 | A | A | A | A | $74 |
| qreg-hr | A | A | A | A | €149 |
| Quadrat Register 11 | A | A | A | A | €149 |
| Quadrat Register P | A | A | A | A | €366 |
| Safe Seed | A | A | A | A | $28 |
| Secret Seed Enigma | A | A | A | A | $49 |
| SeedSteel | A | A | A | A | N/A |
| Seedplate | A | A | A | A | $50 |
| Simbit | A | A | A | A | $110 |
| Smallseed | A | A | A | A | 48 CHF |
| Steel Wallet (DIY) | A | A | A | A | ~$20 |
| Steelwallet | A | A | A | A | €65 |
| Tinyseed | A | A | A | A | €199 |
| Tjernlund CC3P | A | A | A | A | $40 |
| Willi's Recovery Seed Plate | A | A | A | A | €27 |
| CipherSeks Double Plate | A- | A | B | A | $60 |
| CipherSeks Single Plate | A- | A | B | A | $60 |
| Coldbit Passphrase | A- | A | B | A | $15 |
| Cryptosteel Capsule | A- | A | A | B | $109 |
| CryptoVault | A- | A | B | A | $35 |
| Hodlr Swiss | A- | A | A | B | €119 |
| ImpressSeed Titanium | A- | A | B | A | $30 |
| Keyois Capsule | A- | B | A | A | $99 |
| SAFU Ninja (DIY) | A- | A | A | B | $15 |
| SteelKi | A- | B | A | A | $24 |
| Cypherwheel | B+ | A | A | C | $250 |
| CryptoSteel Cassette | B | B | A | D | $90 |
| Keystone Tablet Punch | B | A | D | A | $24 |
| Billfodl | C | C | A | D | $55 |
| Cobo Tablet | C | F | A | D | $39 |
| Cold Storage Coins | C | F | B | B | $20 |
| ColdTI | C | D | C | A | $21 |
| Keystone Tablet Plus | C | F | A | A | $49 |
| Copper Seed Safe | C- | B | C | F | $14 |
| Blockstream Metal | D | A | F | - | $80 |
| CipherTag | D | A | F | F | $6 |
| The HODL Wallet | D | A | F | - | N/A |
| The Steely | D | F | A | F | $70 |
| Ballet Crypto | F | F | F | F | $35 |
| BitHD Frozen Armor | F | F | F | - | $30 |
| Bunkeroid | F | F | F | - | $130 |
| Ellipal Mnemonic Metal | F | F | F | - | $50 |
| Steeldisk | F | F | F | - | N/A |
There are too many choices, how do I choose?
- Avoid using devices where the device manufacturer may know your private key. Such as Keyois Capsule, Cold Storage Coins, and Ballet Crypto. In some cases it’s possible to have a manufacturer create a BIP38 encrypted backup, which is safer but I wouldn’t recommend it.
- Simpler is better - more pieces means more potential points of failure.
- The best bang for your buck are the single plates with grids for center punched dots such as Bitplates, Blockplate, CodlKeys, Smallseed, or Steelwallet.
- The most durable devices I’ve tested are the Quadrat Register variants.
NOTE: this is an open source project! If you find any out-of-date information such as incorrect prices or broken links, please submit an issue.