MetaMask - How to connect and use Ledger or Trezor wallet

MetaMask – How to connect and use Ledger or Trezor wallet

Cryptocurrencies

A hardware wallet is the safest way to use Metamask. This is because it allows you to securely store your crypto-keys and thus keep your crypto-assets safe. If you use Metamask as a hot wallet, just one hack and you will lose all your assets. That’s why everyone in the industry recommends using a hardware wallet, which is a cold vault that stores your keys offline and keeps all your assets safe and secure.

Using Metamask with a hardware wallet allows you to have the convenience of a hot wallet and MetaMask’s advanced feature set while still getting the security benefits of a hardware device.

Metamask supports Ledger and Trezor hardware wallets. In this guide we will show you how to connect a hardware wallet to Metamask. This is connecting and using a Ledger Nano or Trezor hardware wallet with MetaMask.

Integrating Trezor with Metamask is much easier than with Ledger. Either way, both are more secure, giving you full control over your keys. So the choice is yours.

Why connect Metamask to a hardware wallet?

Metamask is the most popular and probably the most reliable wallet among cryptocurrency users. It is a non-storage wallet that allows you to store various crypto-assets. It also allows you to interact with multiple blockchains such as: Ethereum, Binance Smart Chain, Avalanche, Arbitrum, Polygon, Fantom and other DeFi EVM chains. It is essentially a cross-chain wallet and browser plugin that you can install on your Firefox, Chrome and Brave browsers.

MetaMask offers you easy access to various blockchain-based services. It was created to work with decentralized applications to provide certain functionality on the Internet. Metamask significantly lowers entry barriers for cryptocurrency users, as it significantly improves the user experience when accessing blockchain-based applications.

Whether you want to open decentralized apps (DApps) or interact with decentralized finance protocols (DeFi); using your Metamask credentials and clicking just one connection button, you can access a host of DeFi services.

After logging into the DeFi platform with Metamask, you can perform various DeFi activities, such as lending your assets for interest, withdrawing credit, buying/selling NFT on NFT trading floors, playing blockchain-based games (metaverse), registering for airdrops and more.

Security Metamask

Metamask is a hot wallet, which means it stays connected to the Internet. Anything connected to the Internet is not secure at all. They leave room for hackers and scammers to attack and steal your funds.

Even if your MetaMask is password-protected, it is not secure. In fact, hackers don’t need your passphrase to gain access, or they don’t need to access your wallet directly. A hacker can hack into your computer, remotely install malware, retrieve information, make changes to your browser, and simply empty your wallet. Not to mention the advanced phishing techniques that many novices fall for.

You can see for yourself. There are many reports of users falling for scammers, phishing links and getting their Metamask wallet in the clear.

Seriously, avoid clicking on spam links in Discord and Twitter at all costs. Always download and add the Metamask extension from the official site:

https://metamask.io/

There are many phishing sites that seem legitimate and look just like the Metamask site. Be careful and stay safe. You don’t want to lose your precious ETH or NFT collection.

These attacks are very common, and for these reasons it is highly recommended to use Metamask with a hardware wallet. Even MetaMask recommends its users to have a hardware wallet to protect their cryptoassets.

Not only can you protect your assets, but you can interact with your favorite DApps without going outside the security of your hardware wallet.

Benefits of a hardware wallet connected to Metamask

You can now connect Ledger and Trezor devices directly to Metamask. Once connected, Metamask acts as an interface to your hardware wallet.

For Ledger devices you have Ledger Live, for Trezor devices you have the Trezor suite. Now think of MetaMask as an alternative software for your hardware device that is more advanced and powerful than the Ledger / Trezor applications.

For example, most DApps and DeFi protocols can connect to Metamask, but they do not allow direct integration with Trezor or Ledger wallets. Connecting a hardware wallet to Metamask allows you to interact with such sites now.

In addition, the official Ledger and Trezor software interface is very simple compared to the functionality of Metamask. By connecting your hardware wallet to Metamask, you get much more control and can perform various decentralized actions that are not supported by the hardware wallet software.

Connecting a Trezor or Ledger wallet to Metamask will allow you to do the following

Check your hardware wallet account balance (ETH, ERC20, BEP20, ARC20 and other tokens).
Allows you to add custom tokens that are not yet supported by Ledger or Trezor. You can now manage such custom tokens directly from your hardware wallet.
You can sign transactions such as sending ETH, tokens, and NFT collections. You can also deploy and manage smart contracts using your Ledger and Trezor device.
Sign messages – You can sign in / sign in to certain DeFi applications directly with Metamask.
Allows you to connect and interact with any web3 DApps that are not directly supported by Ledger or Trezor.

Just about everything you can do with MetaMask can now also be done with Ledger and Trezor with one huge advantage. You no longer need to rely on Metamask security to keep your assets safe. Your private keys are now protected and secured by your hardware device, and they will always remain in your hardware wallet.

This allows you to work with DApps more securely and reliably than ever before.

How does the Ledger / Trezor connection work with Metamask?

MetaMask allows you to connect to Trezor and Ledger wallets.

You can connect any of the devices, and once you connect the hardware device, you don’t create any new wallet.

In fact, the wallet address is a combination of the public and private keys. It doesn’t matter what software you use. So not only in Metamask you can access the same ETH addresses of your hardware wallet using any compatible application such as My Ether Wallet, MyCrypto or hardware wallet software.

Your account and address remain unchanged as long as your hardware wallet’s initial word / passphrase combination does not change.

In Metamask, each account represents an address. Once the connection between the hardware wallet and Metamask is established, the devices send the public key (public key only) to Metamask. This creates and adds a new account to Metamask.

In a regular Metamask wallet, which is in a hot wallet environment, your private keys are encrypted in your browser’s local storage. Whenever you want to sign a transaction, you simply have to enter a password to decrypt the private key.

Whereas when you connect Metamask to a hardware wallet, everything works exactly the same. Once you import your hardware wallet’s Ethereum account into the Metamask extension, Metamask treats them just like any other regular Ethereum account. The only difference is that every time you need to sign a transaction, you need to connect the device.

As soon as the device is connected to USB, the Metamask extension sends a request to sign a specific transaction. Check the commission and transaction details and then authorize it on your device. The device will then send the signed transaction to Metamask, which will complete and transmit the transaction to the network.

The transaction is signed completely inside your hardware wallet. In addition, private keys will never be opened and will never leave your device under any circumstances.

Another great thing is that you don’t need to keep your Ledger / Trezor device connected to Metamask at all times. Metamask stores your public key locally, so you can view accounts, check ETH/tokens balances and do any read-only activity without connecting the device to a USB. You only need to connect when you want to sign a transaction.

Of course, you can also disconnect your device, remove your accounts from Metamask and reconnect them at any time. All you need to do is make sure that your hardware wallet uses the same mnemonic seed / passphrase combination. Since your hardware wallets’ ETH accounts are deterministically derived from this combination, you need to have a backup copy of this information.

All right! Let’s get started. First, we’ll look at how to connect Trezor to Metamask. Then we’ll show you how to connect and use a Ledger with Metamask. Once connected, you should be able to view, receive, and spend tokens to and from your Ledger and Trezor through Metamask.

How to connect Trezor to Metamask

Before connecting your device, you must first install and prepare Metamask. Make sure your Firefox, Google Chrome or Brave browser has the latest version installed.

Follow the Metamask Beginner’s Guide to complete the setup. You can back up the start words generated by Metamask, which is optional because they are only used to restore Metamask accounts, not Trezor accounts.

Next, prepare your Trezor Wallet. We assume that you already have your Trezor device set up. Be sure to make a backup copy of the Trezor-generated start words. As well as the passphrase, if you set one up. We’ll explain the recovery process later.

https://trezor.io/trezor-suite

1.First, connect the Trezor to your computer.

2. Then open the Metamask extension and unlock your wallet. Click on the account options and select the advanced view for a better experience.

3. Now click on My Accounts settings in the upper right corner of your Metamask and then click “Connect Hardware Wallet”.

4. On the next screen, you will see the Ledger or Trezor option that you want to connect and use with Metamask. Select Trezor and click continue, which will bring up the Trezor connection pop-up window.

5. The Trezor connection request asks you to approve the public key export from the Trezor device. Click the Allow button once to continue. This will allow the browser to read public keys from your Trezor device.

On the next screen, click “Export” again to export the Ethereum account public key #1.

6. Next, enter the PIN for your Trezor and click the confirm button to continue.

7. The next screen will prompt you to enter your Trezor Wallet passphrase. Leave this field blank if you want to access your default wallet. Press Enter to continue. Next, follow the instructions on your Trezor screen. Confirm access to the hidden wallet.

Note: Passphrases are case-sensitive, and you can use different passphrases to separate wallets. If you use a passphrase, make sure that you have a backup copy of both the opening words generated by Trezor and the passphrase you set. This combination is very important for recovering your wallet.

8. After connecting the wallet and exporting public keys, Metamask will show you a list of Ethereum accounts from your Trezor device. It shows 5 addresses/accounts per page.

9. Select the account/address you want to use and click “Unblock”. Only the selected accounts will be available in your Metamask interface. So select only the addresses that you want to use. Select all if you want to use them all.

That’s it! You have successfully linked your Trezor Wallet to Metamask.

Now click on “My Accounts” in the upper right corner of your Metamask. Account 1″ is the wallet address associated with your initial Metamask phrase and stored on your computer. The ones named Trezor and labeled with the Hardware icon are your Trezor wallet accounts. The private keys of these addresses are stored securely in your Trezor Wallet.

How to connect and use MetaMask with Ledger

Connecting Ledger to Metamask requires some additional steps. It is not as easy or as straightforward as connecting Trezor Metamask.

Before we begin, here is a little information about Ledger integration with Metamask. Recently, users using Ledger with Metamask have been experiencing connection breakdowns. This happened after Chrome, Opera and Brave released their updates that broke the integration between Metamask and the Ledger Nano hardware wallet. The web3 community, which uses Ledger to protect its assets, was hit hard.

To remedy the situation, Ledger offered integration with Ledger Live, but it still left many users with a poor user experience.

You need to connect the Ledger device, open Ledger Live with the selected Ethereum app, enable the smart contracts or blinding data options in the Ledger device settings. Then you need to enable Ledger Live support on MetaMask, which can be done by going to Settings > Advanced > Use Ledger Live. Only then can you connect Ledger to MetaMask. This is a lot of steps.

Ledger and Metamask recently partnered and released a new update with improved support. Metamask and Ledger integration is now fixed, and the old approach of connecting to the Ledger Live app is no longer necessary. With the new update, you won’t need to open Ledger Live, as all integration works exclusively in the browser and the functionality is smoother than before.

For this to work, you must update the Metamask extension to the latest version 10.5.0 (always download/update from the official website). Then update the Ledger firmware.

To update the Ledger Nano firmware, you need to install the Ledger Live app. Beware of phishing sites. Only download Ledger Live from the official website:

https://www.ledger.com/ledger-live

Once the Metamask device and Ledger Nano are updated to the latest version, you will be able to use seamless integration directly between your Ledger device and MetaMask.

Here’s how you can use Ledger with MetaMask.

Metamask and Ledger integration

Connecting Ledger to MetaMask is now easy. Metamask and Ledger will work together without the additional Ledger Live app. But you will still need Ledger Live to install the ETH app, which is required for Metamask integration.

Open Ledger Live >> Go to the Manager section. Then enter the Ledger PIN and unlock the device. Then click “Allow Ledger Manager” on the device and install the ETH app.

If the ETH app is already installed on your Ledger device, you can close Ledger Live.

Now follow the steps to connect Ledger to Metamask.

1.Connect the Ledger to your computer. The device must be connected via USB, not Bluetooth (if using the Nano X).

2. Enter the PIN and unlock the Ledger.

3. After unlocking your device, open the Ethereum app. Keep the ETH app open. Only then will you be able to connect it to Metamask. Once the Ethereum app is ready on your device, you can proceed to the next step.

Before doing so, open “Advanced Settings” on your metamask and make sure that “Preferred connection type to leger” is set to “WebHID”.

4. Now, to import the Ledger Nano address into Metamask, click on the “Connect Hardware Wallet” option on Metamask as we did for Trezor.

In the upper right corner, find your Metamask’s Account Settings and click Connect Hardware Wallet.

5. On the next screen, select Ledger and press continue.

Several pop-up screens will appear in front of you. Leave it for a few seconds and it will automatically connect to your Ledger device.

Once the connection is established, your Ledger Nano wallet address will appear in the metamask interface. It will automatically sort the addresses based on the balance on your Ledger. It is easy to identify your account if any of the addresses already have an Ethereum balance.

Select the addresses you want to import from the list and then click the unlock button. Again you will see several popups. Leave it for a few seconds, and it will successfully import the selected Ledger accounts (their public keys) into MetaMask.

Bring up the accounts menu and select your Ledger address, which will be marked with the hardware icon as shown below. The locked Ledger account keys are stored securely in your Ledger Wallet.

That’s it! You’re ready to go to work.

Signing and sending transactions

First of all, MetaMask uses account and address interchangeably. At any given time, you can only have one account connected and available.

The wallet accounts/addresses you see in your Metamask are not just your ETH address. You can use it as a Binance Smart Chain address, Avalanche address, Arbitrum address, Fantom address, Polygon address, etc. Basically, this works with any EVM network. Before sending tokens from a particular chain, make sure that Metamask is connected to the right EVM network.

For example, if you want to use an address for Binance Smart Chain, select the BSC network in Metamask. Then send tokens to the address through the BSC network. Always when you start, try sending small amounts to see how it works.

Once the tokens are in your wallet, you can access the DeFi platforms available on this chain. You can also use interchain bridges to move tokens between blockchains.

Now signing and sending transactions is the same as with a Metamask address, except for hardware accounts where you need to confirm transaction details on your device.

1.On the Metamask website; Click Submit and fill in the transaction details such as address and amount to send.

2.The gas price (GWEI) and gas limit will automatically fill in according to the chain. You can customize them to your liking. After entering all the data, click Next and then confirm.

3. Transaction details will be displayed on your Trezor and Ledger device. Basically, the address, amount, and fees will be displayed there. Double check them before sending and press the confirm button on your device.

Done! If the transfer is successful, you can continue to send large amounts to your Ledger account and Trezor address connected to Metamask.

Note: (Optional for Ledger users) Open the settings menu on your Ledger Nano Eth app and enable “Contract Data”. You can also enable “blind signing” on the device (only if needed and only if you know what you are doing).

That’s it!

By adding a hardware wallet to Metamask, you can now work with each DApp more securely. This feature increases trust among users. It also greatly increases the security of Ethereum and decentralized Ethereum-based financial ecosystems.

However, you have to pay for this level of security. Whenever you want to transfer funds, use DApps or any DeFi app, you have to connect your device and go through all the extra procedures. The entire user experience is not as smooth as when you use metamask hot wallet directly.

Great! We hope you learned how to successfully connect Ledger and Trezor devices to Metamask.

Now let’s see how backups and restores work, shall we?

Ledger / Trezor and Metamask – backup, restore process

Here’s how the backup/restore process works when using a hardware wallet with metamask.

After successfully connecting a hardware wallet (Ledger or Trezor), Metamask displays the address/accounts that are associated with your hardware wallet.

Such an address will be labeled “HARDWARE”. These addresses/accounts are generated by your hardware wallet, not Metamask.

On the other hand, Metamask supports its own set of accounts / addresses. In addition to the addresses labeled “HARDWARE”, you will also find addresses / accounts that were originally generated by your Metamask. Metamask and hardware accounts will be available side by side, and of course you can use both accounts separately. At any time you can transfer tokens and assets from Ledger / Trezor to Metamask accounts and vice versa.

Note, however, that regular addresses, that is, those that are not marked as hardware addresses, are not protected by your hardware device. It is the hot wallet address where your private keys are stored locally, and therefore they are not protected.

To take advantage of the security and features of a hardware wallet, you only need to use addresses that are marked as hardware addresses, not a regular Metamask account/address.

So, essentially, the start word generated by Metamask is irrelevant. All you need for the backup is the initial word generated by the hardware wallet. If you use an additional passphrase, back it up as well. This combination is very important for recovery.

If you ever lose your Ledger or Trezor, you need to restore your accounts that you added to Metamask. Buy a new device and import the hardware wallet restore phrase. That’s it. Then you can connect your device to Metamask and access all those accounts.

The initial words of the original Metamask account also remain valid. But this is only if you have funds in your initial Metamask account. In this case, you should also back up your initial metamask words to be able to restore the funds in the future.

Keep this in mind if you use a hardware wallet with Metamask. Do not confuse addresses/accounts and start words for backups.

FAQ and troubleshooting

Are you having trouble tying Trezor to Metamask? Can’t connect your Metamask wallet to your Ledger device? Here are a few ways you can try.

Try changing the USB cable and port. Try a different browser. If Chrome does not work, try Firefox. Clear your browser cache. If you are using Brave, disable Brave Shields. Make sure all your programs are updated, specifically the browser and metamask extension. Also make sure your device has the latest firmware version installed. Disable your VPN, firewall or antivirus settings and try. Also, if you have browser extensions like Ad-block installed, try disabling them again, as this can cause connectivity problems.

If none of these worked, don’t worry. You can use other compatible applications to access ETH, such as MEW (MyEtherWallet), MyCrypto or official software (Ledger Live / Trezor Suite).

I hope this helps you.

Final Safety Tip.

We mention it in all of our posts and can’t help but emphasize it. Remember that your initial 24-word recovery phrase is the main key to all your assets. Keeping it secret is paramount. Therefore, never disclose this information to anyone, not even your inner circle.

Most beginners, even those who own a hardware wallet, lose their assets mainly because of their carelessness. Note that there are many phishing sites and tools that look exactly like the originals. Always download programs from the official site and verify them before using them.

Scammers will go to any lengths to get you to reveal your initial recovery phrase. Don’t fall for their tricks and remember that if someone gains access to your passphrase, not even a hardware wallet can save your assets.

Also, don’t keep an online copy, no matter how secure you think it is. Write your secret phrase only on the sheet or metal plate that comes with the hardware wallet. Then place it in a safe or somewhere extremely safe.

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