To swap BTC to LTC, create a BTC → LTC order in the swap widget, paste a Litecoin address from your wallet and send bitcoin. The provider credits BTC after one confirmation and pays LTC with a network fee of 0.0001 LTC — less than one cent at a Litecoin price near $60. With BTC around $82,600, 0.01 BTC is roughly 13.6 LTC before the service fee. The details that need attention are the Litecoin address format and the Bitcoin fee you pay to send.
Litecoin address types
| Starts with | Type | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| ltc1q… | Native SegWit (bech32) | Default in most modern wallets; recommended |
| L… | Legacy (P2PKH) | Works everywhere; slightly higher fees when spending |
| M… | Script (P2SH), current prefix | Common on exchanges and older wallets |
| 3… | Script (P2SH), old prefix | Same as M…, deprecated; may be confused with Bitcoin |
| ltcmweb1… | MWEB (MimbleWimble Extension Block) | Confidential; not every service can pay to it — use a regular address |
Litecoin copied many of Bitcoin's formats, and the old 3… prefix is the one that causes confusion: a 3… address could be Litecoin or Bitcoin. Litecoin moved to the M… prefix for scripts years ago, and wallets convert between the two, but if you see a 3… address make sure it came from a Litecoin wallet. The cleanest choice is a ltc1q… address — it cannot be mistaken for Bitcoin, which uses bc1.
MWEB addresses
Since the MWEB upgrade activated in May 2022, Litecoin has an optional extension block where amounts and addresses are hidden. Wallets like Litecoin Core and Cake Wallet can give you a ltcmweb1… address. Paying out to MWEB requires the sender to support it, so for a swap payout use a regular ltc1q… address and move coins into MWEB yourself afterwards if you want.
Cost of the swap
Three things decide what you receive: the 1% float fee (or 1.5% fixed), the 0.0001 LTC payout fee, and the Bitcoin fee you pay to send the deposit. The first two are in the quote. The Bitcoin fee depends on your wallet's fee rate and the shape of your transaction — a single native-SegWit input costs about 141 vB for a typical one-input, two-output payment. At 5 sat/vB that is about 700 sats, roughly $0.58; at 30 sat/vB it is $3.50. The Bitcoin fee calculator gives the exact number for your inputs.
At the time of writing the swap widget showed a minimum of only 0.000022 BTC. For amounts that small the Bitcoin network fee for sending would exceed the value of the swap, so the realistic minimum is set by your own Bitcoin fee, not by the widget.
The swap in five steps
- Enter the BTC amount and read the LTC you will receive.
- Paste your Litecoin address (ltc1q… preferred). Check it with the address validator.
- Create the order, then send BTC from your wallet with a fee rate that gets into the next few blocks.
- Wait for one Bitcoin confirmation — 10 minutes on average, sometimes much longer if your fee rate is low.
- LTC is sent. Litecoin blocks come every 2.5 minutes on average, so the payout is usually confirmed within a few minutes.
The provider quoted 14–16 minutes of typical processing for BTC routes. If your Bitcoin transaction is stuck because the fee was too low, wallets that support Replace-By-Fee can bump it; the swap continues automatically once it confirms, as long as the order has not expired.
Why people swap BTC to LTC
- Cheaper payments. A Litecoin transaction usually costs a fraction of a cent, so small payments are practical.
- Faster settlement. Four Litecoin blocks fit into the average time of one Bitcoin block.
- Accepted by many merchants and P2P traders that do not take Bitcoin on-chain because of fees.
Receiving LTC to an exchange
Litecoin deposits need no memo, so an exchange's LTC deposit address can go straight into the form. Check that the exchange lists the Litecoin network, not a pegged LTC token on BNB Chain, and that its deposit page does not show an MWEB-only address. The exchange will credit the coins after its own confirmation count, commonly between 3 and 12 Litecoin blocks, so add up to half an hour after the payout.
A note on the Bitcoin you send
Swap from a wallet whose coins you control. If you send from an exchange, it chooses the fee and may batch your withdrawal with others, which can add hours on busy days before the transaction even exists. A withdrawal that has not been broadcast yet is invisible to the order, and if the order's countdown runs out the deposit will need manual handling by support. When timing matters, withdraw the BTC to your own wallet first and send from there.
FAQ
Which Litecoin address should I use for the payout?
A native SegWit address starting with ltc1q is the safest choice. L… and M… addresses also work. Avoid MWEB (ltcmweb1) addresses for the payout.
How many confirmations does the BTC deposit need?
One. Typical processing for BTC routes was 14–16 minutes.
How much is the LTC payout fee?
0.0001 LTC, less than one cent, included in the quote.
Is a Litecoin address starting with 3 safe?
Only if it came from a Litecoin wallet. 3… is an old Litecoin script prefix also used by Bitcoin; modern Litecoin wallets show M… instead.
How long until the LTC is confirmed?
Litecoin targets 2.5-minute blocks, so usually within a few minutes after the payout is sent.