How to recover a TON wallet from a seed phrase (2026)

The seed phrase is the only way to recover access to a non-custodial TON wallet if you lose your phone, the device dies or you forget the PIN. This guide walks through the process step by step, the gotchas, and what to do in non-standard situations.

What a seed phrase is

A seed phrase (recovery phrase, mnemonic) is a sequence of words from which the wallet’s private key is deterministically generated. The BIP39 standard defines a dictionary of 2,048 English words; TON wallets use 24 words.

A single seed produces an infinite number of private keys via derivation paths. That’s why the same seed can be imported into Tonkeeper, MyTonWallet or Tonhub and they’ll all show the same balance — they work with the same underlying key, just through different UIs.

The core rule: seed → key → address. If you have the seed, you own the wallet. If somebody else has it, they own it too.

When recovery is needed

Typical scenarios:

1. Lost the phone. Bought a new one, need to restore the wallet.
2. Device broken. Ledger doesn’t power on, phone went underwater.
3. Forgot the PIN. Seed remembered, PIN not.
4. Switching wallet apps. Moving from Tonhub to Tonkeeper without an on-chain transfer.
5. Recovery drill. Yearly check that the seed is still readable.
6. Emergency migration after suspected compromise (in this case you create a new seed, not restore the old one).

Recovery in Tonkeeper

From the official mobile app (iOS / Android)

1. Install Tonkeeper from the App Store or Google Play.
2. On the start screen choose Import existing wallet.
3. Choose 24 words (TON standard).
4. Enter the 24 words in the correct order. Tonkeeper suggests BIP39 candidates as you type.
5. Set a new PIN to unlock the app. This is a local PIN, not part of the seed.
6. Enable biometrics (optional, recommended).
7. Done — balance shows up immediately.

If the seed belongs to an older wallet version (V3R2 / V4R2 / W5), Tonkeeper will display all non-zero versions in a unified list. You can keep them or migrate to W5 for gasless USDT transfers.

Through Tonkeeper Web

Same process at tonkeeper.com. Useful when you don’t have a smartphone right now but need to check the balance urgently.

If 1–2 words are missing

Without the words there’s no recovery, but if a single word at a known position is missing and the other 23 are intact, there’s a chance via brute force (utilities like BIP39 Recovery, btcrecover). It’s hard to do safely on your own; paid services exist, but they always carry the risk of compromise — never give the 23 known words to anyone.

Recovery in MyTonWallet

From the mobile app

1. Install MyTonWallet.
2. On the start screen choose Import wallet → 24-word secret phrase.
3. Enter the words; autocomplete from BIP39 kicks in as you type.
4. Set a PIN, enable biometrics.
5. Optionally — turn on anti-scam alerts to defend against fake jettons.

Browser extension

1. Install the extension in Chrome / Firefox / Edge.
2. Open it, choose Import wallet → 24 words.
3. Enter the seed.
4. Set a master password.
5. Done.

Desktop

Same as the extension, on macOS / Windows / Linux. Useful if your main workflow is on a laptop.

Recovery in Tonhub

1. Install Tonhub on iOS or Android.
2. On launch — Restore wallet from existing seed phrase.
3. Enter the 24 words.
4. Set a PIN.

Tonhub’s UI is more minimal, but the logic is identical to Tonkeeper and MyTonWallet. The same seed in all three opens the same base address.

Ledger recovery

If the Ledger is lost, broken or you need to migrate the seed to a new device:

1. Buy a new Ledger (Nano S Plus, Nano X or Stax) only from ledger.com or an authorised retailer.
2. Unbox, inspect the packaging.
3. Power on, choose Restore from recovery phrase.
4. Set a new PIN for the device.
5. Enter the 24 words on the device itself with the buttons. Never type the Ledger seed into a computer or phone.
6. After that the device runs with the same set of accounts.
7. Install the TON app via Ledger Live.
8. Connect to Tonkeeper or MyTonWallet.

All previously configured addresses appear as before. No on-chain migration needed.

Pitfalls

Older wallet version

TON has several wallet contract versions — V3R2 (2022), V4R2 (2023), W5 (2024). The same seed opens different addresses in each version. If you remember sending TON to an address starting with UQ… but after recovery you see 0 on EQ… — that’s most likely a different version. In Tonkeeper / MyTonWallet settings, enable display of all non-zero versions.

Wrong word order

The 24 words must be in the correct order. If you input it incorrectly, the BIP39 checksum fails and the wallet reports an error. Cross-check carefully against your written copy; the most common mistake is swapped neighbouring words.

Slang abbreviations

The BIP39 dictionary contains words with similar prefixes (e.g. add, addict, address). On paper you might have abbreviated, and on input you can’t tell which one it is. Use the first 4 letters — they uniquely identify the word in BIP39.

Typos

The most common cause of “I can’t recover my wallet” is a single-letter typo when writing it down. For instance winter written as wintet. The BIP39 dictionary is strict — verify every word against the official list if in doubt.

Custom derivation paths

Tonkeeper, MyTonWallet, Tonhub and Ledger all use standard TON paths. In rare cases (older exotic wallets, manual generation through third-party tools) custom paths may have been used — then a standard import returns an empty address. Solution: import into the same wallet type the seed was generated in.

Wrong network

If the seed was created in a TON wallet, only import it into a TON wallet. Importing into a Bitcoin or Ethereum wallet technically works but yields an empty address — there’s nothing on it. Not a loss of funds, just the wrong network.

What to do after suspected compromise

If you entered the seed on a suspicious site or app, or you suspect the seed was seen by someone else — act immediately:

1. Create a new wallet with a fresh seed phrase. Tonkeeper, MyTonWallet, any of them.
2. Stamp the new seed onto a steel plate. The old one — you don’t use it again.
3. Open the compromised wallet — the one you legitimately imported the seed into.
4. Move every asset to the new wallet. Including jettons, NFTs, stTON and other tokens.
5. The transfer takes minutes. The attacker also knows the seed, so timing matters.
6. After everything is moved — treat the old address as dead. Never send anything there again.

This is not “recovery” in the usual sense — it’s an emergency migration. For more on how to avoid this — TON cold storage.

Prevention: where to store the seed

Basic rules:

• Don’t photograph the seed. Not even “for a second — I’ll delete it later”. The cloud copies faster than you can.
• Don’t save it in a password manager. A password manager is an online service.
• Don’t send it to Telegram. Saved Messages is cloud-based.
• Don’t print it. Especially on a network or office printer.
• Hand-write it on paper — minimum acceptable.
• Stamp it on steel — the recommended standard.
• Keep it in two different physical places. Home + bank deposit box. A single source can burn or be stolen.

Detailed setups — TON cold storage.

Recovery drill — a non-negotiable habit

Once a year, take a backup copy of the seed and recover the wallet on a clean device (or a Ledger in restore mode). Goals:

1. Confirm the seed was recorded correctly.
2. Confirm you remember the recovery procedure (under stress, you forget).
3. Confirm the device works.

After the check — wipe the test recovery, reset the device. It doesn’t open the wallet “twice”, it just confirms the seed works.

Bottom line

Recovering a TON wallet from a seed phrase is a 5-minute operation if the seed is recorded correctly and at hand. In Tonkeeper, MyTonWallet and Tonhub the procedure is the same: install the app, choose Import, enter 24 words, set a new PIN. Ledger is a separate path — Restore on the device itself.

What matters: the seed must be recorded correctly, stored in a safe physical location, and pass a regular recovery drill. Without that, even the most secure wallet turns into lost funds the first time something goes wrong.

Sources

• docs.ton.org — TON wallet specification and contract versions.
• BIP39 — seed phrase standard.
• tonkeeper.com, mytonwallet.io, tonhub.com — import procedures per wallet.