What Is Etherscan and How Does It Actually Work in Crypto?

Key Takeaways

• It is very necessary to understand that etherscan.io is a blockchain explorer and is not crypto wallet and cannot hold, transfer, or receive any crypto funds whatsoever.
• Anybody can use etherscan to search wallet addresses, transactions hash, contract addresses, or ENS domains without registration or connecting to any wallet.
• A registration of free account will give you more options, but not mandatory in case of basic searches.
• For developers, there are three main purposes for using Etherscan: API, verification of contracts, and events logging from smart contracts.
• Private key or seed phrase will never be required for using etherscan.io, and any website which looks like etherscan and asks for them is fake.
• Service works independently with its own server and database, which is not maintained by Ethereum Foundation.

Etherscan is not only a block explorer but also an analytics platform for the Ethereum blockchain. No technical skills required to use it to search for wallet addresses, view transaction history, read smart contract code and gas fees, and much more.

You’ve likely encountered an Etherscan link before if you ever bought a token, made a transaction or used any decentralized app. Wallets, exchanges and NFT marketplaces, in general, link users to Etherscan to verify that a transaction has occurred.

It delves into step by step explanation of what Etherscan is, how it functions, its main tools and the terms used in this open source blockchain explorer and some of the frequently asked questions.

What Is Etherscan?

Etherscan is a block explorer and analytics platform that puts the data of the Ethereum blockchain into a readable and searchable format.

Ethereum is a blockchain on which, for example, any actions you take, such as transferring ETH, minting an NFT or anything else you do, are recorded on the blockchain in an immutable manner. Data that is not easily understood on its own and is technical. You know it, Etherscan knows it and provides you with searchable pages:

• Wallet address
• Transaction history
• Token balances
• Contract details

Etherscan is not a wallet. It will NOT cost you money, nor can it transfer your money. It’s not a vault it’s a viewer! Does not use to search, store or send cryptocurrency.

This was created by Matthew Tan in about 2015 and was the default explorer for those who want to see something on Ethereum (blockchain).

With time, Etherscan has developed from a mere lookup tool to something much more extensive. It’s grown from an initial stage of merely being a transaction viewer as it goes on to become a gas tracker, token analyzer, contract verification, and even an API for app developers, and will increasingly be adding more and more security measures to detect suspicious wallet activity. Some of these features were wanted by users, developers wanted to be able to be verified, traders wanted to be able to see gas data, analysts wanted to be able to see token data, etc. and it began to create new tools as needed.

It’s also worth to note that Etherscan is a separate company, and not a part of the Ethereum Foundation. This system is served from their own servers, their own database and interface, but on the public data from Ethereum (where no one owns the data either). It’s crucial because Etherscan is not a system that is essential to the Ethereum core protocol, so it doesn’t need to be up and accurate 100% of the time.

A Block Explorer is a utility to look at the blockchain.

A block explorer is a web page that reads the data from the blockchain and represents it in a human-readable way.

Imagine a search engine but for a blockchain rather than internet. Simply input a wallet address, transaction hash or contract and the explorer will show you all of its aspects: balances, back to the first time you ever looked at this miracle: timestamps + follow up transactions + more.

Not every explorer is an appropriate one for every blockchain, however. Etherscan covers Ethereum. Other chains that have similar tools are BNB Chain (BscScan) and Solana (Solscan). They all have a similar concept – to take information from the blockchain and represent it as text.

What are the features of Etherscan?

Etherscan’s operation can be broken down into three steps: Data extraction from the Ethereum network, sorting and indexing, and presenting data in searchable format.

The way in which it is connected to Ethereum nodes: RPC (Remote Procedure Call). This connection is used to add new blocks, transactions and contract information to the chain in real-time, which is then retrieved by Etherscan.

This is then indexed into and stored in Etherscan’s own database which is sorted by wallet address, transaction ID, block number and contract address. The indexing is what enables you to search instantly, instead of doing it on your own.

The information is then processed and can be easily searched by anyone on Etherscan’s website. Search directly from the search bar, and view the relevant data by going through the processes in wallet pages, transaction pages or contract pages.

Unlike running your own Ethereum node, and viewing the same data, but in different format/with search/analysing/pointers etc. (which you can still do in a block explorer). To run a node, the entire blockchain must be stored locally and synced continuously, which uses disk space and requires technical setup. You don’t do that on your servers, Etherscan does that.

Etherscan doesn’t display the event on the blocks until a couple of seconds later, which is the time needed for the event to be included in the block, and then for the indexing to crawl it out of the block. This delay may be a little longer if the network is congested.

Then, what is Etherscan for?

Search wallet addresses and confirm transactions, interact with smart contracts or track tokens or NFTs on Ethereum using Etherscan.

It is applied for this in the main:

• A procedure for analyzing a wallet address. It is possible to search for any Ethereum address you want and get ETH balance, ERC-20 tokens held, ERC-721 or ERC-1155 tokens (NFTs) and all transaction history.
• Tracking a transaction. A transaction hash (TXID) is used for all transactions. To see who the sender and recipient was, how much money was transferred (including gas fee paid) and the time and whether it succeeded or failed!
• Reading smart contracts. Etherscan is used by developers and auditors to ensure that the code of a particular contract on-chain is authentic. Before entering into a contract, one of the primary ways users will validate the contract is by checking its validity of the contract.
• Monitoring gas fees. Gas Tracker on Etherscan will provide you with the latest gas prices in Etherscan network, enabling you to time your transactions and avoid exorbitant fees.
• Following token activity. Each ERC20 token is shown on a separate page on Etherscan and includes the total supply, number of token holders and transaction history.
• Checking approvals. Utilize the token approval check on Etherscan to verify which contracts you’ve approved for transferring tokens off your wallet. This is one of the lesser talked about but more significant security features as the approvals that were not used in the past couple of years may still be active on the wallet in the contract and the wallet owner won’t even be aware of them.
• Creating watchlists of wallets. Registered users can add a wallet address to their watchlist and add private notes to it for easy tracking of multiple wallets separately.
• Validating and staking data. In the Beacon Chain section of Etherscan, data for validators + staking deposits and withdrawal activity are included since the change to Ethereum’s proof-of-stake.

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The 8-Step Procedure for Using Etherscan

Using etherscan: etherscan is located at etherscan. io – type in the search box at the top of the page a wallet address, transaction ID, contract address or ENS name.

The initial step is to find what you need.

The search bar may accept variety of inputs:

• Wallet Address (0x then 40 characters long)
• A transaction hash(also begins with 0x) is the block in blockchain.
• Address of a smart contract
• A name that is valid for ENS.A valid ENS name (such as vitalik. eth).
• A block number

Just copy and paste above and automatically access the corresponding page on Etherscan.

Step 2: Read the Results

This is what you’ve looked for.

If you have looked up a wallet address, here you will land on a page displaying:

• ETH balance
• Token holdings (ERC-20)
• NFTs owned
• Recently made transactions (most recent first):

If you did a search of a tx hash, then it should say:

• Status – success or failure.
• Block number and the time of the block.
• To: and From: addresses are in the wrong order.
• Value transferred
• The amount of gas consumed and the amount of gas price.
• Price of transaction fees in ETH.

By: Step 3: Explore a transaction further.

To view the details of each transaction just click on it. This way you can find the name of the specific smart contract that was called, the name of the function that was executed and any transfers of tokens that were made as part of this transaction.

It is particularly useful for confirming: Did my NFT mint it successfully? Was my swap successful at the expected price or did a payment finally get to the correct wallet?

a. This step is meant to be used when you want to explore the system without using any UI.

Etherscan also allows the interaction of verified smart contracts directly from the Write Contract and Read Contract tabs on a smart contract’s page.

Identities read Contract: This would allow you to access data outside of the contract that does not require a gas charge (such as the balance of the contract’s token or some parameter of the contract).

Write Contract enables a transaction to be made on the contract – either a call to a function or an approval of a token spend. You have to pay gas fees to attach to the chain (you need a wallet such as MetaMask, technically you submit a transaction to the chain).

Secondly, register for free (Optional).

No need to register an account to search on Etherscan and view data. Signing up for a free account provides a few additional functionalities: saved watchlists, private notes on addresses, email alerts for target wallets and the token approval checker.

To register, click on Sign In in the top right corner of the site and select to Register. An e-mail and password will be needed. After registering, simply go to any wallet page, click the star next to the address and begin to add addresses to your watchlist.
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The excellent Etherscan features are explained here.

Wallet Lookup

Examine any location for value and past. The entire purpose of Etherscan is that they are the simplest way for you to ascertain that you sent your ETH to the right wallet or that you were able to send funds to the right wallet. Always double check the whales before sending them any funds!

Transaction Tracker

All transactions come with their own page including all of the details of the transaction such as used gas, block time, success or failure. If there’s any transaction in pending state, it will display the status.

Token Tracker

Every new token deployed on Ethereum has a page dedicated to it, where you can view the token’s contract address, total supply, number of token holders and recent transfers. This can aid in deciding whether the token is what it claims to be prior to purchase.

NFT Tracker

The same as in the previous game, but for NFT collectors. Single NFT floor activity, ownership history and metadata can be viewed.

Gas Tracker

Gas fees on the Ethereum network change as demand on the network changes. Check this data before sending a transaction to save some coins, as there are 3 speed tiers (slow, average and fast).

Contract Verification

This enables developers to upload and test their source code contracts to Etherscan and to compare them to the deployed contract’s bytecode. Once verified, the source code of the contract is available for reading by anyone and not just the compiled code. This can be one of the simplest ways to make sure that a contract will do what it promises.

Etherscan API

Developers have access to two APIs: Free and Premium on Etherscan which allow them to directly extract Ethereum data into their own applications without having to operate a node. This drives wallets, portfolio trackers and crypto instruments that show Ethereum information.

Label Tags

You may come across a small note on Etherscan for some wallet addresses, such as Binance 14, Uniswap: Router etc. Label tags are labels that are integrated by Etherscan or submitted by the community to mark an address as belonging to a regular exchange, protocol or project. They are very convenient when you need to know quickly where the money is going in or out, but you don’t need to do it one by one.

Etherscan API Pricing Plans

Outside of the free tier, Etherscan promotes paid API plans intended for developers and businesses who require higher request volumes, faster rate limits, or premium data endpoints. Casual users exploring wallets and transactions aren’t going to care about any of these, only apps, dashboards, or tools that are grabbing Ethereum data through the API at scale.

The pricing is on a tiered basis with the request volume and access to features. At time of writing, these are the official monthly rates on Etherscan, but plan updates happen periodically so it is always worth visiting Etherscan steps. Check the current figures in io/apis store before subscribing.

Is Etherscan Legitimate?

Yes, Etherscan is safe to use to check data. It only accesses data from public blockchain and you don’t need to connect a wallet unless you are using the “Write Contract” feature to send a transaction.

However, there are a couple of things to note:

• Etherscan will tell you what is already on the blockchain, it will not verify off-chain claims. When someone sends you a transaction link to verify a payment, verify that the amount, sender and recipient address are correct.
• Sometimes, scammers develop fake tokens with names that are similar to real projects. Never trust the contract address based on the token name displayed on Etherscan, but always verify the address in the contract itself.
• Etherscan does not request your private keys or seed phrase. Any pop-up or linked site that requests either while claiming to be part of Etherscan is a scam.
• A frequent scam technique is to create a fake “airdrop” or “claim reward” page that mimics the appearance of Etherscan and requests wallet connection and signing of a transaction. You are never prompted to sign from a page on the real Etherscan, only when you choose to use the “Write Contract” feature. Even if the design seems convincing, if a site requires a wallet connection as soon as it loads, it’s a red flag.
• It also makes it easier to bookmark the official Etherscan URL directly, as there are scam sites that will pay more for ads to appear higher in search results than the real site, and the URL appears almost identical at first glance.

Etherscan vs Other Block Explorers

Etherscan is the most popular Ethereum block explorer, but there are other options.

Other options include Blockchair (which supports several chains, including Ethereum) and Ethplorer (which is more focused on token analytics). The same team behind Etherscan has built and maintained each of these blockchain explorers, with BscScan for BNB Chain, Polygonscan for Polygon, and Arbiscan for Arbitrum.

These explorers have the same interface style, so once you get used to using Etherscan, you should feel at home with the other sister explorers on other chains.

Etherscan for Developers

Etherscan is used by developers for more than just looking things up. There are three tools that are used in every day development.

The API. Developers can use Etherscan’s API to retrieve Ethereum data, balances, transaction lists, contract ABI data and more without having to run their own node. Basic usage is free, and higher volumes of requests have paid plans. Behind the scenes, most of the trackers, tax software and wallet apps that display Ethereum data are using this API.

API access is simple to set up: Register a free account, and create an API key from the account dashboard, then use the key in requests to Etherscan’s endpoints. The free tier has rate limits, meaning that many applications will need to upgrade to a paid plan when they exceed the free request limit.

Contract verification. Developers can upload the source code of their smart contract to Etherscan for verification when deploying a smart contract. After verification, users can view the real code of the contract, rather than just its compiled bytecode. This step has become almost a must for any serious project, as users and auditors are less inclined to trust an unverified contract.

Event logs. Each smart contract can generate “events” which are small data records that are recorded when specific events occur, such as a token transfer or a swap. These logs are shown on the transaction page in Etherscan, and are used by developers to debug the behavior of their contracts and to confirm that a function was called as intended.

The following is a list of common terms used on Etherscan that are explained.

• Gas – The fee paid to process a transaction on Ethereum, measured in a small unit called Gwei.
• Block – A block is a group of transactions that are confirmed and added to the blockchain simultaneously. Ethereum’s new block is added every 12 seconds.
• Hash – A hash is a special string of characters that identifies a particular transaction or block.
• ERC-20 – ERC-20 is the technical standard that most of the tokens on Ethereum follow.
• ERC-721 – Most NFTs use the ERC-721 standard.
• Nonce – Nonce is a number that is used to maintain the order of transactions, it is used to track how many transactions a wallet has sent.
• Contract address – The address of a contract is a wallet-like address that a smart contract resides on the blockchain.
• ABI (Application Binary Interface) – ABI is a file describing how to interact with a smart contract, which functions it has and what data they accept. This is used by Etherscan to create its “Read Contract” and “Write Contract” tabs.
• Confirmations – Confirmations are the number of blocks that have been added since the block that your transaction is in. The more confirmations that occur, the more secure the transaction is and the less it is likely to be impacted by a chain reorganization.
• Internal transaction – A transfer of ETH that occurs in the course of a smart contract execution, not a wallet-to-wallet transfer. They appear on a separate tab on the transaction pages of Etherscan, as they are not always visible in the transaction list.

Conclusion

Etherscan provides anyone, not just developers, with a means to view what’s going on with the Ethereum blockchain. From a single search bar, you can check if a payment has been made, verify a smart contract before interacting with it, or track gas prices before sending a transaction, among other things, which most users or developers will need.

The core tools, wallet lookup, transaction tracking and contract verification cover most of the common use cases and are not account dependent. Once you need more than just a basic API lookup, developers and frequent traders can take advantage of the API, watchlists and Pro plans.

If you are new to Ethereum, it is one of the quickest ways to get to know how the network really works to bookmark Etherscan and familiarize yourself with a few searches, a wallet address, a transaction hash.

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