Polkadot Vault is the new mobile app developed by Parity that replaces Parity Signer. It's redesigned with additional functionality and for a better and more streamlined user experience.

In this article, you will learn how to create a new account in Polkadot Vault. If you want to know how to restore an account originally created in Polkadot Vault or Parity Signer, please refer to this article.


⛔ READ THIS FIRST!

It is recommended that you install the Polkadot Vault app on an old phone that you do not connect to the internet anymore. This way you keep your private keys offline, and your phone becomes a cold storage wallet.


TABLE OF CONTENTS

How to create a new account in Polkadot Vault

1. Download the Polkadot Vault app for your phone from the official site and install it on your phone. 


2. Read through the introductory screens and click "Continue", then agree to the Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.


3. After that, you are prompted to enable Airplane mode, turn off WiFi, and disconnect any cables. Once you do these steps, click "Next". 


Remember that Polkadot Vault is meant to work as cold storage, and that can only be achieved if your phone is air-gapped from the outside world.



4. On the next screen, we are ready to create our first set of keys. Click the "Add Key Set" button and select "Add new Key Set".


5. Next, enter a name for the key set.


ℹ️ INFO

This is basically the account's name. But because a Substrate account can be used on all networks, the mnemonic phrase will generate addresses on Polkadot, Kusama, and Westend, and you can add more networks and use your account on all of them.



6. On the next screen, it's where you are presented with your account's mnemonic phrase. As prompted by the app, make sure to write it down on paper and keep it in a safe place. 


You can also use "Banana Split" for more security. "Banana Split" is a self-hosted app that you can use to split your mnemonic phrase into pieces using Shamir's Secret Sharing scheme.


Once you write down the mnemonic phrase, click "Next." Tick the checkboxes confirming that you have written down the recovery phrase and understood the consequences of losing it, and click "Next".



⚠️ ATTENTION

You should not take a screenshot of your mnemonic phrase! You should write the mnemonic phrase only on paper and store it somewhere safe and secret!


7. The following screen will allow you to select the networks for which you want to create the account. By default Polkadot, Kusaman, and Westend are preselected. Click "Done" and that's it, your accounts are ready to use!



8. After completing the process, you'll be transferred back to the home screen, where you can see your newly created accounts. 



⚠️ ATTENTION

In the latest version of Polkadot Vault (>6.2.0) the accounts for each network are derived from the mnemonic phrase using a custom derivation path ("//polkadot" for Polkadot, "//kusama" for Kusama, etc.). Notice the label over each account in the screenshot above.

When restoring your account on another wallet, add this derivation path for each network.


9. Click on it to view the address on each of the three networks. Further clicking on each of the networks will present your account on that network in QR code, which you can use to add it to the Polkadot extension, Polkadot-JS UI, or another app that supports this functionality.


10. If you don't want to use the account on all networks, you can click on the settings icon on the right and select just the networks you want to use the account with.



ℹ️ GOOD TO KNOW

The PIN for the app is your phone's passcode.

What can I do next?

You can add your Polkadot Vault account to the Polkadot extension to use it with Polkadot-JS UI. The step-by-step guide can be found here.


‼️ IMPORTANT

It's important to update the metadata whenever there is a runtime upgrade, otherwise Polkadot Vault won't be able to decode and sign extrinsics. Polkadot Vault allows for air-gapped metadata updates. You can find instructions in this article.

If you are a user of Parity Signer

If you are already using Parity Singer, please read the following information first:

  • Parity Signer has been deprecated and has been replaced by Polkadot Vault.
  • Your phone won't automatically update the app from Parity Signer to Polkadot Vault.
  • You can keep using Parity Signer as it is; you don't need to update to Polkadot Vault if you don't want to.


⛔️ READ THIS FIRST!

If you choose to upgrade to Polkadot Vault, you first need to uninstall Parity Signer and install Polkadot Vault from scratch. This means that all data, including your accounts, will be deleted from your device!

After the upgrade you will need to restore your accounts from their mnemonic phrases, re-add any networks, and update their metadata.

What are the benefits of Polkadot Vault compared to Parity Signer

Polkadot Vault comes with two main improvements compared to Parity Signer:


1. A better design and user experience


2. Faster reading of QR fountains for metadata updates


3. The ability to add networks from different sources. This means that in addition to Polkadot, Kusama, and Westend, which are provided out of the box and supported by Parity's metadata portal, you can add more networks from Nova's metadata portal, other sources that might be available in the future, or even metadata you created yourself manually.

In the video below, you can follow how Filippo guides you through the process of how to create a new account. Go to the mark 09:09 to see it in action.