Liquidity Mining Calculator
Estimate your potential earnings from liquidity mining while understanding the risks. Input your investment details to see how much you could earn across popular DeFi platforms.
Results will appear here after calculation
When you hear "liquidity mining," you might think it’s just another buzzword in crypto. But if you’ve ever wondered how people earn passive income just by holding crypto - without selling - this is where the real money moves. In 2025, liquidity mining isn’t just a side hustle anymore. It’s a core part of how decentralized finance works. And if you know where to look, you can earn steady returns without needing to trade constantly.
What Exactly Is Liquidity Mining?
Liquidity mining means you lock up your crypto in a smart contract to help other people trade or borrow assets. In return, you get paid - usually in the form of trading fees and extra tokens. Think of it like renting out your car for Uber, but instead of a car, you’re lending crypto. The platform you’re lending to pays you because it needs your assets to make trading smooth and fast.
It’s not magic. It’s math. Every time someone trades on a decentralized exchange (DEX), a small fee is charged. That fee gets split among everyone who provided liquidity. Plus, many platforms give out their own tokens as extra rewards. That’s where the big yields come from - but also where the risk hides.
Uniswap: The Original and Still the Safest
If you’re new to liquidity mining, start here. Uniswap launched in 2018 and became the blueprint for everything that followed. It runs on Ethereum and lets you add liquidity to token pairs like ETH/USDC or DAI/WETH. You put in equal value of both tokens - say $500 in ETH and $500 in USDC - and you get LP tokens back as proof of your share.
Uniswap doesn’t give out fancy reward tokens anymore, but it still pays you 0.3% of every trade in the pool you’re in. That’s not flashy, but it’s reliable. Over time, those fees add up - especially if you pick a high-volume pair like ETH/USDT. The platform has over $12 billion locked in its pools as of late 2025, and it’s never been hacked. That’s rare in DeFi.
Best for: Beginners, long-term holders, low-risk earners.
Curve Finance: The Stablecoin Powerhouse
Stablecoins are boring. That’s why they’re perfect for liquidity mining. Curve specializes in swapping stablecoins - like USDC, DAI, USDT, and FRAX - with almost zero slippage. Because these tokens are pegged to $1, price swings are tiny. That means almost no impermanent loss, which is the biggest killer of liquidity miner profits.
Curve pays you trading fees and CRV tokens. But here’s the trick: if you lock your CRV for up to four years as veCRV, you boost your rewards by up to 2.5x. Some users are pulling in 8-12% APY just from stablecoin pools, with almost no risk. That’s better than most savings accounts in New Zealand.
Curve’s pools are also used by big institutions. If you’re looking for steady, predictable income without the rollercoaster, this is your spot.
Best for: Risk-averse users, stablecoin holders, those who want consistent yields.
SushiSwap: High Reward, High Risk
SushiSwap started as a copy of Uniswap. But instead of resting on its laurels, it turned into a DeFi monster. It offers dozens of liquidity mining campaigns every month - often for new, low-market-cap tokens. That’s where the 100%+ APYs come from.
But here’s the catch: those tokens can crash 90% in a week. If you’re mining liquidity for a new token like $BONK or $PEPE, and its price drops hard, you could lose more than you earn in rewards. That’s impermanent loss in action. SushiSwap also charges higher gas fees on Ethereum, so small deposits often don’t make sense.
Still, if you’re willing to do your homework, SushiSwap gives you early access to tokens that might explode. Some users turned $1,000 into $15,000 by jumping on a SushiSwap campaign six months before a token hit CoinGecko. But you need to know when to exit.
Best for: Active traders, risk-takers, those who track new projects closely.
Balancer: For the Portfolio Builders
Most platforms force you into 50-50 token pairs. Balancer lets you build your own. Want a pool with 40% ETH, 30% LINK, 20% UNI, and 10% DAI? You can do that. Balancer lets you create pools with up to eight different tokens and set custom weights.
This is ideal if you already hold a diversified crypto portfolio and want to earn fees without selling. You’re not just providing liquidity - you’re automating your rebalancing. And you still earn BAL tokens on top.
The downside? It’s complicated. If you don’t understand how weights affect your exposure, you could end up with way too much of one token. And like everything on Ethereum, gas fees eat into small profits.
Best for: Experienced users, portfolio managers, those who want control.
Bancor: Single-Sided Liquidity Made Easy
One of the biggest headaches in liquidity mining? Having to buy two tokens just to deposit. What if you only have ETH and don’t want to buy USDC? Bancor solves that. It lets you add liquidity with just one token. The protocol automatically balances the pair behind the scenes using its own smart token system.
This reduces your exposure to impermanent loss and cuts down on transaction steps. Bancor also uses a system called the Bancor Relay to stabilize prices, making it safer than most AMMs for volatile assets. It’s not the highest-yielding option, but it’s the most user-friendly for solo investors who hate complexity.
Best for: Simple, hands-off miners, those with single assets to deploy.
Compound and Yearn: Lending vs. Automation
Compound isn’t a DEX - it’s a lending protocol. You deposit ETH, USDC, or DAI, and borrowers pay interest. You earn that interest, plus COMP tokens. Yields are lower - usually 3-7% - but the risk is minimal. Compound has been around since 2019 and is used by institutions. It’s the DeFi equivalent of a government bond.
Yearn Finance is the opposite. It’s an automated yield optimizer. You deposit your crypto into a Yearn vault, and it moves your funds across Compound, Aave, Curve, and others - chasing the highest returns. It compounds your earnings daily. Some vaults have hit 40%+ APYs. But if you don’t understand how it works, you could lose money to bad strategy or a smart contract glitch.
Best for: Compound - conservative earners. Yearn - advanced users with time to monitor.
Where the Real Money Is in 2025
The best liquidity mining opportunities aren’t on Ethereum anymore. They’re on layer-2 chains like Arbitrum, Base, and Polygon. Gas fees are 100x cheaper. Rewards are higher. And the platforms are still growing.
For example, the Arbitrum ecosystem now has over $5 billion in liquidity mining rewards distributed across dozens of protocols. Platforms like Camelot and Balancer on Arbitrum are offering 15-30% APY on stablecoin pairs - with near-zero slippage and tiny fees. Same with Base, where Coinbase-backed projects are flooding new pools with incentives.
Even better? Many of these chains let you stake your LP tokens to earn even more. It’s yield on top of yield. But always check the project’s tokenomics. If a platform is giving out 100% APY, ask: "Where’s the money coming from?" If it’s just new investors paying old ones, it won’t last.
What to Avoid
Don’t chase the highest APY without asking these three questions:
- Is the project audited by a reputable firm like CertiK or SlowMist?
- Is the liquidity locked? (Check on platforms like Team Finance or RugDoc)
- Are the rewards sustainable? Or is it a pump-and-dump?
Also, never use a bridge unless you’re certain it’s trusted. Cross-chain bridges have lost over $2 billion since 2021. Stick to native chains when possible.
How to Start in 2025
Here’s a simple plan:
- Start with Curve Finance and deposit USDC/DAI. Earn 8-10% APY with almost no risk.
- Once you’re comfortable, add a small amount to Uniswap ETH/USDC. Learn how fees compound.
- Then, try one high-yield pool on Arbitrum - but only with money you can afford to lose.
- Use a wallet like MetaMask or Rabby to track your positions. Never leave funds on an exchange.
- Reinvest your rewards. Compounding is your best friend.
Don’t try to do everything at once. Liquidity mining is a marathon, not a sprint. The biggest winners aren’t the ones who caught the biggest yield - they’re the ones who stayed in the game.
Final Thought
Liquidity mining isn’t about getting rich overnight. It’s about building a passive income stream that works while you sleep. In 2025, the best opportunities are still out there - but they’re quieter. They’re not on TikTok. They’re in the code. They’re in the audits. They’re in the long-term pools with real usage.
If you treat it like a business - not a lottery - you’ll do better than 90% of the people trying it.
Is liquidity mining safe?
It’s safer than some crypto trading, but not risk-free. The biggest dangers are smart contract bugs, impermanent loss (when token prices move apart), and scams. Stick to well-audited platforms like Uniswap, Curve, and Balancer. Never invest more than you can afford to lose.
Can you lose money doing liquidity mining?
Yes - and it’s common. If you provide liquidity for ETH and USDT, and ETH’s price doubles, your share of the pool becomes unbalanced. You’ll end up with more USDT and less ETH than you started with. That’s impermanent loss. It’s not a loss until you withdraw, but it can eat into your rewards. Stablecoin pools reduce this risk dramatically.
Do you pay taxes on liquidity mining rewards?
In most countries, including New Zealand, receiving new tokens as rewards is treated as taxable income at their fair market value when you receive them. Selling those tokens later may trigger capital gains tax. Keep detailed records of every deposit, reward, and withdrawal. Use tools like Koinly or CryptoTaxCalculator to track it.
What’s the difference between liquidity mining and staking?
Staking means locking up crypto to help secure a blockchain (like Ethereum 2.0 or Solana). You earn interest for supporting the network. Liquidity mining means you’re providing trading pairs to a decentralized exchange so people can swap tokens. You earn fees and bonus tokens. They’re both ways to earn passive income, but they serve different parts of DeFi.
Which platform has the best APY right now?
As of late 2025, Arbitrum-based pools like Camelot and Balancer are offering the most consistent high yields - around 15-25% APY on stablecoin pairs. On Ethereum, Curve’s 3pool still leads for safety and steady returns. Avoid platforms offering over 50% APY unless you’ve thoroughly checked their tokenomics and liquidity lock status.
Should I use a wallet or an exchange for liquidity mining?
Always use a non-custodial wallet like MetaMask, Rabby, or Trust Wallet. Exchanges don’t let you interact with DeFi protocols directly. You need to send tokens to a smart contract - and only your own wallet can do that. If you use an exchange, you’re just holding crypto, not mining liquidity.
Eli PINEDA
1 11 25 / 11:12 AMwait so you just... throw eth and usdc in and it magically makes money? i thought crypto was supposed to be risky lol
Masechaba Setona
2 11 25 / 23:52 PMlol this is just a fancy way of saying 'give your coins to strangers and hope they don’t rug you'. i’ve seen 30% apy pools vanish in 48 hours. stay away from anything that sounds too good to be true.
Vicki Fletcher
4 11 25 / 12:14 PMCurve is the only thing that makes sense... seriously, why would you risk your capital on some random token with a meme dog logo? Stablecoin pools are the boring, reliable, adult way to earn. I’ve been in 3pool for 18 months and I’ve made more than 90% of the ‘degen’ traders on Twitter combined.
alvin Bachtiar
4 11 25 / 23:11 PMUniswap is dead. The fees are pathetic. You’re literally getting paid in pennies while the protocol takes 0.3% from every trade. If you’re not on Arbitrum or Base, you’re paying for the privilege of being a liquidity donkey. Also, who still uses ETH for anything besides gas?
ISAH Isah
5 11 25 / 09:50 AMThis article is a corporate propaganda piece disguised as financial advice. The real liquidity mining is happening on private orderbooks and centralized exchanges. DeFi is just a sandbox for retail investors to lose money while VCs cash out. You think Curve is safe? Their treasury is 70% locked in their own token. It’s a Ponzi with a whitepaper.
mark Hayes
5 11 25 / 16:48 PMi started with curve last year and just kept reinvesting. now i’ve got a little stream going while i play vidya. no stress, no watching charts. just chillin. if you can handle 8% without losing sleep, you’re already ahead of most people.
Sammy Krigs
7 11 25 / 07:30 AMi tried balancer and i think i lost more than i earned because i put in 60% eth and 40% usdc and eth went up and i had less eth than i started with??? why does this even work??
Nadiya Edwards
9 11 25 / 05:12 AMAmerica is getting wrecked by this crypto nonsense. You people think you’re investing, but you’re just feeding a global casino that’s run by offshore devs with no accountability. Your ‘passive income’ is just a tax on gullibility.
Mehak Sharma
10 11 25 / 23:07 PMLiquidity mining is not about chasing APY, it is about understanding the underlying mechanics of price discovery and market making. The true power lies in combining yield with portfolio rebalancing. When you use Balancer to hold a 40-30-20-10 mix, you are not just earning fees, you are automating your asset allocation. This is institutional-grade strategy made accessible. Do not underestimate the power of passive rebalancing.
naveen kumar
12 11 25 / 20:54 PMYou say Arbitrum is safe? What about the 2024 bridge exploit that drained $180M? And now they’re giving out 25% APY? That’s not yield, that’s a countdown timer. The only thing that’s growing faster than the APY is the number of exit scams. Don’t be the last one holding the bag.
Kymberley Sant
13 11 25 / 12:49 PMi thought u had to have like 10k to start? i only got 2k and now im scared to put it in anything because i read somewhere that if one token drops 10% u lose 15% of your stuff??
Wesley Grimm
14 11 25 / 06:00 AMThe real issue isn’t the platforms. It’s the psychological trap. You think you’re earning passive income, but you’re actually addicted to notifications, APR dashboards, and the dopamine hit of a new token airdrop. You’re not building wealth. You’re feeding a behavioral addiction disguised as finance.
Malinda Black
14 11 25 / 20:00 PMIf you’re new, start with Curve. Just do it. Don’t overthink it. Put in USDC/DAI, lock your CRV, and let it sit. You’ll make more than your savings account and you won’t lose sleep. No need to chase 50% APYs that vanish next week. Be the turtle, not the hare.
Debby Ananda
15 11 25 / 19:07 PMHonestly? If you’re not using a wallet with built-in risk analytics and automatic slippage alerts, you’re playing Russian roulette with your portfolio. I use Rabby with custom alerts on impermanent loss thresholds. It’s not sexy, but it’s how real DeFi adults operate. 🧠🔐
Nabil ben Salah Nasri
16 11 25 / 09:05 AMI love how this post treats liquidity mining like it’s some new invention. In 2017, we called it ‘yield farming’ and everyone lost their shirts. The names change, the scams stay the same. But hey, if you wanna give your crypto to strangers and hope they don’t run… go for it. 🙏💸
bob marley
18 11 25 / 03:40 AMYou mention SushiSwap as ‘high risk’? That’s like calling a nuclear reactor ‘a bit warm’. If you’re mining $PEPE on Sushi, you’re not investing - you’re funding a meme factory. The only thing you’ll earn is regret and a new NFT of a crying dog.
Hanna Kruizinga
18 11 25 / 14:47 PMI put $500 into a ‘high-yield’ pool on Base and got 120% APY for 3 days. Then the token crashed 97%. I lost $480. Now I just keep my crypto in MetaMask and stare at it. At least it’s not gone.
Derek Hardman
20 11 25 / 11:48 AMIt is worth noting that the regulatory landscape surrounding liquidity mining rewards remains in flux. In jurisdictions such as the United Kingdom, HMRC treats token rewards as income, and failure to report may result in penalties. Comprehensive record-keeping is not optional - it is a legal obligation. Consult a tax professional familiar with crypto-assets.
Chris Strife
22 11 25 / 11:26 AMThis whole post is a scam. Why are you telling people to use Arbitrum? Because your buddies are pumping tokens there. The real winners are the ones who sold early. The rest of you are the liquidity. You’re the fuel. Don’t be the gas.
Genevieve Rachal
23 11 25 / 20:07 PMI’m sorry, but if you’re still using Uniswap in 2025, you’re not a DeFi user - you’re a museum exhibit. Everyone moved to layer 2s years ago. You’re clinging to Ethereum like it’s 2021. Your ‘safe’ APY of 0.3%? That’s inflation. You’re losing money. Wake up.