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Blockstream Jade Frequently Asked Questions
Jade is a hardware wallet that keeps your private keys offline; the Blockstream app is a software wallet that stores keys on your phone or computer. Use the app for quick everyday spending and as the interface to Jade; use Jade for long-term cold storage, with extras like Anti-Exfil, passphrase-protected hidden wallets, and watch-only mode. Jade pairs with the app across Mac, Windows, Linux, iOS, and Android.
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SeedQR is a standard developed by SeedSigner for encoding a recovery phrase as a human-transcribable QR code. Simply put, it is another way to store a recovery phrase—except as a QR code instead of a list of 12 or 24 words.
Read MoreA passphrase (the BIP39 standard) is combined with your recovery phrase to create a wallet, so each different passphrase produces a completely different "hidden" wallet; even a tiny change gives a separate one. It adds security because an attacker would need both your device or recovery phrase and the passphrase to reach your funds. Jade never stores it, so you enter it every session, and if you forget it your funds are permanently lost even with the recovery phrase.
Read MoreMost users should keep the defaults (Singlesig, Native SegWit (bc1), derivation path m/84'/0'/0'), which give lower fees and simpler backup. Choose Wrapped SegWit (3) only to restore a wallet known to use that format, and Multisig only if you understand multisig spending and backup. When importing to a companion app, make sure its wallet type matches your Jade selection exactly.
Read MoreLightning accounts for Jade users are operated and secured by the Blockstream app but backed up by your Jade. At setup, Jade generates a dedicated Lightning key and hands it to the app, which then signs Lightning payments itself, so Jade isn't needed to approve each transaction, keeping payments fast. Your existing Jade recovery phrase restores both your on-chain and Lightning funds, with no separate backup required.
Read MoreDownload the Blockstream app and the USB driver, connect Jade by USB, and check for firmware updates. Choose your network and security policy (Singlesig or Multisig Shield), select Setup Jade, generate a 12- or 24-word recovery phrase, record it offline, and verify it on the device. Set a six-digit PIN, then select Go to Wallet. Jade displays "Ready!" and you can send and receive. Blockstream cannot recover your recovery phrase, so back it up before you begin.
Read MoreCharge Jade for about two hours and download the Blockstream app. Power on Jade, select Initialize then New, write down the 24-word recovery phrase offline, and verify it. In the app, connect Jade by cable or Bluetooth, choose your network and security policy (Singlesig or Multisig Shield), and set a six-digit PIN. Your wallet opens in the app and Jade displays "Ready!" Your recovery phrase is the only way to restore the wallet, so store it safely.
Read MoreCharge Jade for about two hours and download the Blockstream app. Power on Jade, select Initialize then New, write down the recovery phrase offline, and verify it. Choose Bluetooth on Jade, pair it in the app by confirming the matching codes shown on both devices, choose your network and security policy (Singlesig or Multisig Shield), and set a six-digit PIN. Your wallet opens and Jade displays "Ready!" Your recovery phrase is the only way to restore the wallet, so store it safely.
Read MoreThe master blinding key encrypts and decrypts the amounts and asset types in your Liquid transactions, making them confidential on the public Liquid network. It is not a spending key, so it can't move funds or recreate addresses. Exporting it to your companion app makes loading transactions, generating addresses, and building transactions noticeably faster. The tradeoff: if that app is compromised, an attacker could see your Liquid balances and asset types (but still not spend), so only use Jade with Blockstream's officially supported apps.
Read MoreThe wallet ID is an 8-character alphanumeric fingerprint shown in the bottom-right of Jade's home screen that identifies which wallet's keys are currently loaded. If you manage several wallets through passphrases or SeedQR, check that the fingerprint matches after each login to confirm you're in the intended wallet. A mismatch usually means a passphrase typo, letting you catch the error before proceeding.
Read MoreWhen you enable swaps, the Blockstream app asks Jade to export a child key, a limited backup credential used only to recover funds if a swap fails to settle. It is not your recovery phrase, can't derive your seed, and can't move your main wallet funds or settled swap funds; in normal swaps Jade controls funds start to finish. Only export it when the official Blockstream app requests it. If any other app, website, or QR code asks Jade to export a child key, decline and disconnect.
Read MoreAnti-Exfil stops a compromised hardware wallet from secretly leaking your private keys through its own signatures. Bitcoin signatures need a random nonce, and a malicious device could hide pieces of your key inside nonces that only look random, reconstructing your keys across many transactions. Anti-Exfil uses sign-to-contract technology to force Jade's nonce to commit to randomness supplied by your computer, re-randomizing it so no key material can be smuggled out, assuming the computer itself is honest.
Read MoreA wallet-erase (or duress) PIN is a second PIN that immediately deletes your recovery phrase from Jade when entered. It's meant to be handed over under physical threat, after which Jade shows an "Internal Error" and returns to setup. Set it in the Jade Settings menu under Wallet-Erase PIN, acknowledge the warning, then enter and confirm the PIN. Once triggered, the only way back to your funds is restoring from your recovery phrase backup, so back up before enabling it.
Read MoreJade gathers randomness from many independent sources: your button and wheel input, CPU counters, battery state, ambient temperature, a boot-time camera image, a hardware random number generator, and entropy from the companion app. It folds these into a 32-byte accumulator hashed repeatedly with SHA512 (similar to Bitcoin Core) and feeds the result into the standard BIP39 function to produce a 12- or 24-word recovery phrase, with enough entropy to resist attackers grinding for weak keys.
Read MoreJade secures your recovery phrase with a blind oracle (a "virtual secure element") instead of a proprietary secure-element chip, so an attacker would have to compromise both the device and the oracle to extract keys. The oracle is blind: it stores only a PIN hash and a nonce and knows nothing about your addresses, private keys, or actual PIN. You can run Jade air-gapped via QR or your own oracle instance, and unlock it directly with a SeedQR or recovery phrase. This open design keeps Jade fully open-source and DIY-buildable.
Read MoreSecure elements are closed-source, NDA-bound, costly chips that would also prevent users from building Jade themselves. Jade instead uses a "virtual" secure element, its open-source blind oracle model, to protect against physical attacks while keeping the whole device verifiable on GitHub. Blockstream considers this equal to or better than a traditional secure element, and you can use Blockstream's oracle or run your own.
Read MoreJade encrypts your recovery phrase so that decrypting it requires three secrets: your PIN, the Jade device secret, and the oracle secret. At unlock, the companion app opens an encrypted (ECDH) connection to Blockstream's blind oracle, which contributes its half of an AES256 key; only the correct PIN plus that oracle connection can decrypt your keys. The oracle stays blind: it never learns your PIN, keys, or wallet data, and after three wrong PIN attempts both Jade and the oracle delete the secret, requiring a recovery-phrase restore.
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