Keystone scores 4 points above Coldcard, led by fund-loss record. Keystone ranks #5 and Coldcard #11 of 23 published hardware wallets. Every term of the gap is on the ledger below; the inputs are on the audit receipt.
Keystone70
vs
CLColdcard66
Scores are out of 100; published scores fall within 41–99 · ranks #5 and #11 of 23
Keystone scores 4 points above Coldcard, led by fund-loss record.
Keystone #5 of 2370
CLColdcard #11 of 2366
Scores are out of 100; published scores fall within 41–99; a bar is empty at 41 and full at 99.
Why, term by termKeystone leads on 1 of 6 published criteria; Coldcard on 0. The terms sum to the gap.
TermKeystoneColdcardWeightPoints
Fund-loss record7/101/102.6+4.1for Keystone+2.1 of 32
Net of the terms+4.1
Reproduced gap+4.2
Published gapAfter score rounding and bounds — see the note below7066+4.0
Weight is in points of the 86-point weighted total. Points are score points of the gap between the two.
KeystoneScore 70Air-gapped QR and microSD signing — firmware rebuilt and matched by independent reviewersStrength: Firmware anyone can rebuild and match — 10/10Watch-out: None of its three secure-element parts (ATECC608B, DS28S60, MAX32520) holds a listed certificateColdcardScore 66July 2026 seed flaw cost owners funds — fixed in 5.6.0; a Bitcoin-only signer that works from microSDStrength: Firmware anyone can rebuild and match — 10/10Watch-out: 30 July 2026: Coinkite reported that firmware before 5.6.0 generated weak seeds (about 72 bits) on Mk4, Mk5 and Q, and that attackers stole funds from weak seeds; update, then move any seed made before 5.6.0 to a new one
Quick facts
At a glance
3 of 5 rows read the same for both.
FactKeystoneColdcard
One-time priceSnapshotKeystone 3 Pro at $149.00 on https://shop.keyst.one/products/keystone-3-pro, read 1 October 2026.COLDCARD Mk5 at $219 ("Buy Now $219 USD") on https://coldcard.com/mk5, read 1 October 2026.
Asset coverageEditorial——
Region fitSnapshotus, europe, globalus, europe, global
Custody modelEditorialSelf-custody: the keys stay on the deviceSelf-custody: the keys stay on the device
Security postureSnapshotSecure element, no listed certificate; firmware open source; air-gapped signing.Secure element, no listed certificate; fully open source; air-gapped signing; a device-level flaw cost owners funds.
From the published criteria
Which should you pick?
Keystone
70#5 of 23
Leads
Pick it when
Pick Keystone if fund-loss record matters most — it scores 7/10 to Coldcard's 1/10 there (weight 11).
Strength
Firmware anyone can rebuild and match — 10/10
Tradeoff
None of its three secure-element parts (ATECC608B, DS28S60, MAX32520) holds a listed certificate
CL
Coldcard
66#11 of 23
Pick it when
Coldcard leads Keystone on no published criterion and no score dimension — pick it only if a fact outside the score (country, funding rail, custody) decides for you.
Strength
Firmware anyone can rebuild and match — 10/10
Tradeoff
30 July 2026: Coinkite reported that firmware before 5.6.0 generated weak seeds (about 72 bits) on Mk4, Mk5 and Q, and that attackers stole funds from weak seeds; update, then move any seed made before 5.6.0 to a new one
Self-identify in 10 seconds
Which one is actually for you?
KeystoneLeads
Choose Keystone if fund-loss record matters most
Fund-loss record: 7/10 against 1/10 for Coldcard (weight 11)
KeystoneScore 70Air-gapped QR and microSD signing — firmware rebuilt and matched by independent reviewersStrength: Firmware anyone can rebuild and match — 10/10Watch-out: None of its three secure-element parts (ATECC608B, DS28S60, MAX32520) holds a listed certificate
CLColdcard
Coldcard leads Keystone on no published criterion
Choose it only if something outside the published criteria decides for you — your country, a funding rail, or custody.
ColdcardScore 66July 2026 seed flaw cost owners funds — fixed in 5.6.0; a Bitcoin-only signer that works from microSDStrength: Firmware anyone can rebuild and match — 10/10Watch-out: 30 July 2026: Coinkite reported that firmware before 5.6.0 generated weak seeds (about 72 bits) on Mk4, Mk5 and Q, and that attackers stole funds from weak seeds; update, then move any seed made before 5.6.0 to a new one
Criterion by criterion
Scorecard
Published criteria · weight in points of 8612 of 12 cells scored. Strength is read from the evidence file; the weight is the published one. Methodology
Secure element
weight 6.5 of 86Tie
Keystone5/10 out of 10
Coldcard5/10 out of 10
Rebuildable firmware
weight 6.5 of 86Tie
Keystone10/10 out of 10
Coldcard10/10 out of 10
Genuine check
weight 2.9 of 86Tie
Keystone5/10 out of 10
Coldcard5/10 out of 10
Checkable keys
weight 2.9 of 86Tie
Keystone7/10 out of 10
Coldcard7/10 out of 10
Maker independence
weight 2.6 of 86Tie
Keystone10/10 out of 10
Coldcard10/10 out of 10
Fund-loss record
by 6 of 10weight 2.6 of 86Keystone leads
Keystone7/10 out of 10
Coldcard1/10 out of 10
Score dimensions
weights sum to 86
The published score is five dimensions, each weighted for the category. "Published criteria" is the criteria block above; the other four are the engine's own terms — availability, friction, trust record, measured data. Each bar is one side's points out of that dimension's maximum; the weight beside the name is its points of the 86-point weighted total. The published criteria above can fill 24 of the block’s 30. A weight marked “constant here” belongs to a dimension every ranked product in the category holds at the same value: it still counts in the total, and it orders nothing here.
Availabilityweight 20 of 86 · constant here
Keystone14/20Coldcard14/20
Tie
Published criteriaweight 30 of 86
Keystone17.7/30Coldcard16.1/30
Keystone leads
Frictionweight 10 of 86 · constant here
Keystone2.7/10Coldcard2.7/10
Tie
Trust recordweight 8 of 86 · constant here
Keystone3.2/8Coldcard3.2/8
Tie
Measured dataweight 18 of 86 · constant here
Keystone5.5/18Coldcard5.5/18
Tie
Decision rulePublished order
Choose Keystone unless the term Coldcard leads on is the one you are buying.
Coldcard leads Keystone on no published criterion and no score dimension — pick it only if a fact outside the score (country, funding rail, custody) decides for you.
The published order weighs every criterion the same way for everyone. To weigh them your way, run .
From the published order
Next best action
If this isn't your case
Other matchups worth comparing
How you can lose money here, and what the ranking scores
Key failure: your own keys are made, shown or recovered unsafely.
Scored by Secure element you can look up · 27% (Keystone 5/10, Coldcard 5/10)
Scored by Firmware anyone can rebuild and match · 27% (Keystone 10/10, Coldcard 10/10)
Scored by Proof the device is genuine and unmodified · 12% (Keystone 5/10, Coldcard 5/10)
Scored by Key creation and signing you can check · 12% (Keystone 7/10, Coldcard 7/10)
Scored by Sign and recover without the maker · 11% (Keystone 10/10, Coldcard 10/10)
Scored by Years in buyers' hands without a device-level fund loss · 11% (Keystone 7/10, Coldcard 1/10)
Every failure family that applies to this category is scored, except Information failure, which the provider pages show as a fact.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
Keystone scores 4 points above Coldcard, led by fund-loss record. Published scores, out of 100: Keystone 70 (rank 5 of 23 hardware wallets), Coldcard 66 (rank 11 of 23).
Reviewed means both products compared here was read against its sources on or after that date; every ranked category is re-read at least every 45 days. Models research, extract and parse. A deterministic engine ranks. Every quote passes an adversarial refute pass.
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