💪 Tendermint Validators & Staking
Learn how validators are selected based on bonded stake
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Tendermint validators are responsible for proposing and voting on blocks. They must bond (stake) tokens as collateral, which can be slashed if they misbehave. Delegators can stake tokens with validators to earn rewards and help secure the network.
The Validator Role
Secure Infrastructure
Validators run nodes with high uptime, low latency, and secure key management (HSMs recommended).
Consensus Participation
Must vote on every block proposal. Missing votes reduces rewards and risks slashing.
Token Bonding
Validators bond tokens as collateral. More stake = more voting power and proposer selection weight.
Delegation
Accept delegated stake from token holders. Validators earn commission on delegator rewards.
💹 Interactive: Validator Rewards Calculator
Calculate your potential rewards and risks as a Tendermint validator:
No Issues
Validator is performing correctly with no infractions.
Annual Staking Rewards
1,485 ATOM
15% base APR × 0.99 uptime
Commission Earned
742.5 ATOM
From 50,000 delegated @ 10%
Effective APR
22.27%
Net rewards after slashing
Total Annual Rewards
2,227.5 ATOM
Bonding & Unbonding
Bonding Process
To become a validator, you must bond tokens by sending a special transaction. Bonded tokens are locked and earn staking rewards.
- •Tokens are immediately bonded when transaction confirms
- •Voting power activates in next epoch
- •Begin participating in consensus and earning rewards
Unbonding Period
To withdraw staked tokens, you must wait through an unbonding period (typically 21 days). This protects against long-range attacks.
- •Tokens are locked for ~21 days after unbonding request
- •No rewards earned during unbonding period
- •Still subject to slashing if misbehavior is discovered
Slashing Conditions
⏸️ Downtime Slashing (~0.01%)
Validators that miss signing a large number of consecutive blocks (typically ~9,500 out of 10,000) are considered offline and get slashed a small amount.
- • Penalty: ~0.01% of bonded tokens
- • Validator is "jailed" and must manually unjail to resume
- • Protects network liveness by penalizing lazy validators
⚠️ Double-Sign Slashing (~5%)
If a validator signs two different blocks at the same height, it's evidence of Byzantine behavior. This is the most severe penalty.
- • Penalty: ~5% of bonded tokens (configurable per chain)
- • Validator is permanently removed from validator set
- • Protects against equivocation and consensus attacks
🛡️ Evidence Submission
Tendermint has built-in mechanisms to detect and report misbehavior. When a validator double-signs, any node can submit cryptographic evidence to trigger slashing automatically.
Why Slashing Matters
Slashing is a core economic security mechanism. By requiring validators to put capital at risk, the network ensures honest behavior is incentivized. Validators must weigh the cost of running secure infrastructure against the risk of losing their stake.
In Cosmos Hub, the total bonded stake is typically $1B+, meaning potential slashing losses can reach millions of dollars for misbehaving validators.
Validator Set Size
| Chain | Max Validators | Typical Uptime | Block Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cosmos Hub | 180 | 99.9% | ~7 seconds |
| Osmosis | 150 | 99.8% | ~6 seconds |
| Juno | 125 | 99.7% | ~5 seconds |
| Evmos | 150 | 99.9% | ~2 seconds |