Wallets & SecurityBeginner

What is a watch-only wallet and what is it for?

A watch-only wallet tracks addresses and balances with public keys only, so it cannot sign or send crypto. You set it up by importing an xpub.

Vahe HakobyanEditor-in-chief Updated Oct 5, 20263 min readFact-checked

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How do you set up a watch-only wallet?Why use a watch-only wallet?What can't a watch-only wallet do?How is it different from a regular wallet?FAQ

Short answer

A watch-only wallet is a crypto wallet that tracks addresses and balances but holds only public keys. It cannot send or spend crypto, because only the wallet with the private keys can sign a transaction.

It separates the keys that control your crypto from the device that shows activity.

How do you set up a watch-only wallet?

Start with the wallet that holds your private keys. Copy a public address or an extended public key. An extended public key, or xpub, lets a watch-only wallet create many public addresses from one import. Import it into a watch-only app and check that the balance matches.

Setup checklist

Find the public address or xpub in your full wallet.
Choose import in the watch-only app.
Paste it, name the wallet, and compare the balance.

Why use a watch-only wallet?

People use a watch-only wallet to monitor cold storage, track a portfolio, or watch someone else's addresses. The private keys stay offline while you see the balances.

Monitor cold storage without exposing keys.
Track a portfolio across many addresses.
Watch someone else's addresses.
Create unsigned transactions for offline signing.

What can't a watch-only wallet do?

A watch-only wallet cannot sign a transaction. The wallet that holds the private keys must sign it first. Even if you have the seed phrase, you must restore a full wallet to spend.

How is it different from a regular wallet?

A regular wallet stores private keys and can send crypto. A watch-only wallet holds public keys and cannot send.

Regular wallet compared with a watch-only wallet
Criterion	Regular wallet	Watch-only wallet
Private keys	Stores private keys	Holds public keys only
Sending	Can send crypto	Cannot send crypto
Main use	Hold and spend	Monitor balances

Frequently asked questions

It cannot sign a transaction, so a thief who reaches it cannot move your crypto. Keep copies of your backup in more than one place.

You do not lose your crypto, because the watch-only wallet did not hold the keys. Import the same public address or xpub to set it up again.

Yes. A hardware wallet can share an xpub or public address with a watch-only app. The hardware wallet keeps the private keys offline and signs when you send.

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Written byVahe HakobyanVahe Hakobyan is the editor-in-chief of World-Crypt. He covers bitcoin, markets and regulation, and leads the newsroom that fact-checks every story before it goes live.