Plan ₿ Forum 2026 · Lugano · Oct 23–24
21 BTC

My Bitcoin transaction is stuck: RBF and CPFP explained

Why transactions wait unconfirmed, and the two safe ways to speed them up: replace-by-fee and child-pays-for-parent.

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Why it happens

Blocks have limited space, so miners pick the transactions that pay the most per virtual byte. If you paid less than others are paying right now, your transaction waits in the mempool until demand drops.

Fix 1: Replace-by-fee (RBF)

If your wallet supports it, you broadcast a new version of the same payment with a higher fee. Miners take the better-paying version. Most modern wallets have a 'bump fee' button.

Fix 2: Child-pays-for-parent (CPFP)

The receiver (or you, from your change) spends the unconfirmed output with a high fee. Miners must include the parent to get the child's fee, so both confirm together.

What not to do

Never pay a website or 'accelerator support' that asks for your seed phrase. Waiting is also fine: if fees drop, the transaction usually confirms, or nodes eventually drop it and the coins stay yours.

Fees right now

4
Fast · sat/vB
3
~30 min · sat/vB
1
~1 hour · sat/vB
1
Economy · sat/vB

Mempool: 49,873 tx · mempool.space · 22 Oct 2026, 21:53 London · Network live →

FAQ

Are my coins lost if a transaction is stuck?
No. Until it confirms, the coins have not moved on the blockchain.
Why does the fee depend on size, not amount?
Miners sell block space measured in vbytes. Sending 1 BTC or 0.001 BTC costs the same if the transaction is the same size.

On the site

Original bitcointalk.org threads

Our own explanation; forum threads are linked, not copied. Not investment advice.

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