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

# Validator economics

> Revenue estimates, costs, and economic considerations for running an Autheo Chain validator.

<Info>
  **Tokenomics disclaimer** — All figures are estimates based on current emission parameters and hosting costs. Token allocations, emission rates, and pricing remain subject to change as Autheo finalizes its mainnet launch details.
</Info>

## Reward streams

Validators earn from two independent sources:

| Source               | Module                      | Distribution                   | Basis                                                      |
| -------------------- | --------------------------- | ------------------------------ | ---------------------------------------------------------- |
| NFT emission rewards | `x/emissions`               | Manual: `claim-nft-rewards`    | Fixed per license tier (\~187,969 THEO/year for Sovereign) |
| Staking rewards      | `x/mint` + `x/distribution` | Manual: `withdraw-all-rewards` | Proportional to delegated stake                            |

### NFT emission rewards by tier

| Tier      | Estimated annual THEO | Estimated per-block THEO |
| --------- | --------------------- | ------------------------ |
| Sovereign | \~187,969             | \~0.000361               |
| Prime     | \~18,797              | \~0.0000361              |
| Core      | \~1,880               | \~0.00000361             |

These rates are active while the license is in `ACTIVE` status (i.e., bound to a validator with a live delegation). The global emissions cap is 7 billion THEO. Once the cap is reached, new rewards stop accruing.

### Staking rewards

Staking rewards depend on:

* Your validator's total bonded stake relative to total network stake
* The network's current inflation rate (\~13% → tapering toward \~10%)
* Your commission rate

Higher delegated stake (from your own delegation plus external delegators) increases your share of staking rewards.

## Infrastructure costs

### Managed hosting (monthly estimates)

| License tier               | Estimated monthly cost | Provider example   |
| -------------------------- | ---------------------- | ------------------ |
| Sovereign node             | $200 – $350            | InfStones, Zeeve   |
| Prime license (fractional) | \~\$35                 | Provider-dependent |
| Core license (fractional)  | \~\$5                  | Provider-dependent |

Costs vary by provider and region. Month-to-month billing is typical; check provider terms for exact pricing.

### Self-hosted (monthly estimates)

| Resource                                | Estimated monthly cost                       |
| --------------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------- |
| Bare-metal server (recommended specs)   | $150 – $400 depending on provider and region |
| Bandwidth (10 Gbps, usage-based)        | Variable                                     |
| Monitoring stack (Prometheus + Grafana) | \~$0 self-hosted / ~$10–\$30 managed         |

See the [hardware requirements](/nodes/node-setup/node-setup) for minimum and recommended server specifications.

## Delegation multiplier

Your validator's total staking rewards scale with total bonded stake. Attracting delegators (who must hold Prime or Core licenses) increases your proportional share of network staking rewards. Your commission rate is the percentage you retain from delegators' staking rewards.

## Key economic considerations

1. **Emissions are performance-conditional**: Only `ACTIVE` licenses (bound + live delegation) earn emission rewards. Downtime causes your license to return to `BOUND`, pausing emission accrual.

2. **No redelegation**: `MsgBeginRedelegate` is permanently disabled. Delegators must fully unbond and wait the \~21-day unbonding period before delegating to a different validator — factor this into your validator selection and commission rate strategy.

3. **No emissions cap restart**: Once the global 7B THEO emissions cap is reached, `x/emissions` stops. Plan for the long-term transition to fee-driven rewards as described in the [Tokenomics paper](/token/tokenomics-paper-v1-2).

4. **Validator set is stake-ranked**: The active set size is capped (`max_validators`). Validators with insufficient stake may remain unbonded. Build delegated stake to secure an active set position.