What is Lightning Address?

Lightning Address is an Internet Identifier that allows anyone to send you Bitcoin over the Lightning Network.

Like an email address, but for Bitcoin.

Instead of scanning QR codes or pasting long invoices, you can simply share an address like user@zbd.gg and receive instant Bitcoin payments from anywhere in the world.

The Problem

Traditional Lightning payments require:

  1. Generating a new invoice for each payment
  2. Communicating that invoice to the sender (usually via QR code)
  3. The sender scanning or pasting the invoice
  4. Completing the payment before the invoice expires

This works, but it's not very user-friendly. You can't just tell someone "send Bitcoin to me" without going through this dance.

The Solution

Lightning Address (LUD-16) builds on top of LNURL-pay to provide a simple, human-readable identifier that:

  • Never expires — your address stays the same forever
  • Works everywhere — any LNURL-compatible wallet can pay it
  • Is memorable — just like an email address
  • Supports metadata — comments, sender info, and more

Example

With a Lightning Address like andre@zbd.gg:

  1. Open any Lightning wallet that supports Lightning Address
  2. Paste andre@zbd.gg as the recipient
  3. Enter the amount you want to send
  4. Hit send

That's it. No QR codes, no invoice generation, no expiration worries.

Who Created It?

Lightning Address was created by Andre Neves and is maintained as an open protocol. The specification lives at github.com/andrerfneves/lightning-address.

The protocol is supported by ZBD as the primary steward, but is fully open and implemented by dozens of wallets and services worldwide.

Further resources