The Problems

Decentralization: presently the top validators have about 10x more stake comparing with the bottom validators. So if the top validators fail to make proposals for an hour, this could take more than an hour to complete an epoch (this should be only 30 minutes), therefore slow down the Radix network and reduce the rewards for all 100 validators.

Maximize Staking Rewards: the most important factor is the Uptime, if the Uptime drop below 98% then the validator receive zero rewards, and all delegators will not receive any rewards for that epoch. When the uptime is 100%, the Fee is the next small factor (assume the fee is below 5%, however for fee above 5% this will reduce the rewards for delegators).

The Commitment: if the owner stakes a lot into his own validator, it usually means that the validator have more commitment to the success of his validator. Additional commitments include the participation in the Radix community, helping other node runners in the Discord channel, etc.

Conclusion: The new Validators List needs to combine all these factors to create a new sorting order that delegators can easily choose validators downwardly the list.

The Solutions

Below are the algorithm to calculate the scores, then combine into the final score (max is 100, the higher score will be in the top of the list). We personally recommend delegators to choose validators from the top (higher score) downwardly to the bottom (lower score) of this list.

Node Stake Score (30%): the validators which have smaller stake will have higher score, because this will created the balance, and more decentralization.

Combined Stake Score (15%): similar to the above score, but we based on the combined stakes (some operators run 2 or more validators). You could check the combined information at Florian Pieper's validators.

Owner Stake Score (15%): Owners who stake more on their validators will have higher score.

Uptime Score (30%): This is very important, the higher uptime means delegators will earn more, the epoch will be faster (so more rewards for all delegators of the top 100 list)

Fee Score (10%): the Fee is needed for covering the hosting and operation cost, but if the Fee is too high this will reduce the rewards.

The Implementation

Development: this website is written in Java/Servlet/JSP and deploy to Google Cloud. We also have some smart cache of data so our website will run at the fastest speed.

Public API: we provide our sorted list as JSON via this endpoint. You are welcome to use our API and if you have suggestion then please let us know.

Our Projects: we believe in the Radix technology and we plan to develop several apps, tools and services for the Radix community. Currently our team are working very hard on the Mobile Wallet for Radix, and we estimate to release the wallet around end of July 2022.

Algorithm Limitation: we recommend all delegators to research on each validators before staking your XRD, especially considering the participation of the node runners in the Radix community. Participating in Radix community show a stronger commitment to the success of their validators and the success of Radix, however we could not include the Participation Score because we do not know how to calculate this score automatically.

I have questions about staking on EasyStake?

EasyStake commits to provide the top-quality staking service, run by experienced team and quick support for our delegators.

We have a separate FAQ page about general staking and our EasyStake's staking service. Please read more.

Can I stake with EXRD?

You can only stake with native XRD, EXRD is an Ethereum wrapper of XRD. You can swap 1:1 from EXRD to XRD in the bitfinex.com (not support United States) or Radix's InstaBridge.io (need KYC via Radix's InstaPass.io)

Note: if you do not stake, you don't have to convert EXRD to XRD.

How can I buy XRD?

You can buy XRD directly at bitfinex.com but you need to check if your country is supported (for example, United States is not supported).

If you cannot use bitfinex, you could buy EXRD on Uniswap, www.gate.io or www.kucoin.com , then convert from EXRD to EXD (see previous question).

If I stake on the top validators, will I earn more?

The short answer is No. Assume the validators are in the Top 100 list, your staking rewards only depend on the Uptime and Fee. And the Uptime is the most important factor for maximizing your rewards, so please research before stake your XRD.

Should I choose the validators with less stakes?

Generally if you stake on validators with smaller stake, you will help these validators get more stake, and help create the balance between validators in the Radix network. However this is only one factor, and you should consider other factors when you research the validators.

Should I choose the validators with zero fee?

As long as the fee is reasonable, you should choose them. Please keep in mind that the fee will help covering the hosting and operation cost. Also some validators have 0% fee for a limited time, so you need to check their fee policy on their websites.

I cannot see the validators outside the top 100?

Because if a validator not in the Top 100 list, then it will not participate in making the proposals, therefore its Uptime is always 0%, and we cannot calculate score in this case. Because our list only includes validators in the Top 100 list, you can be sure that you always get your rewards.

How can I check my reward?

The official Radix Desktop Wallet does not show the rewards, but you can notice your account balance is increased about every 30 minutes. Actually the rewards are automatically staked after each epoch, so you will compound interest. For detailed rewards please check the Radix Portfolio.

Can I stake on my mobile phone?

Presently the official Radix Desktop Wallet only run on Windows, macOS and Linux. However our team at EasyStake are working on the mobile wallet for your iPhone/Android phone, which will be available around end of July 2022.