Crypto glossary
Block explorer
A block explorer is a website that lets anyone search a blockchain's public data, such as blocks, transactions, addresses and balances, from a browser.
A block explorer reads data from blockchain nodes, indexes it and presents it as searchable pages. By typing a transaction hash, a wallet address or a block number, a user can see amounts, fees, timestamps, the number of confirmations and, on smart contract chains, token transfers and contract code.
Each major network has its own explorers, such as mempool.space for Bitcoin or Etherscan for Ethereum and many EVM chains. Users check them to confirm that a payment arrived, exchanges link to them in withdrawal notices, and journalists and investigators use them to follow funds after hacks or to verify claims about treasury wallets.
An explorer is a convenient window, not the blockchain itself: it can lag, mislabel addresses or show fake tokens sent as spam. For high-value checks, cross-check with a second explorer or your own node, and remember that every search reveals which address interests you to the site.
Example
After withdrawing 0.5 ETH from an exchange, a user pastes the transaction hash into Etherscan and sees it was included in a block 12 confirmations ago, with a fee of 0.0004 ETH.
