TL;DR: Duplicate (or reoccurring duplicate) transactions are usually caused by an exchange changing its trade IDs or by API imports loading data with a delay. Use the duplicate check tool to find them, delete the affected transactions (or the entire exchange's transactions and re-sync via API), then check your balances and run a ValiCheck to make sure everything is correct. To stop duplicates from reappearing, set a new start date in your API job.
What causes duplicate transactions?
Duplicate or reoccurring duplicate transactions can have several causes:
- Changed trade IDs on the exchange side: Some exchanges (e.g. Kraken) occasionally change the trade IDs of past transactions. Since CoinTracking uses the transaction ID (TX ID) to detect duplicates, a changed trade ID can cause the same transaction to be imported again as a "new" one.
- Delayed API imports: API imports can load data with a time delay, so bookings from the same exchange may appear in staggered batches rather than all at once. This can look like duplicates while the import is still catching up.
- Duplicate data provided by the exchange: Some exchanges simply send duplicate data through their CSV exports or APIs.
How do I check for duplicate transactions?
A duplicate check based on the transaction ID (TX ID) is available here. The tool searches for transactions with the same TX ID. The TX ID itself is available in the trade list (full view) report. Enable it via "manage columns".
How do I remove reoccurring duplicate transactions?
If duplicates keep reoccurring due to duplicate or changed data from an exchange, the recommended solution is:
- Delete all transactions from the affected exchange.
- Re-sync the exchange's API (click "Check now" / "Sync now") so the transactions are imported fresh.
Tips for this process:
- Since API imports can load with a delay, it's normal for bookings to appear gradually after a re-sync. Once the import has fully finished, the total number of transactions should match your original count again.
- Use the extended view / trade list, sorted by "Added on", to identify the most recently imported transactions and confirm the reimport worked correctly.
- For deleting many transactions at once, use the Group Edit/Delete function on the Transactions page instead of removing them one by one.
- After deleting or re-importing, check your balances via the Balance by Exchange page to make sure everything adds up correctly.
- As a final check, run a ValiCheck to see if any warnings or errors remain after the correction.
Alternatively, if you don't want to delete a transaction, you can edit it on the Transactions page and set all values to zero except the date. This way the transaction stays in the system but is not taken into account for any calculations.
How do I prevent duplicates from reappearing?
You can set up your APIs and CSV imports with a new start date so that the dates when duplicates originally appeared are not imported again. This is described in detail here: How to avoid unwanted transactions/re-imports or SCAM token via API jobs?
What about coin migrations or rebrandings that show up as duplicates?
Coin migrations or rebrandings (for example a MATIC to POL3 swap) are not always recognized automatically and may need to be adjusted manually on the Transactions page. After making manual adjustments, run a ValiCheck to confirm there are no remaining warnings or errors.