My restored wallet shows no Bitcoin

Separate the display from the evidence

An unexpected balance is a symptom with several possible causes. Write down the original wallet application, the restore method and any settings you selected. If you retained a receiving address or transaction ID, it can help compare the restored wallet with its earlier history.

A public address can help identify transactions; it does not supply the private key needed to spend. Do not treat a visible blockchain balance as proof that a restored wallet controls that address.

Review the settings one at a time

• Confirm the intended network and asset; test networks and other cryptocurrencies are different ledgers.
• Check whether the original wallet used another account or address type.
• If an additional passphrase was used, preserve exact capitalization and spacing in your private investigation.
• Check whether the application has completed its normal synchronization or discovery process.

Keep a short log of each setting you change and the result. Avoid changing the phrase, passphrase and account together: you lose the ability to tell which difference mattered.

Understand why a correct phrase can still look wrong

For deterministic wallets, keys are derived according to a wallet scheme and path. The BTCRecover derivation-path reference describes account and path considerations. A mismatch can prevent a candidate from matching the intended address.

Our related checksum and address-verification guide explains why a valid mnemonic checksum alone does not identify your wallet. If your history instead shows an outgoing transaction you did not expect, preserve that transaction record; a password recovery does not reverse a confirmed transaction.