How to Get Polygon Testnet MATIC from Faucets

How to Get Polygon Testnet MATIC

Polygon runs an official faucet where you can obtain testnet tokens for the Mumbai and Goerli testnets. You can also get testnet MATIC from other faucets run by Alchemy and Quicknode.

Key Takeaways

• Testnet tokens are used on test networks to experiment with the basic transactions and test new features of a blockchain network and new applications before they are deployed on the main network.

• You can get Polygon Testnet MATIC from the official faucet, as well as from independent faucets like Alchemy, Quicknode, and Stakely. 

• Polygon has two chains: Polygon PoS (sidechain) which uses the Mumbai testnet and Polygon zkEVM which uses the Goerli testnet. 

Based on DefiLlama data, Polygon is one of the top five chains by Total Value Locked (TVL) at over $1 billion TVL. It’s also one of the busiest networks, with 420 protocols and over 300,000 active users. Most of these new applications go through multiple testing phases before they are deployed to the main network, and that’s where testnets come in.  

Test networks mirror the main network and let developers try out new ideas and find areas of improvement for their applications before they deploy to the main network. These test versions of applications can be open to the public, where individuals can try out new applications on the testnet to help developers better understand how their application will fare when used widely. This process could be incentivized to promote participation, where participation earns points that can later be translated into token allocations. 

Test networks also come with test versions of tokens on the main network, such as Goerli ETH, and in this article, we’ll look at Polygon’s testnet MATIC. These tokens are free and can be obtained as such from faucets owned by the project or independent third-party platforms that aim to ease the testing process for developers and testers.

Claim Testnet MATIC on the Official Polygon Testnet Faucet

Step 1: Visit the official Polygon Faucet to obtain testnet tokens from Polygon’s official faucet.

Step 2: Enter your wallet address and select the network you wish to receive the testnet tokens.

Note that you must have some test ETH tokens on the Goerli testnet to receive Goerli testnet tokens from Polygon in your wallet.

Step 3: Click Submit and wait for the tokens to be sent to your wallet.

Obtaining Testnet MATIC Tokens from the Mumbai Faucet

Step 1: Visit Mumbai Faucet to obtain testnet tokens for Polygon’s Mumbai Testnet. The Mumbai Faucet is powered by Alchemy, which also powers other faucets like Goerli and Sepolia.

Step 2: Enter your wallet address and click Send Me MATIC.

The Mumbai faucet gives you 0.5 Mumbai Matic every 24 hours. With an Alchemy account, you can claim 1 Testnet MATIC every 24 hours instead.

Claiming Mumbai MATIC Tokens on the QuickNode Faucet

Step 1: Visit Quicknode’s Polygon Faucets to claim testnet MATIC.

Step 2: Connect your wallet to the platform. Wallets supported are MetaMask, Phantom, and Coinbase Wallet. 

Step 3: Enter your wallet address details and receive 0.05 MATIC on Mumbai and 0.025 MATIC on Goerli.

Step 4 (optional): Share a tweet to get a 5x bonus! 

You can collect one drip on QuickNode every 12 hours. Do note that your wallet must hold at least 0.001 ETH on the Ethereum Mainnet to use EVM faucets.

Obtaining MATIC From Stakely

Stakely is a multi-coin faucet that provides blockchain enthusiasts with mainnet and testnet tokens for several blockchain networks. The goal of Stakely is to enable users to explore the world of cryptocurrencies by supplying users with small amounts of tokens to cover gas fees needed to operate on the chain. 

Polygon is one of the chains supported on Stakely.

Step 1: Visit Stakely's Polygon Faucet, enter your wallet address, and complete the captcha. 

Step 2: Verify your address and proceed to complete the social media task by making a tweet about your testnet token request.

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What are ERC-20 Plasma Test tokens?

Polygon initially started as a Plasma chain project before developing its POS sidechain which has gained more prominence over the plasma chain.

Plasma chains are quite similar to sidechains in the sense that both are networks built to run as separate networks but interact with the main Ethereum network. But in contrast to sidechains, Plasma chains strive to achieve greater security by publishing proofs of every transaction on the Ethereum blockchain. 

By doing this, Plasma chains sacrifice a good level of flexibility for security. Sidechains are also relatively cheaper and faster but run a risk of centralization.

Polygon’s plasma chain is still a good utility and applications like the Plasma bridge use this facility to engineer a bridging platform between Polygon and Ethereum networks.

ERC-20 plasma tokens enable blockchain enthusiasts and developers to try out new updates on the plasma chain and decentralized applications that use the facility. Also, applications that are designed to interact with the Plasma and Sidechain would require testnet tokens on both networks.

What Can Testnet MATIC Be Used For?

We’ve claimed a few MATIC tokens for use on Polygon’s Mumbai test network, but since these tokens are not meant to be sold like regular cryptocurrencies, what then can you do with your new tokens?

Experiment with Regular Blockchain Transactions

Test networks offer users a risk-free way to test out new features on the network or to get familiar with how DeFi works. Investors can use test networks to figure out different operations on the blockchain and not worry about what happens when they make a mistake. 

Users can also experiment with more technical procedures like adding liquidity, trading on DeFi exchanges, and lending on decentralized lending platforms as getting these activities wrong on the main network could lead to significant losses.

Application Testing

The Solidity programming language doesn’t allow concurrent testing. Bugs and dysfunctionalities are only discovered when the application is deployed to the blockchain. For developers, testnets are a critical part of development. 

Using the tokens claimed from these faucets, developers can test out the core functionalities of their applications before opening them up for public testing and subsequently deploying them to the main network. 

Participate in Testnet Programs

Developers wish to take note of how their applications work when used by many people. Stress and strain tests for application are only possible and reliable if a good number of people engage in the testing program. 

To support developers building decentralized applications, engaging in testing programs is recommended. This is one of the primary use cases for testnet tokens. As a user, explore the Polygon ecosystem, discover new applications running testing programs, and participate using your claimed tokens. You also stand a chance of benefiting from incentivization programs and airdrops through some of these applications.

Mumbai vs. Goerli Testnets

When you’re looking to claim Polygon’s testnet MATIC tokens, you may find yourself with a choice between the Mumbai and Goerli networks. While both test networks offer developers a place to test the functionality of applications before they get deployed on the main network, they cater to different main network environments. 

Polygon has a Proof-of-Stake (PoS) chain, and the corresponding testnet of the Polygon PoS chain is the Mumbai testnet. Polygon PoS offers EVM compatibility, where developers can deploy and run Ethereum smart contracts on the Polygon PoS chain. However, there may be differences in the execution environment, and developers may find themselves needing to adapt, which is where the Mumbai testnet comes in. 

On the other hand, the Goerli network supports Polygon zkEVM, a zero knowledge rollup that is focused on EVM equivalence. As Polygon zkEVM is an EVM equivalent rollup, Ethereum developers can deploy their smart contracts on Polygon zkEVM without needing any modification or re-implementation of code. Hence, it can run on Ethereum’s Goerli testnet without requiring a different execution environment. 

Check the decentralized application you’re looking to interact with and whether it is on Polygon PoS or Polygon zkEVM to ensure you select the correct test network. 

Final Thoughts

Testnets and test tokens let you explore the technical world of blockchain with almost zero risks of running into serious issues. This is true for developers and everyday cryptocurrency and blockchain enthusiasts.

For developers, most smart contracts and dApps are meant to handle financial transactions and any dysfunction could lead to grave financial implications. Testnets and their tokens allow developers to put the core aspects of their applications to test and minimize the possible issues that could occur.

For investors and testers, testnets are an opportunity to get used to novel applications before they are deployed to the main network (and even after they have been deployed) without running risks of losing valuable assets to mistakes. If the testing program is incentivized, testers can also earn rewards for helping developers to perfect their applications.

As blockchain technology evolves and more critical utilities get deployed on decentralized networks, testnets become even more important, and enthusiasts who dedicate their time to putting new applications to adequate tests become vital contributors to the delivery of cutting-edge decentralized applications. The influx of new projects and incentivized testnets continue to cut down on the availability of test tokens.

Always do your own research on faucets before connecting your wallet. Also, keep in mind that testnet tokens are meant to be completely free and avoid schemes that attempt to scam investors into exchanging a significant amount of real assets for testnet tokens. Finally, note that this article is only educational and not financial advice. Always do your own research before investing in any cryptocurrency and blockchain projects.