Last month, MetaMask released 4.9.0, which included support for Trezor hardware wallets. As discussed in their ​blog post​, funds are only as safe as one’s keys — hardware wallets are a great way to store keys securely offline. To make Ethereum users to be as safe as possible, the version 4.11.1 of MetaMask now supports Ledger hardware wallets as well.

Connecting a hardware wallet to MetaMask makes it simple to have the security of cold storage with the convenience of a hot wallet.

Once the Ledger is connected, the user will be able to sign transactions, sign messages (to sign into sites like Cryptokitties), check Ledger account’s ETH or token balance. User’s private keys will always stay in their Ledger. This allows any dapp that works with MetaMask to be used safely and securely with a hardware wallet.

When the Ledger Ethereum account is imported into the MetaMask extension, it’s treated like any other Ethereum accounts. When asked to sign something, users can simply connect their device and the extension will send it a request to sign. The signature happens entirely inside the Ledger and private keys never leave the device.

When the device isn’t connected, MetaMask will still show Ledger’s ETH and token balances for user’s convenience. Users are allowed to remove their Ledger account at any time via the Account menu in the top-right.

To connect, users need to use MetaMask 4.10.0 or higher in Google Chrome or Brave and MetaMask’s ​beta UI​.