In 2020, Uniswap launched their governance token, $UNI, distributing 15% of its supply to early stakeholders. This marked the largest airdrop in crypto history and is often seen as the catalyst that brought crypto airdrop into the spotlight.
This blog will help you find and avoid common scams in crypto airdrops. By following this guide, you can choose the airdrops that are worthy of your investments.
Before beginning, we need to acknowledge the nature of crypto airdrop: airdrop farming is often speculative – it’s always up to the project on how to distribute their tokens.
I. Two Main Types Of Airdrop
First, we will introduce you with two main types of airdrop: public and retroactive airdrops, along with their respective advantages. Then, we will walk you through the process of identifying and joining airdrops in each category.
1. Public Airdrop
What are Public Airdrops?
Public airdrops are often described as those published on quest platforms, or are organized by the projects themselves.
This is the basic and simplest way to get crypto airdrop – you are informed about the task instruction, qualifying criteria, and reward structure. In Public Airdrops, you are usually required to complete either onchain or social tasks, or compete in public leaderboards.

Example of a Public Airdrop: User guide, criteria, and rewards are clearly communicated prior.
Pros and Cons of Public Airdrops?
- Pros: By being organized by the project themselves, with relevant information provided beforehand, participating in Public Airdrop is simple and straightforward. You just need to complete required tasks, and wait for the reward distribution if qualified.
- Cons: On the other hand, since the information is publicly available, it also brings a lot of competition. Public Airdrops are usually announced with the intent of reaching as many people as possible, resulting in many people trying to join in, leaving less reward for individual participants.
2. Retroactive Airdrop
What are Retroactive Airdrops?
Retroactive airdrops, or early users airdrops, are often done to reward early users who supported the project in their early days.
This type of airdrop is usually based on the user’s historical interactions with the protocol, which need to meet a specific requirement. These requirements differ from one airdrop to another, but generally involve main features of the protocol: Swapping/Providing liquidity for DEXes, Trading for Perp Platforms, bridging tokens among blockchains for Bridge protocols, or holding a specific token.
For example, in the 1inch airdrop, any user who swapped at least 1 time before September 15th are qualified for the distribution.

Example of a Retroactive Airdrop: Users need to meet these requirements in order to receive the 1inch airdrop.
Pros and Cons of Retroactive Airdrops?
- Pro: Retroactive Airdrops often yield the best returns. Since there are no announcements beforehand, they typically attract fewer participants, resulting in less competition and more reward for those who qualify.
- Cons: Also because of no prior information, getting Retroactive Airdrops is extremely challenging. Even if you identify a promising project, there is no guarantee they will conduct this type of airdrop.
II. How To Find Airdrop Opportunities
The process of finding airdrops may be quite challenging if you don’t know where to start.
1. Using Quest Platforms
You can follow quest platforms such as Galxe, Intract, or Layer3 to find new airdrop opportunities. This method is perfect to find Public Airdrops, since this is where projects will usually update their new Public Airdrop campaigns.
For example, visit https://app.layer3.xyz/quests and connect your wallet. Here, you can view available quests on the Layer3 platform. Click on any quest to view its required tasks and reward.

2. Using Fundraising News Sources
You can use fundraising news sources like Cryptorank or ChainBroker to identify newly funded projects. Follow these projects on social channels such as Twitter or Discord to be notified about their newest airdrop campaigns.

3. Using Airdrop News Sources
You can use airdrop news sources such as AirdropBee to find the best and latest airdrop opportunities.
AirdropBee acts as an airdrop aggregator, helping to save you time and effort by offering a comprehensive list of both potential and confirmed airdrops.

4. Follow KOLs & Airdrop Communities
Following airdrop KOLs on Twitter or joining airdrop communities are perhaps the quickest way to gain insight about upcoming airdrops.
To save your time, we’ve compiled a list of KOLs and communities on Twitter and Telegram that you should follow. Let’s check it out!
III. How To Choose The Right Airdrop
When it comes to maximizing your airdrop rewards, it’s crucial to have a defined strategy when choosing a project. Here are some key factors to consider:
1. Token Release Status
Prioritizing tokenless projects can significantly increase your chances of securing an airdrop. Projects that are yet to have a token will often use airdrops as a means to distribute their initial tokens to reward early adopters and decentralize the network.
2. Timing
Interact with projects early, before the FOMO kicks in. You can join airdrops during the project’s initial stages for lower competition and higher airdrop chances.
3. Funding Amount
Focus on projects with medium to large funding, typically ranging between $10 million and $50 million. Adequate funding usually means strong financial backing and more resources for airdrops.
4. Backer
Select projects backed by reputable and established investors. Ventures supported by well-known ventures such as Binance Labs, a16z, or Polychain Capital, tend to be less risky and often offer bigger airdrops.
5. Protocol Model
You can look for projects based on protocol models that have high airdrop chances. Projects such as Layer 2 solutions, DEX, or cross-chain interoperability might conduct airdrops to incentivize usage and increase their user base.
6. Features
Look for projects with innovative and high-utility features. These pivotal projects tend to attract substantial funding and quality backers, leading to greater airdrop opportunities.
7. Community
Opting for community-focused projects or DAO to significantly improve your chances of securing airdrops. Projects with a clear emphasis on community engagement are more likely to reward loyal members who actively contribute to the project’s success.
8. What are some red flags to watch out for in an airdrop?
In crypto airdrop, not all opportunities are equal. Some may not justify your effort, or others might just turn out to be a scam. Here are some red flags that you should watch out for when choosing an airdrop:
- Requires Private Key/Seed Phrase: Avoid any airdrop that asks for your Private Key or Seed Phrase. Exposing your Private Key or Seed Phrase will lead to total loss of funds and is non-recoverable.
- Asking for your fund: Avoid projects that promise airdrop rewards if you join their “presale” or “community sale”. In some cases, they might even ask for your “gas money” to withdraw airdrop tokens. Asking for users’ funds before the actual airdrop is a major redflag and should be avoided.
- Clone/copycat projects: Be cautious of projects that attempt to mimic a popular or hyped airdrop. While they might not totally be a scam, copycat airdrops are often less reliable and may not provide a good return.
Lacks transparency: Avoid projects that lack transparency or hide critical issues in their public airdrops. Airdrops with an unclear distribution process or unusual delays without genuine reasons often pose legitimacy issues and should be avoided.
Conclusion
Choosing the right airdrop can be a game-changer in your crypto journey, offering opportunities to earn tokens, engage with emerging projects, and maximize rewards with minimal investment. However, it’s crucial to be strategic and cautious. Always research the project’s team, and community to ensure legitimacy and long-term potential. Diversify your participation across different projects to spread your risk, and avoid airdrops that seem too good to be true, as they could be scams. By staying informed and vigilant, you can unlock the true value of airdrops while minimizing risks, making it an exciting and potentially lucrative part of your crypto experience.