How much does an Airdrop cost?

[bitmover]

I decided to write a new topic about this after a small chat I had with bill gator.
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=3055616.msg35719449#msg35719449

In my opinion, airdrops are a waste of time and they are not free, you pay with your privacy and your time.

I barely see people talking about this point of view regarding airdrops, probably because most articles regarding this subject are "sponsored" by some campaign...

I joined a bunch of airdrops last year, about 20, I was paid by only a few of them (about 5). I have sent documents, telegram, created a twitter (already deleted anyway), etc.... did a bunch of useless tasks and received from 5cc to 20 usd.
Conclusion: waste of time and risky.

Even my reputation could be at risk since I do not know what they will do with those docs. They marked me as a customer through KYC, only to inflate their numbers, although I am not really their customer, this is all too dirty.
In addition, exposing your email to these companies may incur an additional risk to your security. Your email can be distributed to third parties, exposing your e-mail to phishing and other types of scams.
As bill gator said, I just did free advertising in social media for them. This advertising through a marketing agency would be more expensive.  

I think it's a shame to see so many people here in bitcointalk participating in all those airdrops and time consuming bounties (such twitter campaigns)... they get involved mostly with bad actors, scammers and shitcoins. That's why so many people here say "ICOs are all scam". Well, they are not; there are many good ICOs around there.

You could make a better use of your time by studying and educating yourself about crypto. In the long term, you will make more money educating yourself than joining bounties and airdrops.
Shitposters and spammers dominate most altcoin related discussion here. Although I have discovered some nice altcoins here, mostly of these are associated with good managers and do not spam the forum.

I don't know exactly where to post this. Bitcoin discussion I think is not appropriated because this is altcoin related. If I post on the altcoins sessions only spammers and shitposters will see it... Any ideas? I can move it elsewhere, but I think this is somewhat forum related.

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[DooMAD]

I don't know exactly where to post this. Bitcoin discussion I think is not appropriated because this is altcoin related. If I post on the altcoins sessions only spammers and shitposters will see it... Any ideas? I can move it elsewhere, but I think this is somewhat forum related.

It's hopefully something the more seasoned denizens of the forum already understand, so I'd say Beginners & Help would be the most constructive.


For the topic at hand, Airdrops fall into the same category as ICOs.  The vast majority probably aren't worth wasting your time on, but if you're very fortunate, a rare few may prove profitable.  

To date, I've only claimed one Airdrop, which didn't require any KYC and wasn't one of the myriad Bitcoin forks.  So far, at least, it's been a win for free BTC without consequence.  Still holding some of it too, just in case it has an even better future.  I guess that makes me one of the lucky ones.  

I made sure I read plenty about it first.  It seemed safe, but I had no way of knowing that for sure when I installed the software to claim it.  There's a chance my PC could have been infected/hacked and I could have lost my bitcoins.  Some gambles do pay off, others don't.  I may not be so lucky if I indulge my greed a second time.

[bitmover]

I don't know exactly where to post this. Bitcoin discussion I think is not appropriated because this is altcoin related. If I post on the altcoins sessions only spammers and shitposters will see it... Any ideas? I can move it elsewhere, but I think this is somewhat forum related.

It's hopefully something the more seasoned denizens of the forum already understand, so I'd say Beginners & Help would be the most constructive.


For the topic at hand, Airdrops fall into the same category as ICOs.  The vast majority probably aren't worth wasting your time on, but if you're very fortunate, a rare few may prove profitable. 

To date, I've only claimed one Airdrop, which didn't require any KYC and wasn't one of the myriad Bitcoin forks.  So far, at least, it's been a win for free BTC without consequence.  Still holding some of it too, just in case it has an even better future.  I guess that makes me one of the lucky ones. 

I made sure I read plenty about it first.  It seemed safe, but I had know way of knowing that for sure when I installed the software to claim it.  There's a chance my PC could have been infected/hacked and I could have lost my bitcoins.  Some gambles do pay off, others don't.  I may not be so lucky if I indulge my greed a second time.

Thanks, just move to beginners board.

I am really afraid of those shady Wallets out there too... I don't download them. This makes Airdrops even more risky

[jacee]

I decided to write a new topic about this after a small chat I had with bill gator.
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=3055616.msg35719449#msg35719449

In my opinion, airdrops are a waste of time and they are not free, you pay with your privacy and your time.

-snip-

Even my reputation could be at risk since I do not know what they will do with those docs. They marked me as a customer through KYC, only to inflate their numbers, although I am not really their customer, this is all too dirty.
In addition, exposing your email to these companies may incur an additional risk to your security. Your email can be distributed to third parties, exposing your e-mail to phishing and other types of scams.
As bill gator said, I just did free advertising in social media for them. This advertising through a marketing agency would be more expensive. 
 

This is indeed true and I had to learn this the hard way. I used to view airdrops as a good source of free coin. Turns out that these airdrops, tho requires a little work is risky and the coins rarely have any value.
All the emails that I have used previously in joining in airdrops were flooded by spam emails about ICOs and airdrops that then turned out as a scam pump and dump.
Even my email is used in accessing my account on exchanges which is partly my fault for being oblivious of this scheme.

[Trofo]

Absolutely agree with OP. Airdrops are something most of have to try for ourselves before we decide they aren't worth our time. That especially goes for all airdrops which require you to do something. Airdrop should be absolutely free & without any tasks attached, except KYC if necessary. All the airdrops that require social media advertising are actually bounties and I just skip those.

Regarding installation of wallets for airdrops. Be sure to use separate machine or at least Virtual machine. It is just to easy to get some nasty malware/virus/trojan or whatever that way.

[mk4]

I joined a bunch of airdrops last year, about 20, I was paid by only a few of them (about 5). I have sent documents, telegram, created a twitter (already deleted anyway), etc.... did a bunch of useless tasks and received from 5cc to 20 usd.
Conclusion: waste of time and risky.

Well damn. I didn't actually know airdrops required documents as I've never got interested in airdrops anyway. Definitely a no for me then. I don't even feel comfortable giving my bitcoin wallet address to airdroppers, what much more my personal documents? It pretty much is like just selling your information to them. Definitely not worth the few dollars.

[cryptosec.info]

This is why most airdrops should be frowned upon in my opinion. The tokens you get aren't actually "free". Nothing in this world is completely free.

Andreas Antonopoulos has a good video about this topic: Bitcoin Q&A: Airdrop coins and privacy implications: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JHRnqJJ0rhc

[BQ]

I agree with your privacy concerns, but how common are the KYC requirements?

I never apply to any bounty that asks for email and such, even if they're legit, I sometimes find these spreadsheets with just thousands of emails.
that, combined with bitcointalk username, one could cross reference from some password database and possibly find passwords, other sites using the same username and such.
quite a security issue that many people don't seem to really care about!

[mithrim]

It's the same as with everything else (in crypto), it evolves. The "early" airdrops were definitely not a waste of time and/or money and are now worth thousands of dollars. But also airdrops in mid/late 2017 could have made you a bunch of money with near to nothing required of you.
If it's too much of you to ask to either raise your hand and/or to create a twitter and facebook account in exchange for hundreds of dollars, then, well, airdrops really aren't the right thing for you. But if you only made ~$20 per drop, then I'd say that you chose the wrong airdrops  

The requirement of KYC is a relatively new practice and I wouldn't do it, ever. Same is with bounty campaigns that require it. Only over my cold dead body.

[Krochines]

I suppose that  participating in some kinds of airdrops its just burning your time. First, it takes a long time when you finally will get tokens to your wallet. Also, no one promises you that you will get it at all. I think the more secure way is a participant in bounties. Yes, it's a little complicated, but in most cases you will get your tokens if you participate in really serious projects.

[CryptoEnthused]

Agree. Worse than airdrops is only faucets. You're giving away your personal info and get a few dollars in return. Or nothing at all. And then you never know how they can use your data.

[Lektai]

The cost of an airdrop is dependent on various factors
*The ico price
The price when it hits an excha
How useful the project is...all these should be considered when filling for airdrops...
Expect that most aidrop are scams now and a total waste of precious time

[bitmover]

Absolutely agree with OP. Airdrops are something most of have to try for ourselves before we decide they aren't worth our time. That especially goes for all airdrops which require you to do something. Airdrop should be absolutely free & without any tasks attached, except KYC if necessary. All the airdrops that require social media advertising are actually bounties and I just skip those.

Regarding installation of wallets for airdrops. Be sure to use separate machine or at least Virtual machine. It is just to easy to get some nasty malware/virus/trojan or whatever that way.

I think KYC is the worst part of those airdrops.
I am out of all of them, except if I am really interested in the coin and willing to buy it.

[jseverson]

Well if you could provide details of throwaway accounts and stuff, that would mitigate most of the privacy risks. KYC is a huge factor though, and you should definitely not give away your information unless you're absolutely sure the project will be worth it. I personally don't bother with airdrops and bounties, and I certainly would never think of it if I had to provide personal details, but they do seem to work for some people, and they do seem to believe it's worth it. Different strokes for different folks, I guess.

I have to note that they're part of the reason why crypto is often dismissed as a scam though. It wouldn't be fair to say they're all shit, but those that are give crypto a bad reputation.

[Dingdongjl]

In my opinion, airdrops are a waste of time and they are not free, you pay with your privacy and your time.

I strongly agree with this statement, most of airdrops in my experience are worthless of your time and there is a higher risk to your accounts joining airdrops.

[RivAngE]

I'm using a different email account for airdrops and I never bother to join one if they require real life data.
If they give some free ERC20 token by just providing them your Ethereum public address, so then be it.
I kinda feel like a collector who gathers different tokens, this has is a joy in itself and one of my collected token might end up having a value one day!

[Syka]

i have been doing airdrops, and bounties, but not for long. at first it was like all ok. but then i saw, its so many of them, how should i know which is good and which not, how to not waste time on bad ones. i mean im not some broker, how should i know this all. and then some of my friends got scamed. on telegram some dude keeps poping offering to make fast btc, just give him etc wallet. then the companies asking for photos of id. and then, when regestering on their sites type email and pasword. and i thought, well, i cant alwayas keep making up new paswords. also there will be people who will use the same email and pasword on etc walet and on sites, and if those sites still info and pass the tokens to them self, then what, nothing. so i started slowly, to read ico rewievs, still not sure what im doing, but i guess its important to stard doing something while being vigilante and think twice are and which info about yourself you are gonna send to which site. 

[bitmover]

i have been doing airdrops, and bounties, but not for long. at first it was like all ok. but then i saw, its so many of them, how should i know which is good and which not, how to not waste time on bad ones. i mean im not some broker, how should i know this all. and then some of my friends got scamed. on telegram some dude keeps poping offering to make fast btc, just give him etc wallet. then the companies asking for photos of id. and then, when regestering on their sites type email and pasword. and i thought, well, i cant alwayas keep making up new paswords. also there will be people who will use the same email and pasword on etc walet and on sites, and if those sites still info and pass the tokens to them self, then what, nothing. so i started slowly, to read ico rewievs, still not sure what im doing, but i guess its important to stard doing something while being vigilante and think twice are and which info about yourself you are gonna send to which site.  

Yes, I agree. Using the same password in each website and the same e-mail is dangerous.

Personally, I would just join an airdrop or a Bounty that pays in tokens for  a project which I would invest in the ICO.

[akishang]

I agree. Airdrop is a waste of time as of now because of the low amount sent to our ethereum address. To be exact, airdrop distribution won't go beyond $20 in my experience. We all know that there will be fees when we transfer to an exchange and when we convert it to cash, almost nothing is left. Much better to just pass on airdrops because of the risk of getting your information. It can also hurt your reputation since most of them requires retweeting or sharing a page on social media.

[Shingaling]

yes airdrop is a waste of time for others,but for me its not because even if i get a small amount of profit it is ok and when that small amount put togehter it will become big,i need money badly that is why i am joining aitdrop and bounty.

[TheHas]

It's kind of like facebook - if it doesn't cost you anything, then YOU are the product.

[bitmover]

It's kind of like facebook - if it doesn't cost you anything, then YOU are the product.

Yeah, this is true.

And people are giving their data freely. It costs much more than an airdrop

[bkrobottc]

Only you are leader and make many referral, do airdrop will effect. If you do it alone, it waste time  so much, some project scam, some project give us a little bit money not enough for fee > In general, it waste time and not effective.

[vphasitha01]

It's kind of like facebook - if it doesn't cost you anything, then YOU are the product.

I had to agreed with your consice explanation and I have found quite interesting fact about the phrase "You are the product". It is firstly appeared 1986,in a speech where President Reagan addresses to the nation on the campaign against drug abuse

[HabBear]

Worse than airdrops is only faucets.

Airdrops are worse than faucets. With faucets you're guaranteed to get paid and usually in the most common cryptocurrency: Bitcoin. Additionally, faucets don't care who you are, they only need a destination wallet for payouts.

Faucets are getting so good that freebitcoin is paying 4% APR interest on all deposits over 30,000 satoshi. They're actually doing it right!

The worst thing I hear from beginners is when they talk about having to buy into an airdrop. These devs just prey on the newbies to pump a coin for a minute that will end up in the rubbish bin!

[Komorhan]

the guys are launching a $ 1 airdrop and people are constantly joining. it will never be $ 2 when it comes out to a $ 1 coin market. I write that you should not attend when I see you. and even the bounty is becoming so bad. I joined 4 weeks twitter bounty. I earned 4 tokens. To receive this, we have to be a member of the site and send 0.0028 eth. and finally I have to go to KYC. I am surprised know what I am.

[pealr12]

Ive participated in airdrops before and its worth my time, and you will get some amount of rewards unlike today its now a waste of time, almost everyday you will see new airdrop that will waste your time.

[mithrim]

To receive this, we have to be a member of the site and send 0.0028 eth. and finally I have to go to KYC. I am surprised know what I am.

If an Airdrop requires you to send them money and your personal data, avoid it by all means. Seriously. I don't get why people are that careless with their data.

[bitmover]

To receive this, we have to be a member of the site and send 0.0028 eth. and finally I have to go to KYC. I am surprised know what I am.

If an Airdrop requires you to send them money and your personal data, avoid it by all means. Seriously. I don't get why people are that careless with their data.

Those "airdrops" which ask for money are all scam.

Many influent people in the crypto community, such as Vitalik Buterin (https://twitter.com/vitalikbuterin) are using their name on Twitter as "Vitalik Non-giver of Ether", so people can avoid those scams easier.

[shawnkathus]

There are now many projects that have created airdrop. They request to send an ETH amount to their contract and will receive some tokens. After checking, I found 2 smart contracts of this project are designed quite similar and there are some people who have deposited their money to receive the shit token.
These are 2 smart contracts fake fork projects:
BytomGold: 0xb2c2dc3697467676907c225b12989f08123c3d69
Vechain Classic: 0xd95b501353acd941d65f1321bd336bb96192be5a

[lamontmarshall570]

i have been doing airdrops, and bounties, but not for long. at first it was like all ok. but then i saw, its so many of them, how should i know which is good and which not, how to not waste time on bad ones. i mean im not some broker, how should i know this all. and then some of my friends got scamed. on telegram some dude keeps poping offering to make fast btc, just give him etc wallet. then the companies asking for photos of id. and then, when regestering on their sites type email and pasword. and i thought, well, i cant alwayas keep making up new paswords. also there will be people who will use the same email and pasword on etc walet and on sites, and if those sites still info and pass the tokens to them self, then what, nothing. so i started slowly, to read ico rewievs, still not sure what im doing, but i guess its important to stard doing something while being vigilante and think twice are and which info about yourself you are gonna send to which site.  

Yes, I agree. Using the same password in each website and the same e-mail is dangerous.

Personally, I would just join an airdrop or a Bounty that pays in tokens for  a project which I would invest in the ICO.

i lost  my email because airdrop form on google, be careful of it, now i use other email and password for  earn bounty and airdrop.

[cestmoi]

Hey,
i don't agree with you.

Maybe today you have to give away your privacy, but this wasn't always the case in the past.

I was there but missed on the NEM airdrop.
All you had to do is to use your Bitcointalk account and get 1.2 million XEM.
On of my friend kept his share (and still has it!)

Back in 2015 you could create a fake Facebook and claim 10 000 XLM
I still have mine (i sold 50% last January).
Recently you had the ELIXXIR airdrop (about 18 months ago) that at the top of last January was about 50k usd for free. No KYC was needed.

Those are just 3 examples among many where  you didn't have to give any private details and you would get a high reward (sometime after years of waiting).

[bitmover]

-snip-

Those were rare findings among a giant sea of trash Airdrops, which pays for less than 5 cents.

General rule: Airdrops are worthless. Sometimes they may become valuable, but just a few of them.

[Onuohakk]

In my opinion airdrops are just a share waste of time.
When I came into the cryptocurrency space newly I engaged myself in series if airdrops but the end result of most of them where worthless

[kakonhat]

Even my reputation could be at risk since I do not know what they will do with those docs. They marked me as a customer through KYC, only to inflate their numbers, although I am not really their customer, this is all too dirty.

I think documents are very anxious for fraud project. You already said that you participated about 20 but you have got only 5. This also happens to me even I did more but I got mostly nothing but I don't like to join any airdrop which asks documents. But I am very concern those bounties where I submitted my documents but those were not legit.

[Raymondavid47]

Honestly I think I agree with you concerning this topic. Most airdrops in recent times have proven to be total waste of time. Projects now uses airdrop has means just to fill their Telegram group with users. Most airdrops are now worth less than gas fees. But nevertheless you should still be on the look out for good ones. It might come in handy.

[Nnuego]

Airdrop is really big waste of time. You'll be doing airdrop for months, at the end you won't a damn after must data and task carried out. Airdrop is never encouraging, I won't advice someone I know to join it cos quite annoying and so much palaver in it

[DDante]

Well here comes my answer, since the first day I've joined crypto space all the money I've ever made from crypto are from airdrops ,I join multiples of airdrops and I was able to make from 20$ - 200$ ,I think you got it all wrong ,some airdrops are worth your time

[bernardos]

Well here comes my answer, since the first day I've joined crypto space all the money I've ever made from crypto are from airdrops ,I join multiples of airdrops and I was able to make from 20$ - 200$ ,I think you got it all wrong ,some airdrops are worth your time

I seriously doubt you made $200 on an airdrop anytime in the past year. You joined the forum last month so you haven't been here long which doesnt mean you couldnt have participated in airdrops without be a member on this forum but the two usually go hand in hand.

I know that Energi had a decent airdrop - actually earndrop and the coin is doing really good in terms of value, cant remember another airdrop that was worth the time. 

[Turk Ace]

Don't waste your time with airdrops. Most people just see oh free coins and want them. Only do real airdrops from actual projects. Some airdrops don't even exist and there will never be paid since there was never an intention on paying anyone in the first place.

[hatshepsut93]

The golden times of free money in crypto are gone. I came a bit late to the party as I joined this forum in 2016, but I still participated in airdrops and bounty campaigns back then, and some of them were very lucrative. The biggest I remember awarded 0.35 BTC for a few weeks of wearing their signature - that's more than $3500 today. Similarly, you could get something like $50-100 of value from airdrops at that time. But now the market is oversaturated with shitcoins, and altcoins generally are no longer interesting to investors like they used to be, so all these altcoin-related activities are becoming a huge waste of time.