What a wallet passphrase is and what it opens
A wallet passphrase is a password that encrypts a wallet, and in many wallets it is an extra word added to your recovery seed that opens a hidden wallet.
Vahe HakobyanEditor-in-chief
Updated Oct 5, 20263 min readFact-checked
On this page
- A passphrase can be a word added to your recovery seed.
- The same seed plus a passphrase opens a hidden wallet.
- Forget the phrase and that hidden wallet stays locked.
- It is not the password that unlocks your wallet app.
A wallet passphrase is a password that encrypts a wallet. In many wallets, it also means a seed passphrase: an optional word or phrase you add to your recovery seed to open a hidden wallet.
What it does to your wallet
Your recovery seed normally opens one wallet. Add a passphrase and the wallet software combines the seed and the passphrase into a different key. That key opens a separate hidden wallet with its own addresses and balances.
How you use a passphrase
You turn the feature on in wallet software that supports it and choose the passphrase yourself. From then on, you must enter that exact phrase every time you restore or open the hidden wallet.
Passphrase vs wallet password
These are two different secrets. A wallet password or PIN unlocks the app on the device you are using, and you can usually reset it. A seed passphrase is part of the key that opens the hidden wallet, and it cannot be reset.
If you forget your passphrase
The hidden wallet is built from the exact passphrase, and there is no reset option. If you forget the phrase, restoring your seed opens only the standard wallet. Those funds stay out of reach.
Frequently asked questions
Yes. The new phrase opens a different hidden wallet, and the old phrase still opens the wallet it did before.
No. It depends on the wallet and the standard it follows, so check your own app before you count on it. Some apps use the term for a login password instead.
You get a different, empty wallet, and nothing warns you. That wallet is valid, so there is no error message that explains what happened.
It can, because the seed alone opens only the standard wallet. That protection depends on the passphrase staying secret and stored apart from the seed.
