Running your own node gives you better privacy and allows you to run layer two protocols like lightning without relying on a third party.
I think it is worth doing if you are interested in being more private and self sovereign with your bitcoin usage.
It can be a technical and frustrating project to maintain a node at times but I recommend at least trying if you are interested and willing to learn.
Thanks for your response. Do I need to have my wallet on the same software as my node or does that not matter at all?
No, you can run a bitcoin node and connect other software to the node like Sparrow, Bisq or JoinMarket.
What many people do is run an Electrum server like Electrs so they can connect to Electrs with Sparrow or Electrum.
Looking into how Sparrow works would probably be the easiest way to get started. Sparrow can connect to Bitcoin core or Electrum Server I think.
There are some companies which make it easier to run a node like Start9. I have never used there product but I have heard good reviews. https://start9.com/
I like Nix-bitcoin but it is much more technical than many other projects from what I have heard.
Great, thanks. I'm gonna download Bitcoin Core now.
No problem. I forgot to mention this resource as well. https://bitcoiner.guide/node/
