Understanding the ICP token

Engage with the Internet Computer and its ecosystem through the use of its native utility token.

Powers computation, staking, voting, governance & ownership.

The ICP token plays a number of roles on the Internet Computer. Firstly, as a governance token, it can be staked to exercise those governance rights. As a utility token, it can be burned to obtain ‘cycles‘ which serves as gas for computation and storage in canister smart contracts. It can also be minted to reward ‘node machine‘ providers for providing that compute and storage.

In addition to these core uses, ICP tokens can be used to participate in decentralisation swaps to become a co-owner of an SNS DAO, and when using many smart contract services built on the Internet Computer such as registries, marketplaces and exchanges.

The ICP token implements the ICRC-1 standard.

ICP token utility

Participate in governance
Burn for cycles
Participate in decentralisation swaps
Reward node machine providers

Cycles

Stable cost of compute & storage
Fuel storage, compute, & bandwidth

Gas fees for end users

$0.00096

Ledger TX Fee

1-2s

Finality

Locked in governance

Ways to use ICP tokens

Participate in governance

The Internet Computer Protocol is run by the NNS, the largest DAO managing an L1 blockchain. ICP token holders can participate in network governance simply by staking tokens in neurons and locking them with a specified dissolve delay (time to unlock). A neuron with a dissolve delay greater than 6 months can vote on governance proposals and earn rewards. ICP neuron holders can also submit proposals to make changes to the protocol. This open and autonomous governance system runs 100% on chain, and currently holds over 250 million locked ICP.

Participate in governance by staking ICP

Burn for cycles

Unlike other smart contract blockchains, the Internet Computer runs on a “Reverse Gas Model”. This means computation and storage costs are paid for by developers, and developers are responsible topping up smart contracts with cycles to fuel the compute power and storage of their dapps. The Reverse Gas Model allows users to interact with dapps on the Internet Computer without tokens, and as seamlessly as they would on any Web2 application.

Use ICP in the ecosystem

Store ICP in wallets, swap it on DEXs, collect NFTs or tip friends while chatting. The Internet Computer is home to a growing ecosystem of dapps, many of which use ICP.

Check out dapps

Where to get ICP

The ICP token is widely available on centralized exchanges.

Complete list on CoinMarketCap

Swap BTC for ICP on a DEX.

Directly fund a ckBTC wallet with BTC and swap it for ICP using any of these DEXs — all without centralized exchanges. This was made possible on the Internet Computer through native Bitcoin integration.