Sending a Test Transaction Before the Real One
Six steps that cost one network fee and remove the most expensive mistake available in this subject.
Gabriel Mas ·
A test transaction is a small transfer sent before the real one, to confirm the whole path works. It costs one network fee and it is the cheapest insurance available.
Step 1: get the receiving address
Open the receiving wallet or account and copy the deposit address. Do not type it by hand.
You should see the address and, on most networks, a network name beside it. Note both.
Step 2: confirm the network on both ends
The sending side will ask which network to use. It must match the one the receiving side showed.
If the two lists do not overlap, stop here. There is no version of this that works and sending anyway loses the funds.
Step 3: send a small amount
Enough to be visible, small enough not to matter. Where the venue sets a minimum withdrawal, send the minimum.
Expect to pay the full withdrawal fee on this. That fee is the price of the test.
Step 4: wait for it to arrive
Not for the sending side to say sent. For the receiving side to show the balance.
These are different events and the gap between them is where problems appear. On most networks it is minutes; during congestion it is longer.
Step 5: confirm it is spendable
A balance that has arrived is not always usable yet. Some venues hold deposits briefly and some wallets need the network’s own fuel before anything can move.
Check that the receiving side will let you move it, even if you do not.
Step 6: send the rest
Same address, same network, same method. Do not change anything between the test and the real transfer.
If anything changed, including the address, repeat from step one.
When to repeat the test
Every new address. Every network change. After any software update on either side.
Somewhere the test transaction is cheap enough to bother with makes this a habit rather than a decision. Exchanges that let you practise with a small amount first set low minimums for exactly this reason, and an exchange with a withdrawal flow you can follow without guessing will show the network name at every step rather than only at the end.