How to check a crypto transaction in a block explorer

What a block explorer is

A block explorer is a public search engine for a blockchain. Every transfer ever made on the network can be looked up there — no account, wallet or permission needed.

Finding your transaction

Copy the transaction hash (also called TxID) from your wallet or from the exchange status page and paste it into the explorer of the same network: Etherscan for Ethereum, Tronscan for Tron, BscScan for BNB Chain, mempool.space for Bitcoin. A hash searched on the wrong explorer simply returns nothing.

Reading the status

Pending means the transaction is waiting to be included in a block. Success or Confirmed means it is on-chain. Failed means the network rejected it — the funds stay with the sender, but the network fee is usually spent.

Confirmations and why they matter

Each new block added after yours counts as one confirmation. Exchanges credit a deposit only after a set number of confirmations, so a transfer can be visible on the explorer while the service still shows it as waiting.

Checking the details

Compare the recipient address, the amount and the token contract with what you expected. For tokens, look at the token transfer section rather than the native coin value, which is often zero.

When something looks wrong

If the transaction is confirmed but the recipient does not see it, the most common cause is a different network or token contract. Send the hash to support — it is all they need to trace the transfer.