XRP Transaction Types Explained
The XRP Ledger supports over 25 different transaction types — from simple payments to complex escrows, DEX offers, NFT operations, and AMM interactions. Understanding these types is key to mastering the XRPL.
| Key Facts | |
|---|---|
| Total Tx Types | 25+ (and growing) |
| Min Fee | 0.00001 XRP (10 drops) |
| Settlement | 3-5 seconds |
| Fee Destination | Burned permanently |
| Hash Format | 64-char hex (SHA-512Half) |
| Ledger Close | Every 3-5 seconds |
| New Types Added | Via amendment voting |
| Reversible? | No — all final |
Payment Transactions
The Payment transaction is the most fundamental type on the XRPL. It transfers XRP or any issued token from one account to another. Payments settle in 3-5 seconds and can include destination tags for exchange deposits.
Direct XRP Payment
Send XRP from one address to another — the simplest transaction type
Cross-Currency Payment
Send USD and deliver EUR — the XRPL DEX handles the conversion atomically
Partial Payments
Allow the delivered amount to be less than the specified amount (flagged with tfPartialPayment)
Account Creation
The first payment to a new address (≥10 XRP) creates the account on the ledger
Be cautious of the tfPartialPayment flag. A transaction may show a large "Amount" but only deliver a fraction. Always check the "delivered_amount" field in the transaction metadata, not the "Amount" field. Exchanges have lost funds by not checking this.
DEX Transactions: OfferCreate & OfferCancel
The XRPL has a built-in decentralized exchange that uses an order book model. Trading on the DEX uses two transaction types:
| Transaction | Purpose | Details |
|---|---|---|
| OfferCreate | Place a trade order | Creates a buy or sell offer on the DEX order book. Can fill immediately or sit as a limit order. |
| OfferCancel | Cancel an open order | Removes a previously placed offer from the order book. Frees the owner reserve. |
The XRPL DEX supports auto-bridging — if a direct market between two tokens doesn't have great liquidity, the DEX will automatically route through XRP if it offers a better price. This mechanism creates constant utility for XRP as the bridge currency.
TrustSet: Enabling Token Holding
Before you can hold any issued token on the XRPL (stablecoins like RLUSD, NFTs, or community tokens), you must create a trust line to the issuer using a TrustSet transaction. This is a deliberate security design — you explicitly opt in to holding tokens from specific issuers.
Set a Limit
Define the maximum amount of a token you're willing to hold from an issuer
Reserve Cost
Each trust line adds 2 XRP to your account's owner reserve
Freeze Controls
Issuers can freeze individual trust lines for compliance — a feature used by regulated stablecoins
Rippling
Trust lines can enable 'rippling' — allowing balances to shift through your account for path-finding
Escrow Transactions
The XRPL supports native escrow contracts — XRP locked by the protocol until specific conditions are met. Ripple's 55 billion XRP escrow is the most famous use case, but anyone can create escrows.
| Transaction | Purpose | Details |
|---|---|---|
| EscrowCreate | Lock XRP | Creates a time-locked or condition-locked escrow. XRP is removed from your balance. |
| EscrowFinish | Release XRP | Completes the escrow, delivering XRP to the destination. Requires conditions to be met. |
| EscrowCancel | Cancel escrow | Returns XRP to the creator. Only works after the CancelAfter time (if set). |
Escrows can use time-based conditions (release after a specific date), crypto-conditions (release when a cryptographic condition is fulfilled), or both. This makes them useful for trustless agreements, scheduled payments, and cross-chain atomic swaps.
Account Management Transactions
| Transaction | Purpose |
|---|---|
| AccountSet | Modify account settings — enable RequireDest, disable master key, set domain, etc. |
| SetRegularKey | Assign or remove a regular key pair for daily transaction signing |
| SignerListSet | Configure multi-signing with up to 32 signers and a quorum threshold |
| AccountDelete | Delete an account, recovering most of the base reserve (costs 2 XRP fee) |
Learn more about how these transactions relate to account security in our Addresses & Keys guide.
NFT Transactions (XLS-20)
Since October 2022, the XRPL has supported native NFTs through the XLS-20 standard. Unlike Ethereum NFTs that require smart contracts, XRPL NFTs are a built-in protocol feature.
| Transaction | Purpose |
|---|---|
| NFTokenMint | Create a new NFT on the XRPL with metadata, transfer fees, and flags |
| NFTokenBurn | Permanently destroy an NFT |
| NFTokenCreateOffer | Create a buy or sell offer for an NFT |
| NFTokenAcceptOffer | Accept an existing NFT offer to complete a sale |
| NFTokenCancelOffer | Cancel a previously created NFT offer |
AMM Transactions
The XRPL's native Automated Market Maker (AMM) was activated in 2024, adding DeFi-style liquidity pools alongside the existing order book DEX. This is unique — no other major blockchain has both an order book and AMM at the protocol level.
| Transaction | Purpose |
|---|---|
| AMMCreate | Create a new AMM pool for a token pair (e.g., XRP/RLUSD) |
| AMMDeposit | Add liquidity to an existing AMM pool and receive LP tokens |
| AMMWithdraw | Remove liquidity from a pool by returning LP tokens |
| AMMVote | Vote on the trading fee for a pool (weighted by LP token holdings) |
| AMMBid | Bid for the auction slot to get discounted trading fees for 24 hours |
How to Read XRPL Transaction Hashes
Every transaction on the XRPL gets a unique transaction hash — a 64-character hexadecimal string generated using SHA-512Half. Here's an example:
You can look up any transaction hash on these block explorers:
xrpscan.com — the most popular XRPL explorer
bithomp.com — detailed account and transaction views
livenet.xrpl.org — official explorer by the XRPL Foundation
Every XRPL transaction includes: the transaction type, sender account, fee, sequence number, and type-specific fields. After validation, the metadata shows exactly what changed on the ledger — balances modified, offers consumed, trust lines created, and more.
Frequently Asked Questions
Sources
Continue Learning
Explore the XRP Ledger
Now that you understand transaction types, explore the XRPL yourself. Send a payment, create a trust line, or browse transactions on XRPScan.
Last updated: February 13, 2026. Written by the AllAboutXRP Editorial Team. Sources: XRPL.org documentation, XRPScan on-chain data.
Get XRP insights delivered weekly
Free weekly newsletter. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.