What is a Punchplate?
A Punchplate is a stainless steel plate for permanently storing your Bitcoin seed phrase — the master backup for your wallet. Made from 304 stainless steel, each plate is fireproof, waterproof, corrosion-resistant, and crush-proof. Punch your BIP39 recovery phrase into the precision-etched grid with a center punch tool. Works with Ledger, Trezor, Coldcard, and any BIP39-compatible wallet.
How It Works
First four letters,
punched into steel.
Each BIP-39 word is uniquely identified by its first 4 letters. Each word gets its own column. Each letter tells you which row (A–Z) to go to. Mark the quadrants clockwise: 1st letter = top, 2nd = right, 3rd = bottom, 4th = left.
Now encoding
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Ultra-Compact + High Visibility.
Looking for the same great steel seed phrase backups, but even more discrete? Checkout our compact versions that let you store your bip-39 words as their index number!
Not sure what's right for you?
Choose your setup and we’ll show the Punchplates that fit!
Find your best fit
Answer the questions below to see the best Punchplate options for your backup plan.
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Bitcoin Backup Questions, Answered
Everything you stamp into steel matters. Here are the most important things to know before backing up your Bitcoin seed phrase.
What should I put on a Punchplate? +
Only your wallet recovery words, exactly as generated by your wallet.
Do I need a 12-word or 24-word Punchplate? +
Use the format your wallet gave you. If your wallet generated 12 words, use a 12-word plate. If it generated 24, use a 24-word plate.
What about a passphrase? +
If you use a BIP39 passphrase, remember that your seed words alone are not enough. You need a separate secure plan for preserving that passphrase too.
Should I make more than one backup? +
Yes. Many Bitcoin holders keep at least two backups in separate secure locations in case of theft, fire, flood, or loss.
Can I test my backup? +
Yes. The safest approach is to verify that your recovery words can restore the wallet before moving bitcoin or relying on the backup long term.
What if I punch the wrong spot or letter? +
No stress — Punchplate was designed for this. If you hit the wrong spot, simply punch the exact same spot 3–4 times. This creates a dense cluster of dots that is impossible to confuse with a real punch.
Every valid character on the finished plate is always a single clean punch. Canceled marks stand out clearly as overlapping groups, so you (or anyone reading it later) instantly knows to ignore them and move to the next valid letter.