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  "id": "how-to-receive-bitcoin",
  "canonical": "https://degreesofsatoshi.com/encyclopedia/how-to-receive-bitcoin/",
  "collection": "bitcoin",
  "title": "How to receive Bitcoin: addresses, amounts and arrival checks",
  "description": "Learn what to share to receive bitcoin, verify the destination and distinguish a visible payment from an available balance.",
  "aliases": [
    "receive bitcoin",
    "receive bitcoin explained"
  ],
  "dates": {
    "published": "2026-10-02",
    "modified": "2026-10-02",
    "verified": "2026-10-02T19:29:20.637Z",
    "dataAsOf": "2026-10-02"
  },
  "authorship": {
    "publisher": "Degrees of Satoshi editorial project",
    "process": "AI-assisted research and drafting with a separate automated source-verification pass; no external expert or named human review is implied."
  },
  "quickAnswer": {
    "text": "To receive an on-chain Bitcoin payment, give the payer a receiving address from the correct wallet and network, plus the agreed amount. Share the address or payment request, never spending secrets. The wallet can be offline while the network records a payment. Check the actual output and confirmation status afterward; a screenshot or sender notification is not the payment itself.",
    "claimId": "how-to-receive-bitcoin-quick-answer",
    "sourceIds": [
      "x425-btc-individuals",
      "x425-btc-dev-transactions",
      "x425-btc-dev-payment-processing",
      "x425-btc-secure"
    ]
  },
  "keyFacts": [
    {
      "label": "Share",
      "value": "A receiving address or supported payment request",
      "sourceIds": [
        "x425-btc-individuals"
      ],
      "id": "share",
      "claimId": "how-to-receive-bitcoin-fact-share"
    },
    {
      "label": "Keep secret",
      "value": "Keys, seed and required recovery secrets",
      "sourceIds": [
        "x425-btc-secure"
      ],
      "id": "keep-secret",
      "claimId": "how-to-receive-bitcoin-fact-keep-secret"
    },
    {
      "label": "Check",
      "value": "Network, destination, amount and chain status",
      "sourceIds": [
        "x425-btc-dev-payment-processing"
      ],
      "id": "check",
      "claimId": "how-to-receive-bitcoin-fact-check"
    }
  ],
  "prerequisites": [
    "bitcoin-wallets-explained",
    "bitcoin-confirmations"
  ],
  "sections": [
    {
      "id": "request",
      "heading": "Create a destination you can recognize",
      "sourceIds": [
        "x425-btc-dev-wallets",
        "x425-btc-trezor-display",
        "x425-btc-bip321",
        "x425-btc-btcpay-invoices"
      ],
      "paragraphs": [
        "Open the intended wallet account and choose its receiving function. A fresh address helps distinguish receipts. If a hardware wallet supports address verification, compare the application’s address with the device display before sharing it. This checks the wallet’s own destination; it does not authenticate an outside person.",
        "On-chain addresses and Lightning requests are different payment instructions. Agree on the route before copying anything. A service account may also impose deposit policies separate from Bitcoin’s transaction rules."
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "receipt",
      "heading": "Follow one payment through the ledger",
      "sourceIds": [
        "x425-btc-dev-transactions",
        "x425-btc-dev-payment-processing"
      ],
      "paragraphs": [
        "Suppose you request 50,000 satoshis. The relevant check is an output paying 50,000 satoshis to the script represented by your address. The payer may also create change, so the total transaction output value need not equal your receipt.",
        "A payment appearing as pending has not yet been included in the observed chain. After inclusion, the containing block counts as the first confirmation. The appropriate acceptance policy depends on the payment’s circumstances; a fixed count is not an unconditional guarantee."
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "offline",
      "heading": "Receiving and noticing are separate events",
      "sourceIds": [
        "x425-btc-dev-wallets",
        "x425-btc-secure"
      ],
      "paragraphs": [
        "An on-chain output can be created while your phone or signing device is off. When the wallet reconnects and discovers the transaction, its display catches up. The backup must still preserve the keys and any policy information needed to spend.",
        "If an explorer shows the expected payment but the wallet does not, investigate synchronization, account selection and discovery. Do not disclose a seed to someone claiming they need it to release an incoming payment."
      ]
    }
  ],
  "faq": [
    {
      "question": "Does the sender need my private key?",
      "answer": "No. The payer needs a supported destination and the agreed amount. Your private keys or recovery phrase are spending authority and are unnecessary for creating an ordinary payment to you.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "x425-btc-dev-transactions",
        "x425-btc-secure"
      ]
    },
    {
      "question": "Does receiving an on-chain payment require my device to be online?",
      "answer": "No. The network can record an output while the wallet is offline. Your application needs a current chain view to discover and display it later; Lightning receiving has different operational requirements.",
      "sourceIds": [
        "x425-btc-dev-wallets",
        "x425-btc-dev-transactions",
        "x425-btc-ln-cycle",
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      ]
    }
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          "locator": "Introduction; Spending An Output; P2PKH Script Validation; Multisig; Transaction Fees And Change; Avoiding Key Reuse"
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          "locator": "Requesting Payments; Verifying Payment; Issuing Refunds"
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          "locator": "Be careful with online services; Backup your wallet; Encrypt your wallet; Offline wallet for savings; Hardware wallets; Keep your software up to date"
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      ],
      "scope": {
        "collection": "bitcoin",
        "dataAsOf": "2026-10-02",
        "blockHeight": null
      },
      "qualification": "Educational explanation. Product-specific behavior is scoped to the cited documentation, checked 2026-10-02.",
      "evidenceStatus": "documented",
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        "notes": [
          "Checked receiving-address sharing, output accounting and confirmation policy against wallet, transaction and payment-processing guides. Device verification confirms the wallet destination, not an outside identity; offline on-chain receipt is distinguished from Lightning availability. Added explicit BIP321/BTCPay/Lightning citations."
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        ]
      }
    },
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      "locator": "Introduction; Spending An Output; P2PKH Script Validation; Multisig; Transaction Fees And Change; Avoiding Key Reuse",
      "note": "Inputs, outputs, authorization, change, coinbase exceptions and fee accounting.",
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      "locator": "Requesting Payments; Verifying Payment; Issuing Refunds",
      "note": "Payment request interpretation, confirmation checks and refund destination risks; historical protocol sections are dated.",
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      "locator": "Be careful with online services; Backup your wallet; Encrypt your wallet; Offline wallet for savings; Hardware wallets; Keep your software up to date",
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  "related": {
    "articles": [
      "bitcoin-wallets-explained",
      "bitcoin-confirmations",
      "bitcoin-address-types",
      "how-to-send-bitcoin"
    ],
    "dossiers": [],
    "wallets": []
  },
  "revisionHistory": [
    {
      "date": "2026-10-02",
      "kind": "published",
      "summary": "First publication after primary-source research and separate automated verification."
    }
  ],
  "citation": "Degrees of Satoshi editorial project. “How to receive Bitcoin: addresses, amounts and arrival checks.” Published 2026-10-02; updated 2026-10-02. https://degreesofsatoshi.com/encyclopedia/how-to-receive-bitcoin/"
}