Cryptocurrency Full Nodes on Tor Hidden Service Infrastructure 2026

Bitcoin Core (the reference Bitcoin node) has built-in Tor support. With Tor enabled: your node connects to peers via Tor circuits, your IP is not exposed in the Bitcoin peer network, you can receive inbound connections via a .onion address (other nodes can connect to you without knowing your IP), and your IP is not associated with the transactions you broadcast. Configuration: set proxy=127.0.0.1:9050 (SOCKS5 proxy) in bitcoin.conf, and bindaddress=youraddress.onion to publish a .onion peer address. Bitcoin Core creates a hidden service automatically when Tor is configured: it uses the Tor control port (torcontrol=127.0.0.1:9051) to create an ephemeral .onion address. Privacy benefit: nodes that do not use Tor expose their IP in the peer list, making it possible to correlate node location with the transactions that node first broadcasts.

Monero nodes are particularly privacy-sensitive: connecting to a public Monero node reveals which transaction outputs you query (providing information about what you own). Running your own node via Tor provides maximum privacy. Monero node Tor configuration: set proxy=127.0.0.1:9050 in bitmonero.conf (or pass --proxy flag to monerod), and set tx-proxy=tor,127.0.0.1:9050 to route outbound connections via Tor. Monero wallet Tor configuration: configure Monero GUI wallet or Feather Wallet to connect to your own .onion node. This routes wallet queries through Tor to your own node, preventing any third party from seeing your query patterns. Feather Wallet has built-in Tor support (toggle in settings) and connects to its own configured node via Tor. For maximum Monero privacy: your own node + Tor + Monero's built-in privacy (ring signatures, stealth addresses, RingCT).

Lightning Network (LND, CLN) supports Tor natively. LND Tor configuration: in lnd.conf: tor.active=1, tor.v3=1 (use v3 .onion for Lightning), and tor.socks=127.0.0.1:9050. With Tor configured, LND creates a .onion address and publishes it as your Lightning node's public key endpoint. Benefits: your Lightning node's IP is not published to the network (only the .onion address), inbound channels from other nodes connect via Tor, and your Lightning routing activity is not associated with your IP. Clearnet vs .onion Lightning: .onion-only Lightning nodes can only connect to peers who also support Tor. Hybrid (both clearnet and .onion) provides maximum connectivity while protecting privacy. Most active Lightning routing nodes use hybrid configuration.

Choosing hosting for cryptocurrency nodes with Tor: requirements: stable uptime (crypto nodes need 24/7 uptime for usefulness), sufficient storage (Bitcoin full node: 600+ GB; Monero: 200+ GB; Lightning: minimal additional storage), RAM (Bitcoin Core: 2-4 GB; Monero: 4+ GB during sync), and CPU (moderate, not compute-intensive after initial sync). Privacy-focused hosting considerations: the hosting provider knows your IP (in the data center) but cannot connect this to on-chain activity if you use Tor for all connections, and the node appears on the network only via its .onion address. Iceland and Romania-based VPS are suitable for crypto node hosting: strong privacy laws, good network connectivity, and providers experienced with privacy-focused applications.

Transaction broadcasting privacy: when you broadcast a Bitcoin or Monero transaction, the node that first propagates it to the network is identifiable as likely the originator. Nodes that see a transaction first before any other peer have the highest probability of being the originator. Broadcasting via your own .onion node: your node propagates the transaction over Tor circuits, so the network sees the transaction as originating from a .onion address. Other nodes cannot identify the geographic location or IP of the originator. For maximum transaction privacy: create the transaction on an airgapped computer, transfer to an online computer via QR code or air-gapped transfer, broadcast via your .onion node using Tor. This separates: transaction signing (airgapped, impossible to compromise remotely) from transaction broadcasting (via Tor, hides originating IP).