A forced Bitcoin Lightning exit can be cheap and still leave you waiting days

A study of public channels found a median force-close cost of 925 satoshis across both sides. The party who closed the channel waited a median 2.5 days before they could sweep their balance.

When a Bitcoin Lightning channel closes without both parties agreeing, the fees can be small but the wait can stretch for days. In a 2026 sample of public channels, forced closures cost a median 925 satoshis per channel across both parties, while the party that initiated the closure waited a median 2.5 days before it could reclaim its own balance, according to Saurabh Kumar's November 12 preprint.