<h2>Transfer control to a new Electrum wallet</h2>

<p>If you have the private key you can, in principle, either <em>import</em> the key into a new wallet or <em>sweep</em> it into a new wallet.</p>

<p>Electrum supports <a href="https://electrum.readthedocs.io/en/latest/faq.html?highlight=sweep#can-i-sweep-private-keys-from-other-bitcoin-clients" rel="nofollow noreferrer">sweeping</a> and doesn't encourage <a href="https://electrum.readthedocs.io/en/latest/faq.html?highlight=sweep#can-i-import-private-keys-from-other-bitcoin-clients" rel="nofollow noreferrer">importing</a>.</p>

<p>Importing doesn't involve a transaction or transaction fees but is more vulnerable to subsequent loss. The recovery-words also known as recovery-phrase or seed-phrase, cannot be used to recover control over money associated with an imported key. You'd need to make regular backups and test recovery from backup.</p>

<p>Sweeping involves a transaction but is regarded as safer.</p>

<hr>

<h2>Transferring Bitcoins</h2>

<p>Note that you are not really moving bitcoins. The record of who controls what money is recorded in the public Blockchain which every full-node wallet has a copy of.</p>

<p>A watch-only wallet lets you observe transactions relating to money controlled by other people (or by other wallets). So there's no sense in which your bitcoins are in a watch-only wallet. You could as well say that everyones bitcoins are in every full-node wallet.</p>

<hr>

<h2>Electrum account</h2>

<p>Electrum is a wallet, not an account. Your money is not stored by, managed by or controlled by Electrum.org. <em>You</em> control your money using software you install on your own computer.</p>

<hr>

<h2>Watch-only</h2>

<p>Watch-only wallets are a useful feature if you keep your private-keys in cold-storage - such as in a hardware wallet.</p>

<p>They are also a favourite method by which scammers trick people out of money.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-05-07T17:01:11.050Z
+1 but I think the last part is the only relevant part.
MCCCS
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-05-07T18:00:23.637Z
I have one address in my wallet and one private key in a WIF format. Do I need multiple keys to have my regular spending wallet?, cause I only have one address.
NedFlanders1986
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-05-07T19:07:15.610Z
You only need the key that corresponds to that address.
RedGrittyBrick
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-05-07T19:31:08.120Z
My Private Key is in a WIF Format, when I put it in it doesn't want to go with my address. Its 51 characters long. Is there a converter from WIF to a regular private key?
NedFlanders1986
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-05-07T19:51:29.487Z
See the last sentence of my answer and the comments by MCCCS.
RedGrittyBrick
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-05-07T16:22:43.393Z
2020-05-07T16:37:44.063Z
2020-05-07T16:37:44.063Z
RedGrittyBrick
<p>Based on some of your comments:     </p>

<blockquote>
  <p>My Private Key is in a WIF Format, when I put it in it doesn't want to
  go with my address.</p>
</blockquote>

<p>It sounds as though your wallet could be importing the wrong address type (ie legacy vs p2sh-segwit vs bech32).     </p>

<p>With Electrum you can import your WIF and specify the address type.     </p>

<p>Electrum can import private keys using the console and the <code>importprivkey()</code> command. </p>

<p>If you want to import p2sh segwit (address starts with a 3):<br>
<code>importprivkey('p2wpkh-p2sh:L5eaxGKPZZMnanjxDzBd82VaxnHAE6MmBojiEFAVTM9mWZEhMMqG')</code> </p>

<p>Import as native(bech32) segwit (address starts with bc1):<br>
<code>importprivkey('p2wpkh:L5eaxGKPZZMnanjxDzBd82VaxnHAE6MmBojiEFAVTM9mWZEhMMqG')</code></p>

<p>Import as legacy p2pkh (address starts with a 1):<br>
<code>importprivkey('p2pkh:L5eaxGKPZZMnanjxDzBd82VaxnHAE6MmBojiEFAVTM9mWZEhMMqG')</code></p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-05-08T14:56:13.173Z
2020-05-08T14:56:13.173Z
m1xolyd1an
<p>How do I transfer bitcoins over from a watch only electrum account if I have the private key and its address?</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-05-07T17:00:40.810Z
Does this answer your question? [Can't spend Watch-Only coins, have I been scammed?](https://bitcoin.stackexchange.com/questions/95596/cant-spend-watch-only-coins-have-i-been-scammed)
MCCCS
<bitcoin-core><wallet><private-key><electrum><electron-cash>
How do I Transfer Bitcoins If I have a watch-only account with the Private Key
NedFlanders1986
# How do I Transfer Bitcoins If I have a watch-only account with the Private Key

(Asked by: username_0 on 2020-05-07)

How do I transfer bitcoins over from a watch only electrum account if I have the private key and its address?

**Tags:** bitcoin-core, wallet, private-key, electrum, electron-cash

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: Does this answer your question? [Can't spend Watch-Only coins, have I been scammed?](https://bitcoin.stackexchange.com/questions/95596/cant-spend-watch-only-coins-have-i-been-scammed)  

---

## 2 answers

### Answer by username_2 on 2020-05-07. Score: 2

## Transfer control to a new Electrum wallet

If you have the private key you can, in principle, either *import* the key into a new wallet or *sweep* it into a new wallet.

Electrum supports [sweeping](https://electrum.readthedocs.io/en/latest/faq.html?highlight=sweep#can-i-sweep-private-keys-from-other-bitcoin-clients) and doesn't encourage [importing](https://electrum.readthedocs.io/en/latest/faq.html?highlight=sweep#can-i-import-private-keys-from-other-bitcoin-clients).

Importing doesn't involve a transaction or transaction fees but is more vulnerable to subsequent loss. The recovery-words also known as recovery-phrase or seed-phrase, cannot be used to recover control over money associated with an imported key. You'd need to make regular backups and test recovery from backup.

Sweeping involves a transaction but is regarded as safer.

---

## Transferring Bitcoins

Note that you are not really moving bitcoins. The record of who controls what money is recorded in the public Blockchain which every full-node wallet has a copy of.

A watch-only wallet lets you observe transactions relating to money controlled by other people (or by other wallets). So there's no sense in which your bitcoins are in a watch-only wallet. You could as well say that everyones bitcoins are in every full-node wallet.

---

## Electrum account

Electrum is a wallet, not an account. Your money is not stored by, managed by or controlled by Electrum.org. *You* control your money using software you install on your own computer.

---

## Watch-only

Watch-only wallets are a useful feature if you keep your private-keys in cold-storage - such as in a hardware wallet.

They are also a favourite method by which scammers trick people out of money.

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: +1 but I think the last part is the only relevant part.  
> **username_0**: I have one address in my wallet and one private key in a WIF format. Do I need multiple keys to have my regular spending wallet?, cause I only have one address.  
> **username_2**: You only need the key that corresponds to that address.  
> **username_0**: My Private Key is in a WIF Format, when I put it in it doesn't want to go with my address. Its 51 characters long. Is there a converter from WIF to a regular private key?  
> **username_2**: See the last sentence of my answer and the comments by username_1.  

---

### Answer by username_3 on 2020-05-08. Score: 0

Based on some of your comments:

> My Private Key is in a WIF Format, when I put it in it doesn't want to
> go with my address.

It sounds as though your wallet could be importing the wrong address type (ie legacy vs p2sh-segwit vs bech32).

With Electrum you can import your WIF and specify the address type.

Electrum can import private keys using the console and the `importprivkey()` command.

If you want to import p2sh segwit (address starts with a 3):  
`importprivkey('p2wpkh-p2sh:L5eaxGKPZZMnanjxDzBd82VaxnHAE6MmBojiEFAVTM9mWZEhMMqG')`

Import as native(bech32) segwit (address starts with bc1):  
`importprivkey('p2wpkh:L5eaxGKPZZMnanjxDzBd82VaxnHAE6MmBojiEFAVTM9mWZEhMMqG')`

Import as legacy p2pkh (address starts with a 1):  
`importprivkey('p2pkh:L5eaxGKPZZMnanjxDzBd82VaxnHAE6MmBojiEFAVTM9mWZEhMMqG')`


---

