How Much Does it Cost to Mint an NFT?

How much it costs to mind an NFT depends on a variety of factors, and a big part of it goes to the blockchain technology you choose. It can vary, as the fluctuations of cryptocurrency also affect the NFT minting cost. Is there a way to mitigate the costs with things so up in the air? The costs can really add up, so let’s find the most economical way. 

Understanding the Basics of NFT Minting 

In order to understand minting fees and other costs (gas prices), NFT creators have to understand the basics. Minting is a term that means creating. NFT artists have to “mint” the NFT on a blockchain of their choice, with the most popular and largest (and expensive) being Ethereum.

The process is not too difficult on an NFT marketplace of your choice, but you also have to ensure you have the tools you need, such as a crypto wallet, cryptocurrency, and energy.

The wallet you choose needs to be compatible with the blockchain you pick, and it needs to handle transactions on the chain. 

It doesn’t matter what type of art you want to mint. Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) encompass a wide variety of digital collectibles, photos, music, videos, and even virtual property. Once you know what NFT item you want to mint, the process really doesn’t differ much from uploading content on streaming sites or adding attachments to emails.

You just need to upload your NFT onto your wallet, create the metadata that will be used to validate and verify your creation, and you’re done! 

The Costs of Minting an NFT

It’s hard to pinpoint the exact cost of creating NFTs as it falls under a range. This range can be $0 (yes, zero, we will cover that later) all the way up to $1,000. However, the basic minting fee is between $70 to $120. Of course, we want to keep the gas fee on the lower end – but how do we do that?

• Average Cost

The gas fees will vary depending on the NFT marketplaces you pick and the blockchain you select. Minting an NFT on OpenSea, one of the largest and most popular NFT marketplaces that operate on Ethereum will be more expensive than choosing a marketplace on another blockchain. This is why there is a range between $70 to $120 in terms of basic costs. 

• Volatility in Minting NFTs

The value of the cryptocurrency tied to the blockchain will influence the price, but also the time of day. The peak times (when a lot of people are doing blockchain transactions) can increase the basic cost to mint up to $200 to $300 and sometimes even more.

These prices can be pretty obscene, and a way around minting your own NFT for such high prices is to do your research on NFT pricing and stats to figure out if you can make your money back and more (initial sale and royalties on the secondary market), and on popular marketplaces, before you make a commitment. Don’t just take what other cryptocurrency analysts say to be true. 

Key things to look for are: the track record of the marketplace, the security and speed of the transactions (do they use smart contracts), is the platform easy to use, and does it works with your wallet? What are the expenditures (listing fee, minting fee, etc.)?

Then it begs the question of what causes the price volatility to mint NFT projects? Let’s take the Ethereum blockchain, for example. Any type of transaction you do on the Ethereum network demands a “gas fee”. Gas fees are basically transaction fees that pay for the computer power and the electricity it needs to create your digital file. 

You won’t know the exact number of the Eth gas fee until you see the final total. One way to save a little bit on Eth gas fee is by opting for the slower minting rather than the more expensive express option. 

Minting Costs on Blockchains

We started out by saying that a big factor that affects the price of single NFT projects and collections is the blockchain you choose. We’ll take you through some of the big ones now to give you an idea of the total costs of your NFT art. 

Minting NFTs on Polygon

Polygon is a layer 2 solution for the Ethereum network. It provides more scalability, speed, and security for off-chain projects. The Polygon blockchain works on OpenSea as a secondary blockchain option, and it offers FREE minting! This is called lazy minting, which we will cover in a bit, and does not require creators to pay a gas fee upfront.

Just because there isn’t a gas fee to mint NFTs, there are other gas prices to consider, such as the standard 2.5% platform fee.

Minting NFTs on Ethereum

Gas prices on the Ethereum blockchain are notoriously high, but that hasn’t taken away from its popularity and credibility. Keep in mind that there are up-and-coming blockchain networks that have much lower gas prices. Ethereum offers two types of minting – regular minting and lazy minting as we said.

• Regular Minting

How much does it cost to create an NFT on the Ethereum ecosystem? We know it’s pricey, but it also depends on the time of day and the cryptocurrency price. On average, it costs around $60 to $123 Eth, which is separate from the listing price. 

• Lazy Minting

We’re going to go into more detail about lazy minting. We outlined before that lazy minting means no upfront gas prices, and that’s because it is effectively offloaded to the buyer. Creators and artists don’t pay the fee, but the buyer does when the NFT is purchased, so it’s not really transaction fee-free. 

Lazy minting is available when you mint an NFT on OpenSea, Rarible, Nifty Gateway, and more. 

Minting NFTs on Solana 

Solana is also a major player in the creation of NFTs. It’s a primary contender of Ethereum and one reason is because of the lower cost. When you create a new NFT on this platform, there will be significantly lower fees.

You have to pick a wallet that works with this blockchain and mint on a marketplace that works with Solana. As of 2022, the minting price is only around $0.12 compared to Ethereum’s $60 to $123.

Tips for a Cost-Effective NFT Minting Process

There are steps you can take to keep the cost down and not pay fees at staggering heights. Don’t over-increase the selling price in order to make up for the costs, because it could decrease your chances of making sales. You can do the following: 

• Take Note of Fluctuation Patterns

Your digital assets are tied to the fluctuation of the crypto market. Before an NFT creator does any type of transaction. Take a look at the track record of the platform and the crypto tied to the blockchain of your choice to mint NFTs for a lower price. 

• Understand the Gas Fees and Conversion Fees

If you go for lazy minting, the gas price is offloaded to the buyer, but there could be a service fee for creating your NFT collection and additional transaction fees. Understand how much the gas fees are and the conversion fees as well. If you choose the Ethereum blockchain, there are plenty of NFT trading sites that work with it. Some may charge higher platform fees than others, so take note of it.

• Choose the Best NFT Marketplace for You

When choosing the best marketplace for your digital artwork NFT, you can pick ones that are solely focused on your type, such as Ephimera for photography NFTs. Then there is the platform fee to consider, which also varies by site, or perhaps they choose to charge you a monthly fee to list your projects. Calculate the fees involved in the marketplace and make sure it works with your digital wallet to decide if it’s worth it for you.

Additional Fees Involved in Minting an NFT

Minting an NFT is more than just the cost of the mint, but it also involves other fees. 

• Upfront

If you don’t go for lazy minting, then there is an upfront cost you have to pay. Depending on the blockchain you choose, this number can vary.

• Per Sale

The platform may charge you a per-sale transaction cost for every NFT (about 3% of the sale price), which could really add up. 

• Subscription

Sometimes the NFT marketplaces will charge a flat subscription fee per month or per year instead of taking a percentage of every transaction. It’s a cost you have to pay to list your NFTs with the platform. 

FAQ

• Why is minting NFT so expensive?

Minting an NFT is so expensive because it is tied to the demand and the current price of the cryptocurrency. If you choose Ethereum, the prices are sky-high because Eth is very costly, and it is the largest blockchain ecosystem, which means there is high demand. 

• Can you mint an NFT for free?

Yes, you can mint an NFT for free, but it’s only free for the creator. The cost gets offloaded to the buyer and is tacked onto the purchase price. Just because it’s free to get your NFT minted, it doesn’t mean you aren’t subjected to other fees such as platform fees and listing costs. 

Conclusion

How much does it cost to mint an NFT? It can be a lot or free, and the number is unrelated to your final sale price. Creators can lessen the transaction prices by opting for cheaper proof-of-stake blockchains (not Ethereum), choosing lazy minting, and doing due diligence on various marketplaces.