Top 5 Best Apps for Staking (and Stacking) Crypto

Crypto staking allows you to earn rewards by locking up crypto holdings to support the operations of a blockchain. While crypto staking typically involves a degree of technical know-how, staking apps have made it accessible to anyone, even small investors. 

Read on to learn more about crypto staking and discover some of the best staking (and stacking) crypto apps in the market. 

What is Staking Crypto?

Staking crypto refers to locking up coins or tokens to contribute to a blockchain network or protocol in exchange for rewards paid out in crypto. 

You can think of crypto staking as earning dividends on shares or interest on a savings account. 

In a Proof of Stake (PoS) network, staking allows you to use your current crypto holdings to provide security for transactions on the blockchain. Essentially, the staked crypto guarantees the accuracy of transactions documented on a portion of the chain.

Typically, you can stake directly from their crypto wallet through a simple and automatic process. Alternatively, you can opt to use a crypto exchange service or a staking app to handle the intricacies of the process for a fee. 

You can also stake tokens in DeFi protocols, which is often referred to as DeFi staking. 

What Are the Different Types of Staking?

There are several types of staking. The most common types of staking include:

PoS Staking

The traditional form of staking uses the Proof-of-Stake mechanism, involving setting up your own validator node and verifying transactions on the blockchain. It requires advanced technical skills and allocating significant resources not everyone might have lying around. 

During the staking period, the staked tokens are locked and can’t be traded or used as collateral. Nonetheless, despite the high participation barrier and locking of the assets in this approach, the validator rewards are pretty lucrative.

Delegated Staking

As an alternative to setting up your own validator node in PoS staking, users can also delegate to one through the Delegated Proof-of-Stake (DPoS) consensus mechanism. In this case, it means you’re entrusting your assets to a third-party validator.

Network users vote and elect delegates who will validate and produce the next block, with the possibility of distributing their block rewards to those who voted for them. At the same time, DPoS has also been criticized for potentially favoring the wealthier participants and demanding constant user engagement.

Liquid Staking

In liquid staking, the aim is to reduce opportunity costs and provide more flexibility than in its traditional form by allowing users to maintain their liquidity when having their assets staked. This is done through a provider issuing synthetic tokens against the staked assets. 

As opposed to traditional staking, where assets remain firmly locked in for the duration of the staking period, users participating in liquid staking can still trade and use their staked assets as collateral in DeFi projects. This way, they’re unlocking the liquidity of the staked assets.

Restaking 

This form of staking potentially enables validators to concurrently use the assets they had already staked and redeploy them across multiple protocols. It allows the assets to secure more than one blockchain at once, potentially increasing reward opportunities for validators.

The first restaking protocol on Ethereum is EigenLayer, which allows users to use their stake ETH to support other networks or protocols. Specifically, it taps into Ethereum’s existing validator system to enhance the security and scalability of smaller networks.

Pooled Staking

Also called pool staking, pooled staking combines multiple users’ staked assets to have them participate together. Users receive staking rewards without needing to fork out substantial resources upfront, lowering the monetary threshold for participation. 

In a staking pool, rewards are also distributed across users, and each individual receives compensation based on their contribution to the pool. The advantage of this method is that it makes staking accessible to those who may not have enough resources to stake on their own.

Factors That Make an App Great for Crypto Staking

Deploying capital in a crypto staking app makes it easier to earn passive income since the platform takes care of all the complexities for you. Regardless, not all such apps are created equal, so be sure to look closely at their features before downloading. 

Here are some of the key things to consider:

• Fees: Check whether the fees are flat or involve a percentage of your investment profit.
• Security: What security protocols does the app offer? Is the protocol custodial (centralized) or non-custodial (decentralized)?
• Flexibility: Are there options to unstake your holdings? How many pools can you participate in? Can you stake continuously without missing a cycle?
• Minimums: What is the minimum investment to participate in the staking pool?
• APY Rewards: What’s the average annual percentage yield you will earn?
• Assets Offered: How many cryptocurrencies are available for staking/stacking through the app? Is there flexibility to diversify your portfolio?
• Convenience: How intuitive is the app? Is it easy to get help when you need it?
• Lock Period: How liquid are the locked assets? Can they be used while staked?

Read the terms and conditions in detail before entrusting your crypto to any app. The lack of details is a red flag. If you’re new to crypto, take the time to check out app reviews and look at online demos. This way, you can find an option you’ll feel comfortable to use.

5 Best Apps for Staking Crypto

To help you find the best solution for putting your crypto to good use, we’ve evaluated some of the most popular crypto staking and stacking apps available.

Xverse

A unique solution among crypto stacking apps, Xverse Stacking offers native bitcoin rewards with an average of 10% APY for users who stack Stacks (STX) tokens. 

Stackers lock or “stack” their STX, the native token of the Stacks blockchain, in cycles of about two weeks to participate in the consensus of the network. The protocol relies on the Proof-of-Transfer (PoX) consensus mechanism, which uses BTC to secure the Stacks network.

Here, stacking is like staking, with the main difference being that the former involves locking STX tokens to earn BTC, whereas staking provides rewards in the same token that was locked. Stackers also act as signers for sBTC, a two-way peg token on Stacks that allows users to bridge BTC to and from the base layer.

Stackers can participate for as low as 100 STX, and the fees are 4.95%. Designed with ease of use in mind, Xverse Stacking is ideal for investors just getting into crypto investing and staking, with a reliable customer support team.

Acre

Another worthwhile solution is Acre, a Bitcoin staking app (yes, BTC!) that allows you to deposit your BTC and earn a yield in stBTC, a tokenized version of bitcoin. It removes the hassle of exploring BTC staking platforms by automatically distributing the deposited bitcoin among various protocols and pools on your behalf.

To stake bitcoin on Acre, you need to deposit BTC and receive stBTC tokens representing your deposited BTC. Then, the deposited BTC is converted into tBTC via Threshold Network and deployed to various Bitcoin L2s to provide liquidity and earn a yield through the Acre Dispatcher. The Acre Dispatcher’s allocation is decided by a monthly vote of veACRE holders, the protocol’s governance token.

The deposited BTC is held in a 51-of-100 multi-signature wallet operated by decentralized nodes. The staker’s balance of stBTC (a non-rebasing token) remains the same, while its value increases. As opposed to traditional staking, stBTC is transferable while accumulating the underlying rewards.

Acre charges a 0.1% fee on all deposits and a 0.25% fee on all withdrawals, which accumulate to the Acre DAO treasury. Partner protocols and services may receive a fee split, which will be managed by Acre DAO. Additionally, fee parameters will be approved and updated by the Acre DAO vote.

LISA

Meanwhile, the new liquid stacking protocol LISA pools STX from users and works with stacking pools, such as Xverse and Fast, to provide diversification and flexibility. Thanks to this, LISA supports stacking even less than the usual minimum of 10 STX.

After stacking your STX tokens with LISA, a smart contract mints an equivalent amount of LiSTX (a liquid stacking token) and sends it to your wallet. You can then redeem LiSTX 1:1 for STX tokens or convert it to vLiSTX for various DeFi activities.

LiSTX uses a rebasing mechanism to ensure its supply corresponds with that of the underlying asset, as well as to automatically adjust its balance, reflecting the growth of stacking yields. When you wish to unstack, LiSTX is burned and an equivalent amount of STX tokens is sent to you. Users can also trade LiSTX against other tokens on exchanges.

LISA doesn’t charge stackers any fees except the transaction ones for stacking, unstacking, and converting LiSTX to vLiSTX. Yields vary from cycle to cycle, so LISA doesn’t promise a specific APY. That said, Xverse Pool offers an APY of about 10%. 

StackingDAO

Users wishing to make their dormant crypto productive can also do so via StackingDAO, a liquid stacking protocol built on the Stacks network. It converts the BTC rewards earned from stacking to STX and then deposits it in the smart contract that backs stSTX. Hence, the value of stSTX rises as your locked STX produces yields. 

The StackingDAO protocol automatically compounds yields earned. It also awards 1 point for every stSTX token you hold per day. Stackers stop earning points once they have initialized a withdrawal process and the stSTX has left their wallet.

Having said that, the protocol takes a 5% commission from yields earned.

Binance

Far more than just a crypto exchange, Binance is also a major staking platform, offering both locked and flexible staking. In locked staking, the investor loses any rewards if they withdraw their stake early, while in the flexible option, there are no such limitations, but the rewards are lower.

Staking with Binance is fairly simple. It involves depositing crypto to the exchange, selecting a supported staking product on the Binance Staking platform, monitoring your staking rewards, and (optional) withdrawal, which may incur penalties or forfeiture of some of your rewards.

Binance typically holds staked funds for a number of days before paying them out to users, plus the processing time of up to three business days for unstaking. However, some crypto assets may allow for quicker reward payouts.

The (S)takeaway

Choosing the right app for crypto staking or stacking doesn’t have to be complicated. 

Still, some apps make the process more straightforward than others. Thanks to its secure and transparent platform that focuses on investors’ needs, Xverse stands out in the sea of applications offering similar services. 

What’s more, Xverse’s first-rate customer support provides users with confidence that their stacked assets are professionally and responsibly managed.

Start stacking STX with Xverse Stacking today.

FAQs

What types of cryptocurrencies allow ataking?

Thanks to advances in DeFi and Bitcoin DeFi, today there are different kinds of cryptocurrencies you can stake. These include BTC, ETH, ADA, SOL, XRP, ATOM, KAVA, NEAR, EGLD, XTZ, HBAR, KMD, BNB, TRX, MATIC, FLR, VET, and more.

How do you make money from staking? 

When making money from staking, you’re essentially earning rewards for locking up your crypto to support a blockchain or a protocol. In exchange for helping the platform run efficiently and securely, you receive more of the crypto (or a related asset) you’re staking.

Which staking is the most profitable?

There are several types of staking, including Proof-of-Stake (PoS) staking, delegated staking, liquid staking, restaking, and pooled staking. The most profitable form is traditional PoS staking, although it has quite a hefty participation barrier, so it might not be available to everyone.