Staking Parameters by Network: Reference Table

Entry last verified June 2026. Rates change continuously; the structural parameters change rarely.

The parameters that matter

Parameter	What it determines
Minimum stake	Whether you can run a validator yourself
Unbonding period	How long funds are locked after requesting exit
Slashing conditions	What behaviour destroys stake
Commission	What the validator takes from your rewards
Reward source	Issuance, fees, or both

The unbonding period

The most practically important and the most overlooked.

During unbonding you earn nothing and cannot sell. If the price falls substantially during a multi-week exit queue, you watch it happen.

Queue length varies with how many others are exiting simultaneously, which means the period can extend beyond the stated minimum precisely when everyone wants out.

Slashing versus penalties

Slashing destroys stake and applies only to equivocation: signing two contradictory things. Rare, and severe when correlated across many validators.

Downtime penalties are not slashing. They cost the rewards you would have earned plus a small additional amount. Recoverable.

The distinction matters because delegators frequently assume any validator problem destroys their stake. Most do not.

Commission

Set by each validator and published. Rates vary substantially across operators on the same network.

A low commission from an operator with poor uptime is worse than a higher commission from a reliable one, because missed attestations cost more than the commission difference.

The routes

Route	Custody	Fees	Lock-up
Run your own validator	You	None beyond costs	Full unbonding period
Delegate to a validator	You	Commission	Full unbonding period
Exchange staking	Venue	Platform fee	Venue policy, sometimes shorter
Liquid staking	Protocol	Protocol fee	None, via a tradeable receipt

The figures to collect before starting

The protocol’s gross rate, the validator’s commission, any platform fee, the unbonding period, and the tax treatment of rewards where you live.

The first four are published. Platforms offering staking publish the second and third in their fee schedules, including venues where the asset is listed for retail purchase.

The fifth requires a professional opinion in most jurisdictions, and it is frequently the largest cost for a small position, because rewards received frequently in small amounts produce a record-keeping burden disproportionate to their value.