Welcome to Crypto-4-Beginners, in this article we will look at how to transfer (send or receive) cryptocurrencies from one wallet to another wallet.  This could be sending crypto from an exchange wallet to a private wallet, or from a private wallet to an exchange wallet, or from a private wallet to a private wallet.  

This could be intimidating for people new to cryptocurrencies and decentralization, but it's actually easier than most think, and by the end of this guide, you'll be a master at this particular feat.  

The first thing to understand is that each cryptocurrency has its own unique blockchain network, and thus has its own unique wallet type.  This means that Bitcoin has its own wallet type that is different to Ethereum.  If you were to send Bitcoin to an Ethereum wallet, the Bitcoin would be lost forever.   I cannot stress how important it is to make sure you send the right crypto to the right address.  

Whether you're using a digital wallet on an exchange or a private digital wallet, you will see an option to "Send" and "Receive".  When you click on "Receive" you will be given the wallet address of the specific cryptocurrency you wish to receive.  

For example: 

Let's say your friend wants to send you some Bitcoin.  You would need to give your friend your "Bitcoin wallet address".  To do that, you'd go into your digital wallet, select Bitcoin, and then Receive and you'll be given an alpha-numeric string - this is your Bitcoin wallet address.  

You would then copy the address, and give that address to your friend for your friend to send Bitcoin to that wallet address.  

Let's do another example, just for clarity:

Let's say, you have some Bitcoin on an exchange like Coinbase, and you want to send it to your private digital wallet (Exodus).  What you would first do is go into your Exodus digital wallet, select Bitcoin, then select "Receive".  You'll be given your Bitcoin wallet address.  You copy that.  Next you go to your Coinbase account, select Bitcoin and then select "Send".  Next you'll be asked the amount of Bitcoin you want to send, and the address to where you want to send it.  Fill in the amount, and then put the Bitcoin wallet address you copied from your Exodus wallet.  This will send Bitcoin from your Coinbase account to your private Exodus wallet. 

See, easy-peasy.  The thing to remember is that each cryptocurrency has a unique digital wallet type, and your personal digital wallet has a unique address.  If you want to receive crypto, you give your address to the sender, and if you want to send crypto you need the address of the receiving wallet.  Simple stuff that looks complex - but you're basically an expert now.  

HOWEVER, there's a few other minor details that you should know.  

There are 'native' tokens and 'non-native' tokens.  Bitcoin (BTC) is a native token on the Bitcoin blockchain.  It's the only token on the Bitcoin blockchain.  Ethereum (ETH) is a native token on the Ethereum blockchain, it's not the only token that exist on the Ethereum blockchain.  Other tokens classified as ERC-20 tokens also exist on the Ethereum blockchain such as Chainlink (Link), Uniswap (UNI), Decentraland (MANA), and many others - these are called non-native tokens.  All ERC-20 tokens (including ETH) can be stored in the same wallet type, and thus inside the same wallet type, would have the same address. 

So for example, your Ethereum address in your MetaMask or Exodus private digital wallet will have the same address as your Chainlink in your MetaMask or Exodus private digital wallet.  Let's do a quick demonstration of that, so you get a better picture. 

Go into your Exodus wallet.  Select Ethereum, and then select "Receive".  Look at the wallet address.  Next, select Chainlink, and then select "Receive".  Look at the wallet address.  See that its identical to your Ethereum wallet address.  This is because they are both ERC-20 tokens, which is unique to the Ethereum blockchain network. 

Next, it's extremely important that when sending/receiving crypto that you copy and paste the address exactly.  If any part of the address isn't copied exactly, you will send the crypto to a wrong address and the crypto is lost forever.  There is no retrieving crypto sent to the wrong address.  This is the price of decentralization.   

Also, finally, it's important to understand, whether it's a centralized system or a decentralized system, there is always a network fee for transactions.  In centralized system this is paid to the central authority that maintains the service.  In a decentralized system the network fee is paid to the users that collectively maintain the system and secure the validity of the transactions.  So you will always pay a service fee when doing a transaction - this fee varies network to network.  

So... let's try this out.  Let's try and do a small test transfer.  It's always best to do a small test transfer for your first time, just to make sure you know what you're doing.  The last thing you want to do is send a large sum of crypto and then be scared that you did something wrong.  

Since you're reading this, you're probably new to the world of crypto, so i'll assume you have all or most of your crypto still on an exchange.  What we will do today is transfer a very small amount of crypto from your account on the exchange to your private wallet. 

Here's what you need.  You need a private wallet.  I'd suggest Exodus, since it supports a wide range of cryptocurrencies. 

Ok, let's get started. 

First select which exchange you'll use.  This should be an exchange where you have already purchased crypto and its sitting in your wallet on the exchange. 

Next, select which cryptocurrency you'd like to use in this test.  I would suggest not using any ERC-20 tokens because the current transaction fee's on the Ethereum blockchain are high right now, and you don't want to pay high transaction fees for a small test.  I would suggest using something like DogeCoin, or even ADA (Cardano) because of the low transaction costs. 

So, you've selected which exchange you'll be moving crypto out of, and which cryptocurrency you'll use for the test transfer. 

Next, go into your private wallet - if your using Exodus, go into your Exodus wallet, select the cryptocurrency you've choose and select "Receive" and you'll be give the wallet address for that specific cryptocurrency. 

If you chose DogeCoin the address should start with a capital "D" 
If you chose ADA the address should start with a "add" 

You can either copy and paste the address, or scan the QR-Code with your phone.  I personally make sure to double check the first 4 digits and the last 4 digits to make sure I got the entire address copied, before I hit "Send". 

It can take a few minutes for the transaction to be verified ~ some networks take longer than others.  But the best thing about blockchain is you can track the transactions.  Although each blockchain has its own system, there will always be an option to check the blockchain and see the status of the transaction.  In the wallet, you'll see an option to "check blockchain". 

And that's it.  You're now an expert on how to send, receive and check the blockchain for transactions.