eth_sendRawTransaction

The eth_sendRawTransaction method broadcasts a pre-signed transaction to the Ethereum network. This method is used to submit all types of transactions after they have been signed offline, making it the primary method for any state-changing operations on the blockchain.

Use Cases

• Sending ETH transfers to other addresses and wallets
• Token transfers (ERC-20, ERC-721, ERC-1155) in applications
• Smart contract deployments for developers
• Contract function calls and state changes in dApps
• Automated transactions via scripts or bots
• Multi-signature wallet interactions requiring offline signing
• Meta-transactions (gas-less transactions) for better UX
• DeFi operations (swaps, liquidity provision, staking)
• Governance voting through contract interactions
• NFT minting operations in marketplaces

Method Details

This method submits a signed transaction to the network for processing.

Transaction Signing Process

Before using eth_sendRawTransaction, you need to:

1. Create an unsigned transaction (with nonce, gas parameters, recipient, value, data)
2. Sign the transaction with a private key
3. Serialize and hex-encode the signed transaction
4. Submit the hex string to this method

Understanding Transaction Types

Ethereum supports different transaction types:

Response Example

{
	"jsonrpc": "2.0",
	"id": 1,
	"result": "0xe670ec64341771606e55d6b4ca35a1a6b75ee3d5145a99d05921026d1527331"
}

Error Response Example

{
	"jsonrpc": "2.0",
	"id": 1,
	"error": {
		"code": 3,
		"message": "execution reverted: Dai/insufficient-balance",
		"data": "0x08c379a00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000..."
	}
}

Common Errors and Troubleshooting

Monitoring Transaction Status

After broadcasting a transaction:

1. Store the returned transaction hash
2. Poll eth_getTransactionReceipt until it returns a non-null result
3. Check the status field in the receipt:
   • 0x1 indicates success
   • 0x0 indicates failure (reverted)

Gas Estimation and Optimization

Before sending transactions, you can:

1. Use eth_estimateGas to get the approximate gas needed
2. For EIP-1559 transactions, check current network conditions with eth_feeHistory
3. For time-sensitive transactions, set higher priority fees
4. For non-urgent transactions, set lower fees to save costs

Important Notes

• Transactions must be signed with the sender's private key before submission
• The RPC endpoint never has access to your private keys
• Use eth_getTransactionReceipt to check status after submission
• For contract creation, the receipt contains the new contract address in the contractAddress field
• Hex strings must be properly formatted with even length and '0x' prefix
• Consider using hardware wallets or secure key management for high-value transactions
• Nonce management is critical for proper transaction sequencing
• Transaction replacement requires higher gas price than the original
• Transaction fees are non-refundable even if the transaction fails
• EIP-1559 transactions can be more cost-effective during volatile fee periods

See also

• eth_getTransactionReceipt - Get the receipt of a processed transaction
• eth_getTransactionByHash - Retrieve transaction information by hash
• eth_estimateGas - Calculate gas required for a transaction
• eth_getTransactionCount - Get the next available nonce
• eth_feeHistory - Get historical fee information
• eth_call - Test transaction execution without broadcasting