ok so i just got my ticket a few months ago and ive been making contacts pretty regularly, mostly on 40m SSB and some FT8. loving it so far. but now i'm trying to figure out this whole QSL confirmation thing and honestly its more confusing than i expected.

so from what i can tell there's LoTW which is run by the ARRL, then there's eQSL which is a separate thing, and then obviously physical paper cards you mail through the bureau or direct. my question is what do most people actually bother with? like is it worth signing up for all three or do people just pick one and stick with it.

i tried registering for LoTW and the whole certificate request process is kind of a pain, had to mail something in i think? and eQSL seemed easier to set up but i've heard some people say awards don't accept it. and paper cards look really cool but i dont even know where to start with that.

also does WSJT-X automatically upload to LoTW or do i have to do that manually? sorry if these are dumb questions, just trying to figure out the workflow here before i have a huge backlog of unconfirmed contacts

not dumb questions at all, this stuff genuinely is confusing when you first start out. the short answer is most serious operators use LoTW as their primary because it's what counts for DXCC and WAS and most of the big awards. eQSL has its own awards system and some people really like it, but yeah it's kind of its own separate world.

the certificate process for LoTW is a little annoying upfront but once you get through it its basically set and forget. if you're running WSJT-X for FT8 it can automatically log to TQSL which then uploads to LoTW, you just have to configure it once. look in the settings under logging, there should be an option for it. for your SSB contacts you'd log those in whatever logging software you're using and then upload the adif file through TQSL manually, doesnt take long once you get the hang of it.

paper cards are worth doing too honestly, some DX entities you work will only confirm via paper, and there's something really satisfying about getting a nice card in the mail from some rare country. i'd sign up for the bureau through your ARRL section if you're a member, way cheaper than sending direct for most contacts. but dont stress about getting all three going at once, start with LoTW and add the others as you feel like it

i use all three but honestly LoTW is the one that matters for anything official. eQSL i kind of just have running in the background, my logging software uploads to it automatically so why not. some of the older DX guys wont do eQSL at all though so dont count on it for everything.

the paper cards thing is kinda fun actually. i designed my own card through one of the online printers, came out really nice. you'd be surprised how many people still send and want paper cards, especially for certain rare contacts or if you work someone overseas. some dx peditions even send really elaborate cards. the bureau is slow, like sometimes takes a year or more for stuff to show up, but its cheap. direct is faster but you gotta send return postage or IRC coupons depending on where the other op is located