How do you revoke token approvals?

To revoke token approvals, you use an approval checker, such as the one built into the Etherscan block explorer, to list which smart contracts can still spend your tokens and cancel the ones you no longer want. Each cancellation is a small transaction that you sign in your wallet. MetaMask's help center suggests checking approvals regularly, for example once a month.

What is a token allowance?

Apps such as exchanges and NFT markets cannot take tokens from your wallet on their own. You first approve them. The ERC-20 token standard, created in November 2015, describes this with a function called approve, which lets a named spender withdraw from your account multiple times up to a set amount. The spender then uses a second function, transferFrom, to actually move the tokens. The remaining amount is called the allowance.

Many apps ask for an unlimited allowance so you only approve once. MetaMask warns that if a contract with unlimited access is hacked or turns out to be malicious, it could drain every token of that type you have approved. That is how many wallet drainers work. Etherscan's checker shows an at-risk amount for each approval, meaning what could be taken if that contract were hacked.

How do you revoke token approvals on Etherscan?

OpenSea's help center lists these steps for Ethereum:

1. Go to Etherscan's Token Approval Checker page by typing the address yourself.
2. Click Connect to Web3 and connect your wallet.
3. Use the ERC-20, ERC-721 or ERC-1155 tabs to find the approval. ERC-721 and ERC-1155 cover NFTs.
4. Click Revoke and sign the transaction in your wallet.

Other networks have their own explorers. MetaMask names BscScan for BNB Chain and Polygonscan for Polygon, which offer similar checkers. An approval on one network must be revoked on that network.

How do you revoke token approvals in MetaMask?

As of October 2026, MetaMask's help page says its Portfolio dapp can show allowances and submit revocations on Ethereum Mainnet, Polygon and BNB Chain. It also lists outside tools, including Revoke.cash, and explains that you can overwrite an old approval by sending a new one for the same token.

Disconnecting a site is not the same thing. MetaMask and Trezor both point out that disconnecting only stops the site from seeing your address and balances. The spending permission stays until it is revoked.

How do you revoke smart contract allowances safely?

A few points help avoid new problems:

• Expect a gas fee. Approving and revoking both change data on the blockchain, so both cost gas.
• Use the real tool. A fake revoke site can ask for a harmful approval. Reach explorers by typing their address, not through links in messages.
• Set caps going forward. MetaMask and OpenSea describe setting a custom spending limit instead of an unlimited one when an app asks for approval.
• Know the limits. Revoking cannot reverse a transfer that already happened. A delegation made under EIP-7702 is a different permission and is cleared another way.