Bitcoin for beginners
Learn Bitcoin, one step at a time.
Clear answers to your Bitcoin questions. Learn the basics, understand wallets, and build your knowledge one step at a time.
A little curiosity goes a long way
Your first four steps
A simple path to build your Bitcoin knowledge.Common Bitcoin questions
Start with the questions other beginners ask most often.
How does Bitcoin work?
Bitcoin works through a network of computers called nodes. Nodes share and verify transactions, while miners group valid transactions into blocks. Each block is added to the blockchain after miners perform proof-of-work, making the history difficult to alter.
Was this helpful?
Thanks for your feedback!
What is a Bitcoin wallet?
A Bitcoin wallet is software or hardware that helps you manage your bitcoin keys and create transactions. The wallet does not actually store coins inside it. Your bitcoin remains on the blockchain, and your keys let you spend it.
Was this helpful?
Thanks for your feedback!
What is a seed phrase?
A seed phrase is a list of words that can restore access to a Bitcoin wallet. Anyone who has your seed phrase can control the bitcoin in that wallet, so it should be kept private, offline, and backed up carefully.
Was this helpful?
Thanks for your feedback!
What is Bitcoin?
Bitcoin is a digital form of money that runs on a decentralized network instead of a bank or government. People can send, receive, and hold bitcoin directly using wallets, while the network verifies transactions through a public ledger called the blockchain.
Was this helpful?
Thanks for your feedback!
What is Bitcoin mining?
Bitcoin mining is the process of using specialized computers to secure the network, verify transactions, and add new blocks to the blockchain. Miners compete to solve proof-of-work, and the winning miner earns newly issued bitcoin plus transaction fees.
Was this helpful?
Thanks for your feedback!
Essential Bitcoin terms
Short definitions for the words you will meet along the way.
Address Wallets A shareable Bitcoin payment destination created by a wallet. Learn more Show less
A Bitcoin address represents conditions for receiving and later spending bitcoin. Wallets generate addresses from cryptographic key information and commonly present them as text or QR codes.
Example: A customer scans a merchant's Bitcoin address to prepare a payment.
Bitcoin Basics A decentralized digital money and payment network. Learn more Show less
Bitcoin is both a digital asset and the network that transfers it. It lets people send value without relying on a bank or central payment company.
Example: If Alice sends Bob bitcoin, the transaction is broadcast to the Bitcoin network and recorded on the blockchain after confirmation.
Block Network A group of confirmed Bitcoin transactions added to the blockchain. Learn more Show less
Miners assemble valid transactions into blocks. Each accepted block references the previous block, extending the transaction history that nodes verify.
Example: A payment receives its first confirmation when a miner includes it in a valid block.
Block Reward Mining The new bitcoin and transaction fees earned by a successful miner. Learn more Show less
A valid block can pay its miner newly issued bitcoin according to the supply schedule plus the fees from included transactions. The newly issued portion is also called the block subsidy.
Example: A mining pool distributes part of a block reward among participating miners.
Blockchain Basics A public record of Bitcoin transactions grouped into blocks. Learn more Show less
The Bitcoin blockchain is a chronological ledger. Each block contains transactions and references the previous block, creating a chain that is very difficult to rewrite.
Example: A confirmed payment appears in a block, and later blocks build on top of it.
Confirmation Transactions Evidence that a Bitcoin transaction has been included in a block. Learn more Show less
A transaction has one confirmation when it first appears in a block. Each block built after that adds another confirmation and makes reorganizing the transaction more difficult.
Example: A service may wait for additional confirmations before treating a large payment as final.
Latest guides
Read deeper explanations when a short answer is not enough.
Still have a question?
Send it to the BTCFQ team. Your question may become a public answer that helps other learners.
Ask a question