> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.phala.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

> Stake PHA tokens to earn rewards and support network governance.

# phala staking

## What Is the Phala Staking Contract?

The Phala Staking Contract lives on **Ethereum Mainnet** and allows users to convert **PHA to vPHA**.\
In simple terms:

* You deposit **PHA** into the staking contract
* The contract mints and sends you **vPHA** (an ERC-20 token)
* **vPHA** is used for:
  * Community governance (Snapshot voting)
  * Staking & collateral on Phala L2
  * GPU mining (required collateral + reward token)

In short:\
**PHA = liquid token**,\
**vPHA = governance & staking token** for the Phala ecosystem.

## Official Contract Addresses (Verify Before Use)

Always double-check that you are interacting with the correct contracts:

* **PHA (ERC20)**: `0x6c5bA91642F10282b576d91922Ae6448C9d52f4E`
* **vPHA (ERC20)**: `0x21d6eC8fc14CaAcc55aFA23cBa66798DAB3a0ec0`

> ⚠️ Only use the addresses above.\
> Do not stake or transfer tokens to any unknown or unverified contract.

## How to Stake PHA and Receive vPHA

> The process works with any EVM wallet such as MetaMask, Rabby, Safe, etc.\
> official Phala staking page: [https://app.phala.network/staking](https://app.phala.network/staking) .

### **Step 1 — Prepare Your Wallet**

1. Switch wallet to **Ethereum Mainnet**
2. Make sure your wallet has:
   * **PHA (ERC20)** — the tokens you want to stake
   * **ETH** — to pay Ethereum gas fees

### **Step 2 — Connect to the Phala Staking Page**

1. Open the official Phala staking page
2. Click **“Connect Wallet”**
3. Approve the connection in your wallet

### **Step 3 — Stake PHA → Receive vPHA**

1. Enter the amount of **PHA** you want to stake
2. First-time users must click **Approve** to allow the contract to use PHA
3. Once approved, click **Stake**
4. Confirm the transaction in your wallet

After the transaction is confirmed:

* Your PHA is deposited into the staking contract
* You receive vPHA equal in value to the PHA you staked, based on the real-time vPHA-PHA exchange rate
* As the staking contract accumulates rewards, the exchange rate increases over time, meaning vPHA represents a growing amount of PHA when you unstake.

To display vPHA, manually add the ERC-20 contract address in your wallet.

***

## Unstaking vPHA to PHA

Unstaking converts your vPHA back to PHA. The process takes **21 days** to complete.

### Step 1: Initiate Unstaking

1. Go to [app.phala.network/staking](https://app.phala.network/staking)
2. Connect your wallet (must be on **Ethereum Mainnet**)
3. Click **Unstake**
4. Enter the amount of vPHA to unstake
5. Confirm the transaction and pay gas fees

After the transaction confirms, your vPHA enters a 21-day unlock period.

### Step 2: Wait for Unlock Period

* Your tokens are locked for **21 days**
* You can track the unlock countdown in the staking dashboard
* You cannot cancel an unstaking request once initiated

### Step 3: Claim Your PHA

After the 21-day period ends:

1. Return to [app.phala.network/staking](https://app.phala.network/staking)
2. Connect your wallet
3. You'll see your unlocked PHA available to claim
4. Click **Claim** to receive your PHA
5. Confirm the transaction

<Warning>
  **You must manually claim your PHA** after the unlock period. Tokens do not automatically transfer to your wallet.
</Warning>

### Unstaking from Phala L2

If your vPHA is on Phala L2 (not Ethereum Mainnet):

1. First, bridge your vPHA to Ethereum using [bridge.phala.network](https://bridge.phala.network)
2. You need ETH on Phala L2 for gas fees (\~0.001 ETH is sufficient)
3. Once on Ethereum, follow the unstaking steps above

<Note>
  **Need ETH on Phala L2?** Bridge a small amount from Ethereum first using [bridge.phala.network](https://bridge.phala.network).
</Note>

### Troubleshooting

**"Insufficient ETH" error when bridging from L2:**

* You need ETH on Phala L2 for gas, not just on Ethereum
* Bridge \~0.001 ETH from Ethereum to Phala L2 first

**Can't see vPHA in portfolio:**

* Check if your vPHA is on Phala L2 or Ethereum
* Add the vPHA token contract to your wallet: `0x21d6eC8fc14CaAcc55aFA23cBa66798DAB3a0ec0`

**vPHA balance seems lower than expected:**

* vPHA represents staked value at a conversion rate that increases over time
* Check your deposit history at the bottom of the staking page
* If you provided liquidity on Uniswap, your vPHA won't show in the Phala app

***

## Safety Notes

Always verify:

* Contract addresses before any transaction
* Transaction prompts match your intended action
* You are connected to **Ethereum Mainnet**

<Warning>
  Never send tokens to unknown addresses. Only use the official contract addresses listed in this documentation.
</Warning>