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Address | Bitcoin Glossary | Mapping Bitcoin

Address

Protocolo

Also known as: Bitcoin address, receiving address

A string of characters derived from a public key that serves as a destination for Bitcoin payments. Addresses come in several formats including legacy (starting with 1), P2SH (starting with 3), and native SegWit/Bech32 (starting with bc1).

Overview

A Bitcoin address is the identifier you share with others to receive payments. It is derived from a public key through a series of hashing and encoding steps, providing a shorter, more user-friendly representation. Different address formats have evolved over time, each offering improvements in efficiency, error detection, or functionality.

Address Formats

Format       Prefix   Example Start        Introduced
─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
P2PKH        1        1A1zP1eP5QGe...      2009 (original)
P2SH         3        3J98t1WpEZ73...      2012 (BIP16)
Bech32       bc1q     bc1qw508d6q...       2017 (BIP173/SegWit)
Bech32m      bc1p     bc1pxyz...           2021 (BIP350/Taproot)

How Addresses Are Generated

  1. Generate a private key (random 256-bit number)
  2. Derive the public key using elliptic curve multiplication
  3. Hash the public key with SHA-256 followed by RIPEMD-160
  4. Encode the result using Base58 (legacy) or Bech32 (SegWit)

Common Misconceptions

  • Addresses are not accounts: Unlike bank accounts, Bitcoin addresses are designed to be single-use. Reusing addresses degrades privacy by linking transactions together.
  • Addresses do not "hold" bitcoin: The blockchain records outputs locked to specific scripts. An address is simply a human-readable encoding of that script.
  • Sending to the wrong format still works: Modern wallets support all address formats. However, some older services may not support Bech32 addresses.

Best Practices

Always use the most modern address format your wallet supports (currently Bech32/Bech32m) for lower fees and better error detection. Generate a fresh address for each transaction to maximize privacy.

Términos Relacionados

Public KeyCriptografía

A cryptographic key derived from a private key using elliptic curve multiplication. Public keys can be freely shared and are used to generate Bitcoin addresses and verify digital signatures, without compromising the secrecy of the associated private key.

Bech32Protocolo

A human-readable address encoding format introduced by BIP173 for native SegWit addresses. Bech32 addresses start with 'bc1' and offer better error detection, are case-insensitive, and result in lower transaction fees compared to legacy address formats.

P2PKHProtocolo

Pay-to-Public-Key-Hash, a standard Bitcoin transaction type where the output is locked to the hash of a public key. The spender must provide a matching public key and valid signature. P2PKH addresses start with '1' and are the original Bitcoin address format.

P2WPKHProtocolo

Pay-to-Witness-Public-Key-Hash, a native SegWit output type that moves the signature data to the witness section of the transaction. P2WPKH addresses start with 'bc1q' and benefit from lower fees due to the SegWit witness discount.