Shiba Inu (SHIB) originally started as meme crypto but is currently among the 15 largest cryptos, with over $7.69 billion in market cap.
Unlike new meme coins like Pepe, Dogwifhat, Popcat, and many others, Shiba Inu has its own ecosystem that adds utility to SHIB holders.
You can purchase Shiba Inu coins on almost every crypto exchange today, including major brokerage platforms like Robinhood and eToro. In this article, we will show you how to buy Shiba Inu coins on these platforms, including decentralized exchanges.
What is Shiba Inu (SHIB)?
Shiba Inu coin was launched in August 2020. The name and logo were inspired by the popular Japanese Shiba Inu dog breed, which is also the face of Dogecoin, the largest meme crypto by market cap. Shiba Inu’s ticker symbol is SHIB.
Also read: Kabosu, Dog Who Inspired Dogecoin and Shiba Inu Dies at 18
Shiba Inu was created by an anonymous individual or group known as Ryoshi as an ERC-20 token, which means it’s based on Ethereum. SHIB had a total supply of 1 quadrillion tokens, 50% of which was sent to Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin by the developers.
In May 2021, Vitalik burned about 90% of that allocation by Shiba Inu developers — 410 trillion SHIB tokens worth $6.7 billion at the time, whilst donating some to charity.
SHIB’s price soared more than tenfold in the following months, reaching an all-time high of $0.00008854, which raised the market cap to over $40 billion.
Why Buy Shiba Inu Coin (SHIB)?
Many people prefer investing in SHIB over most of the new meme coins due to its market appeal, dominance, and potential for high returns. Shiba Inu has been through market cycles in the last four years, and it’s more arguably established compared to PEPE, WIF, and other new coins.
There is also an opportunity for more price growth. In March 2024, SHIB soared to a $21 billion market cap before dropping alongside the broader market. Another run from current levels to the ATH would translate to about a 500% price gain.
Also, Shiba Inu has one of the most active crypto communities. They are referred to as “SHIB Army,” and are largely responsible for the adoption and listing of SHIB coin on Robinhood and eToro, as well as the growth of the Shiba Inu ecosystem.
Shiba Inu now has its layer-2 blockchain Shibarium, a decentralized exchange ShibaSwap, and some other platforms that drive functionality and utility to SHIB.
How to Buy Shiba Inu Coin
The most common route to buy SHIB is through centralized crypto exchanges. However, as mentioned earlier, you can also purchase SHIB coins on decentralized exchanges, and now, Robinhood and eToro.
In this section, we will guide you on how to buy Shiba Inu coins on these platforms, starting with the best centralized crypto exchanges.
Best Crypto Exchanges to Buy Shiba Inu
Below is a list of the best crypto exchanges to purchase Shiba Inu coins in the United States and overseas. They were selected based on liquidity score, per Coinmarketcap data.
- Binance
- Coinbase
- OKX
- Bybit
- Kraken
- Gate.io
- HTX
- Bitget
- KuCoin
- Bitfinex
- Crypto.com
- Bitstamp
If you are from the United States, you may want to consider Coinbase, Kraken, Bitstamp, and Bitfinex since they support fiat deposits. This means you will be able to swap USD for Shiba Inu coins. Most of the other exchanges are crypto-to-crypto trading platforms and do not support fiat-to-crypto trading – in this case, USD to SHIB.
How to Buy Shiba Inu on Crypto Exchanges or CEXs
There are only four practical steps to buying Shiba Inu coin on crypto exchanges. If you are a beginner and don’t already have a crypto account with any platform, the first step is to choose any of the crypto exchanges.
For this part, we shall use Binance, the largest crypto exchange, to demonstrate the processes involved in buying Shiba Inu on exchanges, with pictures to guide you. The process for Binance is pretty much the same as that of many exchanges.
1: Choose a crypto exchange
Select and register an account with any crypto exchange that suits your needs. You can choose a good exchange by comparing fees, security measures, and other available features.
2: Deposit funds
After creating an account, the next step is to fund your exchange wallet with the supported crypto trading pair, usually USDT.
- Step 1: Click on the deposit button
- Step 2: Click on deposit crypto. You also have the option to fund your account via P2P trading.
- Step 3: Select the coin and network. Then send the selected crypto to the deposit address provided.
Fiat-to-crypto exchanges like Coinbase offer users options to deposit fiat currencies, like USD, directly into their accounts through bank transfers, credit/debit cards, and wire transfers.
3: Buy Shiba Inu
After completing your first deposit, you can then place an order to buy Shiba Inu.
- Step 1: Navigate to Spot market
- Step 2: Search for Shiba Inu pair
- Step 3: To buy Shiba Inu coin instantly, select Market order and enter the USDT amount you want to invest. In this case, we are buying $10 worth of SHIB.
- Step 4: Once completed, go to your Assets, and you will find the equivalent amount of Shiba Inu coin you bought.
4: Secure your SHIB
After buying Shiba Inu tokens, you can decide to leave them on the exchange. However, it’s best practice to store your coins in external crypto wallet, where you have full control for added security – more on that later in this article.
How to Buy Shiba Inu on Decentralized Exchanges (DEXs)
Decentralized exchanges are alternatives to buying Shiba Inu. DEXs offer a more direct approach to trading coins in general compared to their centralized counterparts. DEXs operate without intermediaries, relying on smart contracts to facilitate trades with token contracts directly.
Best decentralized exchanges to buy Shiba Inu coin
- Uniswap
- Sushiswap
- 1inch
- ShibaSwap
- CoW Swap
- KyberSwap
- dYdX
- ParaSwap
- Balancer
- Matcha
All of these platforms support the Ethereum blockchain, which is important because Shiba Inu is an ERC-20 token, meaning it’s based on Ethereum.
Steps to Buy SHIB on DEXs
There are seven steps involved in buying Shiba Inu tokens from decentralized exchanges. Using Uniswap, the largest Ethereum-based decentralized exchange, we’ll show you the steps involved with helpful pictures.
- Step 1: Set up a Web3 wallet compatible with the Ethereum network. Popular options include MetaMask, Trust Wallet, and WalletConnect.
- Step 2: Select any of the DEXs that are easy to use and compatible with your preferred cryptocurrency wallet.
- Step 3: Fund your wallet ETH, which will be needed for the gas fee and swapping for Shiba Inu.
- Step 4: Connect your wallet to the chosen DEX.
- Step 5: Find the SHIB token. The best practice is to search using SHIB’s token contract address to avoid buying into a fake SHIB token. The official SHIB CA address: 0x95ad61b0a150d79219dcf64e1e6cc01f0b64c4ce
- Step 6: Enter the amount of SHIB you want to buy, and then click on the swap button.
- Step 7: Review the details of your trade and confirm the transaction on the wallet.
How to Buy Shiba Inu on Robinhood
Robinhood listed the Shiba Inu coin in April 2022, following an intensive community campaign. The app is a commission-free trading platform, meaning users are not charged when investing in SHIB or any other supported crypto assets. However, Robinhood only serves US citizens.
The process of buying Shiba Inu on Robinhood is as straightforward as buying stocks on the platform.
- Step 1: Create an account with your government name and email address.
- Step 2: On the next page, you will be asked to verify your identity by submitting personal information such as phone number, residential address, social security number, and date of birth.
- Step 3: After completing the checks, the next step would be funding your account. Robinhood provides the option to directly connect your bank account from different institutions in the US.
- Step 4: Search for SHIB by using the magnifying icon at the bottom of the screen. Then click on the buy button.
- Step 5: Enter the amount of SHIB you want to buy and click on review to complete the order.
How to Buy Shiba Inu with Apple Pay or Google Pay
Most crypto exchanges do not provide the option to directly buy Shiba Inu using Apple Pay or Google Pay. However, you can easily purchase SHIB via these options on the Trust Wallet app, which supports the payment method via integration with third-party providers.
Follow the steps below to purchase SHIB with Apple Pay or Google Pay:
- Step 1: Create a Trust Wallet account or log in to your existing wallet.
- Step 2: Click on the buy option.
- Step 3: Search for the Shiba Inu token in the search bar area.
- Step 4: Enter the amount you want to invest.
- Step 5: Click on the payment card area to select a different option.
- Step 6: Click on the dropdown menu and select the Google Pay option.
- Step 7: Choose Transak as the provider. We found it to be the only payment provider that really works for Google Pay and Apple Pay.
- Step 8: Proceed by clicking on the Buy with Google Pay button.
- Step 9: You will be redirected to a Transak page, where you will see the option to choose either Google Pay or Apple Pay. Then, click on the Buy Now button.
- Step 10: You will then be required to complete basic customer verifications to complete the transaction.
How to Buy Shiba Inu coin with a Credit and Debit Card
The Credit and Debit card option is a popular payment method that you can find on almost every cryptocurrency exchange, and it’s very easy to use. In this section, we will show you how to buy SHIB tokens using your Credit and Debit cards on centralized exchanges (using Binance) and the decentralized counterparts (using Uniswap).
Note: We chose to use Binance and Uniswap because they are very popular crypto platforms, and the processes involved are the same for other cryptocurrency exchange. You may be charged 5% to 10% of the transaction amount, depending on the platform you choose.
Steps to Buy Shiba Inu coin using Credit and Debit Card on CEXs
- Step 1: Navigate to Buy Crypto on Binance and select “Buy & Sell.”
- Step 2: On the Buy/Sell section, enter the amount you want to spend.
- Step 3: On the Receive box, choose Shiba Inu from the list of coins supported.
- Step 4: Click on Buy SHIB.
- Step 5: Enter your card information and click on “Confirm” to complete the transaction.
Steps to Buy Shiba Inu coin using Credit and Debit Card on DEXs
- Step 1: Navigate to Trade and click on Buy.
- Step 2: Enter the amount you want to spend.
- Step 3: Select Shiba Inu as the token to receive on your chosen DEX. In this case, we will choose USDT (to convert to Shiba Inu later) since Uniswap doesn’t support buying SHIB directly with a Debit or Credit card.
- Step 4: Click on Continue to proceed.
- Step 5: You will receive a pop-up containing a list of supported third-party payment providers with which to check out. Choose any of the providers.
- Step 6: Now, provide your card details and confirm the transaction.
- Step 7: After the USDT tokens are deposited, navigate to Swap to buy SHIB.
How to Buy Shiba Inu Coin via Peer-to-Peer Trading
Peer-to-peer (P2P) trading involves you, the buyers, transacting directly with a seller. Instead of going through a centralized exchange, you directly connect with other individuals to buy and trade SHIB.
This can be done through online marketplaces or dedicated P2P trading platforms or connecting with trusted local crypto vendors. Some crypto exchanges, like Binance, Bybit, etc., now also offer P2P services, where you can purchase major coins like USDT and then swap to SHIB.
P2P trading basically offers you a decentralized and often more private way to buy Shiba Inu. However, it can expose you to the risk of getting scammed in the absence of an escrow.
Where to Store your Shiba Inu Coins?
The general rule of thumb with your Shiba Inu holding and every other crypto investment is to move your assets to self-custody wallets for added security. This is very much recommended for crypto enthusiasts who intend to hold their coins for the long term.
There are two types of wallets – software and hardware. Software wallets require an internet connection to work, while hardware (or cold wallets) don’t require an internet connection and so are more secure compared to the former. However, hardware wallets are pricy, unlike software wallets, which come at almost no cost.
Best software crypto wallets to store your Shiba Inu coins
- Metamask
- Phantom
- Trust Wallet
- Coinbase Wallet
- Coin98 Super Wallet
- Zengo
- Atomic Wallet
- Robinhood Wallet
- eToro Money
Best hardware crypto wallets to store your Shiba Inu coins
- Ledger Nano X
- Safepal S1
- Trezor Model T
- Tangem Wallet
Also read: Best Shiba Inu Wallets: Best Security Features
Where to Stake your Shiba Inu coins
Haven purchased and stored your Shiba Inu tokens, you may also want to stake your coins to earn passive rewards, especially if you intend to hold them for the long term. You can stake SHIB through a centralized or decentralized crypto exchange, as well as ShibaSwap, the official decentralized exchange for the Shiba Inu ecosystem.
How to stake Shiba Inu on CEXs
Many crypto exchanges offer Earn programs that allow users to stake Shiba Inu and other cryptocurrencies to earn passive rewards. However, the APR is usually lower on centralized exchanges compared to DEXs or ShibaSwap.
- Step 1: Navigate to the Earn section of your exchange.
- Step 2: Search for any available Shiba Inu earn products.
- Step 3: Subscribe to the program and then deposit the amount of SHIB you want to stake..
Note: The APR for staking Shiba Inu may vary depending on the exchange you use. For instance, Binane offers a 0.01% APR for SHIB, while Bybit offers up to 1%.
How to Add LP on DEXs With Shiba Inu
You can also earn passive income from your SHIB tokens by staking on a liquidity pool on decentralized exchanges. However, in this case, you will need to have another crypto to pair with SHIB.
Below are the steps to stake Shiba Inu tokens on decentralized exchanges, using Uniswap as an example.
- Step 1: Navigate to Pool on Uniswap or any other DEX.
- Step 2: Click on New position.
- Step 3: Click on the Select token button and choose Shiba Inu to pair with ETH.
- Step 4: Enter the amount of SHIB and ETH you want to stake and confirm the transaction.
Note: Providing liquidity may expose you to impermanent loss. It occurs when the price of the assets in a liquidity pool changes significantly during your staking period.
If the price of one asset increases relative to the other, you may end up with fewer tokens of the appreciating asset and more of the depreciating asset.
For example, if you provide liquidity to an ETH/SHIB pool and the price of ETH increases significantly relative to SHIB, you’ll end up with fewer ETH tokens and more Shiba Inu tokens in your share of the pool. When you withdraw your liquidity, you may receive fewer tokens than you initially deposited, resulting in a loss.
How to Stake Shiba Inu on ShibaSwap
ShibaSwap is a very popular platform for staking Shiba Inu tokens, as it is the official DEX of the Shiba Inu ecosystem. The process of staking on ShibaSwap is quite self-explanatory.
- Step 1: Go to the ShibaSwap official website and connect your wallet.
- Step 2: Navigate to staking and click on Bury SHIB.
- Step 3: Enter the amount you want to stake and click on Approve to confirm the transaction.
Doge vs. Shiba Inu
Dogecoin and Shiba Inu are both meme-inspired cryptocurrencies, with a combined market capitalization of $21.6 billion. While both have strong communities and share some similarities, there are key differences to consider.
The first big difference is the tokenomics. Dogecoin has an unlimited supply, with new coins being mined continuously. However, Shiba Inu has a maximum supply of one quadrillion tokens, with a significant portion burned to reduce the circulating supply.
Dogecoin is mostly seen as a meme coin and may sometimes be used as a digital currency for tipping, donations, and online purchases. However, Shiba Inu pushes beyond a memecoin and payments with the aim of expanding to DeFi applications and gaming.
In August, Shiba Inu announced the launch of the Web3 version of its Shiba Eternity game on Shibarium, its layer-2 network. In the same month, Shiba Inu marketing lead LUCIE also revealed plans for the meme coin team to launch their own Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO).
Dogecoin has experienced significant price surges in the past, driven by social media trends and meme-based hype. SHIB price has also seen substantial volatility but with more focus on its development and community-driven initiatives.
If this guide is helpful, you may want to read more on Shiba Inu Price Prediction