# Why is my Bitcoin transaction still unconfirmed?

An unconfirmed Bitcoin transaction has not yet been included in the chain being checked. It may be waiting because of its fee, a dependency, a conflict or incomplete propagation. First establish whether the transaction was broadcast and accepted; then use a supported replacement or dependent spend only if the wallet can construct one.

Evidence: [Bitcoin Developer Guide: Transactions](https://developer.bitcoin.org/devguide/transactions.html); [bumpfee RPC](https://bitcoincore.org/en/doc/29.0.0/rpc/wallet/bumpfee/); [Bitcoin Core package policy](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/bitcoin/bitcoin/v29.0/doc/policy/packages.md); [Bitcoin Core mempool maintenance](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/bitcoin/bitcoin/v29.0/src/txmempool.cpp)

Canonical: https://degreesofsatoshi.com/encyclopedia/bitcoin-stuck-transactions/
Published: 2026-10-02
Substantively modified: 2026-10-02
Independently verified by an automated reviewer: 2026-10-02T18:15:23.891Z
Data current through: 2026-10-02

AI-assisted research and drafting with a separate automated source-verification pass; no external expert or named human review is implied.

## Key facts

- **Mempool:** Different nodes need not have identical sets of pending transactions. ([Bitcoin Developer Guide: Transactions](https://developer.bitcoin.org/devguide/transactions.html); [Bitcoin Core mempool maintenance](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/bitcoin/bitcoin/v29.0/src/txmempool.cpp))
- **Timeout:** A wallet’s display deadline is not a consensus cancellation. ([Bitcoin Developer Guide: Transactions](https://developer.bitcoin.org/devguide/transactions.html); [Bitcoin Core mempool maintenance](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/bitcoin/bitcoin/v29.0/src/txmempool.cpp))
- **Recovery:** Fee replacement requires a transaction that meets the wallet and node conditions. ([bumpfee RPC](https://bitcoincore.org/en/doc/29.0.0/rpc/wallet/bumpfee/))

## Start with evidence, not a countdown

Check the transaction identifier, its inputs and the network on which it was sent. A payment still waiting for a wallet signature has a different problem from one accepted by a node but not yet mined. An explorer’s lack of a record does not prove that no other node has the transaction.

Look for an unconfirmed parent and for an alternative transaction spending the same input. The displayed fee rate is useful only when interpreted alongside transaction size and dependencies.

Evidence: [Bitcoin Developer Guide: Transactions](https://developer.bitcoin.org/devguide/transactions.html)

## Understand the possible next steps

If the wallet supports a valid replacement, increasing the fee can create a more competitive conflicting transaction. If you control a suitable unconfirmed output, a child spend can change the economics of the dependent package. Neither method is guaranteed to be available.

Sending another unrelated payment can produce a second successful payment rather than repair the first. Before doing so, establish what the first transaction can still spend and whether a replacement or conflict already exists.

Evidence: [bumpfee RPC](https://bitcoincore.org/en/doc/29.0.0/rpc/wallet/bumpfee/); [walletcreatefundedpsbt RPC](https://bitcoincore.org/en/doc/29.0.0/rpc/wallet/walletcreatefundedpsbt/); [Bitcoin Core package policy](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/bitcoin/bitcoin/v29.0/doc/policy/packages.md)

## What ends the pending state

Inclusion gives the transaction a block location and one confirmation in that observed chain. Additional blocks increase depth; they do not turn a probabilistic settlement process into an absolute guarantee.

A node may also discard a pending transaction under its local policy. That deletion does not revoke a valid signature or prevent someone from broadcasting the same transaction again if its inputs remain spendable.

Evidence: [Bitcoin Developer Guide: Block Chain](https://developer.bitcoin.org/devguide/block_chain.html); [Bitcoin Developer Guide: Transactions](https://developer.bitcoin.org/devguide/transactions.html); [Bitcoin Core mempool maintenance](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/bitcoin/bitcoin/v29.0/src/txmempool.cpp)

## Questions

### Does waiting a fixed number of hours automatically return the coins?

No. Pending-transaction expiry is local node or wallet behavior. The relevant question is whether an accepted transaction has spent the inputs, not whether a timer has elapsed.

Evidence: [Bitcoin Developer Guide: Transactions](https://developer.bitcoin.org/devguide/transactions.html); [Bitcoin Developer Guide: Block Chain](https://developer.bitcoin.org/devguide/block_chain.html); [Bitcoin Core mempool maintenance](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/bitcoin/bitcoin/v29.0/src/txmempool.cpp)

## Claims and scope

### bitcoin-stuck-transactions-quick-answer

An unconfirmed Bitcoin transaction has not yet been included in the chain being checked. It may be waiting because of its fee, a dependency, a conflict or incomplete propagation. First establish whether the transaction was broadcast and accepted; then use a supported replacement or dependent spend only if the wallet can construct one.

Scope: {"collection":"bitcoin","dataAsOf":"2026-10-02","blockHeight":null}

### bitcoin-stuck-transactions-fact-mempool

Mempool: Different nodes need not have identical sets of pending transactions.

Scope: {"collection":"bitcoin","dataAsOf":"2026-10-02","blockHeight":null}

### bitcoin-stuck-transactions-fact-timeout

Timeout: A wallet’s display deadline is not a consensus cancellation.

Scope: {"collection":"bitcoin","dataAsOf":"2026-10-02","blockHeight":null}

### bitcoin-stuck-transactions-fact-recovery

Recovery: Fee replacement requires a transaction that meets the wallet and node conditions.

Scope: {"collection":"bitcoin","dataAsOf":"2026-10-02","blockHeight":null}

## Sources

- [Bitcoin Developer Guide: Transactions](https://developer.bitcoin.org/devguide/transactions.html) — Bitcoin developer documentation contributors. UTXO inputs, transaction outputs, change and the difference paid as a fee. Locator: P2PKH Script Validation; Transaction Fees And Change. Retrieved: 2026-10-02T17:03:41.190Z.
- [bumpfee RPC](https://bitcoincore.org/en/doc/29.0.0/rpc/wallet/bumpfee/) — Bitcoin Core. Wallet-assisted replacement and the required fee and transaction conditions. Locator: Arguments and result fields. Retrieved: 2026-10-02T17:03:40.979Z.
- [Bitcoin Core package policy](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/bitcoin/bitcoin/v29.0/doc/policy/packages.md) — Bitcoin Core. Package fee accounting and policy for dependent transaction admission. Locator: Package Mempool Acceptance Rules; Package Fees and Feerate. Retrieved: 2026-10-02T17:21:46.897Z.
- [Bitcoin Core mempool maintenance](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/bitcoin/bitcoin/v29.0/src/txmempool.cpp) — Bitcoin Core. Node-local expiry and size-based eviction of unconfirmed transactions. Locator: CTxMemPool::Expire; CTxMemPool::TrimToSize. Retrieved: 2026-10-02T17:55:16.998Z.
- [walletcreatefundedpsbt RPC](https://bitcoincore.org/en/doc/29.0.0/rpc/wallet/walletcreatefundedpsbt/) — Bitcoin Core. Input selection, fee units, change output, selected inputs and transaction funding. Locator: Arguments and result fields. Retrieved: 2026-10-02T17:03:40.827Z.
- [Bitcoin Developer Guide: Block Chain](https://developer.bitcoin.org/devguide/block_chain.html) — Bitcoin developer documentation contributors. Block headers, transaction Merkle trees and competing valid branches. Locator: Proof Of Work; Block Height And Forking; Transaction Data. Retrieved: 2026-10-02T17:03:41.181Z.

## Revision history

- 2026-10-02: Initial Bitcoin encyclopedia entry at this permanent URL.
- 2026-10-02: Added reusable claims, explicit source locators, and matching Markdown and JSON. This publishing change does not itself establish factual verification.

## Cite this entry

Degrees of Satoshi editorial project. “Why is my Bitcoin transaction still unconfirmed?.” Published 2026-10-02; updated 2026-10-02. https://degreesofsatoshi.com/encyclopedia/bitcoin-stuck-transactions/