Wasabi Wallet: Restore From Your Seed Phrase and Passphrase

The recovery route for a Wasabi wallet depends on the backup and encrypted data that remain. Wasabi can be restored from its 12-word BIP-39 phrase, the required threshold of 20-word SLIP-39 shares, or a surviving wallet file, with the original passphrase where applicable. A doubtful word, a forgotten passphrase and a missing wallet file require different checks.

How Wasabi Wallet Works & How to Set It Up

Wasabi is a non-custodial Bitcoin wallet. That means no company or server holds your funds—you do. You’re in charge of everything, including security, passwords, backups, and recovery.

Wasabi offers CoinJoin and Tor to improve privacy. An ordinary payment is not automatically a CoinJoin transaction. CoinJoin can make transaction analysis harder, while Tor limits direct IP-address exposure to the services contacted; neither guarantees anonymity or prevents every form of correlation.

Here is how to set up Wasabi wallet:

1. Download the Wasabi Wallet

• Go to wasabiwallet.io
• Download and install the version for your OS (Windows, Mac, Linux)

2. Create a New Wallet

• Open the Wasabi app and click “Create a New Wallet”
• Name your wallet

3. Backup Your Seed Phrase

• Write down the backup Wasabi actually generates: the 12 BIP-39 words or every SLIP-39 share, including the required threshold. Store the backup securely.

4. Set a Wasabi passphrase (optional)

• If you choose to set a passphrase, use a strong one and keep a separate backup of it.
• In Wasabi this is also the wallet password: it encrypts the private key in the wallet file and participates in BIP39 key derivation.

5. Wasabi Wallet Syncs

• Wallet will sync with the Bitcoin network
• You’re ready to send, receive, and use CoinJoin for privacy

How to Recover Your Wasabi Wallet Using a Seed Phrase

Wasabi offers a 12-word BIP-39 backup or a multi-share SLIP-39 backup. SLIP-39 recovery requires enough matching 20-word shares to meet the threshold chosen at setup. The following phrase-based steps concern the 12-word backup; use Wasabi’s multi-share restoration flow for SLIP-39.

Here is an example of the Wasabi recovery phrase:
roof army little cheese maple bitter cereal buyer chair border escape castle

With the complete recovery phrase and the original passphrase, if one was set, you can restore the wallet through Wasabi’s recovery process even if the computer or app fails. Restoring in another compatible wallet also requires the correct derivation path and address type. If the phrase is incomplete, mistyped or lost, the remaining words, wallet files and other backups determine which recovery options remain.

Follow these Wasabi wallet recovery steps:

1. Install Wasabi Wallet

• Go to https://wasabiwallet.io
• Download and install the latest version of Wasabi Wallet for your OS

2. Launch the Wasabi App

• Open Wasabi Wallet and select “Recover Wallet”

3. Enter Your 12-Word Wasabi Seed Phrase

• Type in the exact 12 words in order
• Make sure there are no spelling mistakes or extra spaces

4. Enter the original Wasabi passphrase, if one was set

• Use exactly the same passphrase as when the wallet was created. Do not choose a new password during restoration.
• Leave the field empty only if no passphrase was set when the wallet was created.

5. Sync and Wait

• Wasabi will scan the blockchain for all transactions linked to your seed
• This can take some time depending on your wallet’s history

Your transaction history and balance should reappear once syncing is done.

If Wasabi rejects the phrase as “Invalid seed”, the fault is in the words, not the wallet: a misspelled word, two words swapped, or a word missing. The phrase carries a checksum, so candidates for the doubtful positions can be tested against it systematically — one unknown word is at most 2,048 candidates, which software works through in seconds. Write down every word and fragment you have, in the order you have them, before you test anything else.

Lost Your Wasabi Password (BIP39 Passphrase)?

The 12 words went in, the wallet restored, and the balance is zero: the usual cause is the password. In Wasabi the wallet password is itself the BIP39 passphrase — not a separate lock on the file. It is not contained in the 12 words, so restoring the phrase without a passphrase that was set opens a different wallet. It may also not belong to the BIP39 word list. It works like a “13th word” that unlocks a second version of your wallet.

If you set a Wasabi passphrase and forgot it, your real wallet won’t unlock—even if you typed the correct seed phrase.

The first step is to build a candidate list: every password you may have used around the time you set it — base words, numbers, and the small changes you tend to make. We’ve already helped multiple clients recover forgotten passphrases from exactly this material: memory aids, hints, and pattern-based candidate testing.

Wasabi Wallet Won’t Connect or Load?

A wallet that won’t connect is a network problem, not a recovery problem — your 12 words and your password are untouched by anything below. Wasabi runs its traffic through Tor by default, so check the Tor status icon first: a warning triangle means the Tor network itself is having trouble, and hovering over it shows more detail. If the icon is clear and the wallet still won’t sync, type “Tor Logs” into Wasabi’s search bar and read what the connection fails on; a blocked connection usually points at a firewall or antivirus rule, and an outdated version is fixed by updating Wasabi from wasabiwallet.io.

Deleted or Corrupted Wasabi Wallet Files

A deleted wallet file is not a lost wallet if the 12 words and any passphrase set at creation survive: recover from the phrase as described above and the file is rebuilt from them. Without the phrase, the file is what remains — it holds the encrypted private key, which the password unlocks — so stop using that disk and work from a copy. An assessment shows whether a damaged file is still readable; a physically damaged disk often is not.

If the phrase is rejected, the password is gone or the only copy sits on a failing disk, describe what you still have and request a free assessment. We work on copies, never hold your funds, and charge only when the recovery succeeds.

FAQ: Wasabi Wallet Recovery

Is the Wasabi wallet password the same as a BIP39 passphrase?

Yes. In Wasabi the password you set at wallet creation is itself the BIP39 passphrase, not a separate lock on the file. It is not contained in the 12 words and it need not come from the BIP39 word list, so it works like a “13th word” that unlocks a second version of your wallet.

Why does my restored Wasabi wallet show a zero balance?

Give the wallet time first — Wasabi scans the blockchain for every transaction linked to your seed, and that can take a while depending on your history. If the balance is still missing, the usual cause is a missing or incorrect passphrase: if a passphrase was set, the 12 words on their own restore a different wallet.

What are Wasabi wallet supported coins?

Wasabi Wallet supports only Bitcoin (BTC). It does not support altcoins or tokens. The wallet is designed specifically for Bitcoin privacy and CoinJoin mixing features.

What should I do if my Wasabi wallet is not connecting to the network?

Check the Tor status icon first — a warning triangle means the Tor network is having trouble — then read the Tor log from Wasabi’s search bar to see what the connection fails on. Update Wasabi and check your firewall or antivirus before anything else. A connection problem doesn’t touch your 12 words or your password, so there is nothing to recover; if the wallet still won’t open after that, the wallet file itself may be damaged, which an assessment can check.

Is it possible to recover a Wasabi wallet without a backup file?

Yes, if you still have the 12 words and any passphrase you originally set: the wallet file is rebuilt from them, and exported private keys work as well. Without the file, the phrase or an exported key, nothing is left to work from, and no service can rebuild it.