If you have been in crypto space at all, there is a high chance that you have heard about crypto airdrops. If you have not, crypto airdrops, or simply airdrops, are free tokens distributed by a crypto project. Some of them are worth millions, and some are not. Either way, crypto airdrops are a great way to earn free tokens, get exposure to new crypto projects, and earn some free money.

Why Cosmos Airdrops?

The Cosmos Ecosystem is one of the pioneers in the crypto space, and this is not by chance. The Cosmos Ecosystem is quite different to all other blockchains out there, for example; Ethereum, Solana, Sei Network, Binance Smart Chain, Avalanche. This is because how the Cosmos Network was designed at inception. It was designed to be a network of independent blockchains connected together through the magic called IBC (Inter-Blockchain Communication protocol).

IBC allows data transfer between different blockchains within the Cosmos Network–something that is very tough and often falling for security risks in other blockchains. This enabled airdropped tokens to be distributed among any blockchain within the network easily. So, a holder of a token of X blockchain could easily receive the token of a newly launched Y blockchain.

Before the previous Bull market of 2019-2021, the Cosmos Ecosystem folks enjoyed some juicy airdrops worth thousands of dollars. The Bear market that followed kicked activity to a lower gear, but the ecosystem as a whole has been growing exponentially.

The total number of IBC-enabled chains in Q4 2021 was 31, the same was 53 in Q4 2022, and it has reached 107 chains in Q4 2023. We can see that the Cosmos Network is growing almost 100% every year.

The Ultimate Cosmos Ecosystem Airdrop Guide for 2024

So, we want to be positioned well to receive the most airdrops possible from newly launched blockchains and applications built on these chains in 2024. The same pattern repeated since the launch of the Cosmos Ecosystem and will continue in the years to come. But there are couple of differences from then to now–there are more and more chains and projects being built 1) there are more airdrop opportunities, 2) there are so many tokens to select from for eligibility criteria for airdrops.

Navigating the Cosmos Ecosystem is not for the faint of heart. There are hundreds of tokens native to the blockchains within the ecosystem and then there are foreign tokens from outside the ecosystem such as wETH, wBTC, wSOL, wBNB, wADA, wMATIC, and so on. The question of what to buy, what to stake, and what else to do to be eligible for Cosmos airdrops can get quite confusing.

But, fear not. I have been lurking in the Cosmos Ecosystem for almost two years and have been fortunate enough to be eligible for most airdrops since. So, keep reading to find out what you can do to maximize airdrop eligibility in the Cosmos Ecosystem in 2024.

1. Cosmos tokens to stake for airdrops

Almost all of the airdrops so far have prioritized some shape and form of token holding and staking within the ecosystem. Cryptocurrency staking is when you lock some tokens in a protocol to secure the blockchain of that token. Read this for a more comprehensive guide on what staking is.

Now, the question is what Cosmos tokens to stake. Below is a list of tokens you can buy and stake to be included in 95% of airdrops to come, and my justification for each token.

• $ATOM – the OG Cosmos Hub token. Almost all airdrops so far have considered staking $ATOM to be an eligibility criteria for airdrops, and I do not expect this to change in 2024.
• $OSMO – token of the most-used decentralized exchange (DEX) in Cosmos Ecosystem. Historically, most airdrops have considered $OSMO stakers as eligibility criteria (more recently, $TIA and $SEI airdrops).
• $INJ – native token of the Injective chain–a fast growing chain bringing in a suite of defi and on-chain entertainment such as NFTs and games. Many applications are being built on Injective right now, so there will be some airdrops happening from these projects in 2024.
• $TIA – native token of Celestia network–the first modular blockchain and a leader in ‘data availability’ solution provider for blockchains outside of Cosmos Ecosystem as well. This is a brand new chain (launched in Nov 2023) and many projects are being built on/adopting Celestia tech. Already four airdrops are confirmed for $TIA stakers, namely from Manta Network, Dymension, Movement Labs, and Caldera. 2024 and onward will be incredible for $TIA stakers.
• $KUJI – native token of the Kujira Ecosystem within Cosmos Ecosystem. Kujira is a full-fledged suite of defi products and a very fast growing ecosystem with many applications being built. So far, we have seen several airdrops to $KUJI stakers (namely; $PLNK, $NSTK, $WINK, $ROAR, $FUZN, and more) and more are planned as of now (eg: $RAPTR, $DOKI, $AQLA, $QUIRT, and more).
• $SCRT – native token of the Secret network, a chain prioritizing privacy. However, many applications are being built on the chain right now, and could potential be home to some good airdrops in 2024.
• $STARS – native token of the most popular NFT platform in Cosmos Ecosystem. $STARS token has been growing in significance within the ecosystem recently and has been an eligibility factor in the past.
• $WHALE – native token of the Migaloo ecosystem that aims to be the liquidity hub of the Cosmos interchain. A full-fledged ecosystem is developing over at Migaloo and many new protocols are being built. Some have already communicated plans to airdrop tokens to $WHALE holders ($ERIS, $GIN, $SOUL, and more).

Now that we have identified some of the tokens, the next question is how much of these do we need to stake to be eligible for most airdrops! I will try to list down the number of tokens of each in the list below, however, the more tokens you hold, the higher airdrop percentage.

• $ATOM – 50 minimum ($568 total at today’s price)
• $OSMO – 100 minimum ($161 total at today’s price)
• $INJ – 10 minimum ($362 total at today’s price)
• $TIA – 100 minimum ($1,182 total at today’s price)
• $KUJI – 100 minimum ($420 total at today’s price)
• $SCRT – 100 minimum ($53 total at today’s price)
• $STARS – 5,000 minimum ($145 total at today’s price)
• $WHALE – 2,000 minimum ($80 total at today’s price)

I will write another article with details on how to buy and stake each token for the uninitiated. Join our email list to keep an eye out for this article and more.

2. Ecosystem participation for airdrops

So you bought a bunch of tokens and staked them with validators. Your groundwork for Cosmos airdrops is laid out now. However, the grind does not stop there.

Many airdrops do give some weightage to ecosystem participation. This is crypto jargon for actually using the chains and applications built on it. A blockchain contains various applications that serve the ecosystem. Osmosis chain contains the Osmosis Dex, Kujira ecosystem contains a dozen applications, Injective ecosystem contains a dozen applications and so on.

Using these applications require you paying fees to the protocols as well as validators who ensure transactions are posted on the blockchain. These fees keep the chain alive, the developers paid, and validators paid for their services. So, aside from buying and staking tokens, an equally important responsibility of an airdrop chaser is to use the applications. Many airdrops outside of the Cosmos ecosystem use this as a key metric to amplify the airdrop quantity ($ARB).

The recent Celestia airdrop is often hailed as a masterclass in airdrops. It factored in user activity across blockchains by number of transactions, recency of transactions, number of active months, age of the wallet, total value of transactions, $ value of transaction fees paid, and for Cosmos, factored in the IBC transaction count in addition to other factors mentioned above.

Levana Protocol is only airdropping $LVN tokens to their protocol users. Quasar Finance is only airdropping $QSR tokens to their application users.

Try to be as humanly as possible when conducting these transactions as well. Simply, use the applications as they are intended to.

2.1 Provide liquidity in LPs for airdrops

Liquidity is tokens that facilitate trades. This is the base that fuels decentralized finance on blockchains, hence almost all chains and projects encourage users to add liquidity to liquidity pools (LPs) of different token pairs. For example, $ATOM/$OSMO liquidity pool would contain $ATOM and $OSMO tokens and enables the two token trades between each other.

Airdrops have often favored liquidity providers in the eligibility criteria as well. So, it might be a good idea to provide liquidity across some liquidity pools across a few chains (Osmosis Dex, Kujira Bow, Blackpanther vaults). Keep in mind that providing liquidity involves risk (impermeant loss), please read about it and be aware of the risks before you proceed. If you do end up wanting to provide liquidity after understanding its risks, you are better off by providing around $100 for each token pair you select. The token pairs can be the same tokens above paired with each other or with USDC, USDT, or USK stablecoins.

3. Governance participation for airdrops

Decentralization implies power to many. In blockchain world, true decentralized decision-making is achieved through governance voting for proposals. These proposals determine the future of a chain or an application, and plays a crucial part in a blockchains decentralization metric.

Many airdrops within and outside of Cosmos Ecosystem have used governance participation as a decider or a multiplier for airdrops. Simply voting yes, no, no with veto, or abstain can turn your eligibility for an airdrop in favor. The choice of your vote does not really matter in this case. What matters is your participation.

The Cosmos Ecosystem has no owners or venture capitalists making decisions about the future of the network. So, individual participation is crucial 1) to hit the minimum quorum required to pass a proposal, and 2) make a decision on the proposal proposed. If this fails, the chain would fail to improve.

4. NFTs for airdrops

Non-fungible Tokens (NFTs) have played a key role in blockchain adoption in the past few years. Who doesn’t want to own a cute animal picture or a sick warrior digital art on the blockchain that has a value?

Owning NFTs have not been a significant factor for airdrops until recent times, but the winds are changing.

‘Bad Kids’ is a collection of childish drawings of humans launched the Stargaze NFT platform in Cosmos. These NFTs got caught in a whilrwind since its launch and has grown multiple times of its initial mint price. As of today, the floor price of these NFTs sit at 53,000 $STARS (roughly $1,560 at today’s price). The recent Namada airdrop ($NAM) had Bad Kids NFT holders as one of the eligibility criteria for $NAM airdrop.

The upcoming $RAPTR airdrop by Rapture is including NFT communities such as Bad Kids, Rekt Gang, Women from Cosmos, Pixel Wizards, and Gelotto in their airdrop.

Bad Kids collection is launching their own token ‘BAD’ which will obviously be airdropped to Bad Kids NFT holders.

With the significance of NFTs growing in the Cosmos ecosystem, it might be time to look for some blue chip Cosmos NFT collections such as Bad Kids, Bit Kids, Stargaze Punks, Manta Squad, Kujirans, Rekt Bulls, and so on.

5. Testnet participants for airdrops

Almost all of the chains and applications go through some sort of testing phase before they get released to the public use. Some testnets are very guarded and some are not. Some testnets require technical knowledge to operate and some do not. Some testnets require a lot of effort and some do not. But all the testnets give you the opportunity to interact with a protocol as early as possible for free.

Testnets run on value-less tokens and these are usually provided free of charge for testors. So, in essence, testnets require users’ time and effort, for which some testnets reward in airdrops when they launch mainnet to the public. Look out for the term ‘incentivized testnet.’ This means that testnet participants are guaranteed a reward. But you might have to look into more details to find out what this reward is–sometimes it is an NFT and other times it is airdrops on mainnet.

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If you cover the above four bases, you are very well positioned for the juicy Cosmos airdrops in 2024. More is always better when it comes airdrops, so more tokens staked, more liquidity provided, more governance votes, more application usage, and more NFTs held will help you get more airdrop rewards. But we have to start somewhere.

It is highly advisable to connect with some like-minded airdrop chasers in the Cosmos Ecosystem such as Airdrops One, Cosmos Airdrops, Atoms Research, and Airdrop Glideapp.