Phantom transaction pending or stuck: Solana, Ethereum and Bitcoin
On Solana a transaction cannot stay pending for long: it confirms within seconds or expires after about 60 to 90 seconds, so check an explorer and retry if needed. On Ethereum and other EVM networks a low fee can leave a transaction waiting until demand falls. On Bitcoin, Phantom cannot speed up or cancel a transaction; it confirms or is dropped after about 14 days.
Quick steps
- Find the transaction ID. Open Phantom's History or Activity, tap the pending transaction and open it in a block explorer.
- On Solana, wait a few minutes. If the explorer shows success or failure, act on that; if it is not found after a few minutes, it expired and you can retry.
- On EVM networks, wait. Let a low-fee transaction confirm when demand falls; check the explorer rather than sending the payment again.
- On Bitcoin, check mempool. Look up the transaction on a Bitcoin explorer; if it is unconfirmed, wait, as Phantom cannot speed it up or cancel it.
- Clear a stale Bitcoin display. If the Bitcoin transaction is not on the blockchain at all, back up your recovery phrase, reset Phantom and restore the wallet.
- Avoid duplicates. Do not resend the same payment until the explorer confirms the first one failed or expired.
"Pending" can mean two very different things. Either the transaction is genuinely waiting on the blockchain, or the blockchain has already finished with it and Phantom's display has not caught up. A block explorer tells you which. Never send the same payment a second time until you have checked.
What pending means on each network
| Network | Can it stay pending? | What you can do |
|---|---|---|
| Solana | Only briefly. It confirms in seconds or expires after about 60 to 90 seconds. | Check an explorer; if not found after a few minutes, retry |
| Ethereum, Base, Polygon, BNB Chain and other EVM networks | Yes, if the fee was too low for current demand | Wait; a replacement transaction may be possible (see below) |
| Bitcoin | Yes, sometimes for days if the fee was low | Wait; Phantom cannot speed up or cancel it |
Solana: pending usually means "check again"
Solana transactions carry a recent blockhash that expires after roughly 150 blocks, about 60 to 90 seconds (Solana docs, 2026). After that, validators will never process the transaction. So a Solana transaction that shows as pending for more than a few minutes has, in practice, either landed or died.
- Open the transaction from Phantom's History in Solscan or Solana Explorer.
- If it shows Success, it is done; Phantom will update.
- If it shows an error, read Phantom transaction failed.
- If it is not found after a few minutes, it expired. It cannot go through later, so it is safe to try again.
Phantom's help centre adds that a transaction may still be pending even if the app shows an error, so always check before retrying a swap (Phantom help centre, 2026). During a Phantom service incident the display can lag for everyone; see Phantom not working for known outages.
Ethereum, Base, Polygon and other EVM networks
On EVM networks each transaction from your address has a number, called a nonce, and they must confirm in order. If one transaction is stuck with too low a fee, the ones after it wait too. This is why one stuck transfer can make later ones look stuck.
What you can do:
- Choose speed before sending. For native token transfers on Ethereum, Base, Polygon, Bitcoin and HyperEVM, the send preview has an Expected Delivery option where you can pick Fast, Average (the default) or Slow. Phantom notes a higher fee raises the chance of faster confirmation but does not guarantee it (Phantom help centre, 2026).
- Cancelling. We could not find a cancel or speed-up option for EVM transactions in Phantom's current help centre (October 2026), and Phantom says confirmed transactions cannot be reversed or cancelled. On EVM networks in general, a cancel works by sending a replacement with the same nonce and a higher fee, so it costs a network fee and only succeeds if the original has not confirmed yet. If your Phantom version shows such an option, that is how it works.
If you do nothing, a low-fee EVM transaction usually confirms once network demand falls. On busy days, Ethereum mainnet is where this happens most; Base and Polygon are typically faster and cheaper. Make sure you have enough of the gas token for a replacement; see not enough SOL, ETH or other gas tokens.
Bitcoin: wait, or clear a stale display
Phantom's help centre is direct: you cannot speed up or cancel a Bitcoin transaction from Phantom (Phantom help centre, 2026). Transactions sent with a low fee during busy periods can take longer, and an unconfirmed transaction either confirms or drops out of the network's waiting area (the mempool) after about 14 days. If it drops, the bitcoin was never spent and is still yours.
Look up the transaction ID on a Bitcoin explorer such as mempool.space:
- Found and unconfirmed: it really is pending. Wait.
- Not found at all: Phantom says this can be a local cache problem. While it lasts, you cannot send or swap your bitcoin in Phantom. The fix Phantom gives is to reset the app, which clears the cache, and then restore the wallet the way you created it (Phantom help centre, 2026).
Before you reset, make sure you have your recovery phrase backed up offline, or access to your Google or Apple login (and its four-digit PIN, if your wallet uses one), and backups of any imported private keys. A reset deletes the wallet from the device. See the Phantom recovery phrase and Phantom Bitcoin wallet.
Incoming transfers stuck as pending
If someone sent you crypto and it shows pending, the sender's transaction is what is waiting. Ask for the transaction ID and check it on an explorer. Exchange withdrawals often wait in the exchange's own queue before they reach the blockchain at all; in that case only the exchange can help. If the explorer shows success but nothing appears, read Phantom token not showing.
Beware "unstuck" services
Stuck transactions attract scammers. Search results and replies on X advertise "Phantom transaction recovery" agents, phone numbers and "accelerator" sites. Phantom has no phone support and will never ask for your recovery phrase. A pending transaction is either resolved by the network or by the options inside Phantom described above; no outsider can push it through for you. See the Phantom support phone scam.
Frequently asked questions
How long can a Solana transaction stay pending?
Only about 60 to 90 seconds. After its blockhash expires, it can never be processed, so a Solana transaction missing after a few minutes is safe to retry.
Can I speed up a Bitcoin transaction in Phantom?
No. Phantom says it cannot speed up or cancel Bitcoin transactions. A low-fee transaction confirms when demand falls or drops from the mempool after about 14 days.
Can I cancel an Ethereum transaction in Phantom?
We could not confirm a cancel option in Phantom's current help centre. On EVM networks a cancel means sending a replacement with the same nonce and a higher fee, which costs gas and only works if the original has not confirmed yet. Otherwise, wait for it to confirm.
Why are all my later Ethereum transactions stuck too?
EVM transactions from one address confirm in order. One low-fee transaction holds up the ones behind it until it confirms or is replaced.
Is my money lost if a transaction is stuck?
No. A pending transaction either confirms or is dropped. If it is dropped, the funds never left your wallet.