11 BEST Crypto Staking Platforms for Passive Income in 2023

Review, compare and select among the list of top Crypto Staking Platforms along with features, pros, cons, etc:

Staking websites, wallets, apps, and platforms allow you to either run a full staking node on your own or contribute your cryptocurrency to a staking pool that pools funds from multiple investors and acts as a single staking node.

In both cases, you must deposit or send cryptocurrency to be staked in a staked wallet or contract address. You also expect to earn some crypto staking rewards in both cases.

This tutorial discusses major or best crypto staking platforms that allow users to either run a full node or part of it and/or participate in staking pools.

Let us begin!

Crypto Staking Guide with the Best Staking Crypto Services

Top staking coins:

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Crypto Staking FAQs

Q #1) Is staking crypto profitable?

Answer: Yes, it is profitable depending on staking percentage returns or APY and crypto prices. The APYs paid on the listed or reviewed exchanges and apps range between ___ and ___ %.

The variation in the price of cryptocurrency staked over the staking period does affect profitability. If the price decreases at a percentage below the APY during the staking or lock-in period of one year, then staking is not profitable and vice versa.

In addition to knowing what is staking crypto, it is necessary to review the market conditions and price projections of crypto before staking.

Q #2) Which crypto is best for staking?

Answer: Ethereum is the most dominant for staking, currently at an APY of between 2% and 20% of the value of Ethereum staked. It earns about 5.2% APY on Binance, 7.8% for premium users on Celcius, and 4.3% on eToro while AQRU pays as much as 12% APY.

Staking USDT, USDC, and DAI earns as much as 12% APY depending on the platform. Understanding APYs is as good as understanding what is staking crypto.

Suggested Reading =>> Best Binance Trading Bots

Q #3) Is staking crypto safe?

Answer: Definitely yes, but it depends on the platform in question. The crypto staked is sent to a staking wallet for staking purposes. Therefore, the wallet must have secure features for the crypto so staked to be secure. Ensuring crypto is not hacked or lost is the biggest concern for those asking – is staking crypto safe?

There are many ways platforms ensure the security of a platform, including using 2FA, passwords, decentralized wallet technologies where the user stores and controls their private keys, and the ability to stake in a linked hardware wallet. Hardware wallets use extra security layers like the Secure Element Chip, BIP39 passphrases, 2FA, and other things.

Q #4) Is staking a coin worth it?

Answer: Yes, depending on the staking APYs and price volatility or change. Check and compare the percentage of staking APYs for a specific token or cryptocurrency across staking platforms before investing.

The staking APYs can be independent of price volatility, but the overall returns will be affected by crypto price volatility in that if they increase when the price goes up later after a customer invests in staking.

Q #5) How much can I earn staking crypto?

Answer: Investors on some platforms earn as much as 20% APY when staking the platforms’ native tokens. However, the majority of platforms pay between 5% and 10% APY when staking mainstream cryptocurrencies like Ethereum and stable coins like USDT.

Q #6) Why are staking rewards so high?

Answer: Staking rewards increase with an increase in the likelihood of a staking node being chosen to validate or verify transactions in a block in the network. A reward accrues to a node when the latter successfully verifies a block and is added to the blockchain.

Furthermore, rewards tend to be high per node for nodes with a higher investment on that node compared to other nodes. Rewards also increase when there are fewer nodes involved in the verification.

List of Top Crypto Staking Platforms

Popular and some impressive options of platforms for staking crypto:

1. Binance
2. Zengo
3. Kraken
4. Coinbase
5. MyContainer
6. Stakefish
7. eToro
8. KuCoin
9. Gemini Earn
10. Celsius
11. BlockFi
12. AQRU
13. Uphold

Comparison Table of Best Platforms for Staking Crypto

Detailed reviews:

#1) Binance

Best for high payout staking.

Binance cryptocurrency exchange lets anyone trade Bitcoin, Ethereum, and about a thousand other cryptos and tokens. It supports locked staking where customers have to lock the to-be-staked coins to earn the pre-determined staking passive income. It supports staking Santos, BSW, REEF, NEO, GLMR, and 107 other cryptos and tokens.

Binance pays between 55.29% to 88.19% on MC token, 75.28% to 120.69% for AXS token, 42.25% to 79.87% for CAKE token. It pays between 34.2% to 73.99% APY or staking reward percentage for GLMR token. These are some of the highest-paid APYs for tokens on the platform. This makes it one of the best staking crypto platforms.

How staking works on Binance:

• Create and verify an account.
• Deposit funds (crypto/fiat) via the Deposit dashboard feature. If depositing fiat, proceed to buy token needed to be staked.
• Click/tap Binance Earn button. Search for the token/crypto you want to stake and proceed to do so. Choose the amount at stake and within the lockup period.
• Monitor daily returns from the account dashboard.

Features:

• DEFI staking – locking one’s investment into a smart contract to earn passive income from assisting in confirming the network’s transactions.
• The academy and tutorials are available on staking and staking on the platform.
• Other products that increase usability for staked tokens include NFTs, Binance Pay Visa cards, and mobile and web apps.
• Buy crypto using multiple payment methods – bank, wire transfer, credit card, debit cards, Neteller, and others.
• Daily rewards payouts. However, cannot withdraw crypto before the lock-up period.
• Binance has a blockchain called Binance Chain and its platform token called BNB that can also be staked.

Pros:

• In-built crypto swapping, trading crypto with fiat, fiat-to-bank crypto withdrawals.
• Stake as less as $10.
• On-click staking functionality.
• High staking returns for newer tokens.

Cons:

• Some newly listed tokens can close at any time despite being offered high APY returns.

Verdict: Binance, one of the largest crypto exchanges by trading volume, not only supports multiple cryptos and tokens (117 in total) for staking but also offers high APY returns for newly-listed tokens. Binance is a popular platform for listing new tokens and is hence lucrative for those chasing staking earnings.

Fees for staking: $0.

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#2) Zengo

Zengo is the first non-custodial wallet with MPC security that lets you stake crypto. At the moment, you can stake Tezos, but Zengo is actively working to expand its staking and earning options.

The second way of earning with Zengo – staking is possible through WalletConnect which gives access to third-party staking Dapps such as Lido, which is a liquid staking protocol for staking Ethereum. For your introduction, Lido is a staking solution that supports Ethereum, Solana, Polygon, and Polkadot. Staking DOT, for instance, earns 17.3% APR.

Apart from Lido, you can connect StakeWise, Aave, and Index Coop through which you can stake crypto and earn passive income. The Zengo’s Dapps We button lists all the Dapps that you can connect with for staking and other purposes.

Connecting Zengo with a Dapp like Lido that supports WalletConnect requires you to go to Lido connect wallet page and choose WalletConnect as the wallet you want to connect. After this, you will be presented with a QR code that you must scan by going to the Zengo wallets QR scanner icon in the top right corner of the home screen.

How to stake on Zengo

Step 1: Simply download and install the iOS/Android Zengo app and set up the wallet. The wallet is simple to set up since you do not require any private key copying and storing. Simply enter your email address and set up the security of the wallet.

To recover your wallet you will need to set up the 3D FaceLock verification and save your recovery file on iCloud/Google Drive/ DropBox. This recovery file is NOT a private or a secret share and is useless to a hacker.

Step 2: To send crypto into the Zengo wallet, find the wallet address for the crypto to send. This is done by visiting the home page and swiping or tapping the asset to deposit. Click/tap Receive to reveal the wallet address to use to send from another wallet. Zengo also allows you to buy using fiat deposit methods like a credit card. Use the Buy button in that case.

• To stake, tap/click on the crypto you want to stake, tap/click on Actions, then Earn, select the crypto to stake e.g. Tezos, and tap on the Activate button.
• Every crypto stored also earns passive income through lending and staking.
• To stake through Lido and other third-party Dapps, use WalletConnect link to Zengo. Visit Lido or other wallets, and from their “Connect Wallet” pages (on that wallet’s mobile app or website), select WalletConnect, then use Zengo to scan the QR code displayed and proceed to complete the connection.

Features:

• Buy and sell crypto. Buy through Apple Pay, Google Pay, bank transfers, and credit/debit cards.
• Swap 120+ cryptos across chains.
• Store 120+ crypto assets.
• Send and receive cryptos.
• Get paid in crypto through OnJumo.

Zengo Pro: While Zengo Essentials continues to be offered for free, upgrading to Zengo Pro unlocks a suite of premium security features for as low as $16.67 a month.

• Legacy Transfer: Grant a beneficiary access to your digital assets in case of death or prolonged absence with a feature inspired by traditional inheritance systems. This is the market’s first and only self-custodial tool supporting this functionality.
• Asset Withdrawal Protection: Prevent unauthorized withdrawals with 3D FaceLock biometric verification.
• Advanced Web3 Firewall: Real-time risk assessments and alerts that protect you against Web3 attacks.
• Priority 24/7 Support: typically response time of under 3 minutes, supporting 180 languages.

Pros:

• Buy and sell crypto. Buy using credit/debit cards, ApplePay, Google Pay, and bank transfer.
• Simple setup in 20 seconds – without complicated private key setup and management.
• In-app crypto swapping.

Cons:

• Staking is via third-party Dapps.

Verdict: Zengo offers considerably higher APYs for those intending to earn passive incomes on their crypto, compared to multiple staking apps. Besides, it has top-notch security with 3FA so the user never has to worry about private key management processes.

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#3) Kraken

Best for zero fee staking.

Kraken lets users trade 65+ cryptocurrencies for others or buy and sell them for national and international currencies like USD and Euro. It also packs an advanced trading platform for those who want to use speculation, charting, advanced order types, and API-connected bots to trade crypto.

Kraken allows futures and margin trading and users can buy and sell crypto via OTC desks.

Customers can also invest in indices in crypto indices to earn more predictable incomes. Other features include account management for advanced users, crypto loans; Fedwire, SWIFT, Etana, SEN, wire transfer fiat deposits; and NFTs. Institutions can also use the platform’s APIs to fuel business liquidity.

Staking on the platform lets users earn up to 23% in APY. High yields are especially for newer coins, but for BTC, Eth, Cardano, USD, and Euro, you get APYs of between 0.25% and 6%.

How to stake crypto in Kraken:

• Sign up for an account. Click Earn and scroll through the list of coins supported for staking. Check their APYs. Decide on token/crypto to stake.
• Deposit crypto to stake or buy with your preferred payment method.
• Back to Earn and choose the crypto to stake. Enter the amount at stake and proceed.

Features:

• Stake USD and Euros off-chain. Stake non-PoS coins like BTC.
• 15 coins and cryptos are available for staking.
• Activate and do staking, as well as monitor staking rewards from mobile apps as well as the web interface.
• Soft staking so no compulsory lock-up of assets for a defined period before withdrawing whenever withdrawing is needed. Up to seven days to process un-staking requests.
• Send, receive, and hold crypto.
• Crypto guides, podcasts, and customer support on staking issues.
• Low trading fees.
• Institutional trading platform and account management for professional traders.

Pros:

• High APYs for newer coins.
• No compulsory lock-up period.
• Additional products to increase the value of the ecosystem.
• Low trading fees – 1.5% and 0.9% for the stablecoin to stablecoin transactions.
• No staking fees.

Cons:

• Unstacking requests take days to process if you need to withdraw coins from a staking wallet.
• Ethereum 2.0 staking – coins take up to 20 days as a bonding period to start earning rewards.

Verdict: Best for those looking for very high staking payouts on new cryptocurrency projects. It is a favorite for fee-free staking.

Staking fees: 0%.

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#4) Coinbase

Best for Custodian staking by individuals, large businesses or companies.

Coinbase is a place for crypto owners to trade digital assets for fiat or swap crypto for one another. Clients can exchange hundreds of crypto pairs, including USD and Euro trading pairs. Coinbase also supports staking for regular as well as institutional holders.

Anyone can buy and stake eight cryptos and tokens including Ethereum, Algorand, Tezos, Cosmos, Maker, Holo, and Cardano cryptocurrencies as long as their account is verified and has a TIN for use by residents. The minimum balance needed is down to zero for Ethereum and very low for the rest of the tokens.

Coinbase supports staking from hardware wallets, which are rather more secure and allow users and institutions/companies to stake large amounts of crypto and tokens with minimal risks. The service is known as Coinbase Custody, although it supports non-staked tokens. It also makes it rank as one of the best staking crypto platforms.

With Coinbase, users can participate in staking pools or run their nodes. Furthermore, institutions can utilize Coinbase’s cloud staking, multi-chain staking service, and scalable node infrastructure to offer staking services to their customers. This service supports +25 protocols.

How staking works on Coinbase

• Go to the website/app and create and verify an account. Deposit fiat/crypto via the Deposit feature on the dashboard. Buy if necessary, crypto is meant for staking.
• Click/tap or head over to Coinbase Earn. Select/choose the asset for the stake, the amount, and the staking period.
• Proceed to stake and monitor daily payouts/rewards.

Features:

• The rewards are paid daily for Ethereum, after 3 days for Tezos, 5 days for Cardano, 7 days for Cosmos, and quarterly for Algorand.
• Buy and sell staked coins and hundreds of others on the platform, including through swapping for other tokens, buying with fiat, or trading actively through charting, bots, and speculation methods.
• Other products include an in-built crypto exchange, Coinbase Visa Card, NFT marketplace, Coinbase Earn for users earning free tokens, crypto lending services, Coinbase Commerce for receiving and paying for goods and services with crypto, and others.

Pros:

• Insurance for crypto that is held in wallets by institutions using Coinbase Custody to stake large amounts of tokens and crypto.
• Offline staking on hardware wallets, participate in governance even with offline staking.
• Offer services to your staking customers through Coinbase liquidity.

Cons:

• A limited number of tokens for staking. Only eight tokens and cryptos are supported. Low APY returns compared to platforms providing staking for newer tokens.
• High staking fees.

Verdict: Coinbase is the most suitable for institutional staking. The biggest challenge for staking on this platform is the high fees.

Staking fees: 25% commission.

Website: Coinbase

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#5) MyCointainer

Best for monthly subscription-based free staking

MyCointainer provides a cryptocurrency exchange, staking and mining platform, airdrop and giveaway services for those wanting to promote their coins, and node deployment for those who want to deploy masternodes, validators, and other types of nodes.

Staking on this platform works by a user searching for a coin to stake from a list of 100+ available. They can then stake one with the highest returns.

The APY returns range up to above 100% for newer protocols like Beyond Protocol, and Decimal, but mostly less than 10% for popular cryptos like Ethereum and Cardano.

Furthermore, it supports delegated staking – any blockchain and crypto developer or owner of a project (whether it has staking supported or not) can register with their crypto, node, and staking protocols to facilitate this staking.

The company looks at the protocol, integrates the mechanism into their platform, and prepares a page about the project on their website to inform users. The staking service serves both custodial and non-custodial goals.

After this, users on the platform can then buy and stake the project coins to the benefit of the developers and also to earn rewards for themselves. It supports both masternode and validator nodes. It also supports DeFi staking and liquidity mining.

Anyone can earn coins by delegating coins to the nodes on the platform, and earn bonuses and 50% of fees back, while still keeping crypto in their secure wallets.

How it works:

• Register, deposit or buy a coin to stake on the platform.
• Go to Assets and select stake coins that offer maximum returns.
• You can also search for registered nodes on the platform, pick a node, and delegate a coin you have deposited in your wallet.
• Developers can register their staking coins to facilitate the staking. Nodes can also register and facilitate this staking.

Features:

• Over 100 cryptos are supported, hence one of the best staking crypto platforms.
• Daily payouts for rewards.
• Buy crypto using fiat methods as well as other cryptos.
• List and promote your coins by registering projects for airdrops, media partners, and other promotional services.
• Android and iOS apps in addition to the web application.
• Referral bonuses.

Pros:

• Earn rewards but also multiple bonuses including 50% of reward fees back to your wallet, skip staking fee on a chosen coin, and giveaway ticket each time you delegate a coin.
• High staking rewards of up to over 100%.
• Multiple coins are at stake and many nodes to which you can delegate coins and earn staking rewards.
• Variable fees on staked coins and nodes.

Cons:

• Staking fees can be high for some tokens, 9%+ on some.

Verdict: MyCointainer offers the best option for those who want to stake any crypto for free by first subscribing to monthly plans. This way, it can be cheaper for high-volume stakers.

Staking fees: Varies per crypto stake or node with which you delegate to stake. Choose Zero Power plan (7.90 Euros per month), 6.70 Euros for zero staking fees on all staked coins, or other subscription plans way up to 25.40 Euros per year.

Website: MyCointainer

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#6) Stakefish

Best for non-custodial staking.

Stakefish provides staking services for blockchain projects, but ordinary users can still join the platform to earn staking rewards through the validator node or staking pool. Besides customers investing with third-party investing projects supported by Stakefish, the platform also allows them to invest in their tokens.

Grant.fish validator is the platform’s validator node with support for projects like Everett, CosmWasm, Chainapsis, and Unslashed. Customers stake these project coins through Grant.fish by delegating the staked coins to the validator node. Customers avoid running their nodes with their own hardware and instead delegate their coins to Stakefish as a validator.

Stakefish does the research needed to identify good and appropriate staking projects for the client. Thus, they list proven projects and not scams.

How to stake with Stakefish:

• Search for staking coin projects supported by Stakefish. Buy coins.
• Delegate Stakefish to stake the purchased coins through it.
• Receive rewards.

Features:

• Support for multiple stake-able projects >20, including Ethereum 2.0, EOS, Cosmos, Tezos, Chainlink, Algorand, Loom Network, IRIS Network, etc.
• Monitor rewards per staked crypto and token from your dashboard. Also, estimate future staking earnings. Check estimated bearish and bullish prices per crypto (yearly, monthly, and daily) before staking.
• Receive first staking rewards after 21 days then once every three days afterward.
• Control your private keys – non-custodial staking.
• Distributed nodes and workers/employees.
• learning materials, including videos.

Pros:

• The team has high experience in crypto matters.
• Non-custodial staking is thus more secure.
• Support for outstanding projects.

Cons:

• Less variation for stake-able projects. Low returns since very few newer projects are supported.

Verdict: Stakefish is for people who do not want to run their validator node to save on staking hardware and service costs. It has a good fees model based on rewards generated, but the projects supported are few and there are very few newer projects that tend to have higher returns compared to tried and tested stake-able projects.

Staking fees: 8% of the block rewards received by delegators.

Website: Stakefish

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#7) eToro

Best for copy trading and investment diversification

eToro is probably the most renowned copy trading and social trading platform, with the possibility for customers to copy trades of experienced users. However, anyone can boost their earnings by crafting trading strategies from scratch.

Furthermore, customers can trade crypto, forex, contracts for difference, stocks, and over 40 other financial instruments. This provides a good asset investment diversity for those who do not feel secure investing their money in one basket. Besides, it provides tight spreads, and leverage trading, and the commission is just 1%.

How to stake on eToro:

• Open and verify your eToro account. Deposit fiat or crypto into the account.
• Click/tap Stake button.
• Select/choose the cryptocurrency to stake.
• Proceed to stake.

Features:

• Staking rewards are paid from the 8^th to the 10^th day after the customer starts staking.
• Staking excluded for crypto held in CFDs, copy trading, copy portfolios, and short positions.

Pros:

• Staking reward splits are high even for renowned crypto. Bronze members get 75% of rewards earned and the rest are fees; 85% for Silver, Gold, and Platinum members; 90% for Diamond, and Platinum+ members.

Cons:

• Just three cryptos are supported for staking on eToro – Cardano, Tron, and Ethereum.

Verdict: Perhaps the greatest challenge for this crypto staking platform is the support for only 3 cryptos, but it offers a great option for crypto investment diversification.

Staking fees/charges: From 25% to 10% of earned rewards.

Website: eToro

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#8) KuCoin

Best for diversified staking with a high return on new tokens/cryptos

KuCoin crypto exchange lets you trade cryptocurrencies and tokens against USD, EURO, and other national or international fiat currencies, or each other. It supports the trading of the crypto on-the-spot market as well as on the derivatives market.

KuCoin users can also craft, collect, and trade NFTs. The exchange supports simple crypto swapping as well as smart and bot trading. Smart trading can be done using advanced order types to maximize profit and limit losses.

Those interested in earning more stability can test the platform’s crypto lending, mining, and staking features. KuCoin Earnings is the place to be for stakeholders because it supports not just long-term rewards but also short-term reward staking.

It means you can stake coins and close the staking to then collect the rewards even in under a week when choosing short-term staking, Otherwise, you can lock in the coins for a year to earn rewards in the long term although there is no compulsory locking as you can withdraw the staked coins any time you wish.

How staking works for KuCoin:

• Open an account or sign up on the website. Click Earn and browse through projects and cryptos that you can stake in the platform. KuCoin indicates the percentage of APR returns and the duration that you can stake the coin.
• Deposit crypto and fiat currencies like USD and Euro using accepted methods. If depositing USD and other national/international currencies, you can click on the Market to buy any token you wish to stake using the deposited national currencies. If depositing a different crypto than the one you want to stake, you can swap crypto for another in the Markets tab. You need to transfer the assets from the trading to the pool-x staking account to start staking.
• Select the crypto you need to stake and proceed to stake.

Features:

• Up to about 70 coins and tokens are supported for staking.
• Stake any algorithm – Bitcoin and other SHA algorithm cryptos, as well as altcoin staking also supported.
• Up to over 100% APY in staking returns for some tokens.
• Mobile apps in addition to the web app.

Pros:

• Other features like learn-to-earn, bonuses, margin trading, bot trading, futures trading, etc.
• Soft staking means you can withdraw coins at any time.
• Flexible staking period, including self-customizable terms.

Cons:

• You must remove the coins from the staking coin account to opt-out, and it is a centralized asset service.
• Minimum staking varies and, in some cases, $100.

Verdict: The best option for high return payouts with over 100 coins available for staking but requires at least a $100 investment.

Staking fees/charges: 8%.

Website: KuCoin

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#9) Gemini Earn

Best for institutional and custodial staking as well as staking by regular traders

Gemini is a cryptocurrency exchange based out of the United States, although it operates in many other countries as well. Gemini Exchange lets you exchange deposited or earned crypto for another or deposited national currencies. You can also rely on the exchange or your charting and analysis to actively trade in crypto spots and futures markets.

Gemini Earn is the exchange’s staking platform that enables customers to earn up to 8.05% APY on BTC, ETH, stablecoins, and other altcoins. Therefore, you can stake even GUSD – the exchange’s stablecoin. It supports the staking of up to 50 cryptocurrencies.

How to stake on Gemini Earn:

• Register and sign in on Gemini. Verify the account if needed. Click or tap on Gemini Earn and scroll through the list of to-be-staked cryptocurrencies. They are listed with their APYs and can confirm the minimum investment per to-be-staked coin.
• Deposit the cryptocurrency you want to stake. Proceed to activate staking.
• Rewards will start to appear two days after activating staking. Afterwards, payouts are daily.

Features:

• Staking limits vary from crypto to crypto – BTC up to $50 million, ETH and GUSD $25 million; DAI and DOGE $12.5 million, etc.
• Custodian staking for institutions, companies, and groups. Insurance covered up to $200 million.
• Multiple other products including crypto trading, Gemini Credit Card, Gemini ActiveTrader – charting, multiple order types, auctions, block trading; Gemini Pay for paying and getting paid goods and services with crypto.
• Mobile apps as well as web applications.
• Soft staking means you can withdraw staked tokens at any time.

Pros:

• High APYs compared to other best crypto staking platforms.
• High staking limit per crypto, favorite for institutional staking.
• Low staking fee compared to other popular exchanges – ranging from 0.06% to 2.43%.

Cons:

• Not available in all countries. Available in 60 countries including the U.S., Canada, Brazil, Singapore, and United Kingdom.

Verdict: One of the best crypto staking platforms for institutional custodial staking but supports a handful of cryptos.

Staking fees: Depends on crypto staked from 0.06% for ZEC, AMP, OXT, REN, and UMA tokens to 3.64% for AXS tokens.

Website: Gemini Earn

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#10) Celsius

Best for zero fee staking. High in-CEL staking rewards.

Celsius lets you swap crypto for another or buy crypto using a credit card or bank account, borrow funds against your crypto, and receive payments or pay for goods/services using crypto, in addition to depositing crypto to earn regular income. Staking on Celsius Network pays up to 18.63% in APY and you get paid weekly.

With Celsius, you can stake up to ten fiat-backed stable coins, 1 gold token, 1 crypto-collateralized stablecoin, and 38 cryptocurrencies.

Customers who are staking coins get paid what they refer to as in-kind rewards at a predefined APY percentage. Accredited investors can earn more by choosing to earn predefined percentage weekly in-CEL rewards on their staked coins.

How to stake on Celsius Earn:

• Sign up for an account and verify if need be. Visit, click, or tap Earn and scroll through the list of supported coins for staking. The coins are listed with their APYs.
• Deposit coins to be staked or bought on the exchange using a credit card or by swapping the to-be-staked token with another token/crypto.
• Go back to Earn, choose the token/crypto to be staked and proceed to stake the amount you wish to.

Features:

• APIs, partnerships.
• Mobile apps.
• Referrals.

Pros:

• Special higher earnings for high net worth and accredited investors who choose in-CEL rewards.
• A diverse number of projects and cryptos with which to stake.
• Visa card to allow easy crypto spending as you earn on your purchases.
• Suitable for corporates, investment funds, and institutions for purposes of business like liquidity provision.
• No staking fees or fees for other services.

Cons:

• Low APYs for newer tokens compared to the other best crypto staking platforms on this list.

Verdict: Save for low payouts and a limited number of staking tokens supported, this staking platform is among the favorites for fee-free staking.

Staking fees: 0%.

Website: Celsius 

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#11) BlockFi

Best for zero fee staking.

BlockFi lets users stake to earn from and take loans against their crypto holdings, and trade crypto. The platform also lets customers receive back (up to 10%) crypto purchase rewards while easily spending from the platform’s Visa rewards card.

Customers can borrow digital assets at 4.5% and earn up to 15% APY with a BlockFi Interest Account. The interest accrues daily.

How to stake on BlockFi:

• Sign up for an account. Verify the account to allow withdrawal.
• Browse interest rates and APYs for supported crypto. APYs are given in tiers based on the number of tokens held. The more you hold, the higher the tier and earning percentage.
• Link a bank account, credit card, crypto, or other account and deposit money.

Features:

• Supports staking of Ethereum, Litecoin, Bitcoin, ChainLink, USDC, Gemini Dollar, Paxos Standard, and Tether USDT.
• In-built wallet with crypto portfolio tracking and tax reporting features.
• No lockup period (soft staking). No minimum balance.
• APYs range from 0.1% to 10%.
• Multiple funding methods – bank, credit card, debit card, wire, and crypto transfers.
• Custom crypto interest rates.
• Suitable for institutions and high net worth people.

Pros:

• Quite high APYs for regular cryptos like Bitcoin and Ethereum.
• Diverse products to fulfill ecosystem needs, including crypto trading, holding, lending, and spending.
• 1+ million clients; $10+ billion assets; $700+ million in crypto interest and rewards earned.

Cons:

• Not available in the U.S. or other countries since the interest accounts are not registered under the SEC.
• Low variability of coins to stake.
• Low APYs.

Verdict: Also a favorite for fee-free staking but supports only a handful of tokens and has a comparatively low payout rate.

Staking fees: 0%

Website: BlockFi

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#12) AQRU

Best for low fee staking.

AQRU lets you exchange about 13 cryptocurrencies for each other (swapping) and invest in their staking product to earn regular passive income. Depositing funds into the USD Stablecoin staking product converts the funds into a basket of USDC, DAI, and other stable tokens.

Maple Finance is a partner with AQRU to facilitate crypto lending at a given APY interest. Loan products supported include Eth and USDC and these apply as spate investment products with the app.

How to stake on AQRU:

• Sign up on the platform. Login. Verify the account to activate deposits and withdrawals. Go to the dashboard and choose Invest, then scroll through the products available for investment. Check the rates. Decide on which to invest in.
• Click or tap Account from the dashboard and then the Deposit button. You can select a bank, crypto, credit, or debit card as a deposit or payment method. Proceed to enter details and verify as per the chosen method. Some are immediate.
• Buy crypto you need to stake. Back to Invest button, click or tap on any investment product, click or tap Invest button, and proceed to stake.

Features:

• Deposit crypto or fiat and invest automatically. Buying and selling are also supported.
• Earn between 1% to 7% staking APYs. Stake BTC, Ethereum, USDC, Maple USDC, and Maple Eth. Bitcoin and Ethereum pay 1%.
• iOS and Android apps in addition to the web application.
• Earn $10 of USDC trial funds and invest automatically.
• Remove funds from the staking wallet daily.

Pros:

• Easy to use platform. Low staking fees.
• Available in most countries globally.
• Android and iOS as well as the web interface.
• Daily withdrawals from the staking account.
• Attractive referrals and sign-up bonuses.

Cons:

• Extremely few staking crypto/coins/tokens supported.
• Low APYs.

Verdict: Best for beginners in staking with its comparatively low commission and also because it supports just three cryptocurrencies.

Staking fees: 0.35% commission.

Website: AQRU

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#13) Uphold

Best for cross-asset trading and seamless conversion.

Uphold supports staking of up to 24 cryptos and tokens including Ethereum, Cardano, Tezos, Tron, Solana, and others. Stakers earn between 1% and 25% in staking rewards depending on which token to stake. For instance, Cosmos, Mina, Band, Polkadot, Kusama, and Kava pay between 10% and 25%.

All rewards are paid every Thursday and are subject to a 15% commission charge. The platform allows you to track all your rewards-to-date from your dashboard.

How to stake on Uphold:

• Step 1: Create an account on the website or mobile app. Verification may be needed to use some features.
• Step 2: Deposit money in form of fiat USD or other currency or crypto. Uphold accepts bank wire transfers as well as card and electronic payment deposits including Google and Apple Pay. Simply log in and from the dashboard, tap or click From to select a payment method and To to select the asset you want to deposit and proceed. Depositing crypto requires you to visit the Deposit feature to find the deposit address for that particular crypto you want to deposit.
• Step 3: Find the Staking menu from your dashboard by clicking the More button and proceed to select the crypto to stake.

Features:

• The time it takes to unstake varies from one blockchain to another but there is a 28-day ‘unbounding’ period.
• Form 1099-MISC provided for US residents to report their income from staking rewards for tax purposes. This applies if the amount is $600 or more.
• The minimum and maximum to stake varies per token. For Ethereum, it is 0.01, and 1 for most other tokens.
• Maximum deposit varies from $/€/£ 500/day for Google Pay and Apple Pay, and $/€/£ 2,500/day for bank card users, up to unlimited value for bank and crypto transactions.
• 2% back on purchases paid in crypto. 1% when paid in US dollars. This is possible using the Uphold Card which allows you to spend crypto easily on ATMs and merchant stores.

Pros:

• Stakers can take advantage of other platform features e.g. spending fiat to buy crypto they want to stake; and seamless, easier and quick conversion of assets from one form to another. For instance, it supports metals, equities, crypto, and other types of assets that can be interchanged seamlessly from the same wallet.
• Tutorials on staking.
• Uphold maintains an insurance policy against crypto theft and keeps assets in cold wallets.
• High staking rewards for some assets.

Cons:

• The platform restricts staking in some jurisdictions – for instance in Japan or Singapore.
• High staking fees.

Staking fees: 15% commission charged on staking rewards.

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What is Cryptocurrency Staking

Staking is the depositing of cryptocurrency in a wallet that provides the chance for the staking node or wallet to verify transactions on the blockchain network. The node is automatically selected from a pool of other nodes or wallets by chance or some pre-determined formula and method to do this verification.

In other words, the wallet is favored to be prioritized to do the verification by some chance, in most cases based on the balance it holds and some other criteria.

The selected wallet or node wins the predetermined staking reward, as per the blockchain in question (sometimes plus the transaction fees). Read the below points if searching for what staking crypto is or how staking crypto works?

How Does Staking Crypto Work

• A person needs to identify a blockchain or crypto or platform that supports staking and depositing the cryptocurrency (ies) to be staked into a staking wallet.
• Users running a staking node (which is basically a copy of the full blockchain or a lighter version of it) may need to download the blockchain or wallet software and keep it online to facilitate the staking. Some can be installed on VPS or a home or office computer.
• In other cases, all a user requires is to deposit crypto on a staking wallet without ever needing to download a wallet or blockchain or keep it online. This is mainly used by staking pools, where the person running the staking node pools money from many investors to then stake it and share the crypto staking rewards. Pooling can increase reward share more than when running a solo node.
• A blockchain that supports staking uses a proof of stake algorithm or protocol to govern transaction verification by nodes or wallets on the network. The protocol mostly favors people with the most wallet balances.
• Each blockchain that supports staking uses its variations of the staking algorithm, though some have similar protocols technically but different rewards awarded to a node that verifies time for verifying a block, block size, difficulty, and other things.
• Proof of staking is equivalent or an alternative to crypto mining as applied to proof of work algorithms where verification relies on who has the most computing power. It is easier to set up and understand, less energy-intensive, and less costly.

Read our other guide on proof of stake protocols to understand what staking crypto means.

Conclusion

This tutorial discusses the best crypto staking platform in terms of the number of cryptos supported, APYs paid, popularity, and fees. Most crypto staking platforms in this list let you stake cryptocurrencies at a lower risk because you can stake over 10 stablecoins and get APYs as high as 7%.

Stablecoin staking is better in a losing volatile market but not in a gaining volatile market. Nevertheless, stablecoins are the best crypto staking coins because they do not lose value over time in unpredictable crypto markets.

In terms of staking reward APYs, Binance is the best staking platform offering up to over 100% on newer tokens, a huge number of staking tokens for staking, and zero staking fees.

However, the staking service is not available for US residents. KuCoin, which is available in the U.S. supports 70+ coins for staking, pays over 100% APY on newer coins, and charges 8% staking fees. Newly listed coins are some of the best crypto staking coins but need to be verified as genuine products and proven that they are not scams.

Coinbase is also a great choice here, although the staking fees are prohibitively at 25%. MyContainer, which also offers over 100 coins for staking, is limited by its higher staking fees – a minimum of $6 per month of subscription for zero fee staking. Otherwise, you will pay up to 9%+ as staking fees without such a subscription.

eToro charges 1% but supports just three coins for staking. Stakefish pays up to 160%+ on newer tokens although it supports just 21 tokens/cryptos.

BlockFi, Celsius, and Kraken allow you to stake at 0% fees and earn up to 23% on newer tokens, although they still offer APYs of below 6% for mainstream cryptos.

• Staking platforms initially considered for review: 20.
• Staking platforms reviewed in this tutorial: 11.
• Time is taken to research and write this tutorial: 25 hours.