10 Things You Didn’t Know You Could Do with Crypto (But Should)

Crypto is not just for trading; it is also a powerful tool for earning, spending, learning, and supporting causes in both real and digital economies. 

As most people think of crypto, they picture Bitcoin charts, meme coins, or trading, just for fun. But the truth is that crypto is much more flexible and useful than you might think. Crypto is slowly changing how we use money and the internet. It’s changing how we earn passive income, buy real estate, and even give money to good causes around the world.

You may know what HODLing and staking are, but there are other things you should do with crypto that you didn’t know you could. Whether you’re an experienced investor or just interested in crypto, these surprising uses could lead to new ways to make money, find usefulness in the real world, and show you how much this digital change is already changing our daily lives.

Here are 10 powerful things you can do with crypto right now that don’t get enough attention.

1. Use Crypto to Earn Passive Income (Beyond Staking)

A lot of people know that you can stake crypto to get benefits, but that’s not all. There are a few less well-known but very effective ways to make passive income in the crypto environment without having to constantly watch the market.

Liquidity Mining & Yield Farming

You can make trading fees and sometimes extra token awards by giving decentralized exchanges (DEXs) like Uniswap or Curve trades. Liquidity mining is the name for this. Yield farming goes one step further by moving your crypto assets across protocols in a planned way to get the best results.

Lending Your Crypto on DeFi Platforms

You can lend your crypto on sites like Aave, Compound, and Yearn Finance and make interest, which is often higher than interest from a regular bank account. Smart contracts are used on these platforms to keep track of loans in a safe and clear way.

Earning with Layer 2 and LSD Protocols

With the rise of LSDs like Lido and Rocket Pool, you can bet ETH and still use it in other DeFi protocols to make twice as much money. Also, some newer Layer 2 platforms reward early users who invest assets with “restaking” or “points.”

Auto-Compounding Vaults

Auto-compounding is when platforms like Beefy Finance and Reaper reinvest your earned interest on a regular basis. This makes the most of your crypto income passively and with little work on your part.

Pro Tip: When using high-yield strategies, it’s important to always read up on the procedure and know what the risks are. You can lose money because of bugs in smart contracts and temporary losses.

2. Pay for Everyday Goods and Services

You heard that right—now you can use crypto for more than just digital purchases. You can pay for things like food, clothes, subscriptions, and even your morning coffee.

Crypto Debit Cards and Payment Integrations

It’s possible to use crypto debit cards from big companies like BitPay, Coinbase Card, and Crypto.com Visa to pay for things anywhere that accepts Visa or Mastercard. At the point of sale, these cards will instantly change your cryptocurrency into cash. This makes the process easy for both you and the merchant.

Online Retailers Accepting Crypto

People can pay for things online with Bitcoin, Ethereum, and stablecoins on big sites like Overstock, Newegg, and even some Shopify shops. This is the easiest time for online stores to accept crypto as payment, thanks to payment systems like BitPay and NOWPayments.

Use Crypto for Subscriptions and Digital Services

Cryptocurrency can now be used on VPNs, streaming platforms, website hosting services, and even learning platforms online. You can use Bitcoin to pay for your VPN, USDT to subscribe to cloud storage, or even Web3 wallets to give money directly to content makers.

Know What?

In places where there is inflation or not enough banking infrastructure, it is not only handy but also necessary to use crypto for everyday transactions.

3. Rent or Buy Real Estate with Crypto

You can rent or buy real estate with cryptocurrency, and more and more people are doing it than you might think. As more people use blockchain, crypto is being used to buy and sell real estate in both residential and business markets.

Buy Property with Bitcoin or Stablecoins

A number of real estate companies and sites, including Propy, RealT, and Roofstock onChain, let people use cryptocurrency to buy homes. You no longer have to change your money back and forth when you buy a vacation home or an investment property for rent. You can now make deals in Bitcoin, Ethereum, or USDC.

In some places, sellers are even offering homes that can only be bought with cryptocurrency, taking advantage of the fact that transactions are quick and don’t cross borders.

Tokenized Real Estate Investments

Not enough money to buy a whole house? Tokenized shares on platforms like RealT and Lofty.ai let you own a small piece of real estate and earn rental income from it with as little as $50, which is paid for and divided in crypto.

Pay Rent Using Crypto

In areas with a lot of Web3 users, some landlords and property managers are starting to accept crypto as payment for rent. Wallet integrations and services like RentPay make it easy for renters to send regular crypto payments.

Using crypto for real estate can lower transaction fees, speed up payment times, and give buyers from around the world access to ownership, especially in places where banks are hard to come by.

4. Fundraising and Crowdfunding via Crypto

No longer are banks, venture capitalists, or traditional crowdfunding sites the only places where startups and creators can get business or money. Crypto allows anyone, from artists to activists, to quickly and openly raise money around the world.

Launch Projects on Web3 Crowdfunding Platforms

Cryptocurrency can be used to earn money on Web3-native platforms like Mirror.xyz, Juicebox, and Gitcoin. Mirror lets writers, developers, and owners raise money for their projects by releasing NFTs or tokens that are linked to them. Juicebox, on the other hand, runs community-funded projects like ConstitutionDAO and public goods.

Crypto Crowdfunding for Creators and Communities

Crypto has made it possible for independent artists, musicians, and even nonprofits to raise money directly from each other. Anyone who wants to help bring ideas to life can send Ethereum, Solana, or stablecoins without having to go through middlemen or pay high platform fees.

DAOs: Decentralized Fundraising in Action

Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs) have changed the way people raise money together. Anyone can decide on how the money is spent and add crypto to a DAO’s treasury. Community-led funding models for everything from tech projects to social causes are now possible thanks to DAOs. This was unimaginable just a few years ago.

Crypto fundraising isn’t just faster; it’s also worldwide, hard to censor, and open by design. Smart contracts let donors see where their money goes, which builds trust and holds people accountable.

5. Donate to Charities and Support Causes

One of the best—and most underrated—ways to use crypto is to help people. Bitcoin, Ethereum, stablecoins, and other digital assets can now be used to support global charities, local groups, and grassroots movements.

Major Charities Accept Crypto Donations

You can donate crypto to groups like UNICEF, Red Cross, Save the Children, and The Water Project directly through their websites or through sites like The Giving Block. These platforms make it easy to donate in a number of different tokens. This lets groups get donations from people all over the world without having to worry about currency exchange rates or high bank fees.

Faster, Borderless, and Transparent Giving

Donations in cryptocurrency are especially useful in disaster areas or emerging countries where banks may be slow or not available. With cryptocurrency, money can be sent instantly, with fewer fees, and straight to the person who needs it, without going through a middleman.

On-Chain Transparency

Donors can see how their money is being used because blockchain transactions are public. This encourages accountability and openness. Because of this, crypto is a great way to give to good causes where trust is very important.

Crypto donations have helped get critical aid to people in need faster than traditional methods during humanitarian crises like the war in Ukraine or natural disasters.

6. Earn While You Learn (Learn-to-Earn Platforms)

What if you could get paid to understand crypto? That’s now possible thanks to the rise of Learn-to-Earn apps. Users of these training apps get real tokens or NFTs for doing easy learning tasks, and they don’t even have to pay for them.

Learn and Get Paid in Crypto

You can take interactive classes on blockchain projects, DeFi, NFTs, and more on sites like Coinbase Earn, Binance Learn & Earn, Layer3, and RabbitHole. People make little bits of cryptocurrency by watching short videos or taking quizzes. The cryptocurrency is sent straight to their wallets.

Quest-Based Learning on Web3 Platforms

Some sites go beyond passive learning and encourage people to get involved by doing things. When people use Layer3 and do “quests” like swapping tokens, minting NFTs, or using DeFi protocols, they gain tokens. This helps you learn by giving you a chance to use tools that you’ll actually need in the crypto space.

Ideal for Beginners

These platforms are easy for beginners to use because they don’t require any prior information or money up front. That is one of the best ways to start with crypto because there is no danger and real rewards.

You don’t pay to take a lesson with Learn-to-Earn. Instead, crypto projects pay you to learn about and participate in their ecosystem. It’s good for both teachers and platforms.

7. Play-to-Earn and Move-to-Earn Gaming

Crypto has made gaming more than just a hobby; it’s now a real way to make money. Players can get tokens, NFTs, and prizes by doing what they love, like playing or moving around. This is called play-to-earn (P2E) and move-to-earn (M2E).

Play-to-Earn (P2E) Games

People who play blockchain-based games like Axie Infinity, Pixels, and Gods Unchained are paid with tokens that have value in the real world. There are often NFT-based characters or things in these games that can be bought, sold, or improved. Coins are given to you when you play and win.

Move-to-Earn: Get Fit and Get Paid

Platforms like StepN, Sweatcoin, and Walken do things offline and give users crypto tokens for doing things like walking, running, or biking. These apps turn exercise into a game by using GPS tracking, wearable tech, and blockchain rewards.

NFTs with Utility

A lot of these games give out NFTs that aren’t just trinkets. Tokens can be used to buy and sell characters, places, and gear, giving players real ownership and ways to make money.

Play-to-Earn and Move-to-Earn are changing digital economies, especially in places where there aren’t many standard jobs. If you have a smartphone and some free time, you can use it to make crypto money while you play games or work out.

8. Borrow and Get Loans Using Crypto Collateral

Want to get cash but don’t want to sell your digital goods? With cryptocurrency, you can borrow against what you own, so you can get cash quickly without losing your position.

How It Works

Cryptocurrencies like ETH, BTC, and stablecoins can be used as security on platforms like Aave, Compound, Nexo, and MakerDAO. You can then borrow another asset, usually a stablecoin like USDC or DAI. Your cryptocurrency stays locked in a smart contract while the interest on your loan builds up.

This model is particularly useful for:

• Avoiding capital gains taxes by not selling crypto
  
• Accessing liquidity during market dips
  
• Leveraging assets for additional investments

Undercollateralized and Reputation-Based Lending

Most DeFi loans require too much collateral to protect lenders. However, newer protocols such as Arcx, Goldfinch, and Spectral are looking into how to offer loans with less collateral based on on-chain credit scores, DAO memberships, or social status.

No Banks, No Credit Checks

There is no need for a credit background or paperwork for DeFi loans because they are based on smart contracts. You only need a wallet, some security, and an understanding of the risks, especially when it comes to how much you can lose if prices drop.

When you use crypto as collateral, you can access powerful financial tools that let you stay involved while getting the value of your assets. There are no borders, banks, or red tape in this type of banking.

9. Buy NFTs with Utility (Not Just Art)

Many people think of NFTs as digital art or profile shots, but there is a growing group of NFTs that are actually useful, and you can buy them with crypto.

Membership and Access NFTs

Holders of some NFTs are the only ones who can access certain communities, events, or material. For example, VeeFriends, PROOF Collective, and Friends with Benefits (FWB) use NFTs as digital registration passes, which give users access to a lot more value than just images.

NFTs for Education, Travel, and Ticketing

Utility NFTs are used to get into classes, buy plane tickets, and get into real-life events. Proof of Attendance Protocol (POAP) platforms let users collect NFTs as proof of attendance that can be checked. This is useful for workshops, webinars, and even college classes.

Virtual Real Estate and Metaverse Access

NFTs are also used to control who owns things in digital worlds like Otherside, Decentraland, and The Sandbox. Cryptocurrency lets you buy land, rent it, build on it, or host virtual events. This turns the internet into an economy based on ownership.

Gaming NFTs with In-Game Value

In blockchain games, NFTs stand for characters, weapons, or other things that can be bought and sold in the real world. These aren’t just collectibles; they’re assets that you can sell, improve, or rent out to make money without doing anything.

NFTs are changing into things that can be used and programmed. When you use cryptocurrency to buy NFTs, you’re not just getting art; you’re also getting access, identity, or chance.

10. Get Paid in Crypto (Freelance, Salary, or Business Income)

Cryptocurrency payments are no longer just for tech workers or celebrities. Freelancers, remote workers, and even businesses that want to make it easier to send money across borders can now use this method.

Freelancers and Remote Workers

Freelancers can get paid in crypto for tasks like writing, design, coding, and consulting on sites like CryptoTask, LaborX, and Deel. These platforms skip the delays that come with traditional banking and offer fast payouts around the world at lower fees.

Salaries in Crypto

Bitwage and Request Finance are two companies that help businesses offer crypto payroll options. Employees can choose to get some or all of their pay in Bitcoin, Ethereum, or stablecoins. This gives them more options and faster access to their money, which is helpful in places where there is inflation or not many banking options.

Business Invoicing and Payments

Crypto isn’t just for people anymore; services like OpenNode, CoinPayments, and NOWPayments make it possible for businesses to bill and get paid in crypto. It’s a smart way to do business internationally and save money on currency exchange fees.

Getting paid in cryptocurrency gives you power, speed, and access to money that doesn’t depend on borders. It can be a huge help for freelancers and business owners in developing countries who don’t have access to fast or reliable payment systems.

Conclusion

It’s no longer enough to just trade coins or guess what the next big token will be. As you can see, it’s growing into a strong way to make money, spend it, learn, give, trade, and even get paid. Crypto can be used to buy real estate, donate to a good cause, or make money while you sleep. The options are growing quickly, and most people still don’t know how much they can do with them.

You’re not just keeping up with the future when you look into these less common use cases; you’re actually a part of it. The crypto ecosystem is growing into a full-fledged social and financial network that gives people more power than traditional systems can.

When someone says that crypto is only about charts and coins, you’ll know more about it. Hopefully, you’ll also be able to use it better.