Beginner

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Beginner Track 06

Bitcoin Moves in UTXOs, Not Balances

Sending money on the blockchain is similar to cash — but different. Bitcoin has no concept of "balance" — instead it spends and creates UTXOs (Unspent Transaction Outputs).

What You'll Learn

  • What a UTXO is and how it differs from a balance
  • Transaction input/output structure and how change is handled
  • Fee = sum of inputs − sum of outputs, mempool priority
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Take a bill out of your wallet
Receive change if you don't have exact amount
Bills exist as individual units
Recipient physically receives it
Key point: UTXOs are always spent in full. Change comes back as a new UTXO.