Short answer: no, not after this fall. Coinstar kiosks, found in many Walmart stores, are losing both of their Bitcoin services. Coinstar’s own service, CINQ, ends at its kiosks on November 19, 2026 (Coinstar, as of Oct 19, 2026). Coinme, the other kiosk partner, agreed with 34 state regulators to end its kiosk business by January 1, 2027 (ICBA, as of Oct 9, 2026). We found no Walmart service that sells Bitcoin for cash at the store.
You can still turn cash into Bitcoin. The cheapest and safest way is to deposit the cash into a bank account, then buy Bitcoin from a regulated app.
Ways to turn cash into Bitcoin in 2026
Deposit cash at your bank, then buy with a Bitcoin app. Typical cost: about 1% (Swan charges 1% on buys; Swan fees, as of Oct 19, 2026). Limits: your bank’s and the app’s limits. Best for: most people.
Cash App paper money deposit at a participating store, then buy in Cash App. Typical cost: a $1 fee per deposit plus Cash App’s Bitcoin fee, up to 2% plus a spread of up to 0.75% on market buys under $2,000 (as of Oct 26, 2026). Limits: $5 to $500 per deposit, $5,000 per rolling 7 days and $10,000 per rolling 30 days. Best for: small amounts without a bank account.
OnePay app (Walmart-backed), funded from a OnePay deposit account. Typical cost: “Trading fees apply,” per OnePay; amounts are in its customer agreement (OnePay, as of Mar 20, 2026). Limits: OnePay’s limits. Best for: existing OnePay users. Not a cash option at the register.
Bitcoin ATM (kiosk). Typical cost: varies. California caps fees at the greater of $5 or 15% (CryptoSlate, as of Oct 19, 2026). DC’s attorney general alleges up to 26% at one operator (Decrypt, as of Sept 8, 2025). Limits: California, $1,000 a day; banned or restricted in a growing list of states (see below). Best for: rarely the right choice.
Peer-to-peer trade in person. Typical cost: negotiated. Hodl Hodl charges 0.75% per party, or 0.5% with a referral (as of Oct 26, 2026). Limits: varies. Best for: experienced users who need privacy.
How much does it cost to buy Bitcoin with cash?
Here is what turning $500 in cash into Bitcoin costs on each route, using the fees above and Bitcoin’s October 19, 2026 price of $82,918 (CoinDesk). At that price, $500 is about 603,000 sats before fees. Bitcoin’s price changes daily. Our Bitcoin price prediction page tracks what analysts forecast.
Bank deposit, then a Bitcoin app charging 1%: about $5 in fees, leaving about 597,000 sats. Swan charges no buy fee on a new client’s first $250 (Swan fees), so a new client’s first $500 costs about $2.50.
A California Bitcoin ATM at the 15% cap: up to $75 in fees, leaving about 512,600 sats.
A kiosk charging the 26% alleged by DC’s attorney general: up to $130, leaving about 446,200 sats.
Coinstar’s CINQ service. Coinstar says CINQ’s buying service, run by Zero Hash, left the CINQ app on October 14, 2026 and ends at kiosks on November 19, 2026. CINQ wallets close on January 4, 2027 (Coinstar, as of Oct 19, 2026).
Coinme on Coinstar kiosks. On October 8, 2026, Coinme settled with 34 state regulators over anti-money-laundering failures. It will pay $2.5 million and must end kiosk operations by January 1, 2027, or pay $4 million more (ABA Banking Journal and ICBA, as of Oct 9, 2026). Washington’s regulator says the kiosks must close by the end of the year (Spokesman-Review, as of Oct 9, 2026). Earlier, California fined Coinme $300,000 in June 2025, partly for taking more than its $1,000 daily cash limit (DFPI, as of June 25, 2025).
Walmart’s OnePay app. OnePay, the fintech app Walmart backs, now lets customers buy, sell and hold Bitcoin in the app. Bitcoin was available at launch, and OnePay listed 12 assets as of March 20, 2026. Zero Hash runs trading and custody. The only funding source is a OnePay deposit account, not cash at checkout (OnePay, as of Mar 20, 2026).
Bitcoin Depot. The largest US Bitcoin ATM operator filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on May 18, 2026 and took its machines offline (The Block, as of May 18, 2026).
Key dates for Bitcoin at Coinstar kiosks
October 14, 2026: CINQ’s buying service left the CINQ app (Coinstar).
November 19, 2026: CINQ ends at Coinstar kiosks (Coinstar).
December 31, 2026: existing Bitcoin ATMs in Minnesota must be removed (FOX 21).
January 1, 2027: Coinme must end its kiosk operations (ICBA).
January 4, 2027: CINQ wallets close. Move any Bitcoin out before then (Coinstar).
Have Bitcoin in a CINQ by Coinstar wallet?
Move it before January 4, 2027. Coinstar says you can use the CINQ web app to send your Bitcoin to another wallet or sell and withdraw to your bank until then (Coinstar, as of Oct 19, 2026). The safest place for it is a wallet you control (see our guide to Bitcoin cold storage).
How to buy Bitcoin with cash, step by step
Deposit your cash. Take it to your bank or credit union branch, or use a cash-deposit ATM.
Public addresses = email address (your Bitcoin wallet receive address)
Each private key is your super-secret code: it opens the door to not just one but billions of public addresses (these are your potential email addresses) for sending and receiving Bitcoin.
This costs about 1% (Swan fees, as of Oct 19, 2026), compared with up to 15% at a kiosk in California, and more in states without a cap. It also leaves a clear record for taxes.
Where to buy Bitcoin with cash near me
Your bank or credit union. Deposit the cash at a branch or a cash-deposit ATM, then buy in a Bitcoin app. It’s the cheapest route (see the costs above).
Cash App paper money deposits let you add cash at participating stores for a $1 fee, then buy Bitcoin in Cash App. Cash App’s help page doesn’t list the stores, so use the map in the app to find one.
Bitcoin ATMs, where your state still allows them. Check the state rules in the next section first, and expect high fees.
In-person peer-to-peer trades with someone you know (for example, at a local Bitcoin meetup) avoid kiosk fees and can offer more privacy. Never send money to a stranger first.
Warning: Bitcoin ATM scams
The FBI received 13,460 complaints about kiosk scams in 2025, with $389 million lost, up 58% from 2024 (The Block, as of Apr 12, 2026). The pattern is almost always the same. Someone posing as a bank, the government, tech support or a romantic partner tells you to withdraw cash and feed it into a Bitcoin ATM.
No real bank, government agency or company will ever ask you to pay with a Bitcoin ATM. If someone does, hang up.
States are cracking down. 35 states have passed kiosk laws since 2023, 18 of them in 2026 (AARP, as of Sept 14, 2026).
Indiana banned kiosks statewide in March 2026 (AARP).
Tennessee made it a crime to run or host one from July 1, 2026 (The Block, as of Apr 24, 2026).
Minnesota banned them from August 1, 2026; existing machines must be removed by December 31, 2026 (FOX 21, as of May 13, 2026).
Hawaii banned cash deposits into kiosks from October 1, 2026 (Hawaii News Now, as of Aug 12, 2026).
New Hampshire will require a $2,000 daily limit, a 48-hour hold on first transactions and refunds for fraud reported within 14 days, starting December 16 (Boston Globe, as of Sept 15, 2026).
Swan IRA — Real Bitcoin, No Taxes*
Hold your IRA with the most trusted name in Bitcoin.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I buy Bitcoin at Walmart?
Not for much longer. Coinstar’s CINQ service ends at its kiosks on November 19, 2026, and Coinme must end its kiosk business by January 1, 2027. We found no other way to buy Bitcoin with cash at Walmart.
Is there a Bitcoin ATM at Walmart?
Many Walmart stores have Coinstar kiosks that sold Bitcoin through CINQ and Coinme. CINQ ends at the kiosks on November 19, 2026, and Coinme must end its kiosk business by January 1, 2027.
Does Walmart sell Bitcoin?
Not at the register. OnePay, an app Walmart backs, lets customers buy Bitcoin in the app, funded from a OnePay deposit account.
What is the cheapest way to buy Bitcoin with cash?
Deposit the cash at your bank, then buy through a Bitcoin app for about 1%.
How much does it cost to buy $500 of Bitcoin with cash?
About $5 if you deposit the cash at your bank and buy through an app charging 1%. A California Bitcoin ATM can charge up to $75, at the state’s 15% cap.
What is the daily limit at a Bitcoin ATM?
It depends on your state. California limits kiosk cash to $1,000 a day, and New Hampshire will require a $2,000 daily limit starting December 16. Indiana, Tennessee and Minnesota have banned kiosks.
I have Bitcoin in a CINQ by Coinstar wallet. What should I do?
Send it to a wallet you control, or sell and withdraw to your bank, before CINQ wallets close on January 4, 2027.
Are Bitcoin ATMs safe?
The machines work, but fees are high and they’re the main tool in scams that cost people $389 million in 2025, according to the FBI. Never use one because someone told you to.
Drew, a class of 2013 Bitcoiner, is a Research Analyst for Swan Bitcoin.
He has worked in institutional VC/PE, FinTech, and DLT consulting for over six years. He also brings over twelve years of experience working with national nonprofits and start-ups in education and software development in several leadership roles.
How Swan built an agentic software factory that finds production bugs, reaches consensus on the fix, opens the PR, and proves it works before a human merges.
Total federal debt crossed $40 trillion last week. Jeremy Showalter maps how we got here, where four institutional projections take it by 2050, and why the honest total is already about $55 trillion.
