# Rewards

Where protocol revenue comes from, how it is split, and what node operators and depositors are designed to earn.

> **Not live.** Rewards are not being paid yet. Every figure on this page is a design target, not a guarantee. See [Testnet Status](../introduction/testnet-status.md).

## What you need to know

- Rewards are a revenue share, not a fixed APY ladder.
- Node operators share 40% of protocol revenue.
- Rewards are funded from protocol revenue and the Community allocation, not from new issuance.
- Vault yield and node rewards are separate. Together they target a combined **8–28%**.

## Sources of rewards

- **Protocol fees:** a percentage of the yield generated by the protocol's [autonomous trading layer](../protocol/autonomous-trading-system/README.md).
- **Transaction fees:** fees from activity on the Noderr network.

## Revenue split

| Recipient | Share | Purpose |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Node Operators | 40% | Node reward pool |
| Treasury | 35% | Protocol-owned capital |
| Buybacks | 15% | Planned NODR buybacks, part of which will be burned |
| Development | 10% | Ongoing protocol development |

The 40% node operator pool is split across the tiers in a **30/30/30/10** ratio (Oracle / Guardian / Validator / Micro).

The **Base-Rate Governor** caps reward distributions at 35-45% of trailing four-quarter net revenue, subject to maintaining at least 75% liquid treasury. This keeps payouts solvent and backed by revenue.

## Node rewards

Node rewards will be paid from the node operator pool as a tier weighted share of protocol revenue. The APY figures are **forward per-tier targets**: design targets, not guarantees. Rewards are not being paid yet.

| Tier | Stake (NODR) | TrustFingerprint to enter | Target APY (forward) | Also needs |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Oracle | 150,000 | 0.80 | ~20–25% | Election, Utility NFT |
| Guardian | 50,000 | 0.70 | ~15–20% | Governance approval, Utility NFT |
| Validator | 25,000 | 0.60 | ~10–15% | |
| Micro | 0 | | ~5–10% | Nothing, it is free |

- An operator's share depends on tier, stake and [TrustFingerprint](../protocol/trustfingerprint/README.md) score. The score is shown on a 0-10000 scale.
- A Guardian or Oracle seat requires the onchain role, granted by role admins, plus a Utility NFT. Onchain Oracle elections are planned.
- The onchain Utility NFT is free and minted by the protocol.
- 3,750,000 NODR of the Community allocation is earmarked for node operator rewards, to fund the reward pool in the early phases. See [Supply and allocation](./token-distribution.md#node-operator-rewards).

## Vault yield and the combined range

Each vault has its own target APY band. See the [vault table](../introduction/core-concepts.md#vaults). The bands are targets, not guaranteed, and no capital is deployed on testnet.

To reach the upper end of the combined **8–28%** range, a participant deposits into a vault and also stakes $NODR and runs a node. Node rewards stack on top of vault yield. The 28% figure is a **combined** vault plus node target and is never vault only.

Underlying integrations may advertise their own APYs, for example in the 20–35% range. Those are **external protocol potential**, not Noderr vault yield.

Vaults charge no management fee and a performance fee only. See [Fees](./fee-structure.md).

## Staking and unstaking

Unstaking uses a unified **21-day** cooldown. See the [staking guide](../getting-started/for-users/staking-guide.md). Treasury-provided stakes carry a 24-month lockup.

Tier decides governance voting power, not time staked. See [Governance](../protocol/governance/README.md).

## Buybacks and supply

- **Fixed supply.** 100,000,000 NODR, every token minted at genesis, with no operational emission. Node and staking rewards will be paid from pre-minted treasury and community allocations, not by minting new tokens.
- **Buybacks.** 15% of protocol revenue is allocated to open market $NODR buybacks. No buyback or burn is live onchain yet. The share of bought back tokens that will be burned is not fixed and will be set by governance within a defined range. Burned tokens will permanently reduce total supply. Any change to supply parameters would require an onchain governance action under the protocol's timelock.
- **Staking.** Staked $NODR reduces the circulating supply available on the market. All forward-looking statements about token value are aspirational and not a guarantee of future price or returns.
- **Ecosystem growth.** As more applications are built on the protocol, demand for the $NODR token may increase. This is a forward-looking goal, not a guarantee; actual demand and token value will depend on adoption, market conditions, and other factors outside the protocol's control.

## Next

- [Fees](./fee-structure.md)
- [Supply and allocation](./token-distribution.md)
- [Node Operators](../node-operators/README.md)
- [Noderr White Paper](../white-papers/Noderr_White_Paper_v7.1.md) for the detailed reward formula