πͺ¦ How to Create Bitcoin Ordinal Inscriptions How to Create Bitcoin Ordinal Inscriptions
Write an image or a line of text onto one satoshi and keep it on Bitcoin forever.
An inscription attaches content β a picture or some text β to a single satoshi, the smallest unit of Bitcoin (1 BTC = 100,000,000 sats). People often call the result a βBitcoin NFT.β The Ordinals system gives each sat a serial number so you can follow that exact one; the inscription is the content written onto it. Here is the everyday, no-code way to make one.
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1Get a Taproot-ready Bitcoin wallet
You need a wallet that supports Ordinals and Taproot. Common beginner picks are Xverse and UniSat. Create the wallet and write the seed phrase down offline.
Never type your seed phrase into a website or share it with anyone.
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2Use your Taproot Ordinals address
In the wallet, find the Taproot βOrdinalsβ receive address. It starts with
bc1pβ¦. Inscriptions can only live on a Taproot address; sending one to a non-Taproot address can lose it. -
3Fund the wallet with a little BTC for fees
There is no set mint price. You pay a Bitcoin network fee, so send a small amount of BTC into the wallet to cover it.
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4Prepare a small file or some text
Pick what you want to inscribe: a PNG, JPEG, or GIF image, or plain text. Keep it small β well under about 400 KB. Smaller content confirms faster and costs far less.
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5Open an inscription service and upload
Use an inscribe tool such as Gamma.io or OrdinalsBot, or the inscribe feature built into UniSat or Xverse. Choose the data type (image or text) and upload your file or type your text.
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6Enter the recipient Taproot address
Paste the address that should receive the inscription. To keep it for yourself, use your own
bc1pβ¦address from step 2. -
7Pick a fee rate
Choose a fee rate in sats per vByte (often shown as Economy / Standard / Priority). Higher is faster; lower is cheaper but slower, and can sit unconfirmed when the network is busy.
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8Pay the fee and wait for confirmation
Pay the BTC fee from your wallet, then wait for a Bitcoin block to confirm it. Once confirmed, the inscription shows up in your wallet's Ordinals or collectibles tab.
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9Advanced: the ord command-line route
The Ordinals project's open-source
ordtool lets you inscribe yourself, but it needs a synced Bitcoin Core full node and you manage UTXOs and sat selection by hand. This is a technical path, not a beginner one.
β οΈ Common mistakes & staying safe
- πͺ¦ It is permanent. There is no delete or undo on-chain, so a mistake stays forever.
- πͺ Don't spend an inscribed sat by accident. A wallet that doesn't track ordinals may treat it as plain balance and send it away. Use an ordinals-aware wallet and keep inscriptions separate.
- πΈ Watch the fee. Underpaying can leave it stuck unconfirmed for a long time; not checking can make it cost far more than expected.
- π£ Avoid fakes. Phishing sites and fake wallet pop-ups are common. Open official wallet and launchpad sites yourself, check the URL, and never share your seed phrase.
- π§ͺ Practice first. Inscribe a tiny, low-value test image to learn the flow before doing anything you care about.
β FAQ
- Can I delete an inscription if I make a mistake?
- No. Inscriptions live on the Bitcoin blockchain, so there is no delete or undo. Practice with a small, low-value test image before doing anything you care about.
- How much does an inscription cost?
- There is no fixed price. You pay a Bitcoin network fee that rises with file size and network congestion, plus any service fee. Bigger files and busy periods cost more.
- Why does the address need to start with bc1p?
- That prefix marks a Taproot address, and inscriptions can only be held on a Taproot address. Sending one to a non-Taproot address can lose it, so use an ordinals-aware wallet.