# Ethereum receipts: status, gas used and event logs

An Ethereum transaction receipt records information produced when an included transaction executes: status, gas used, logs and block references. A success status means the top-level execution completed without reverting. It does not prove finality, a fair trade or that every application-level expectation was met.

Evidence: [Ethereum JSON-RPC](https://ethereum.org/en/developers/docs/apis/json-rpc/); [Embedding transaction status code in receipts](https://eips.ethereum.org/EIPS/eip-658)

Canonical: https://degreesofsatoshi.com/encyclopedia/ethereum-transaction-receipts/
Published: 2026-10-02
Substantively modified: 2026-10-02
Independently verified by an automated reviewer: 2026-10-02T18:12:41.505Z
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

- **Status:** Post-Byzantium receipts use 1 for success and 0 for top-level failure. ([Embedding transaction status code in receipts](https://eips.ethereum.org/EIPS/eip-658))
- **Gas:** gasUsed describes this transaction; cumulativeGasUsed includes earlier transactions in the block. ([Ethereum JSON-RPC](https://ethereum.org/en/developers/docs/apis/json-rpc/))
- **Logs:** Logs contain contract-emitted event data, interpreted with the relevant ABI. ([Ethereum JSON-RPC](https://ethereum.org/en/developers/docs/apis/json-rpc/); [Contract ABI Specification](https://docs.soliditylang.org/en/v0.8.30/abi-spec.html))

## Read the receipt in a useful order

Start with the chain, transaction hash, block hash and block number. Then check status, gasUsed and effectiveGasPrice where provided. Finally inspect relevant logs and application state.

For an ordinary execution fee, gasUsed multiplied by effectiveGasPrice gives the paid execution-gas component. Blob transactions and rollup-specific accounting can involve additional components.

Evidence: [Ethereum JSON-RPC](https://ethereum.org/en/developers/docs/apis/json-rpc/); [Fee market change for ETH 1.0 chain](https://eips.ethereum.org/EIPS/eip-1559); [Shard Blob Transactions](https://eips.ethereum.org/EIPS/eip-4844); [OP Stack transaction fees](https://docs.optimism.io/stack/transactions/fees)

## Separate execution from an intended token result

ERC-20 methods may return a boolean success value, and callers must handle it correctly. A transaction that ignores a false return can complete at the EVM level without achieving the user’s intended transfer.

A decoded Transfer event is useful evidence, but verify the emitting contract and the token’s actual behavior. A familiar event signature alone does not establish that an asset is authentic.

Evidence: [ERC-20 Token Standard](https://eips.ethereum.org/EIPS/eip-20); [Embedding transaction status code in receipts](https://eips.ethereum.org/EIPS/eip-658)

## The receipt belongs to an observed block

A receipt’s block reference identifies the inclusion being reported. If the accepted chain changes, that inclusion can change. Querying a receipt is not itself a finality check.

Keep execution status and the block’s settlement status separate in interfaces and citations. “Successful” and “finalized” answer different questions.

Evidence: [Ethereum JSON-RPC](https://ethereum.org/en/developers/docs/apis/json-rpc/)

## Questions

### Is cumulativeGasUsed the fee I paid?

No. It accumulates gas used through that transaction’s position in the block. The transaction’s own gasUsed and applicable gas price are the relevant execution-fee inputs.

Evidence: [Ethereum JSON-RPC](https://ethereum.org/en/developers/docs/apis/json-rpc/)

## Claims and scope

### ethereum-transaction-receipts-quick-answer

An Ethereum transaction receipt records information produced when an included transaction executes: status, gas used, logs and block references. A success status means the top-level execution completed without reverting. It does not prove finality, a fair trade or that every application-level expectation was met.

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

### ethereum-transaction-receipts-fact-status

Status: Post-Byzantium receipts use 1 for success and 0 for top-level failure.

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

### ethereum-transaction-receipts-fact-gas

Gas: gasUsed describes this transaction; cumulativeGasUsed includes earlier transactions in the block.

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

### ethereum-transaction-receipts-fact-logs

Logs: Logs contain contract-emitted event data, interpreted with the relevant ABI.

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

## Sources

- [Ethereum JSON-RPC](https://ethereum.org/en/developers/docs/apis/json-rpc/) — ethereum.org contributors. RPC response fields, transaction receipts, call simulation and log filtering. Locator: eth_getTransactionByHash; eth_getTransactionReceipt; eth_call; eth_getLogs; eth_getCode; eth_estimateGas; eth_getBalance; eth_getStorageAt; eth_getTransactionCount; default block parameter. Retrieved: 2026-10-02T17:03:42.060Z.
- [Embedding transaction status code in receipts](https://eips.ethereum.org/EIPS/eip-658) — Ethereum Improvement Proposals. Receipts report top-level execution success or failure. Locator: Specification. Retrieved: 2026-10-02T17:03:42.150Z.
- [Contract ABI Specification](https://docs.soliditylang.org/en/v0.8.30/abi-spec.html) — Solidity contributors. ABI encoding, selectors, event topics and event data. Locator: Function Selector; Argument Encoding; Events; Errors; JSON. Retrieved: 2026-10-02T17:03:42.824Z.
- [Fee market change for ETH 1.0 chain](https://eips.ethereum.org/EIPS/eip-1559) — Ethereum Improvement Proposals. Base fees, fee caps, priority fees and effective transaction gas price. Locator: Specification. Retrieved: 2026-10-02T17:03:42.151Z.
- [Shard Blob Transactions](https://eips.ethereum.org/EIPS/eip-4844) — Ethereum Improvement Proposals. Blob commitments, separate blob-gas fee calculations and temporary data availability. Locator: Gas accounting; Opcode to get versioned hashes; Point evaluation precompile; Consensus layer validation. Retrieved: 2026-10-02T17:03:42.506Z.
- [OP Stack transaction fees](https://docs.optimism.io/stack/transactions/fees) — Optimism. Rollup execution, data-publication and operator fee components depend on active network upgrades. Locator: Gas fee components; Execution gas fee; L1 data fee; Operator fee. Retrieved: 2026-10-02T17:55:17.901Z.
- [ERC-20 Token Standard](https://eips.ethereum.org/EIPS/eip-20) — Ethereum Improvement Proposals. Token supply, displayed units and balance accounting. Locator: totalSupply; balanceOf; transfer; decimals; approve; allowance; transferFrom; Transfer. Retrieved: 2026-10-02T17:03:45.826Z.

## Revision history

- 2026-10-02: First publication after primary-source research and independent automated verification.

## Cite this entry

Degrees of Satoshi editorial project. “Ethereum receipts: status, gas used and event logs.” Published 2026-10-02; updated 2026-10-02. https://degreesofsatoshi.com/encyclopedia/ethereum-transaction-receipts/