READ THE CHAIN
Using a block explorer
How to read blocks, transactions and traces, and what an explorer cannot tell you.
How to read a block explorer
A Bitcoin block explorer is a search engine for the blockchain. Learn what every field on a block, transaction and address page means, step by step.
How to look up a Bitcoin transaction
Find any Bitcoin transaction by its txid, read its status, fee and confirmations, and learn what to do when a transaction can't be found or is stuck.
What a Bitcoin trace can and can't prove
Following bitcoin from transaction to transaction is factual; claims about owners or which input paid which output are assumptions. Learn to read a trace.
Chain analysis heuristics
Chain analysis groups Bitcoin addresses using rules of thumb such as common-input ownership and change detection. Learn how they work and when they fail.