Nova vs the field — Nova Wallet

The numbers

Side by side, no spin.

Real figures where they're published, flagged estimates where they're not. Where a competitor wins a column, the cell says so — credibility beats hype.

Comparison of six self-custody wallets on swap fee, pre-sign risk screening, telemetry, open source, import and KYC model, and chain support. Public figures as of February 2026.
Wallet	Swap feein-wallet	Pre-sign screeningrisk checks	Telemetrydata out	Open sourceverifiable	Import & KYConboarding	Chainssupported
Novathis pageself-custody	0.3%flat — ~3× under the big two	On-deviceNova Shield · 8 exploit classes · zero remote calls	Zerono analytics endpoints — check the wire	Yesreproducible builds · signed manifest	104+ walletsno account · no KYC · phrase or key	120+EVM · Solana · Bitcoin · more
MetaMaskConsensys	0.875%published swap fee	RemoteBlockaid alerts — needs an API round-trip	Someusage metrics — opt-out	Source-availablecustom license — not OSI open	SRP + keyoptional account sync	EVM + Solanaany network via custom RPC
PhantomSolana-born	0.85%published · 1.5% on gasless	RemoteBlowfish simulation (acquired)	Someproduct analytics	Noclosed source	SRP + keyemail sign-in option	~8 majorsSOL · EVM · BTC · Sui
RabbyDeBank	~0%lowest hereno fee on swaps — beats Nova on this line	Local + remotepre-sign balance preview — its signature	Minimalno account layer to feed	YesGPL-3.0	Seed · key · watchno account	~140EVM only — no SOL/BTC
Coinbase WalletCoinbase	~1%est. — varies by route	Basicflagged-token & dapp warnings	Someties into Coinbase services	Partialcore libraries only	Seed + passkeyoptional exchange link · KYC lives there	~10EVM · SOL · BTC
Ledger LiveLedger hardware	~1.5%+partner spread — est., no first-party fee	On-deviceclear signing on the Ledger screen	Someopt-in analytics	Yespublic repo	Hardware-boundLedger device required to sign	15+native apps · more via partners

yes / included partial / varies no ~ = estimated from public listings, not a quoted schedule

Public figures as of Feb 2026. Swap fees are each wallet's own in-wallet fee — network gas and third-party spreads not included unless shown. Ledger Live charges no first-party swap fee; its integrated partners apply a spread we estimate at ~1.5%+. MetaMask 0.875%, Phantom 0.85% (1.5% on gasless swaps) and Rabby's 0% come from published fee schedules; Coinbase Wallet's ~1% is an estimate across routes. Features and pricing change — check each wallet's current fee page before you trade. No links, on purpose: verify them yourself.

Switching

Switch in 3 steps.

Whichever column won you over, moving takes under two minutes — and your old wallet keeps working the whole time.

Import your phrase

Paste or type a standard BIP-39 recovery phrase from MetaMask, Phantom, Trust or any of 104+ supported wallets — or bring a raw private key.

Verified locally

Wordlist and checksum are validated inside this window, in the same air-gapped input context as every Nova secret. Nothing is transmitted, logged or stored server-side.

Done

Same addresses, same history, zero migration. Your old wallet keeps working — nothing moves unless you sign it.

Import your wallet

Verdict

The honest verdict.

Nova wins this table on telemetry, screening locality and import breadth — and loses the fee line to Rabby. Here's when each wallet is the right call, including when it isn't ours.

Choose Nova if

You want custody that leaves no trail

Zero telemetry — absent from the binary, not hidden behind an opt-out toggle.
On-device Shield — 8 exploit classes screened locally before you sign; no remote calls, no kill switch.
0.3% flat — ~3× under MetaMask and Phantom on every swap.
104+ imports · 120+ chains — the widest door in this table.
No accounts, no KYC — no credential store to breach, nothing to phish.

Honest · Rabby

…if the fee is the whole decision

Rabby charges ~0% on swaps — it beats Nova on that line and we won't spin it. The trade: EVM-only coverage and screening that leans partly on remote services.

Honest · MetaMask

…if you want a passkey login

MetaMask ships account-style sign-in and a mature mobile app. Nova has neither — on purpose: no accounts means no credential database to breach.

Honest · Coinbase Wallet

…if you live inside Coinbase

Passkey onboarding and a direct rail to the Coinbase exchange — KYC stays on the exchange side. If that integration is the point, it's the right tool.

Honest · Ledger Live

…if your keys live on a Ledger

Clear signing on a certified hardware screen is the right call for large cold balances. Nova won't ask you to type a hardware seed into a browser — keep it on the device.

See how Nova compares.