When you make a transaction in Bitcoin, it is sent out into the network and the miners start working on confirming it. Once it is verified and added to the blockchain, the transaction is complete.
Depending on the network traffic, confirmations can take anywhere from a few minutes to an hour. You can check the status of your transaction on any block explorer, but most wallets have a built-in function that will show you the number of confirmations it has.
Once your transaction has been included in a verified block, it has one confirmation. Each subsequent block adds another confirmation.
Blocks are verified every ten minutes on average, so six confirmations would take an hour. The more confirmations a transaction has, the harder it is to reverse.
To check the number of confirmations for a transaction:
Blockchain.info – Lookup your transaction ID on this popular block explorer to see how many blocks have been mined on top of it.
The number you see is how many confirmations your transaction has.
– Lookup your transaction ID on this popular block explorer to see how many blocks have been mined on top of it. The number you see is how many confirmations your transaction has.
Coinbase – When you open your wallet in Coinbase, there is a Transactions tab where you can see all the details of your past transactions, including how many confirmations they have.
– When you open your wallet in Coinbase, there is a Transactions tab where you can see all the details of your past transactions, including how many confirmations they have. GreenBits – This popular Android wallet also shows you the number of confirmations for each of your past transactions right in the history section.
Once your transaction has at least one confirmation, it is considered complete and can’t be reversed. If you’re selling something online for Bitcoin, you can release the goods to the buyer once you’ve received one confirmation.
For high-value items, most sellers wait for six confirmations before considering the transaction complete.
The number of confirmations you need to wait for depends on how much you’re willing to risk. If you’re selling something online and don’t mind if someone tries to double-spend their bitcoins to get their money back after they’ve received their goods (known as a Finney attack), then one or two confirmations is enough. But if you’re buying something from an online store or sending money to someone, most people wait for at least six confirmations because that’s when Bitcoin’s network considers a transaction irreversible.