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getblockheader - Bitcoin

Example code for the getblockheader JSON-RPC method. Complete guide on how to use getblockheader JSON-RPC in GetBlock Web3 documentation.

This method returns the block header for a given block hash. With verbose=true it returns a JSON object; with verbose=false it returns hex-encoded header data.

Parameters

Parameter
Type
Required
Description

blockhash

string

Yes

The block hash

verbose

boolean

No

true for a JSON object, false for hex (default: true)

Request

curl --location --request POST 'https://shared.eu-central-1.getblock.io/<ACCESS-TOKEN>/' \
--header 'Content-Type: application/json' \
--data-raw '{
    "jsonrpc": "2.0",
    "method": "getblockheader",
    "params": ["000000000000000000046b9302e08c16ea186950f42a5498320ddd1bd7ab3428", true],
    "id": "getblock.io"
}'
example.js
const axios = require('axios');

const response = await axios.post('https://shared.eu-central-1.getblock.io/<ACCESS-TOKEN>/', {
    jsonrpc: '2.0',
    method: 'getblockheader',
    params: ["000000000000000000046b9302e08c16ea186950f42a5498320ddd1bd7ab3428", true],
    id: 'getblock.io'
}, {
    headers: { 'Content-Type': 'application/json' }
});

console.log(response.data.result);
example.py
import requests

response = requests.post(
    'https://shared.eu-central-1.getblock.io/<ACCESS-TOKEN>/',
    headers={'Content-Type': 'application/json'},
    json={
        'jsonrpc': '2.0',
        'method': 'getblockheader',
        'params': ["000000000000000000046b9302e08c16ea186950f42a5498320ddd1bd7ab3428", true],
        'id': 'getblock.io'
    }
)

print(response.json())

Response

{
    "jsonrpc": "2.0",
    "id": "getblock.io",
    "result": {
        "hash": "000000000000000000046b9302e08c16ea186950f42a5498320ddd1bd7ab3428",
        "confirmations": 152,
        "height": 830000,
        "version": 671088644,
        "merkleroot": "e3a4b5c6d7e8f90112233445566778899aab1c2d3e4f5a6b7c8d9e0f1a2b3c4d",
        "time": 1706886000,
        "mediantime": 1706883000,
        "nonce": 3722946288,
        "bits": "17034219",
        "difficulty": 75502165623893.83,
        "previousblockhash": "00000000000000000000f5f1c8b0d2e3a4b5c6d7e8f90112233445566778899a",
        "nTx": 3201
    }
}

Response Parameters

Parameter
Type
Description

jsonrpc

string

JSON-RPC protocol version ("2.0")

id

string

Request identifier matching the request

result

object

Block header object (or hex when verbose is false)

Result Object

Field
Type
Description

hash

string

The block hash

height

number

The block height

merkleroot

string

The merkle root

time

number

Block time in seconds since the epoch

bits

string

The compact target in hex

previousblockhash

string

Hash of the previous block

Use Cases

  • Lightweight Sync: Read headers without full blocks

  • Difficulty Tracking: Read bits and difficulty per block

  • Chain Following: Follow the chain by header

  • Timestamp Checks: Read block time and median time

Error Handling

Error Code
Message
Description

403

Forbidden

Missing or invalid ACCESS-TOKEN

-5

Not found

The requested block or transaction was not found

-8

Invalid parameter

A parameter is out of range or malformed

-32602

Invalid params

A parameter is missing or has the wrong type

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