The transaction in ETH is pending

What is "pending" in simple terms?

You send a transaction to Ethereum → it enters the mempool and waits to be included in a block.
While she's in the meme pool — status Pending, confirmations 0.
The money hasn't gone anywhere yet. It's just a request in the queue.

What is "pending"? — A more technical explanation

Mempul — This is a distributed queue of all unconfirmed transactions known to the Ethereum nodes across the network.

When you sign and send a transaction:

Your wallet creates a transaction with the following parameters:

nonce — a unique serial number for your address (important for transaction sequencing).
gas price (or maxFeePerGas + maxPriorityFeePerGas) — the fee you're willing to pay.
to — recipient's address.
value — the amount ETH.
data — if necessary (for smart contracts).

The transaction is propagated across the network via the gossip protocol and ends up in local memepools validators and nodes.

In Proof-of-Stake, validators select transactions from the mempool based on profit priority when forming a block—giving priority to those with higher gas fees.

Pending — is a state in which a transaction:

is already known to the network,
but also is not included in any block,
has no confirmation whatsoever.

At this time:

The balance in your wallet may already show a change (many wallets deduct the amount in advance),
but at the blockchain level, money not yet translated.
A transaction can be replaced (replace-by-fee / RBF) by sending a new one with the same nonce and a higher commission.

As soon as a validator includes the transaction in a block and the block is finalized, the status changes to Success (or "Failed"), and it can no longer be canceled.

Key point:

"Pending" means unconfirmed transaction. Funds are considered transferred only after the transaction has been added to the blockchain and has received at least one confirmation.

</blockquote>

Why a transaction might take forever

You set the gas fee too low (for example, 5–10 gwei instead of the recommended 25–40).
Validators/miners prioritize transactions with high fees.
Your transaction stays in the mempool for hours or even days.

How a stuck transaction is actually "canceled"

Every transaction has nonce (serial number).
Until the transaction is included in a block, you can send new a transaction with the same nonce, but with a much larger gas.
The new transaction will replace the old one in the mempool.
The old will disappear—that is what “abolition” means.

Important: It works only until inclusion in the block. Once confirmed, the cancellation is no longer valid.

The most common scams involving "pending" status

Option 1. “The Never-Ending Kickback”

Skamer offers a "secret method" for putting transactions into a permanent pending state and then rolling them back.
Here's a demo using a small amount: low gas → pending → replaced with high gas → transaction disappeared.
You believe them and send a large sum of money.
It takes your money with a standard fee—and that’s it; the transaction is permanently recorded in a block.

Option 2. “I’ll go first”

Agree on a trade.
The scanner is sending ETH with very low gas pressure.
An incoming transaction with the status Pending.
You think the money has already arrived, so you send him the payment.
Once he receives your money, he either replaces the transaction or lets it die in the mempool.

Result: You lost your money, and the "incoming" transfer disappeared.

A Quick Safety Checklist for Working with ETH

Before any shipment

Always check recipient's address twice (it’s best to copy and compare the last 6–8 characters).
Use ETHerscan to verify the address (history, tags, potential scam tags).
Do not make payments based on verbal agreements without written confirmation.

How to Verify an Incoming Transaction Correctly

Pending = I don't have the money yet.
Expect at least 1–2 confirmations (confirmations).
Ideally, 6–12 confirmations for large amounts.
Check the transaction directly in a blockchain explorer (ETHerscan, Blockscout), not just in your wallet.

How to safely cancel a frozen transaction

Open your wallet (MetaMask, Rabby, etc.).
Create a new transaction to your own address.
Specify the same nonce.
Set high gas (2–3 times higher than the current level).
You can even send 0 ETH—the main thing is that the nonce matches.

Additional Rules

Never believe promises of a "rebate after the block"—it’s technically impossible.
Don't use "secret cancellation software"—99% of it is a scam.
For large amounts, use hardware wallet and check the address on the device's screen.
Turn on contract confirmation in MetaMask/Rabby when interacting with unknown addresses.

The main rule:

If the transaction is still in the Pending — No money. Period.

Check everything yourself. Trust, but verify via the blockchain.

<blockquote>
This might be helpful

Pending Transactions on ETHerscan — View all current pending transactions on the network.

How to cancel a pending transaction (official ETHerscan guide) — a detailed explanation with illustrations.

Pending and Queued Transactions — A Technical Explanation — for those who want to gain a deeper understanding of nonces and mempools.

Ethereum Transactions: Pending, Mined, Dropped & Replaced (Alchemy) — An excellent technical analysis of transaction statuses.

</blockquote>