How to Use Etherscan to Read a Transaction
Etherscan is a blockchain explorer that lets you look up any Ethereum transaction, wallet, or contract. To read a transaction, paste its hash into the search bar, then check the key fields: status, value, gas used, and the from/to addresses. Everything else is extra detail.
Finding the Transaction
You need the transaction hash - a 66-character string starting with "0x". You can get it from your wallet's activity history, a DApp interface, or someone who sent you funds. Copy it, go to etherscan.io, paste it into the search bar at the top of the page, and press Enter.
If you don't have a hash but know the sending or receiving address, search for that address instead. Etherscan will show all transactions involving that wallet. Find the one you care about by date, value, or the other party's address.
The transaction overview page
The page loads with a summary panel. Here is what each field means.
Transaction Hash - The unique identifier. You already used it to get here.
Status - Shows "Success", "Pending", or "Fail". Success means the state change happened. Fail means the transaction ran but reverted; you still paid gas. Pending means it is waiting for a miner to include it in a block.
Block - The block number where this transaction was included. Click it to see the block's details. The number tells you roughly when it happened - block time averages 12 seconds.
Timestamp - The date and time the block was produced. This is when the transaction was confirmed, not when you submitted it.
From - The address that sent the transaction. Click it to see that wallet's history and balance.
To - The address that received the transaction. For contract interactions, this is the contract address, not necessarily your counterparty. For simple ETH transfers, it is the recipient.
Value - The amount of ETH transferred. If you sent a token, this field will show 0 ETH; the token transfer is inside the transaction's internal transactions or logs.
Transaction Fee - The total fee you paid, in ETH. This is gas used multiplied by the effective gas price.
Gas Price - The price per unit of gas you paid, in gwei. EIP-1559 transactions show base fee, priority fee, and max fee separately.
Gas Limit - The maximum gas you were willing to use. This is set by your wallet before submission.
Gas Used by Transaction - The actual gas consumed. This is always less than or equal to the gas limit. Unused gas is refunded.
Nonce - The sequence number of this transaction from the sending address. Each new transaction from a wallet increments the nonce by one.
Input Data - The raw data sent with the transaction. For simple ETH transfers, this is empty. For contract calls, it contains the function selector and encoded arguments.
Reading Token Transfers
If the transaction involved ERC-20 tokens, scroll down to the "ERC-20 Tokens Transferred" section. It shows the token name, symbol, amount, and the from/to addresses. This is often what you actually care about - the ETH value field will show zero if the transaction was a token transfer.
For NFT transactions, look for "ERC-721 Tokens Transferred" or "ERC-1155 Tokens Transferred" sections.
Internal Transactions
Some transactions trigger multiple internal transfers. For example, using a DEX swap contract sends ETH to the contract, which then forwards tokens to you. Click the "Internal Txns" tab to see these sub-transactions. They are not real transactions - they happened inside the execution of your main transaction - but they show where value actually moved.
Logs
The "Logs" tab shows event logs emitted by smart contracts during execution. These are useful for developers or advanced users tracking specific events. Most users can ignore this tab.
Checking a failed transaction
If status shows "Fail", look at the "Revert Reason" field if it exists. It often says something like "execution reverted: insufficient allowance" or "transfer amount exceeds balance". This tells you why the transaction failed. You can also click "View More" to see the raw error message.
A failed transaction still costs gas. You paid for the computation up to the point where it reverted. There is no way to recover that fee.
Practical Walkthrough
- Open your wallet (MetaMask, Rabby, or whatever you use) and find a recent transaction.
- Click on it and copy the transaction hash.
- Go to etherscan.io and paste the hash into the search bar.
- On the transaction page, check Status first. If it says Success, you are done - the transaction went through.
- Check Value to confirm the amount sent.
- Check To to verify the destination address.
- Check Transaction Fee to see what you paid.
That is usually enough. If you sent a token and see 0 ETH in Value, scroll down to the token transfer section.
What not to do
Do not paste your seed phrase or private key into any field on Etherscan. The site never needs them. Any page that asks for them is a phishing site, not real Etherscan.
Do not click "Connect Wallet" buttons on Etherscan unless you specifically intend to interact with a DApp through the site's interface. The explorer itself does not need your wallet connected.
Do not trust the "Comments" or "Note" fields on the page - anyone can write anything there. They are not part of the blockchain data.
Not financial advice. bidenerc.site publishes market data and general information about Biden Coin. Crypto assets are volatile and you can lose everything you put in. Nothing here is a recommendation to buy, sell or hold, and we make no price predictions.
Prices are sourced from third parties and may be delayed or wrong. Verify anything you intend to act on against a primary source.