A wallet address, comprising a string of 26-35 alphanumeric characters, is all it takes to send and receive bitcoin. Any bitcoin address can be used to transfer cryptocurrency to any other address on the network, provided the sender’s wallet software supports that address type. With multiple address formats to choose from, and wallet providers and exchanges only supporting certain address types, it pays to familiarize yourself with the differences.

Address Formats Are the Internet Protocol of Bitcoin.

Just as there are multiple versions of the Internet Protocol, such as IPv4 and IPv6, there are multiple bitcoin address formats. Most of the time, these don’t come into conflict with one another, with transactions zipping seamlessly across the network between custodial and non-custodial wallets. There are three Bitcoin Core address formats to choose from, P2PKH, P2SH, and bech32, with only a handful of service providers supporting all of them. There’s a good chance your preferred wallet or exchange doesn’t support at least one of these formats, with bech32 the likeliest to be omitted. read more...