This guide will serve as your source for everything you need to know about staking MATIC and using the Polygon Network for transactions. Our staking guides simplify the staking process, show you the benefits and risks associated with staking and are here for you to decide if staking makes sense for your digital asset portfolio.
What is MATIC?
MATIC is the native token of the Polygon Network and is a Layer-2 scaling solution designed to increase transaction throughput and lower transaction fees for Ethereum users and developers. Uses a Proof-of-Stake (PoS) consensus mechanism for the verification of transactions while maintaining the security level of Ethereum’s blockchain. When staking, you are delegating MATIC to validators who run nodes on the Polygon Network. Essentially, staking helps secure the network and is rewarded for doing so.
TL;DR
- View the current MATIC staking APR here
- Use the MATIC Staking Calculator to estimate your rewards
- Lockup: 21 days
- Average commission: 7.3%
- Minimum amount required for staking: 1 MATIC
- Estimated time needed to stake your XYZ in your wallet: 5 minutes
- Recommended MATIC staking wallets: Ledger, Metamask
- Steps to stake:
- Go to the Matic Staking Dashboard and connect your wallet. Please note that you will need to pay gas fees in ETH, so it is recommended to have 0.05 to 0.1 ETH available.
- Choose a Validator and click the ‘Delegate’ button. If you are unsure which validator to delegate to, refer to our FAQ on how to choose a validator.
- Enter the amount of MATIC you would like to stake and click ‘Continue’
- Sign the transaction
PREREQUISITES
Where to buy MATIC
You can get MATIC tokens at a cryptocurrency exchange, at a DEX, or within select wallets. You should always do your own research when selecting a reputable cryptocurrency exchange. For best security, it is not recommended to leave your tokens on an exchange, but transfer them to your non-custodial or cold/hardware wallet after procuring them.
Polygon wallets
Polygon has a variety of non-custodial wallets for you to choose from. We recommend that you use a hardware wallet such as Ledger otherwise we suggest using Metamask wallet. Compatible wallets include:
USING THE POLYGON NETWORK FOR TRANSACTIONS
Note: Sending MATIC to the Polygon Network is not required for staking MATIC, but is important for stakers to realize how the network operates.
WHY USE POLYGON?
The main reason for using Polygon is to save on transaction fees. Using dApps on Ethereum can sometimes be very costly, especially when a dApp takes multiple transactions to perform a single task. Some Ethereum dApps are becoming available on the Polygon Network. So, if you are planning on using a dApp for a long time, or would like to interact with the dApp using a substantial number of transactions, it would be wise to check and see if that dApp is available on the Polygon Network.
Some things to keep in mind when deciding on whether to use the Polygon Network include:
- Timeframe for using dApps on the network.
- When sending funds to Polygon, try to only send the funds you’ll need. Sending too little may require you to send more, and sending too much could have you sending funds back to Ethereum. The more cross-chain transactions you send the less you’ll save on transaction fees.
- If you mine Ether in a pool, some mining pools have an option to get paid out more frequently when using Polygon.
How to connect Polygon (MATIC) to Metamask
Let’s begin by preparing our Web3 wallet. In order for MetaMask to communicate and interact with the Polygon Network, it must be added. Click on the MetaMask icon within your browser and login. Once you have logged on, click on the currently connected network, ‘Ethereum Mainnet’ is displayed in the screenshot below. A dropdown menu appears with the title, ‘Networks’. Near the bottom, you should find ‘Custom RPC’, click this option to continue.
A form will be displayed within MetaMask which will need to be filled out like the screenshot below. It is important that the information that is NOT optional be entered/copied verbatim.
Network Name: Polygon Network
New RPC URL: https://rpc-mainnet.maticvigil.com/
Chain ID: 137
Currency Symbol(opt.): MATIC
Block Explorer URL(opt.): https://explorer.matic.network
SENDING ASSETS FROM ETHEREUM to POLYGON
To use the Polygon Network, users must send MATIC to the network using the Polygon Bridge. MATIC is used to pay for gas on the Polygon Network, similar to how ETH is used on the Ethereum blockchain. To get to the bridge go to Polygon’s bridge (it’s a good idea to bookmark this page for future visits). You will be greeted with a ‘Login’ screen with a list of supported wallets you can use to interact with the website. Select the web3 browser extension wallet you want to use and sign the message with your wallet.
If everything went well you can revisit Polygon’s web wallet to see your funds on the Polygon Network! Congratulations!
Note: If you have pending transactions, on ANY network, within your Metamask wallet, switching networks will cancel those transactions. If you have no pending transactions, Click ‘Switch network’. Once you switch the network within Metamask, you will be able to approve the transaction. This transaction going from Polygon to Ethereum will take quite a bit of time. The Polygon Network uses 2 different methods of transferring assets, either PoS or Plasma. The method used depends on the asset you are transferring. Currently it will take about 2 hours using PoS and will take 7 days using Plasma for the asset to appear on Ethereum.
Selecting Polygon validators
Please refer to the FAQ section titled ‘How do I choose Polygon validators’ on this page when selecting Polygon validators. Also, you may want to utilize our criteria for verifying providers through the Staking Rewards Verified Provider Program (VPP).
How Staking Rewards for Polygon (MATIC) are Generated
Learn how rewards are generated in the FAQ section titled ‘How are the rewards generated’’ here.
How to stake Polygon (MATIC)
Step 1: Make sure you have a Metamask wallet
Stake your XYZ tokens using Ledger, ABC, DEF, GHI, amongst others. We will use the ABC wallet in this staking tutorial.
As a popular wallet in the Polygon ecosystem, Metamask offers users the ability to stake tokens, access blockchain apps, and manage multiple tokens in one wallet. Simply connect your Ledger to Metmask wallet or use Metamask wallet directly to stake MATIC. Install the Metmask browser extension or download the Metmask wallet here. Deposit your tokens into this wallet before continuing onto step 2.
Step 2: Go to the MATIC staking portal and choose a validator
After entering your wallet, start staking and select validators. We recommend choosing validators from our Verified Provider Program (VPP). VPP validators have a blue tick on their logo here. If you are unsure of how to choose a validator, please see the FAQ section named ‘Selecting Polygon validators’ above this one to help you decide.
- Click the ‘Login’ button on the top-right hand corner of the page
- Click the ‘Become a delegator’ tab
- Select a validator
Please keep in mind that you will need to pay an Ethereum gas fee when staking your MATIC, the cost of this will vary depending on the network activity on Ethereum.
Step 3: Finalize the transaction
Enter the amount of MATIC you want to stake, press confirm and approve the transaction.
Congratulations! You have now staked your MATIC tokens and will start earning those juicy staking rewards.
Step 4: Track staking portfolio
- Track your MATIC staking rewards on the staking dashboard.
- Monitor governance proposals on Polygon network that may impact the staking mechanism.
- Track the current and historical reward rates, validator count, number of unique Polygon staking wallets, and staking ratio of the Polygon network by visiting the Polygon asset page. To make better staking decisions, it’s essential to understand these relevant data points. To learn how these data points could impact your staking rewards, please read more in the FAQ sections named “How do I choose Polygon validators” and “How are the rewards generated” on the Polygon asset page.
Maximizing Staked MATIC
Now that you have staked your MATIC you have 4 options which can be used to change your position. These options appear on the Polygon Staking page. The options are:
- Stake more
- Restake Reward
- Unbond
- Withdraw Reward
STAKE MORE
The stake more button is one of the 4 options available on the Polygon Staking page as seen in the screenshot above. Again, this page should be bookmarked because this is where you will go to control your stake. The stake more option is what you can do to increase your stake with the validator you have chosen.
RESTAKE REWARD
Restake Reward is another option you can do from the Polygon Staking page. This option uses your reward balance to stake more to the chosen validator.
As seen in the screenshot above, Click on the ‘Restake Reward’ button to begin the process. The following popup will be displayed. Some things to consider when choosing to restake are your reward amount and gas fee (shown with an exclamation point). It is highly recommended that your reward amount be much higher than the gas fee before performing this task. Take notice that the quoted gas fee is much higher than my reward in this screenshot.
When looking at the MetaMask notification, as shown above, you must decide on whether or not to restake rewards. It is recommended you click ‘Reject’ if the gas fee is greater than your reward amount. If the gas fee is less than your reward amount, click ‘Confirm’ to add the reward amount to your stake. So, with that said, and using the screenshots from this tutorial, I have decided to click ‘Reject’, since the reward amount is less than the gas fee.
WITHDRAW REWARD
Withdrawing your reward simply takes the amount of MATIC that you have been rewarded with, and places it into your Ethereum address you used to stake. To withdraw your reward go to the Polygon Staking page.
Click on the ‘Withdraw Reward’ button to begin the process.
In this screenshot you notice the gas fee beside the exclamation point. The gas fee is higher than the total reward. You should never choose to withdraw your reward if the gas fee is more valuable than your reward amount. Doing so will reduce your overall cryptocurrency portfolio value.
To verify the gas fee is correct within the popup shown above, click the ‘Withdraw to Wallet’ button to prompt the MetaMask notification window.
The gas fee, highlighted in orange, shows you the maximum of what this transaction will cost.
When looking at the MetaMask notification, as shown above, you must decide on whether or not to withdraw your rewards. It is recommended you click ‘Reject’ if the gas fee is greater than your reward amount. If the gas fee is less than your reward amount, click ‘Confirm’ to add the reward amount to your stake. So, with that said, and using the screenshots from this tutorial, I have decided to click ‘Reject’, since the reward amount is less than the gas fee.
UNBOND
The unbond process is used to close your staking position. This will remove your stake from the validator and allow you to claim rewards. Your rewards will be dispersed immediately while your original stake (and any stake you have added) will be delayed by 80 checkpoints. The amount of time between checkpoints varies. Checkpoints have taken anywhere from 15 minutes (20 hours for unbonding) to ~9 hours (~28 days for unbonding).
To unbond, go to the Polygon Staking page and click the ‘Unbond’ button, as highlighted in the screenshot below.
- A popup will be displayed after clicking on the ‘Unbond’ button. The popup notifies you of the 80 checkpoint unbonding process.
- Click the ‘Confirm Unbond’ button to continue and prompt the MetaMask notification popup as shown below.
- Click on the ‘Confirm’ button to begin the unbonding process.
Now that you have begun the unbonding process, you’ll have to wait for 80 checkpoints to take place on the Polygon Network before you will be allowed to claim your staked MATIC. Currently there is no notification method in place to tell you when those 80 checkpoints have taken place and your staked MATIC is available to withdraw. So, using the Polygon Staking page, which I hope you have bookmarked by now, you’ll be able to see the number of checkpoints left in the unbonding process for your account.
Once the unbonding period is finished, within your account page on Polygon’s Staking page, you will see the ‘Claim Stake’ button below the validator’s name. Clicking on the ‘Claim Stake’ button will bring up a popup titled “Claim Stake”.
On the “Claim Stake” popup you will click the ‘Withdraw to Wallet’ button. The MetaMask notification window will appear. Click the ‘Confirm’ button within MetaMask to claim your stake so that it will be added to your wallet balance.
Conclusion
Staking is essential to Proof-of-Stake blockchains and comes with many benefits for investors and the network:
- Investors earn yield from token emissions and/or transaction fees.
- Stakers become eligible for airdrops as many networks prioritize granting these benefits to them.
- Staking helps to secure the network
- Staking from multiple participants helps decentralize the network
- Stakers can participate in governance, as many PoS networks allocate governance rights based on the amount of tokens staked.
Congratulations! You are now not only getting the most out of your investment with compounded returns. YOU are also (in-)directly contributing to the decentralization, and the network security of Polygon and thus contributing to the long-term success of your investment! Evmos needs active stakers like you to become successful long-term.
Now share the tutorial with your friends so they can get to start staking as well!
Lastly, don’t forget to check out the Polygon (MATIC) asset page for more insights into staking MATIC, and drop us a message if you found this tutorial useful. Happy staking!
References:
1Chart data obtained from: https://blog.matic.network/matic-network-staking-economics/