How I Speed Up Unconfirmed Bitcoin Transactions
Hi, today I am going to show you how I speed up unconfirmed Bitcoin transactions, especially the ones that carry a low fee. But first, why are so many transactions nowadays stuck?
The reason is that the Bitcoin network has a limit on how many transactions can be included in a block. That means there is a limit on how many transactions can be processed per second.
Bitcoin blocks are generated by miners. The miners work together in groups called "mining pools." The pools prioritize transactions with a high fee because that way they make more profit.
But things are more complex than they sound. A transaction can carry a low fee but still be a perfect match to fill up the remaining block space. Or it can be preferred over a transaction with a higher fee because the other transaction is not well propagated and hasn't reached the miners.
What Is BitAccelerate?
I am using a website called bitaccelerate.com. BitAccelerate is one of the oldest and most well-established Bitcoin transaction accelerators. It has been working since 2018 and offers both free and paid transaction acceleration options.
The free option works for me in most cases and is enough. The free tool rebroadcasts the transaction via more than 20 major and highly connected Bitcoin nodes. This makes sure it will reach the miners and they will consider it. This also re-enters the transaction into the mempool if it was previously rejected.
How to Use the Free Acceleration Option
- Copy your transaction ID.
- Paste it into the website.
- Click the "Accelerate" button.
And the magic happens. Now we wait, and if the transaction is not confirmed, we have another option. The easiest one is to use the premium acceleration option. For a small fee, the transaction will be prioritized in many of the major mining pools and confirmed when one of them finds a block.
Keep in mind that the transaction fee is not changing; this is not technically possible. But when the transaction is prioritized by the miners, they will include it in the block even if it has the lowest possible fee of 0.1 satoshis per byte.
Using the CPFP Calculator
If you don't want to pay for the premium option, you can use the free CPFP calculator that BitAccelerate provides https://bitaccelerate.com/cpfp-calculator/ . It will help you increase the fee of your transaction by creating a new child transaction with a higher fee. The average fee of both transactions increases, and the miners are forced to confirm your original transaction if they want to collect the fee of the child transaction.
To be honest, this is not so easy to do. Technical knowledge is required, and I will explain the whole process in another tutorial.
Acceleration Options Compared
| Option | Cost | How It Works |
|---|---|---|
| Free Rebroadcast | Free | Rebroadcasts the transaction via more than 20 major and highly connected Bitcoin nodes, ensuring it reaches miners and re-enters the mempool if previously rejected. |
| Premium Acceleration | Small fee | Prioritizes the transaction in many major mining pools so it is confirmed when one of them finds a block. |
| CPFP Calculator | Free | Helps increase the fee by creating a new child transaction with a higher fee, raising the average fee and encouraging miners to confirm the original transaction. |
Final Thoughts
As you can see, the bitaccelerate.com website has the whole tool set for accelerating Bitcoin transactions. Over the years I have used all the options depending on the case, and I can confirm everything is working. This is the best resource I can recommend.
If you regularly have problems with stuck Bitcoin transactions, consider using a better fee estimator. I am using bitref.com/fees and it works for me. 99% of my transactions are confirmed in the next block and I am paying no extra fees.
I hope these tools will help you in your future transactions. See you next time. Bye!