- What are block explorers?
- Blockchain explorers for Bitcoin and the most popular cryptocurrencies
- Why use block explorers?
“Block explorers” allow users to view and track transactions on the blockchain network. They are search engines that provide a user-friendly interface to access detailed information about blocks, including relevant addresses, times and more on the blockchain. The tool is customized for specific cryptocurrencies.
What are block explorers?
A blockchain explorer is an online blockchain browser or tool for viewing the blockchain and verifying transactions. It provides information such as the contents of an individual blockchain, transaction history and address balance.
In other words, a blockchain explorer is a search tool. Just as web browsers are used to surf the Internet, blockchain explorers allow you to browse the blockchain. Block explorers provide detailed information about individual blocks in the blockchain. Such information includes:
Network statistics: total number of transactions, average fee per transaction, current cryptocurrency price.
Block information: block height, hash, block timestamp, block status (completed or not), the miner or mining pool that mined the block, number of transactions in the block, reward per block, complexity at the time of mining, block size.
Transaction information: recent transactions, transaction IDs, sender and receiver addresses, amount transferred, transaction timestamp, transaction fee.
Historical data: past blockchain and transaction data, previous activity by address.
Blockchain explorers for Bitcoin and the most popular cryptocurrencies
Each blockchain network has its own blockchain explorer. For example, Ethereum transactions will require an Ethereum-centric blockchain explorer such as Etherscan. This specialization is critical for accuracy and relevance, as each blockchain has its own unique functions and data structure. To search for transactions for a specific coin, users must use a blockchain explorer specific to that cryptocurrency.
Popular blockchain explorers for Bitcoin:
blockexplorer.com
blockchain.com
blockcypher.com
btc.com
Popular blockchain explorers for Ethereum:
etherscan.io
ethplorer.io
blockchair.com/ethereum
Why use block explorers.
When a transaction is made, it can be tracked in block explorers in real-time as confirmations are received. This provides users with a reliable way to track the progress of their transactions.
Block explorers also allow people to analyze blockchain activity for suspicious behavior. Users may want to know if a transaction has been successfully processed on the blockchain, or try to track the movement of funds between addresses.
Blockchain researchers can also offer relevant information about historical or otherwise notable blocks. For example, during the fourth Bitcoin halving, users were interested in block 840,000 that ushered in the fifth era of Bitcoin mining.
One of the most commonly requested forms of information in the blockchain explorer is “recent blocks and transactions”. Once a miner solves a block, it is added to the blockchain and blockchain explorers subsequently update this information.
Users can get more detailed information on each block.
Blockchain explorers are a key element of the secure and decentralized nature of blockchain and cryptocurrency: anyone can publicly check which transactions have been confirmed when. The tools allow a user of any skill level to benefit from the transparency of the blockchain.
