There are no legitimate Ethereum mining apps on the market, because the Ethereum cryptocurrency does not use mining. Whenever you see a mobile app that promotes itself as a cryptocurrency miner, you should be very careful since mobile phones are not powerful enough to mine cryptocurrency profitably.
Despite this, there are mobile apps that will allow you to earn some additional ETH either through staking or lending, which are completely legitimate methods of earning ETH rewards. To be clear, you will need to already have some cryptocurrency if you want to grow your ETH holdings in this way.
We’re featuring 5 Android apps that will help you earn extra ETH without trading or investing additional money.
Before we continue, however, let’s explain exactly why there are not legit ETH mining apps and why you should stay away from any apps that advertises itself as offering Ethereum mining.
Are there any legit Ethereum mining apps?
No, there aren’t any legit Ethereum mining apps. The reason for this is that the Ethereum network does not use mining, but uses a Proof-of-Stake system (staking). Ethereum did use mining in the past, but moved away from it in September 2022, when an upgrade called The Merge introduced a Proof-of-Stake consensus mechanism to replace the old Proof-of-Work consensus mechanism.
If you see any apps for Android or iOS that advertise themselves as Ethereum mining apps, you can safely disregard them as false advertising. At best, they might offer some other functionality and earn money by displaying ads. At worst, they might be a scam that will ask you to invest your money with promises of Ethereum “mining” rewards.
We found a handful of applications on the Google Play Store that advertise themselves as Ethereum mining apps. Although most of them have a high rating, a closer inspection quickly reveals that most of the positive reviews are fake, while the negative reviews come from disgruntled users who actually tried the apps. Not only are these apps not actually mining Ethereum, but they often attempt to market completely different products to their users.
One of the most common user complaints regarding apps that advertise themselves as Ethereum mining apps is that they are trying to sell users a crypto wallet app, which is advertised as giving access to the ETH coins that the users supposedly earned through mining.
This is almost assuredly a scam, as there are countless high-quality Ethereum wallets available on the market completely free of charge – there is no good reason for anyone to ever pay for cryptocurrency wallet software.
Best Android apps to earn ETH
Now, let’s take a look at 5 Android apps that will allow you to earn ETH legitimately. We have selected a diverse range of high-quality apps that will give you access to Ethereum staking, lending or both.
- Kraken Pro – Mobile app from one of the world’s safest crypto exchanges
- Binance – The leading cryptocurrency exchange in the industry
- MetaMask – The gold standard for Ethereum wallets
- Coinbase – Popular and reliable cryptocurrency exchange
- Trust Wallet – Secure multi-currency crypto wallet
1. Kraken Pro – Mobile app from one of the world’s safest crypto exchanges
Kraken is one of the most well-established cryptocurrency exchanges, as it has been in operation for over a decade. The exchange has earned a very good reputation in the cryptocurrency community thanks to its strong security measures, which have successfully safeguarded users’ funds from crypto wallet hacks or other types of security breaches.
If you hold ETH, you can easily stake it through the exchange’s Kraken Pro app and start earning staking rewards. The process of staking Ethereum through Kraken Pro is very straightforward, although it does come with a downside – when you stake ETH on Kraken, you can’t access the liquidity of your coins until you unstake.
In comparison, some other exchanges allow users to still access the liquidity of their staked ETH through liquid staking tokens or other solutions.
Overall, Kraken Pro is arguably the best app to use if you hold some ETH and want to earn extra rewards on it.
2. Binance – The leading cryptocurrency exchange in the industry
Binance is the top cryptocurrency exchange in terms of trading volume, user count and features. The exchange provides a wide range of services for crypto investors, including Ethereum staking. If you have ETH, you can stake it on Binance to earn passive rewards.
When you stake ETH on Binance, you receive WBETH tokens, which stand for your staked ETH. Over time, the conversion rate between WBETH and ETH shifts in favor of WBETH to reflect the staking rewards earned by Binance on your behalf.
To get access to your ETH again, simply redeem your WBETH tokens in exchange for ETH. The amount of ETH you can earn depends on the size and duration of your stake. The larger and longer the stake, the higher the rewards.
3. MetaMask – The gold standard for Ethereum wallets
So far, we have highlighted two apps created by centralized cryptocurrency exchanges. While those apps offer a way to earn some extra ETH through staking, they require the user to trust that the exchange will take good care of their funds. Meanwhile, many cryptocurrency investors prefer a more decentralized approach where they have more control over their crypto assets.
If you want to stake Ethereum in a more decentralized way, you will need a non-custodial Ethereum wallet (a non-custodial wallet is a wallet where the users controls their own private keys). One such option is MetaMask, a highly popular Ethereum wallet that also offers an Android app.
MetaMask provides a convenient staking option within its portfolio feature, allowing users to stake their ETH via liquid staking protocols like Lido and Rocket Pool.
The advantage of using MetaMask over a cryptocurrency exchange is that you maintain control of your private keys and do not need to rely on a third party to secure them. By using liquid staking protocols, you will also get to retain the liquidity of your staked ETH and use it in various decentralized applications.
4. Coinbase – Popular and reliable cryptocurrency exchange
Coinbase is a great cryptocurrency exchange that’s broadly recognized as one of the best options for crypto beginners. It offers an Ethereum staking service which makes it possible for ETH holders to passively grow their holdings through staking rewards.
If you have ETH on Coinbase, you can choose to “wrap” your coins and receive cbETH tokens in return. These tokens accrue Ethereum staking rewards, and you can later redeem them to access your ETH again.
For long-term ETH holders looking to make their idle coins productive, staking through Coinbase is a good option to consider. Staking through Coinbase makes a lot of sense especially if you already have an account with the exchange.
5. Trust Wallet – Secure multi-currency crypto wallet
Trust Wallet is a widely used multi-cryptocurrency wallet available as both a browser extension and a standalone desktop application.
One of Trust Wallet’s key advantages is its support for a broad range of cryptocurrencies, which goes beyond just EVM-compatible blockchains. You can use Trust Wallet to store Bitcoin, XRP, Solana, and many other popular cryptocurrencies.
The wallet features a user-friendly interface designed for both beginners and advanced users. It allows easy navigation to view portfolio value in your preferred currency, track transaction history, and manage multiple wallets seamlessly.
Trust Wallet also enables you to securely hold your ETH and participate in liquid staking protocols to earn rewards. Similarly to MetaMask, Trust Wallet is a non-custodial wallet, meaning you retain control of your own private keys.
The bottom line
We hope that we’ve clarified why there are no legitimate Ethereum mining apps on the market today. Still, this doesn’t mean that you can’t earn ETH through an app on your phone. You can stake your ETH through a crypto exchange app or use a non-custodial Ethereum wallet such as MetaMask to stake your ETH coins through liquid staking protocols like Lido.
If you want to learn more about Ethereum, we invite you to take a look at our article explaining the Ethereum rainbow chart.
