Self-custody by default
The vault is encrypted on your machine. Lace operates no custody service, so there is nothing on a server for anyone to drain.
Cardano & Midnight · self-custody · browser native
Lace Wallet Extension
The Lace Wallet Extension is the browser build of Lace, the self-custody wallet created by Input Output, the engineering team behind Cardano and Midnight. Add it once to Chrome, Brave, Edge or Firefox and the tab you already have open becomes a Web3 workspace: assets, collectibles, staking and DeFi within one click of the address bar. There is no desktop download to keep in sync and no second window to hunt for, just a small toolbar icon that wakes up when a site asks for your approval and stays quiet the rest of the time.
- Keys encrypted and stored on your own device
- Approve every signature manually before it happens
- One interface for public and shielded assets
What the extension actually is
Think of it as a wallet you can reach without leaving the page you are reading. Your keys live inside the extension's own encrypted vault, and the connector it exposes is deliberately narrow. A decentralised application can ask to see an address or to build a transaction, but it cannot help itself to anything, because the request lands in a pop-up written in plain language and waits for a human decision. Nothing is signed until you sign it.
That permission-first habit is the reason so many Cardano users moved to an extension rather than a standalone program. Custody never leaves your hands, and the approval screen stays in front of your eyes instead of buried in another window. The same install also reaches the Midnight network, so public balances and shielded balances can sit side by side in a single, familiar interface.
Features people open it for
Everything below ships inside the extension itself, with no extra setup beyond the install.
dApp authorisation
Websites request access, you decide. Each transaction is summarised before it can be signed, and permissions can be revoked later.
Multi-account control
Keep spending, savings and testing separate. Accounts carry their own labels, so switching is a one-click move rather than a guessing game.
Collectibles in one place
Browse the NFTs your address holds without opening a marketplace. Images, policy details and metadata load straight from the chain.
Staking and rewards
Choose a stake pool, delegate, and follow rewards as they arrive, all from the same pop-up you use for everyday transactions.
Guided first steps
Built-in learning prompts explain networks, fees and address formats, which suits anyone installing a crypto wallet extension for the first time.
How to add it to your browser
- Start at the source. Open lace.io and use its download links, or go straight to the browser store listing. Typed addresses and emailed links are where lookalike sites breed.
- Install and pin. Confirm the browser prompt, then pin the icon to the toolbar so you can always see which profile is active.
- Create or restore. Write the recovery phrase on paper, in order, offline. A screenshot, a cloud note or a password manager entry is not a backup.
- Set your passwords. Choose a strong spending password, then turn on any biometric or auto-lock option your device offers.
- Connect one site. Visit a dApp, approve the connection request, and read the transaction summary before you confirm anything.
Security habits worth keeping
A wallet extension is only as safe as the hands it sits in, and the honest answer is that most losses start with a convincing message rather than broken cryptography. Support desks, giveaway posts and urgent "verify your wallet" emails all belong to the same family of attack. A recovery phrase request is never legitimate, no matter which logo sits at the top of the message, and the Lace team states plainly that it will not ask for yours.
- Install from the store listing linked on lace.io, nowhere else.
- Keep the extension updated so fixes arrive automatically.
- Check the domain in the address bar before approving a connection.
- Read the fee and recipient on every transaction summary.
- Store the recovery phrase offline, on paper, in a second location.
- Consider hardware pairing before large balances live in the wallet.
Questions people ask first
A website can only see addresses you paste into it. The extension keeps the keys and signs on your behalf, so a dApp receives a signature without ever holding anything that could move your funds.
Yes. Installing and running it costs nothing and there is no subscription. You pay only the ordinary network fee that a blockchain transaction itself requires.
Chromium browsers such as Chrome, Brave and Edge are supported, as is Firefox. Each installs from its own official add-on store, both of which are listed on lace.io.
No. Self-custody means no reset button, for you or for the team. Your written recovery phrase is the only way back into an account, which is why it belongs on paper rather than in a screenshot.
It is optional and separate. The extension covers desktop browsing, while the phone app exists for Cardano and Bitcoin asset management on the move.
Ready to browse with a wallet attached?
Install from the official store listing, save your recovery phrase on paper, and approve only the transactions you have actually read.