Ripple (XRP) Wallets: Walking You Through Your Options

It's been a great year for the Ripple project, with announcements and developments galore.

Accordingly, it's not just enthusiasts within the crypto space that are starting to notice, as institutional and retail interest is penetrating into the XRP ecosystem like never before right now.

Consider, for example, how legendary TechCrunch founder Michael Arrington is launching his own XRP-based hedge fund aptly called "Arrington XRP Capital."

Thus as smart money continues to pick up Ripple, there are those of us wondering if we should be doing the same.

So for anyone wanting to take a leap in adding XRP into their portfolio, you're going to need to know what the best Ripple wallets are. No worries -- we've got you covered.

1) Rippex

Rippex is a desktop wallet specifically designed for holding XRP. It's arguably the most trusted and popular Ripple wallet available, so it's a natural place to start for your personal considerations.

You download it onto your computer and then let the wallet initialize. After that, you'll be ready to send and receive your Ripple with just a few clicks on your desktop.

You can download the wallet for Windows, Mac, or Linux.

This wallet is worthless, though, if your computer has been compromised by a hacker. Make sure to sweep your system with a full virus scan before downloading and using Rippex. You'll want to make sure you use it -- and any other crypto app for that matter -- in a "pristine" virtual environment.

2) Cryptocurrency hardware wallets

Don't feel savvy enough to ward off all the phishers, keyloggers, and malicious hackers in the crypto space from your soon-to-be XRP?

A casual option for you could be a cryptocurrency hardware wallet -- these fit right into your pocket and hold your crypto offline, ensuring they can't be snagged by hackers. Better yet? Hardware wallets are so natively secure they can even transact through compromised computers.

As such, these kinds of wallets can provide premium security for your Ripple.

At the moment, Ledger is the only hardware wallet company producing wallets that are compatible with XRP. Their two presently wallets include the Ledger Nano S and the Ledger Blue.

3) Paper wallets

If you're paranoid about the tech and want to take your wallet as offline as possible by storing it in, say, a bank deposit box, then a paper wallet might be best for you.

These "wallets" are essentially just paper ledgers of your XRP ownership. They list the basic information needed to access your Ripple in the future.

To create a paper wallet, you'll only need:

• a piece of paper
• your XRP address
• your XRP key

Write these down yourself or use a Ripple paper wallet generator to automatically generate yours. Then, just be sure to store this paper wallet in an incredibly safe place. Make copies. Take all the precautions you need to ensure your fragile paper won't be destroyed!

Final note: exchanges aren't for holding Ripple

Don't get careless and leave your XRP on an exchange indefinitely. You're asking for trouble.

Hacks can happen, exchanges can go insolvent, employees can go rogue. It's best to put your Ripple under your control by creating your own wallet today.

Don't be a victim -- be a victorious holder.