LNbits Funding Sources Comparison Table

LNbits can use a number of different Lightning Network funding source.

There may be trade-offs between the funding sources used, for example funding LNbits using Strike requires the user to KYC themselves and has some privacy compromises versus running your own LND node. However the technical barrier to entry of using Strike is lower than using LND.

The table below offers a comparison of the different Lightning Network funding sources that can be used with LNbits.

LNbits Lightning Network Funding Sources Comparison Table

Funding Source	Custodial Type	KYC Required	Technical Knowledge Needed	Node Hosting Required	Privacy Level	Liquidity Management	Ease of Setup	Maintenance Effort	Cost Implications	Scalability	Notes
LND (gRPC)	Self-custodial	❌	Higher	✅	High	Manual	Moderate	High	Infrastructure cost and channel opening fees	High	gRPC interface for LND; suitable for advanced integrations.
CoreLightning (CLN)	Self-custodial	❌	Higher	✅	High	Manual	Moderate	High	Infrastructure cost and channel opening fees	High	Requires setting up and managing your own CLN node.
Phoenixd	Self-custodial	❌	Medium	❌	Medium	Automatic	Moderate	Low	Minimal fees	Medium	Mobile wallet backend; suitable for mobile integrations.
Nostr Wallet Connect (NWC)	Custodial	Depends on provider	Low	❌	Variable	Provider-managed	Easy	Low	May incur fees	Medium	Connects via Nostr protocol; depends on provider’s policies.
Boltz	Self-custodial	❌	Medium	❌	Medium	Provider-managed	Moderate	Moderate	Minimal fees	Medium	Uses submarine swaps; connects to Boltz client.
LND (REST)	Self-custodial	❌	Higher	✅	High	Manual	Moderate	High	Infrastructure cost and channel opening fees	High	REST interface for LND; suitable for web integrations.
CoreLightning REST	Self-custodial	❌	Higher	✅	High	Manual	Moderate	High	Infrastructure cost and channel opening fees	High	REST interface for CLN; suitable for web integrations.
LNbits (another instance)	Custodial	Depends on host	Low	❌	Variable	Provider-managed	Easy	Low	May incur hosting fees	Medium	Connects to another LNbits instance; depends on host’s policies.
Alby	Custodial	✅	Low	❌	Low	Provider-managed	Easy	Low	Transaction fees apply	Medium	Browser extension wallet; suitable for web users.
Breez SDK	Self-custodial	❌	Medium	❌	High	Automatic	Moderate	Low	Minimal fees	Medium	SDK for integrating Breez wallet functionalities.
OpenNode	Custodial	✅	Low	❌	Low	Provider-managed	Easy	Low	Transaction fees apply	Medium	Third-party service; suitable for merchants.
Blink	Custodial	✅	Low	❌	Low	Provider-managed	Easy	Low	Transaction fees apply	Medium	Third-party service; focuses on mobile integrations.
ZBD	Custodial	✅	Low	❌	Low	Provider-managed	Easy	Low	Transaction fees apply	Medium	Gaming-focused payment platform.
Spark (CLN)	Self-custodial	❌	Higher	✅	High	Manual	Moderate	High	Infrastructure cost and channel opening fees	High	Web interface for CLN; requires Spark server setup.
Cliche Wallet	Self-custodial	❌	Medium	❌	Medium	Manual	Moderate	Moderate	Minimal fees	Medium	Lightweight wallet; suitable for embedded systems.
Strike	Custodial	✅	Low	❌	Low	Provider-managed	Easy	Low	Transaction fees apply	Medium	Third-party service; suitable for quick setups.
LNPay	Custodial	✅	Low	❌	Low	Provider-managed	Easy	Low	Transaction fees apply	Medium	Third-party service; suitable for quick setups.