by Let’s talk about popular proof of stake cryptocurrencies today…
And I know one more important question that might cross your mind would be:-Why proof of stake cryptocurrencies? Why should one know them? What’s so special about them?
So to answer such questions, let’s get started…
Proof of stake (aka POS) cryptos have many technical benefits, but apart from that, some proof of stake cryptos also give different economic benefits/dividends to their HODLers by giving them the option of running a masternode or staking their coins in a stake-able wallet.
Simply put into perspective i.e you can earn by just holding many POS cryptocurrencies.
This provides dual benefits of securing the blockchain network and creating an opportunity for users to get incentives or dividends on their holdings.
I have already written in detail about the distributed proof of stake (POS) cryptocurrencies and their consensus mechanism in my previous article, which you can read here.
But for the newcomers, let me explain what distributed consensus and POS is:
Distributed consensus simply means a large pool of people who are geographically segregated agreeing on something. In cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, ‘something’ here means agreeing on which transactions or blocks are valid and which are invalid to be added/rejected to the blockchain.
AND
Proof of stake is a typical computer algorithm through which some cryptocurrencies achieve their distributed consensus. It is also a better alternative to the proof of work algorithm by achieving the same distributed consensus at a lower cost and in a more energy efficient way. (For more details on POS vs POW read here)
So if you are holding any such POS cryptocurrencies, then I think you should know how to start earning dividends by staking them in the right wallets.
And if you are not holding any such POS currencies, then you should start looking into them, as they can be an excellent source of smart passive income.
Update: November 2022
Binance which is the world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchange has added a staking feature which in my opinion, is the best way to find profitable proof of stake coins. However, you should know that staking returns offered by exchanges are less than direct staking. The benefit is you can redeem quickly, and you don’t have to dabble with tech know-how.
Here is how to access it:
- Login to your Binance account or create one if you don’t have
- Click on Earn > Stake
Here you will see a list of supported proof of stake coins along with the Estimated Annual yield and minimum holdings required. You can click on Deposit and start staking these POS coins.
As technology is evolving, this has become one of the easiest and fastest ways to stake coins and earn profit.
For starters, here is a list of the best POS cryptocurrencies…
Page Contents
Top 7 Profitable Proof Of Stake Cryptos
1. ETH 2.0 (5-7%)
Ethereum is not the most profitable yet most popular proof of stake coin.
Ethereum network is the most used and in-demand blockchain network at the moment. More than 2800 Decentralized Applications are built on it, clogging the network, and there is an urgent need to scale it.
Ethereum is currently a Proof of Work (PoW) network, and to solve its scalability issues, it is scheduled for its next big update, i.e., Ethereum 2.0, which would convert it into a Proof of Stake network. This would optimally scale and secure the network and allow the building of more innovative Decentralized Applications.
ETH (Ether) is the native token of the Ethereum Network. Although the final merge of Ethereum 2.0 is yet to happen, the Beacon Chain of the Ethereum 2.0 was launched in December 2020, and ETH holders can stake their tokens on the network.
You can stake your ETH directly on the network by becoming a node operator. For this, you need 32ETH or more and should have the technical capabilities to run a node on the network. The problem with this is that there is a long waiting list for prospective node operators. Further, the staked ETH cannot be unstacked till the Ethereum 2.0 merge is complete.
The easier way is to stake your ETH with staking service providers who have their node operators and take a portion of your staking rewards as a fee. Some service providers also allow you flexible staking, which means you can unstake your funds anytime.
Hence, there are predominantly three ways to Stake your ETH
- Become a node operator on the network
- Use centralized Ethereum staking service providers such as Coinbase, Kraken, and Binance
- Use a decentralized staking service provider such as Lido Finance
Please note that choosing the right staking platform is necessary for the following reasons:
- If a node operator misbehaves in any way, then a part of ETH staked by him would be confiscated by the network. This is known as Slashing Penalties.
- The node operators would transfer these penalties to you. Some service providers, such as Lido Finance, have insurance against slashing penalties.
- Centralized staking services are custodial, i.e., these platforms have full custody of your funds. This means that if there is a hack on the platform, you may lose all your funds.
- Decentralized staking services are built on smart contracts and are, therefore, prone to smart-contract hacks.
- Some staking platforms have a lock-in period after unstacking before these funds are available to you.
So, you can choose any staking service that suits you. For beginners, Centralized staking services are suggested as they are pretty easy to use. However, I use Lido Finance for staking my ETH as it is decentralized, safe, and provides the benefits mentioned in the following video.
2. BNB (Up to 30%)
BNB is the native coin of popular exchange Binance. There are multiple ways by which you can stake BNB coin and earn up to 30% or more by staking alone.
The most popular way is by using BNB Vault which is available inside Binance exchange. You can find the BNB vault staking page directly here.
Another way to stake BNB is by using the Trust wallet, which is a popular mobile wallet. Though I’m not a huge fan of it, as the security of the mobile wallets is not rock-solid in comparison with hardware wallets. However, if you understand the risk and reward of a mobile wallet, you can use the Trust wallet to stake your coin.
Here is a video that explains what staking is, and how to stake BNB token on Trust wallet:
BNB token is available on multiple exchanges, some of the most popular websites to get BNB tokens are:
- Binance
- WazirX (For Indian netizens)
- Binance.us (For USA citizens)
3. Flow Token
Flow is an independent Layer 1 blockchain for games and NFT. You can stake Flow token using 3 methods, and I have highlighted them in the video below:
You can get Flow token on:
4. Akash Network (AKT token)
Akash Network is a proof-of-stake chain, built on Cosmos Hub, that leverages Akash Token (AKT), a native utility token, to govern, secure the blockchain, and provide a store and exchange of value. You can stake Akash (AKT) token to earn up to 58% APR. Unlike other proof of stake tokens, this offers one of the highest staking rewards.
You can use the Keplr wallet to stake your AKT token. You can get AKT token from:
5. Tezos
Tezos is a multi purpose blockchain with on-chain governance. By Staking (Baking) Tezoz (XTZ), you will be able to earn passive income.
Tezos is also the first proof of stake cryptocurrency that is supported by all major exchanges for staking. In fact, it is seen as a paradigm shift that now exchanges are offering crypto staking lately.
Tezos can be staked easily using any of the below-mentioned methods:
The easiest way for staking Tezos is by using Binance. They are the only one that offers zero fees staking and all you need to do is, just hold the coin in your Binance wallet. It is perfect for traders and investors.
- Ticker Symbol – XTZ
- Annual Return – Approx 6.8%
- Staking Wallet –Â Binance
You can get Tezos (XTZ) from Binance (Global) or CoinBase (USA).
6. Decentral Games ($DG)
$DG is an ERC20 governance token awarded to community members who provide value to the decentral.games ecosystem, such as playing games, providing liquidity, participating in governance, and referring new players. There will never be more than 1 million $DG.
At the time of writing this resource, you can earn up to 32% APY by staking $DG.
7. NOW
NOW token is a native cryptocurrency of an instant crypto exchange ChangeNOW. It was issued in 2018 and serves as an internal currency on NOW products. The token was issued as an ERC20 token, but now it also exists on Binance Chain (BEP2 Standard). In 2020 it has introduced NOW Staking as a way of profit from holding NOW tokens.
NOW Staking offers up to 25% in yearly interest, making it one of the tokens with the highest expected return.
There is a progressive reward scale in place, meaning that it gradually increases with time. If you hold NOW token for a week – you’ll get a 5% reward after a month it increases to 10% and reaches 25% in a year. ChangeNOW has an informative reward calculator to approximate your profits during a staking period.
The minimal amount of NOW tokens to begin staking is 10 NOW, and after one week, the reward starts to build up. The user needs to send the ‘Freeze’ transaction to the network, and from the moment it goes through, the staking is on. This can be done with special tools, like Token Freezer by BEPTOOLS, or with a wallet with such functionality, like Guarda.
The percentage of rewards is calculated and granted to stakeholders every week. To protect participants from whales, the maximal stake is limited to 100,000 NOW. However, if you have less than 100,000 and want to add more tokens, you can do so without resetting your accumulated reward multiplier. To balance out the inflation, after every 1,500,000 NOW distributed the token reward halving occurs, reducing inflation and increasing demand.
My Thoughts On Crypto Staking
November 2022 update: The implosion of Luna, FTT, and also sort of SOL has taught us that staking may not be the best option for passive income. There are multiple risks associated with it, which are beyond the smart contract risk.
Moreover, more of the staking platform requires you to lock your token for a specific amount of time, and this could result in a complete loss of your funds. We have seen this with Luna in 2022, and FTT in the last quarter of 2022.
IMO, you are better off now using the staking feature. However, as an education platform, we shared some of the best staking coins, but I let you decide if you want to go this route.
Also, when I think of negative and zero interest rates in some countries like the US, then cryptocurrency staking is much more profitable.
So let me know if you’re staking anything and what your favorite POS coin is. Let me hear your thoughts in the comments below!
Here are a few suggested things to read next:
- Ethereum Cryptocurrency: Everything A Beginner Needs To Know
- When To Use A Bitcoin/Altcoin Mobile Wallet?
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Great article, thanks. I did not notice any mention of how many NEO you need in order to get interest. Also is GAS a separate coin or is it built into NEO? I have my NEO in NEON wallet. Do I automatically get paid?
You dont need a minimum amount to gather gas. Every single NEO will produce 1 gas over 22 years. So it will produce slowly but it goes. Use Neotogas.com to calculate how much you will earn with how many neo you own.
That was quick, Yeah it uses a decay algo which will end in 22 years approx.
You can have 1 NEO and earn gas. You have to log in to your wallet, and create the gas TX to send it to your wallet.
Any info on QTUM?
Wil update that but as far as I know it has not yet started doing that.
QTUM staking has been live since their ignition mainnet launch on 9/13. Block rewards are disproportionately high right now due to a relatively low network weight (~12M).
QTUM in my opinion has one of the largest upsides of any other PoS platform. Their protocol stack is built on Bitcoin’s UTXO blockchain and has integrated the EVM (ethereum virtual machine) smart contract protocol using their AAL (Account Abstract Layer) protocol. Essentially Qtum will become the first smart contract platform which can be accessed through mobile and IoT devices.
Thanks, Will have a look at QTUM
You forgot the best: WAVES
Didn’t forget… Tell me your stats about staking it I will update it accordingly.
You won’t make any money with Waves. Currently they are only doing 1,185 transactions in 24 hours. That is laughable.
You definitely miss neblio. Annual Return – Approx 10 %.
Ticker : NEBL
Want to build blockchain as a service like stratis. Check it out !
Thanks will check it out about its authenticity.
thanks for the article. Neblio also has a staking wallet build for raspberry pi, which means you can stake at very low energy cost, very interesting!
Kudos!
Excellent Staking article.. Thanks Sudhir
Thanks and do share your experience of staking.
does staking require pc should be power on always
Yes most of them require you to keep your wallet online all the time.
NEO doesn’t require.
What if you choose a web wallet like MEW or something else for coins other than NEO, would that be considered as open wallet or do you physically require a running PC at all times to get staking rewards?
MEW is not open & doesn’t stake.
Great Article
It´s missing Decred, with an POW+POS
Return about 1,78% per month with this ticket system,
now only costing 68 Decred
hi there great article!!!
do you have an youtube channel?
thank you
Yes, YouTube Channel of CoinSutra-https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC17N6IKrH_-kn7uhjQi-qDA
Of course, there is $Waves, and tokens on the Waves platform, such as Orymcoin…
yeah…DASH is not proof of stake…..really at all…it is a Miner/Masternode coin. I get what you were trying to do but it is not POS at all.
Yeah, that’s why put a note!
DASH is Proof of Work plus Masternode. PIVX is Proof of Stake plus Masternode.
DASH mining consumes a huge amount of resources just like Bitcoin mining, and is monopolized by the same ASIC manufacturer, Bitmain. If you want a true Proof of Stake coin that doesn’t kill users with high transaction fees and/or high inflation rate due to paying miners, go with PIVX.
thank you. appreciate your comment. Im just into staking. Do you recommend neo, stratis, okcash, reddcoin staking too? any other coin you suggest? apart from staking and mining, is there any other method to accumulate coins?
You completely missed Vericoin (VRC). Staking interest is variable (based on # of coins staking network wide), but today we were at 13.2%. Way better than the other coins in your list…
Sure will look at it if it is legit..
Yeah I was wondering the same. VeriCoin is totally legit. No pre-mine and has been around since 2014. Not only that, it uses a unique Proof-of-Work-Time protocol that adds tremendous security. VRC provides a variable interest rate depending on the % of coins being staked. It’s a great project and I hope you take a serious look at it.
Sure will look at that…
You dont think, PoS is for people who invest huge mounts of money ina a criptcoin? For more you invest more you give.
I mean, I try to stake 200$ in Reddcoin and my profits was really bad.
Now Ãm trying whit another one but is the same. With low money is miserable profits.
Ok let me update with high-profit coins but those coins are really risky to even hold forget about staking.
What about #bitbean #beancash
Huge potential here!
1400 TPS, static reward, one of the most rentable pos coin, cheap, very low fees, new wallet, recent rebrand, and it will be listed on Kucoin and Hitbtc soon from now!
Any evidence of listing…I also found it interesting but didn’t list it for lack of much info.
They cant be too open about listing, but it’s a fact that those exchanges are under request.
And the fact that Bitbean is still not so big is what makes it attractive! So much upward potential.
Good info here (and you will see what I mean!):
https://steemit.com/cryptocurrency/@nuclieus/passive-income-sprouting-your-bitbean-proof-of-stake-bitb
https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/bean-cash/
Thanks will look at the info you provided. I am looking for Neblio to hold and stake…Good to hold and stake both…
if a coin holder prefers to use an online POS wallet instead of his/her home computer, which sites would you suggest?
https://poswallet.com/
Check out this if you like it. But we have not used it.
Good read! Might update this one with a more profitable PoS coin. #Neblio is giving stakers an 10% annual return and its possible for every holder to stake. Since the token, at the time of writing, is priced at around 25$ it may be the most profitable coin to stake right now. Cheers!
Many thanks!!, I am checking out Neblio with a pi, will update soon.
Anyone actually making any profits from masternodes?
I am planning stake a few, will share my experience.
I see that staking offers some returns but only if you hold a significant amount. But 5%-10% seems low compared to mining. Allow me to illustrate: $1000 stake @ 5% yr = $50, $1000 rig (3 cards) @ $5 day x 365 = $1825, even when you take away the $1000 hardware, $225 elec you have $500 vs. $50 and will earn and extra $1000 the following year. At the end of year two you have accumulated $105 vs $2000 from mining. Both cases assume zero growth in coin base value. If that changes the gap widens more. So aside from making the network stronger how is this more profitable than mining?
Hi! Nebl + Phore + Decent = Great PoS 🙂 Huge potential here <3
Are you staking Decent?
I have staking SWISSCOIN SIC, maybe up 50% annual return for every holder to stake. SIC price at around 0.005 USD it may be the most profitable coin to stake right now.
Decred should definitely be added to this list. https://decred.org/
I’ve been staking with it for months and its returning about 15% per year.
Great, Will check that out. Is it stakable on a pi?
No mention of SmartCoin? https://smartcash.cc/ . I’m surprised. It’s on the coinmarket cap top 100 and it’s one of the easiest to stake and get monthly free coins. Your thoughts on SMART?
What’s the percentage? It is very minority fork so didn’t pay that much heed to it.
hallo sir
sir tell me about monk coin and xgox staking………???
thanks
Not really, not every POS coin worth looking and giving time. Please don’t think of short-term gains. These all can do to zero one day, if not having a useful usecase.
I am running 17 master nodes of Smart Cash and so far I have earned around 10000 Smart and it has been 2 weeks. Smart Cash is awesome!
How did ya leave out neblio? Its proof of stake that pays out 10 percent
Sure, will put that through.
Blocknet – approx 14%
DASH is NOT a proof-of-stake coin !!!
The DASH rewards mentioned here are for running a master-node, which is a 2nd tier layer providing special services.
That is different concept then proof-of-stake.
Like with staking one can also earn via master-nodes ( see https://masternodes.online ), but remember that it is a different concept from proof-of-stake.
PIVX, for instance, has both proof-of-stake and master-nodes – so one can stake with any amount in the wallet, but to set up a master-node you need 10000PIVX.
Staking Neblio right now. Great ALT to add to your list.
great, do share your experience…Are you staking on a pi? I will add it to this list for sure.
HI what are your thoughts on OK coin? It has really good ROI – at 10%. But is it something that will still be in the industry in 3+ years. And how many units would be the best to set up the master nodes for this coin, as it does not show this in the right up
Umm Bean Cash is not mentioned here and it is far better than any mentioned in this list.
PIVX masternode annual return rate is about 5.9%. See below:
http://178.254.23.111/~pub/DN/DN_masternode_payments_stats.html
Staking annual return rate is approx. 8%pa on average as not all the coins in circulation are staked at any given point in time. So PIVX should be #1 in your list just for the fact that is a “true” Proof of Stake cryptocurrency (while DASH aren’t as you know) while it also having the highest annual average return rate for staking along in addition to opting to run a masternode. (which later in Q2 can get a share of the zDEX trade fees to make it even more worth while)
Sure, thanks for the insights.