Feather Wallet — Monero Desktop Wallet Guide (2026)

What Is Feather Wallet?

Feather is an open-source, non-custodial Monero wallet for desktop computers. It was designed as a lightweight alternative to the official Monero GUI wallet — faster to sync, cleaner interface and better suited to users who want strong privacy without deep technical expertise.

Its defining feature for privacy-focused users is built-in Tor routing. Feather connects to the Monero network through Tor by default — no configuration required. This means your IP address is never exposed to the Monero nodes your wallet communicates with, preventing correlation between your IP address and your transaction activity even before Monero’s built-in privacy features come into play.

It is actively maintained, regularly updated and widely recommended by the Monero community as the preferred desktop wallet for users who want a balance of usability and privacy.

Download

Onion address:

Platforms: Windows, Mac, Linux

Verify: PGP signatures published for all releases at featherwallet.org/verify — always verify before installing

Key Features

How to Install and Set Up Feather

1. Download the installer from featherwallet.org or the .onion address above
2. Verify the PGP signature — instructions at featherwallet.org/verify
3. Install on your operating system
4. Launch Feather — it connects to the Monero network via Tor automatically on first launch
5. Choose Create new wallet for a fresh wallet or Restore wallet if you have an existing seed
6. Write down your 25-word seed phrase on paper — this is your only backup
7. Store the seed phrase offline in a safe location — never photograph or type it into any device
8. Wait for the wallet to sync — initial sync takes time as it downloads Monero blockchain data

Seed phrase importance: Your 25-word Monero seed phrase is the only way to recover your wallet if your device is lost, stolen or damaged. Anyone who has your seed phrase has full access to your funds. Write it on paper, store it somewhere secure and never share it with anyone under any circumstances.

Tor Routing in Feather

Feather’s built-in Tor routing protects a specific and often overlooked privacy layer — the connection between your wallet and Monero network nodes.

When a wallet connects to the Monero network, it communicates with nodes to broadcast transactions and check balances. These nodes see the IP address of the connecting wallet. Without Tor, a node operator could potentially correlate your IP address with your transaction activity — knowing that your IP broadcast a specific transaction narrows down who made it, even though Monero’s cryptography hides the amounts and addresses.

Tor routing eliminates this correlation. The node sees a Tor exit node IP — not yours. Combined with Monero’s native privacy features, this provides defense in depth across both the protocol layer and the network layer.

Hardware Wallet Integration

Feather supports hardware wallets — dedicated devices that store your private keys in isolated firmware and sign transactions without exposing keys to your computer. This provides protection against malware that targets software wallets by attempting to extract private keys from memory.

Supported hardware wallets:

• Ledger Nano S
• Ledger Nano S Plus
• Ledger Nano X
• Trezor Model T

To use a hardware wallet with Feather, install the Monero app on your hardware device through its respective companion software, then connect the device to your computer and open Feather. Feather detects the hardware wallet and allows you to create a wallet file that references the hardware device for transaction signing.

Transactions initiated in Feather are sent to the hardware device for signing. The private key never leaves the hardware device — Feather constructs the transaction but cannot sign it without physical confirmation on the device itself.

Feather vs. Other Monero Wallets

Coin Control — Advanced Privacy Feature

Feather includes coin control — the ability to manually select which outputs (coins) are used when constructing a transaction. This is an advanced feature most users do not need, but it is important for users who want fine-grained control over their privacy.

Monero’s ring signatures hide the true sender by mixing it with decoy outputs. The decoy selection algorithm is designed to be statistically indistinguishable from real spending patterns — but manually controlling which outputs are spent can further reduce the risk of timing-based analysis in specific scenarios.

For most users, Feather’s default output selection is sufficient. Coin control is relevant for users who are managing large amounts, making unusual transaction patterns or who have specific operational security requirements.

Running Your Own Node with Feather

By default, Feather connects to remote Monero nodes to sync transactions and broadcast transfers. Remote nodes see which transactions you query — even though they cannot link those queries to your identity through Tor, running your own local node eliminates even this information leakage.

To connect Feather to your own node:

1. Install and sync the official Monero daemon (monerod) on your computer or a dedicated device
2. In Feather, go to Settings → Node
3. Select Custom and enter 127.0.0.1:18081 for a local node
4. Feather connects to your node — no remote node sees your queries

Running a local node requires downloading the full Monero blockchain — approximately 160GB as of 2026 and growing. It is not practical for users with limited disk space, but provides the strongest available privacy for users who can accommodate it.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Feather safe to use?

Feather is open-source, actively maintained and widely used by the Monero community. Its code is publicly auditable. The built-in Tor routing adds meaningful privacy protection beyond what Monero’s cryptography alone provides. As with any wallet, the primary security risk is seed phrase compromise — protect your seed phrase and your funds are protected.

Does Feather work on Tails OS?

Yes — Feather can be installed and run on Tails OS. Running Feather inside Tails combines the wallet’s built-in Tor routing with Tails’ system-level Tor routing and amnesic properties. For high-stakes Monero management, this combination provides strong end-to-end protection. Note that without enabling Tails’ persistent storage, your wallet file will not survive a reboot — configure persistent storage to preserve your wallet between sessions.

How long does initial sync take?

Initial sync time depends on your internet connection speed and the remote node you connect to. Syncing from scratch via Tor typically takes several hours to a full day. Subsequent syncs are faster — Feather only needs to download new blocks since your last sync. If you have an existing wallet seed, restoring it requires rescanning from the creation date — Feather allows you to set a restore height to speed this up.

Can I use Feather without Tor?

Yes — Tor routing can be disabled in Feather’s settings. This speeds up sync and connections. However, disabling Tor exposes your IP to remote nodes and allows your ISP to see Monero network traffic. For privacy-focused use, keep Tor enabled. Disable it only if you are troubleshooting connectivity issues and need to confirm whether Tor is causing the problem.

What is the difference between Feather and the official Monero GUI wallet?

Both are legitimate Monero wallets with full functionality. Feather is lighter — it syncs faster and has a cleaner interface. The official Monero GUI wallet includes a full node option built in — Feather connects to remote nodes by default. For users who want to run their own node integrated into the wallet application, the official GUI is more convenient. For users who want quick setup, Tor routing by default and hardware wallet support without configuring a full node, Feather is the better choice.