What is Address?
A string encoding the conditions under which an output can be spent. Bitcoin's equivalent of an account number, except you can make unlimited ones.
Modern addresses begin with bc1 (native SegWit or Taproot); older formats begin with 1 or 3. Native SegWit addresses cost less to spend from.
Reusing an address links all payments to it publicly, so wallets generate a fresh one per receipt. Always verify an address on the signing device itself, not only on a screen malware could alter.
An address is not an account and not a person. One user can hold thousands; one exchange can serve millions from a few.
Related terms
Public key
The value derived from a private key that lets anyone verify a signature without learning the key itself.
NetworkSegWit
A 2017 soft fork that moved signature data into a separate witness structure, fixing transaction malleability…
NetworkTaproot
A 2021 soft fork adding Schnorr signatures and a scheme that makes complex spending conditions look like…
Security & scamsPrivacy (on-chain)
Bitcoin is pseudonymous, not anonymous: every transaction is public forever, and addresses can often be…
This definition is part of the Bitcoin Logical glossary. For the fuller explanation, start with Learn, or see the live numbers on The Bitcoin Signal.