How to set up your Ledger hardware wallet | Ledger

Ledger.com/start is not merely a download page—it is the critical gateway between owning a hardware wallet and actually securing your cryptocurrency. For users holding a Ledger Nano S Plus, Nano X, or Stax device for the first time, this URL represents the only path that guarantees you are installing genuine software while keeping your recovery phrase completely offline. The process bridges the gap between the physical security of your device and the usability required to manage digital assets.

**What You Need Before Beginning**

Set aside twenty minutes of uninterrupted time in a private location. You will need your Ledger device, its USB cable (or Bluetooth connectivity for the Nano X/Stax), a computer or smartphone with internet access, a pen, and physical paper. The emphasis on paper cannot be overstated—never attempt to photograph or type your recovery phrase during this process. Remove distractions: this is cryptographic key generation, and it demands your full attention.

**Phase One: Installing Ledger Live**

Navigate directly to **ledger.com/start** by typing the address manually. Do not search for "Ledger Live download" in a search engine, as phishing advertisements frequently target these queries. The page will automatically detect your operating system and present the correct installer. Download and install Ledger Live, verifying the digital signature if you possess the technical capability to do so.

Ledger Live functions as the control panel for your device—managing firmware updates, installing cryptocurrency-specific applications, and displaying your portfolio balance. Crucially, Ledger Live never accesses your private keys. It communicates with your device, which signs transactions internally and returns only the public information.

**Phase Two: The Sacred Initialization**

Power on your Ledger device. You will choose between "Initialize as new device" or "Restore from recovery phrase." For first-time users selecting initialization, the device will prompt you to create a PIN code between four and eight digits. This PIN protects against physical theft—it prevents unauthorized access to the device itself, but it is not your backup. If someone steals your Ledger but lacks the PIN, they cannot extract the keys. However, if they have both your device and your recovery phrase, the PIN becomes irrelevant.

Following PIN creation, the device will generate a 24-word recovery phrase using its secure element chip. This generation occurs entirely offline. The words will appear one by one on the device screen. Write them down in the exact order presented, checking spelling carefully against the BIP-39 word list if uncertain. The device will then require you to verify random words from this sequence to confirm you recorded them accurately. **Never skip verification.** These 24 words are your keys. Ledger the company does not know them, cannot retrieve them, and has no mechanism to restore them if lost.

**Phase Three: The Genuine Check and Connection**

With your phrase recorded and verified, connect the device to Ledger Live. The software will immediately perform an authenticity check—cryptographic attestation that your device is a genuine Ledger product and has not been tampered with during shipping. If this check fails, stop immediately and contact Ledger support. Do not proceed with a device that fails the genuine check.

**Phase Four: Applications and Accounts**

Once connected, navigate to "My Ledger" within Ledger Live. Here you will install applications for each cryptocurrency you wish to manage—Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, and others. Think of these apps as interpreters that allow the device to understand specific blockchain protocols. Installing the Bitcoin app consumes storage space on your device but reveals nothing about your holdings.

After installing an app, you "add an account" in Ledger Live. This derives your public addresses from the master seed generated during initialization. You can now receive cryptocurrency by copying these addresses. Critically, receiving funds does not require the device to be connected—you are simply sharing a public key. Sending funds, however, will always require physical device confirmation.

**The Immutable Rules**

Your recovery phrase backup must be stored on a physical medium—paper or metal plates—in a secure location separate from the device itself. Never store it digitally, never photograph it, and never enter it into any computer or smartphone, including when contacted by supposed "Ledger support." No legitimate representative will ever request it.

Treat firmware update prompts within Ledger Live as security critical, but verify through official channels before installing if the request seems unusual. The device will always require your physical confirmation (button presses) for any sensitive operation.

**Beyond the Setup**

Ledger.com/start initiates a custody model where you alone control the assets. Your first transaction should be a test—receive a small amount, verify it appears in Ledger Live, then practice sending a portion back. Understand that Ledger Live can be rebuilt from any computer using your device and recovery phrase, making the ecosystem resilient to computer failure but utterly vulnerable to seed compromise.

Once complete, ledger.com/start fades into the background, replaced by a security practice: the device disconnected, the phrase secured, and your keys existing only in that secure element chip and on that piece of paper—nowhere else.