Read a block explorer
Look at a fictional explorer record and tell a pending transaction from a successful or failed one.
Find a transaction by ID
A block explorer is a public lookup tool for a blockchain. It can show a transaction’s status, the addresses involved, and the block that included it. Open the explorer for the same network and look up the transaction ID, also called a transaction hash. A public lookup needs no wallet password or recovery phrase.
Read both the block and the status
In a practice explorer, transaction DEMO-317 first says Pending with an empty block field. It is waiting for inclusion. Later, it shows Block 420 and Success, which means it was included and completed successfully. In a separate example, a record with a block and Failed means the network included the transaction but the requested action did not complete.
Treat confirmations as a separate detail
A confirmation count tells you about inclusion and the blocks that follow. Check the status to see whether the requested action succeeded. On Ethereum, a failed transaction that ran in a block can still use gas and incur a fee.