Users can participate and contribute to the decentralization of the Avalanche Network through the Stake feature in Core web. Core Stake makes it easy for users to stake assets directly to their Avalanche validating node.
When users stake their tokens, they can receive rewards from the protocol for securing the network. With Core Stake, users don’t have to trust a 3rd party dApp or protocol to invest or custody their funds. These are the users' funds, staked to their own validator.
1. Make sure the Core extension is connected to Core web and navigate to Stake.
NOTE: Core Stake is currently only available through Core extension or direct Ledger connection to Core web. If not already installed, Core extension can be installed on Google Chrome here.
2. Once connected, navigate to the Validate panel.
NOTE: To add stake to a validator, users need to have previously set up a node. Please view these developer documents to learn how to set up a node before continuing.
When ready to begin, click “Get Started”.
3. To validate, AVAX will need to be present on the P-Chain. The current available balance will be displayed to the user, and if no AVAX is currently available, the options of transferring from the X or C Chains, swapping other C-Chain tokens, or buying AVAX will be available.
How to transfer AVAX
How to transfer AVAX
Click on the “Transfer AVAX” button.
Choose the source chain (Either X or C in this situation) and make sure the destination chain is set to P.
Enter the amount of AVAX to be transferred.
Click “Confirm Transfer”.
Users will then approve the export transaction from the source chain and the import transaction on the P Chain.
Click the “back” button to return to the Choose Staking Amount screen.
How to swap AVAX
How to swap AVAX
Click on the “Swap AVAX” button.
Select a C-Chain token in the “from” category and choose the amount of the token to swap.
Select AVAX as the “to” token, and the conversion will happen automatically.
If desired, click on “Show Details” to modify the slippage.
When satisfied with the swap, click “Swap”.
Users will then be prompted to approve the swap transaction.
Once approved, click the “back” button to return to the Choose Staking Amount screen. Users should then follow the Transfer AVAX instructions listed above to transfer the AVAX to the P-Chain.
How to buy AVAX
How to buy AVAX
OnRamper
OnRamper
1. In the Command Center, select “Buy”.
2. Enter the amount in the desired currency to spend.
3. Select the Avalanche C-Chain token to be purchased.
4. Choose the preferred method of payment.
NOTE: An optional step includes users being able to select the onramp service being used from fiat to crypto. Clicking on the conversion rate below the amount of AVAX being received will display the available onramps for the user's region and selected payment method.
5. Click "Buy AVAX" and then follow the prompts to enter the necessary information for OnRamper to complete the purchase.
Moonpay
Moonpay
1. In the Command Center, select “Buy”. Toggle to "Others" and then select "MoonPay".
2. A pop will appear to notify users that they are about to proceed to a 3rd party payment service. Click "Continue".
3. Enter the amount of money to spend to see the conversion of how much AVAX will be received. After clicking "Continue", follow the prompts to enter the necessary information for MoonPay to complete the purchase.
Coinbase Pay
Coinbase Pay
1. In the Command Center, select “Buy”. Toggle to "Others" and then select "Coinbase".
2. A pop will appear to notify users that they are about to proceed to a 3rd party payment service. Click "Continue".
3. Log into the already established Coinbase account.
4. Follow the prompts to enter the necessary information for Coinbase to complete the purchase.
NOTE: If there is an existing balance of AVAX on Coinbase, it must be cleared out or moved before purchasing additional AVAX through Coinbase Pay.
The Knowledge Base, including all the Help articles on this site, is provided for technical support purposes only, without representation, warranty, or guarantee of any kind. Not an offer to sell or solicitation of an offer to buy any security or other regulated financial instrument. Not technical, investment, financial, accounting, tax, legal, or other advice; please consult your own professionals. Please conduct your own research before connecting to or interacting with any Dapp or third party or making any investment or financial decisions. Coinbase Pay, MoonPay, OnRamper, and any other third-party services or dApps you access are offered by third parties unaffiliated with us. Please review this Notice and the Terms of Use.
NOTE: If users have previously delegated or locked AVAX, the available balance may likely be smaller than the total balance in the connected wallet. Users can hover over the tooltip for more information.
After acquiring AVAX and entering the amount to validate, click “Next”.
NOTE: To stake on an Avalanche mainnet validator, users need 2000 AVAX. As an alternative, users can delegate to a validating node for 25 AVAX.
4. Next, users will enter their Node information. Users will also need to enter their BLS Public Key and BLS Signature for their node. Users are able to use the info.getNodeID AvalancheGo API call to get this information. To learn more about the BLS Public Key and Signature, please check out the developer documentation here.
Making the API call via terminal
Making the API call via terminal
Making the API call via Postman
Making the API call via Postman
To learn more about making API calls via Postman please check out this guide from developer documentation .
REMINDER: users must already have a node created and running to be able to validate to it. If that node is not already established, please view these developer resources.
After entering the above information, click Next.
5. Next, choose a staking duration. A graph is present to represent the potential reward based on the duration that AVAX is staked.
NOTE: These estimates are based on the current supply of AVAX. Please see the Avalanche documentation for more information on rewards calculations.
There are multiple predefined durations available to choose from, as well as a “Custom” option where the user can select a personalized end date for their staking period.
If choosing a custom date, users are able to select a specific date within the minimum and maximum stake dates from the pop-up calendar.
NOTE: The minimum stake period for validating is 14 days for the Avalanche Mainnet. Users are NOT able to unstake their AVAX in the middle of a validation period. Please proceed with caution when selecting an ending date for validation.
NOTE: These estimates represent the average rewards generated by the network over the specified duration and are provided for informational purposes only, without any representation, warranty, or guarantee, and do not represent any assurance that you will achieve the same results.
6. After entering their validation duration, the user will choose the address the rewards will pay out to. Users can choose between their connected P-Chain wallet address, or enter a custom address.
After choosing the address for rewards to be sent to, click “Next”.
7. Next, users will select the delegation fee that will be charged to the delegators when they delegate AVAX to this validator. Users can also specify which address they want the delegation rewards to be sent to.
NOTE: The minimum delegation fee is 2%. The maximum fee is 100%.
8. Finally, users will view a summary of their validation information. Users can go back to adjust any submitted information, reset the setup, or complete the validation by hitting the “Submit Validation” button.
Users will then be prompted to confirm the transaction on Core extension.
9. Once completed, users will see their validation was successful. They can then view the transaction information on the Avalanche Explorer or return to Stake.
NOTE: After approving the transaction, it may take a few minutes for the Staking to begin.
When clicking on the transaction ID, users will be able to view the validation transaction and some Node information.
When clicking on the Node ID, additional information on the validating node will be brought up, including delegator stake, delegator count, and validation history.
Note: If using a Ledger, the Ledger app has a tx size limit. Due to this, you may need to delegate/stake in portions if the tx size is too large for the Ledger to process.
Now, other users will be able to delegate to this node when staking their AVAX.
For a narrated video tutorial on how to set up a validator in Core web's Stake, please view the Youtube video here.
For any additional questions, please view our other knowledge base articles or contact a support team member via the chat button. Examples are for illustrative purposes only.