There are many stories known from people who have their Bitcoins have been lost. Everyone knows the stories of people who laptop in the garbage and where it turned out later for thousands of euros of Bitcoins were on the hard drive.

Hardware wallet
Hardware wallets like the Ledger Nano S, Case and Trezor are devices that you can connect via USB to a computer. They are specially designed for storing cryptocurrency. This method is often seen as the safest because these wallets never come into contact with the Internet and there is a recovery key that you can use when you've forgotten the PIN code.

Online Wallet
Online wallet services of exchanges and brokers are becoming more user-friendly and more secure, but your coins are stored at an external party. Similar to an account with a bank. If you are not comfortable with storing your coins yourself, these services offer a solution. Of course you only do this with recognized and reliable parties such as for example, Coinbase (US) and LiteBit (NL). Make use of all the security options that are offered. Set two-stage verification (2FA) and use secure email addresses to verify your transactions.

Papieren Wallet
This is literally storing your coins on paper. When you create a paper wallet you have to make a copy of the public and secret key. These are often provided with QR codes, so you can quickly scan the series of characters to make a payment. This method is completely analog, and therefore hackers have no chance. But if you lose your paper wallet, you will also lose your coins. Services like WalletGenerator and BitcoinPaperWallet allow you to create and print a paper wallet.

Software wallet
A wallet stored directly on your own computer gives you the guarantee that you are in control of your private keys. These are free and easy to set up. One drawback is that you need to learn how to use the wallet. Furthermore you are personally responsible for its maintenance (such as making backups). If your computer is stolen and you do not have a spare copy then you have lost your money.

Mobile wallet
A mobile wallet can be used on your smartphone or your tablet. You install the app, create a wallet and you can then send Bitcoins to it. Software wallets often have associated mobile versions as well. Some wallets are only developed for smart phones, like Bread and Abra.