btcsuite/btcd
An alternative full node bitcoin implementation written in Go (golang) observed · 2026-08-28
Health v2 · maintenance only
89/100
- Activity 99
- Release rhythm 70
- Longevity 100
How is this computed?
round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10) — computed 2026-09-03. Adoption (stars, forks) is never an input.
- gap_med: 131.0
- age_days: 4775
- days_rel: 40
- days_push: 7
- n_releases_24m: 3
Adoption not part of the score
6703 stars · 2519 forks observed · 2026-08-28
What it is AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, 2026-08-29, confidence not recorded
btcd is an alternative full-node Bitcoin implementation written in Go that downloads, validates, and serves the blockchain using the same consensus rules as Bitcoin Core. It is a daemon-only node (no wallet functionality) that relays blocks and transactions and exposes an RPC API for programmatic access.
Use cases
- run a bitcoin full node without running bitcoin core
- build bitcoin applications in go against a node rpc
- validate and relay bitcoin blocks and transactions
- develop and test bitcoin consensus logic
- query blockchain data programmatically via rpc
- operate a node backend for a bitcoin wallet service
When to choose
- you want a full node implementation in Go for embedding or building Go-based bitcoin services
- you need a wallet-less node that pairs with btcwallet
- you want to participate in network validation and relay with consensus-compatible software
When to avoid
- you need built-in wallet functionality for sending and receiving payments
- you prefer the reference implementation with the largest ecosystem and tooling
- you need lightweight SPV verification rather than a full node
Facets
application · maturity stable
http-server rpc developer-tools testing blockchain fintech networking developer-tools windows bsd go cli cross-platform bitcoin full-node blockchain cryptocurrency golang peer-to-peer consensus transaction-pool no-wallet linux macos
2 sources
- readme: https://github.com/btcsuite/btcd · fetched 2026-08-28 · 0c009dd8591c
- homepage: https://github.com/btcsuite/btcd/blob/master/README.md · fetched 2026-08-29 · 93edf9acfd5e
Member repositories
| Repository | Role | Health v2 |
|---|---|---|
| btcsuite/btcd | main | 89 |
For agents
Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00 · Report a problem