Choosing the right validator¶

It might be overwelming when it comes to choosing the right validator to delegate your crypto tokens to as the number of validators keeps growing. We will try to make that decision a little easier for you by dividing them in different categories. But what might be even more important is that, with a little research of yourself, you should choose a validator that fits your needs best!

In general, there are only a few categories to distinct the different types of validators.
Each one of them have their own advantages and disadvantages.

1. Individual validators
2. Exchanges
3. Protocol developer validators
4. Pure infrastructure validators
5. Fund validators

Individual Validators¶

As the name insists, an individual validator typically consists of one to four people and are more focused on one or a small amount of networks. Their smaller size and narrower focus can mean that they are more responsive to the questions and needs of their delegators. They are also very valuable to the decentralization of the network.

A disadvantage of delegating to an individual validator is its less robust support and monitoring when compared to professional validators due to the smaller size of the operation.

Exchanges¶

One of the biggest advantages of staking your crypto with exchanges is your own convenience. It is hands down the easiest staking option as you don't need to worry about keeping your private keys somewhere safe or learning about how to stake. There are also very low to no fees to claim your rewards, which by the way are often automatically added to your staked balance.

On the other hand, by depending completely on an exchage for your staking and key managagement, you have a higher risk to centralise the network you are staking on, earn possibly lower rewards due to fractional staking and you might lose all your funds when the exchange for example gets hacked.

Protocol developer validators¶

In addition to offering staking services, protocol developer validators help the development of and actively contribute code to the networks they support. A big advantage of these validators is that they normally have a lot of knowledge about the networks they support as they are actively involved in development of it. That is why a part of all staking fees are reinvested in the devellopment of the network.

A potential disadvantage of these validators is that they often support only a limited number of networks due to the time and resources required to be so heavily involved in these networks.

Pure infrastructure validators¶

Pure infrastructure validators, like AUDIT.one support a wide range of Proof of Stake networks. These professional validators generally are better at comparing different networks, do their own research and have a good understanding of the overall development of the Proof-of-Stake ecosystem as a whole.

Because this group of validators support several networks, it may be the case that they are less capable of answering very detailed questions about a specific network in comparison to protocol developer validators.

Fund validators¶

Fund validators are less important for people who like to stake their tokens because they usually stake their own assets and are not open to delegations. You will recognize them when the validator fee is 100%.

Which type of validator should you choose?¶

The type of validator you decide to delegate your assets to will depend on your preferences and what kind of token holder you are. You might find yourself fitting in one particular category but you might perfectly find yourself using different kinds of validators for different networks.

• Are you in for the short-term and prioritize convenience?
  → Go with an exchange.
  
• Do you hold one or two Proof-of-Stake coins you strongly believe in?
  → Look for protocol developer validators.
  
• Are you a general supporter of the PoS ecosystem and hold tokens of several different networks?
  → Go for pure infrastructure validators.
  
• Is your absolute priority to increase decentralization?
  → Try an individual validator.
  

Last but not least¶

When choosing the type of validator that fits your needs, you should look for:

• Reliability: Choose a validator that knows what they’re doing. Favor providers with proven experience validating on the network you want to support.

• Communication: Do you get enough information and support from them, on a regular basis? Be sure to pick a team that makes you comfortable and matches your availability.

• Economics: Look for a competitive fee. “The lower, the better”, is not always the best strategy when choosing a validator.

Always do your own research before choosing a network and/or validator to delegate your assets to.