MyNode review: Community, Premium, and the Model Two

MyNode is made by MyNode LLC. Its README describes it as a platform that combines open-source Bitcoin software with MyNode's own interface, management, and support. You run it from a web page on your home network and install apps such as an Electrum server, BTCPay Server, Mempool, and Lightning tools from its marketplace.

It comes in three forms. The Community edition is free with community support. Premium costs $99 and adds one-click upgrades, premium support, and more than 20 premium apps on hardware you supply. The Model Two is MyNode's own box with Premium included.

The license matters. MyNode is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0, with some modifications in section 9. You can read the source, but the license bars commercial use and sharing modified versions, so it is source available rather than open source.

MyNode suits someone who wants a ready-made node at the lowest price among the boxes I rank, with a browser setup and Lightning tools included. It also suits anyone with a spare Raspberry Pi or mini PC who wants to try a node for free.

Pick something else if you want a large app store for photos and files as well as Bitcoin. Umbrel lists more than 300 apps against the 40-plus MyNode advertises. If an open-source license matters, Start9 and RaspiBlitz are both MIT licensed.

The Model Two pairs an Intel N100 processor with 16 GB of RAM and a 2 TB NVMe SSD. It lists at $649 and MyNode's store shows it on sale for $549 today. Premium software comes with it, and MyNode says all orders come with a year of Premium+, which adds support and remote Lightning channel backup.

MyNode claims the Model Two finishes its initial block download 14.8 times faster than its older Model One, from its own test in the third quarter of 2025. Treat that as the maker's number. The 2 TB drive is the part that matters for a node: the blockchain is already more than 800 GB on disk, and 2 TB leaves room for an Electrum server index and apps.

The download page lists one image for the Raspberry Pi 5 and Pi 4, a PC image for 64-bit Intel and AMD machines, and a virtual machine image. For a mini PC it recommends a 2 TB SSD plus a 32 GB USB flash drive for the OS. For a Pi, it recommends a full kit with a 2 TB SSD in a USB enclosure plugged into a blue USB 3 port.

For the exact steps, follow MyNode's getting started guide. In outline:

MyNode never holds the keys of a hardware wallet. Install its Electrum server and point Sparrow at it, so your wallet asks your own node about your addresses instead of a public server. Electrs vs Fulcrum explains what that server does.

The latest release bundles Tailscale v1.104.4 for reaching the node away from home, and runs the I2P router only when Bitcoin uses it or you turn it on. My Tailscale vs WireGuard guide covers that kind of private access.

MyNode's repository has no published GitHub security advisories. Fixes ship in releases, and the last two came quickly. Version 0.3.52, released October 30, 2026, is marked a critical security update: it installs new kernels and adds mitigations for CVE-2026-98432, a Linux kernel flaw, on every platform, and warns on the home page when the kernel fix is missing. The download page tells every user to upgrade to 0.3.52 or later.

The same release moved Bitcoin Core to v29.5, which carries the fixes for the Bitcoin Core advisories published October 28, 2026, and LND to v0.21.6. Version 0.3.51, a week earlier, fixed a Node.js security issue. MyNode's automatic upgrades now wait five days after a release instead of seven.

Against Umbrel, MyNode costs less for a ready-made box and has a smaller, more Bitcoin-focused app list. Against Start9, it is cheaper and simpler, and it gives up the MIT license and Start9's remote access options. RaspiBlitz is the free, MIT-licensed choice for Pi owners who like a terminal, and Nodl is the European pre-built alternative. The full ranking is on my Bitcoin node page.

At $549 on sale, the Model Two costs $150 less than a 2 TB Umbrel Home, and it comes with Premium and a year of support. The software is kept current: the October security release shipped two days after Bitcoin Core's October 28 disclosures.

Before you buy, accept that the license is noncommercial and no-derivatives, and that the free edition leaves out one-click upgrades. If either bothers you, Start9 or RaspiBlitz fits better.