If you self-custody your crypto (or are planning on soon), you’ve probably heard these terms before:

• BIP-39 seed phrase
• Mnemonic phrase
• Recovery phrase
• Recovery seed
• Seed phrase
• Backup
• Seed

The good news? They all mean the same thing! But for new users, this terminology can be confusing when securing their assets.

At Trezor, we previously used the term “recovery seed.” However, after seeing firsthand how it caused confusion, we decided to simplify it.

Because honestly, how many new people can understand what a “seed phrase” is? It’s not intuitive, especially when the device we use to secure your crypto is called a hardware wallet. It’s easy to get lost in jargon, which only delays taking control of your crypto!

It’s exactly what it sounds like. If you lose your device and need to recover your wallet, use your wallet backup.

Our wallet backup can look like this:

Or this:

Even this:

(We’ll explain this below!)

Think of your wallet backup as the key or master password to your crypto wallet.

If your Trezor hardware wallet is damaged, you’ll need this wallet backup to recover your funds. Without it, you cannot access, transfer, or manage your funds.

It should be kept in a safe place because without it, you could be permanently locked out of your crypto.

(Watch this video to learn how to keep your wallet backup safe)

When setting up a new wallet, you’ll be asked to write down a list of 12, 20, or 24-word words.

This list of words, generated by your hardware wallet, is your wallet backup. It represents a private key that grants access to your wallet, which holds your assets securely on the blockchain.

“But what about that crazy list of numbers above? Is that also my wallet backup?”

Here’s a fun fact… your wallet backup doesn’t actually start as a list of words!

It originates as a long, random string of mathematically derived characters, which is then converted into words to make it human-readable… crazy, huh?

Another fun fact: Trezor’s founders pioneered this approach!

Once we found a way to translate private key data into simple words, it became the industry standard.

(Just another reason to choose Trezor… humble brag 😉)