This guide is written for developers and technical product builders who want a practical, step-by-step onboarding to Ledger Live and the Ledger Developer Portal. It covers key concepts, sample code, recommended workflows, and links to resources (10 useful links included). Headings show H1 → H5 structure so you can lift sections directly into documentation or a blog.
Ledger Live is a desktop and mobile wallet application by Ledger that allows users to manage crypto assets securely using a Ledger hardware device. From a developer-facing perspective, the Ledger Developer Portal provides SDKs, APIs, documentation, and app-building tooling to create integrations that interact with the wallet, query accounts, and request transaction signing in a secure and user-friendly way.
Run a local secure test environment: use HTTPS for local endpoints and consider tunneling tools (ngrok) to expose callbacks for testing interactions that require a reachable web endpoint.
The Developer Portal commonly contains:
Sign up on the portal, register your application, and retrieve any API keys or OAuth client credentials required for server-side calls. Keep these secrets out of front-end bundles.
Typical integration pattern:
// Example: prepare and request a signing operation via a Ledger SDK
import TransportWebUSB from "@ledgerhq/hw-transport-webusb";
import AppEth from "@ledgerhq/hw-app-eth";
async function signWithLedger(unsignedTxHex) {
const transport = await TransportWebUSB.create();
const eth = new AppEth(transport);
// This derivation path is an example; ensure it matches your user's account
const path = "44'/60'/0'/0/0";
// The Ledger app will prompt the user to confirm on the device
const result = await eth.signTransaction(path, unsignedTxHex);
// result.r, result.s, and result.v represent signature parts
return result;
}
# Pseudocode: build unsigned transaction and return to frontend
POST /prepare-transaction
Body: { from, to, amount, gasPrice }
// Server: construct raw unsigned tx, return hex to frontend
return { unsignedTxHex: "0x..." }
Hardware wallets keep private keys offline — the signing should always happen on-device. Your application must never ask users to input seed phrases or private keys. Use the device, SDKs, and secure channels to request signatures only.
Always validate addresses, token decimals, and transaction amounts on both client and server. Provide clear, human-readable summaries of requested operations so users can verify transactions on their device screens.
When requesting a signature, show an unambiguous summary: asset, amount, recipient, fees, and an optional memo. Keep the user in control and minimize surprises.
Device confirmations are asynchronous — design your UI to show progress states and clear instructions: "Open the Ethereum app on your Ledger and confirm the transaction." Provide timeouts and retry options.
Ensure keyboard accessibility, proper contrast, and screen-reader support for all wallet flows. Confirmation messages should be concise and programmatically associated with form controls.
USB permission dialogs, browser compatibility, and Bluetooth pairing can cause issues. If using WebUSB or WebHID, ensure origins are secure (HTTPS) and provide clear instructions for granting permissions.
If signatures fail or transactions are rejected by the network, verify chain ID, nonce, gas price, and the raw payload you sent to the device. Mismatched derivation paths are a frequent source of issues.
Unit test transaction constructors, mock transport layers in integration tests, and create end-to-end test plans that verify happy and unhappy paths (rejections, timeouts, malformed payloads).
Consider a closed beta for early testers who use different device models and OS combinations. Track bugs and prepare clear troubleshooting documentation for your testers.
Below are ten helpful links (placeholders) you can replace with your environment-specific URLs. They are presented as "Office Link" items for quick insertion into documentation or policy pages.
Copy this checklist into your onboarding docs:
Building with Ledger Live and the Developer Portal balances user security with developer productivity. Prioritize clear UX, secure key handling, and thorough testing. When in doubt, consult the official docs and run device-level tests to validate user flows.
Start a small prototype: implement a create-account, prepare-transaction, sign-transaction, and broadcast flow. Iterate on UX and error-handling before scaling to production.
If you'd like a tailored integration checklist or sample repo adapted to your stack (React, React Native, Node.js, etc.), reply with your stack and I will provide a ready-to-use starter in HTML and code snippets.