Address
wallet · technical
A network-specific identifier that describes a destination or spending condition for a cryptocurrency payment.
A cryptocurrency address is an encoded destination used to construct a transaction output or identify an account. It is normally safe to share for receiving payments, but it should not be confused with a private key or proof of identity.
An address can encode a public-key hash, script hash, witness program, account identifier, or another payload together with network and checksum information. It does not necessarily contain a public key, and the full spending condition may be revealed only when funds are spent.
Address checksums catch some typing errors but do not confirm the intended recipient. Verify the network, asset, complete destination, and any memo or tag required by the receiving service. Reusing one address can make transaction history easier to link.
Related terms
Public Key
→Cryptographic data used to verify signatures made by the corresponding private key.
cryptography · technical
Private Key
→Secret cryptographic material used to produce signatures or other authorization proofs.
cryptography · security · wallet
CashAddr
→A Bitcoin Cash address format with a network prefix, Base32 payload, type information, and error-detecting checksum.
wallet · bitcoin-cash · standard
P2SH
→A script type where the output is locked to the hash of a redeem script, enabling features like multi-sig.
script · address
Transaction
→A serialized state transition that a blockchain can validate, relay, and include in a block.
blockchain · technical