It is not unusual to see major crypto projects reward their early users with airdrops. Previously, major crypto protocols such as Uniswap, 1inch, dYdX, Osmosis, Ampleforth and ENS have handed out tokens to their users.
It is impossible to say whether a project will do an airdrop or not, but by simply using crypto and trying out dApps (decentralized apps), you may potentially qualify yourself for thousands of dollars. It is also impossible to say in advance what the specific requirements for an airdrop are, but it generally revolves around using the platform for its main purposes (for example: exchanging tokens on an exchange).
Some airdrop recipients decide to exchange their airdrops and take out profits immediately, while others hold on to their airdrops due to a legitimate interest in the project.
Regardless of whether you simply want to get paid, or have future influence over some of the biggest projects in crypto, here is a list of the top 10 potential crypto airdrops in 2020! We list each potential airdrop, we look at the probability, and we try to guess how you can qualify.
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MetaMask
Airdrop probability: Medium
How to qualify: Create a wallet and use the swap function
MetaMask has been rumored to release a token for a long time. But now it seems more likely than ever – one of the developers told users to stay tuned for a token.
Perhaps anyone with a MetaMask wallet would qualify, but it is likely that they will have some additional requirements for eligibility. Perhaps it could be the age of the wallet, how long it has been funded, how many funds you have on it, or most likely whether you have used the built-in swap feature.
We recommend that you create a MetaMask wallet if you haven’t already. Make sure to transfer some funds to it. And then make a few swaps. This will cost a few hundred dollars in fees if you are using Ethereum, but it will likely be worth it. If you don’t have the budget to do ETH swaps on MetaMask, you can swap on the Binance or Polygon chains instead. Do it more than once and keep your wallet funded after the swap!
zkSync
Airdrop probability: Very high
How to qualify: Make transactions on zkSync
zkSync is probably the most likely airdrop of them all – and it could also be the biggest one due to the potential of zk-rollups.
This Ethereum scaling solution is incredibly convenient and the team behind zkSync is very much in tune with the community. On the zkSync Twitter account, they have hinted to an airdrop multiple times, and the team clearly wishes to let the community govern the protocol in the future. The zkSync token will likely be used to govern the layer 2 network and you should be able to stake the token to help secure it.
There are different guesses as to how you qualify for the airdrop. The best guess is that you will need a funded wallet on the zkSync layer 2 network. On top of that, you can increase your chances by making a few transactions. You could send funds between two wallets, you could perform a swap on an exchange, or you could mint an NFT. We are guessing that any type of zkSync usage would qualify you for an airdrop – so get started sooner rather than later!
There are rumors that if you might also qualify if you help test out the uni.zksync.io exchange. This is free to do, so give it a shot.
ZigZag
Airdrop probability: Very high
How to qualify: Connect to zkSync and exchange tokens on ZigZag
ZigZag is an exchange on zkSync. They have also mentioned that there will eventually be a token. If we are lucky, it will be distributed to the users of the platform. For this reason, try to make a few trades on ZigZag. The gas fee is around $1 per transaction, so you can easily make a few fills. Try to do multiple swaps instead of just one – ZigZag might require a certain number of swaps, or a certain volume for users to qualify for an airdrop.
Arbitrum
Airdrop probability: Low to medium
How to qualify: Bridge ETH to Arbitrum and make transactions
Arbitrum is one of the layer 2 solutions to Ethereum. Fees are quite a bit lower – and will get even lower in the future – while you get access to many of the same dApps as you do on Ethereum.
This project does not need a token, but if other layer 2 solutions decide to airdrop, Arbitrum might elect to do the same to keep interest among users high. Therefore, we need to prepare. The best ways to qualify for a potential Arbitrum airdrop is to bridge tokens from Ethereum to Arbitrum through the official bridge. Then, make a few transfers or transactions. You could also provide liquidity since liquidity providers often get additional tokens during airdrops.
Optimism
Airdrop probability: Low to medium
How to qualify: Bridge ETH to Optimism and make transactions
Optimism is also a layer 2 solution. The situation is similar to that of Arbitrum: Optimism doesn’t really need to release a token, at least not at the moment, but it could be a way to empower the community and decentralize further. Optimism has frequently rewarded users in the past, so it is not unlikely that there will be an airdrop. Use the official bridge, do some transactions, and provide liquidity on Optimism dApps if you can!
Rubicon
Airdrop probability: Medium
How to qualify: Exchange tokens or provide liquidity
Rubicon is an application on Optimism. It is essentially an exchange where you can swap tokens for relatively low fees. The unique thing about Rubicon is the way the liquidity pools work. You can provide liquidity with a single token, you do not need to use a pair, and the benefits are currently huge. It comes at a risk, and unlike in other liquidity pools, you can theoretically lose all your money on Rubicon since the pools work in a different manner. But it seems to be worth it to try it out – we recommend that you do a few swaps and most importantly provide some liquidity on Rubicon in order to qualify for a potential airdrop.
Hop Exchange
Airdrop probability: High
How to qualify: Bridge tokens or provide liquidity
Hop Exchange is an extremely useful application. It allows you to effortlessly (and almost instantly) transfer tokens between different layer 2 chains and other network. Hop currently supports Ethereum Mainnet, Arbitrum, Optimism, Polygon and xDai. Whereas you would have to wait for over a week when transferring from the official Arbitrum or Optimism bridge back to Ethereum, it would take less than an hour on Hop.
Many exchanges have given their users airdrops over last two years, and Hop might very well be the next one to do it. So try to bridge token at least once. Using Hop through Ethereum will probably give you the best chances of an airdrop and it is certainly worth the one-time fee. If you want to do multiple hops, you can switch between Polygon and xDai where fees are minimal. You can also provide liquidity to Hop Exchange. We recommend doing that with the Matic token since fees to enter and leave the liquidity pool are low, and since the rewards are quite decent.
A potential airdrop from Hop would be huge since this platform might become extremely important in the crypto sphere when layer 2 usage is normalized. The protocol could be worth in the future.
Zapper
Airdrop probability: Medium to high
How to qualify: Use the Zapper interface and earn XP
Zapper is a dashboard where you get access to all things related to DeFi. After connecting your wallet, you are able to see your entire crypto net worth. On top of that, you can use Zapper to connect to various DeFi protocols – which is very useful if you want to swap tokens, provide liquidity into a pool, lend or borrow money, or anything else of that nature.
Zapper already rewards users by giving XP points whenever you perform an action on the dashboard. With enough XP, you can mint Zapper NFTs.
It is reasonable to think that Zapper might release a token one day. If you want to qualify for it, you should use the interface. Try to use Zapper in different ways, preferably on the cheap Polygon network, and mint some of their NFTs.
Cowswap
Airdrop probability: Very high
How to qualify: Swap tokens on Cowswap and hold the GNO token
Cowswap is an exchange that works on the Ethereum and xDai chains. There are very strong rumors that Cowswap will do an airdrop, likely in January 2022. Whether or not it is too late to qualify, we don’t know. But it makes sense to try the platform. We recommend using Cowswap on the xDai chain since fees are extremely low. Holding the Gnosis (GNO) token could be a requirement for the airdrop since Gnosis basically runs the chain and the exchange. If Cowswap develops into a major exchange at some point, this airdrop could be worth a lot.
Slingshot
Airdrop probability: Low to medium
How to qualify: Swap tokens
Slingshot is an extremely practical trading platform. You can use it on the Polygon network where fees are low. Slingshot lets you search for prices throughout the market and gives you access to most of the liquidity pools out there. For this reason, you will often get positive slippage (receiving more tokens than you actually should) when you swap through Slingshot.
There’s no official word on whether Slingshot will release its own token, so we only have rumors to work with so far. But Slingshot could turn into one of the largest trading platforms in decentralized crypto, so a potential Slingshot airdrop might just come at some point. Use the platform to swap tokens if you want to qualify – we recommend that you perform multiple swaps rather than just doing one. Volume and/or number of transactions could be qualification factors.
Polymarket
Airdrop probability: Low
How to qualify: Bet on scenarios / make predictions
Polymarket is a decentralized platform for betting and predictions. We absolutely love this application since it allows everyone to bet on certain scenarios using USDC on the Polygon network.
After transferring USDC to Polymarket, there are no additional gas fees whenever you make a bet. Yet, everything is recorded on-chain. You can bet on various scenarios in society and in sports. The odds gradually change, depending on the market, and you can trade out any time you like at the current market price. There are no minimum limits, so you can even deposit a small amount like $2 and make your first bet.
If Polymarket makes it big – and we believe it could – there could be a token used for governance and staking. It would then likely be given to those who have previously used the application. So by all means, go to Polymarket to make some bets and predictions. It is fun, it can be profitable, and there is a chance you can qualify for an airdrop. Perhaps volume will be a factor if they decide to do an airdrop, so it is best to make multiple bets when you have signed up. You can only deposit USDC and you should do it on Polygon where fees are low. Again, after the deposit, you won’t have to pay any additional gas fees for making bets and predictions.
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And that’s it for now – several interesting crypto projects that are rumored to release tokens in the future. By using these platforms now, you might be able to earn thousands of dollars in the future. Remember that there is never any guarantee of an airdrop, nor that anyone who uses a platform will be eligible for it, but for speculators and crypto enthusiasts it certainly makes sense to try these options.