How to Make Money with Cryptocurrency in 2025 (Part1)

Introduction

The rules for making money in crypto keep shifting. What worked last year might be obsolete today, and what looked like a meme last week could be the next big earner.

In 2025, profits go to those who adapt fast. It’s no longer just about holding — it’s about catching capital rotations early, understanding new mechanics, and entering the right plays before the crowd.

This multi-part series breaks down the key ways people are earning in crypto right now — not hypotheticals, but real-time tactics with proven examples.

In Part 1, we give you a general overview of the primary methods:

• Exchange promotions — time-based marketing campaigns on CEXs that reward user activity.

• Token sales — early-stage token offerings, both centralized and decentralized.

• Staking campaigns — passive yield opportunities via token lockups on different platforms.

• Pre-market trading — OTC-style markets that let you buy or sell tokens before official listings.

• Testnet participation — using early versions of protocols to qualify for potential airdrops.

• Running nodes — providing infrastructure support to networks in exchange for future token rewards.

• Degen trading — identifying and rotating through emerging market narratives for short-term gains.

• Token accumulation — gradually stacking tokens with long-term potential to later earn passive income through lending, staking, or incentives.

Each of these strategies will be explored in depth in the following parts of this series.

Whether you're working with $100 or $10,000+, you’ll find paths that match your capital, time, and risk appetite — and learn how to avoid the traps that burn most newcomers.

Exchange Marketing Activities

One of the most accessible earning methods in 2025 is marketing campaigns run by CEXs (centralized exchanges). These promos typically reward simple actions, such as making a deposit, holding tokens, inviting a friend, etc.

Why do they exist? Because exchanges want liquidity and user activity, and they’re willing to pay for it. That creates low-effort opportunities for users, especially those working with smaller stacks ($100+).

They’re not all created equal, and the return usually depends on timing, token price action, and how oversubscribed the campaign gets. Still, for users who can rotate time and capital, this lane continues to deliver.

Token Sales

Token sales are still one of the cleanest ways to get the best entry price for project tokens. But the landscape has evolved. In 2025, the key isn’t just finding a hot sale — it’s understanding the mechanics behind how allocations are distributed, and which models align with your activity level.

Some platforms prioritize small buyers. Others reward long-term users or active wallets. Some use lotteries or snapshot-based entry systems. The variety is vast, but all aim to direct liquidity and attention to new tokens.

Here are the main formats currently in play:

• Centralized Platforms like CoinList, Legion, Bybit, Gate.io, and Bitget offer curated sales through various models, ranging from low-cap access tiers to lottery or achievement-based allocations.

• Decentralized Platforms, including Binance Wallet IDOs and TokenFi, enable direct participation through smart contracts or wallet-based scoring systems, such as Alpha Points, which often reward trading volume or token balances.

• Direct Sales hosted on project websites — often flying under the radar — still happen regularly. These typically require swift action, solid research, and a willingness to take on additional risk.

But in a market that’s been choppy for nearly three years, getting in early isn't enough. You need to assess whether a project can deliver, not just hype, but real post-listing performance. If you’re unsure how to filter quality, start here: How to Conduct Due Diligence on Crypto Projects.

Most formats are accessible even with moderate capital — you can start exploring token sales from around $300. Just know that time, timing, and research matter.

We'll explore token sales in much more detail in a dedicated part of this series, including how to consistently find, evaluate, and profit from them across platforms.

Staking Campaigns

Staking remains one of the low-friction ways to earn in crypto. You lock tokens you already hold — whether stablecoins, exchange tokens, or project-specific assets — and earn token rewards in return. It’s passive, predictable (most of the time).

Why do these campaigns exist? Centralized exchanges need liquidity and stable token holders. To incentivize this, they offer yields and bonus token distributions through staking programs.

In 2025, staking campaigns usually fall into two buckets:

• Earn–style products that let users lock assets for fixed or flexible terms to earn yield, often with the bonus of eligibility for launchpools or other reward programs.

• Launchpool-style campaigns where users stake specific tokens, which vary from campaign to campaign, to farm newly launched tokens. These typically run for a short time, and your reward depends on how much you stake relative to the pool.

Most major CEXs — Binance, OKX, HTX, Bybit, Bitget — offer some version of this. The mechanics are similar, though the timing, APR, and amount of rewards vary.

The main appeal is that you don’t need to move capital or take new risks — you earn with assets already in your portfolio. That makes staking ideal for passive users or holders of specific tokens.

But watch out: if the staked asset drops significantly in value during the lock period, your “free” tokens might not cover the loss. This is especially true when buying tokens specifically to stake — the opportunity often makes sense only if you were holding them anyway.

Most staking campaigns are best suited for users with $5,000–$ 10,000 or more who want low-effort upside while remaining passive regarding market activity.

We’ll explore staking campaigns more deeply — including how to evaluate APRs, manage lock risks, and find the best campaigns — in a dedicated part of this series.

Pre-market Trading

Pre-market trading gives you a shot at buying or selling tokens before they officially hit exchanges. It’s the window after the token sale but before listings — and often the moment where early sentiment, speculation, and pricing collide.

Why does this exist? Because projects and platforms aim to bootstrap liquidity, test demand, and provide early participants with the opportunity to realize or hedge gains. For traders, it’s a space to front-run listing momentum — but it’s also one of the riskiest plays in the game.

In 2025, pre-market trading comes in two flavors:

• Centralized pre-markets, offered by exchanges like Bybit, KuCoin, Bitget, etc, where users can buy or sell allocations OTC-style using USDT or other stable assets. Prices are determined by supply and demand, based on how the market evaluates the token's performance on the listing day at that moment.

• Decentralized pre-markets, like Whales Market or OTC Telegram chats, where users trade allocation rights or vested tokens peer-to-peer. There is no KYC (Know Your Customer), and delivery typically occurs after the TGE (Token Generation Event), via smart contract or manual settlement.

The appeal is clear: get in early, exit before chaos, and potentially earn without riding full post-listing volatility. Pre-market trading can be done with as little as $50, but this lane is not beginner-friendly. Most traders in pre-markets lose money unless they’ve done deep research, know the fair value of the token, and can read early momentum.

Pre-market trading can be powerful for advanced users who can price tokens independently and act quickly, but it punishes hype-followers and passive buyers. Treat it as an optional, high-risk tool — not a must-use strategy.

We’ll break down pre-market mechanics, ideal conditions, and advanced tactics in a future part of this series.

Testnet Activity

Testnet participation has become a go-to strategy for users looking to earn through early protocol interaction, often with the hope of qualifying for future airdrops. Projects like Starknet, LayerZero, zkSync, and others have all rewarded users retroactively for testing their networks before mainnet launch.

Why do testnets pay? Because protocols need real users to stress-test infrastructure, surface bugs, and simulate usage at scale. Instead of hiring QA teams, they lean on the community and reward contributors later. But not all testnets end in rewards, and not all rewards justify the time or cost.

In 2025, testnet farming has evolved into a structured, semi-competitive environment with multiple formats:

• Manual usage — Interact with smart contracts: bridge, swap, provide liquidity, vote. These campaigns reward active wallets, not always by size, but by consistency and coverage.

• Points-based systems — Platforms like Starknet or Scroll assign points for testnet actions. More actions = higher score = potentially higher airdrop.

• Quest-based tasks — Through Galxe, Zealy, or Layer3, you complete tasks (on-chain or social) and build eligibility for future events or bonus multipliers.

But testnets aren’t free money. 

Many campaigns require real effort: bridging to L2s, paying mainnet gas fees, interacting for months — sometimes years — without clarity on rewards. 

You may need $50–$300+ in stablecoins or other tokens to participate meaningfully, mainly for ecosystems like zkSync, Blast, or Base.

There’s also no guarantee of airdrops. Some projects cancel them entirely. Others distribute too little to cover your expenses. That’s why due diligence is essential — you’re not just farming tokens, you’re betting on the project’s long-term viability and its community alignment.

Testnet farming is best suited for users who have the time, patience, and willingness to conduct thorough research. It rewards consistency over hype and effort over shortcuts. But if you’re short on capital and willing to put in the hours, this is one of the few crypto strategies where grinding still pays off.

We’ll break down tools, top testnet targets, and effective workflows in a dedicated part of this series.

Running Nodes

Running a node has evolved from a technical niche into a legitimate earning method for crypto users who are willing to invest capital, hardware, and ensure uptime. In 2025, nodes aren’t just for blockchain purists — they’re a way to position early in ecosystems that may offer future airdrops, validator rewards, or governance power.

Why do nodes pay? Networks need a distributed infrastructure to remain secure and decentralized. Instead of relying on centralized servers, they incentivize regular users to run nodes that validate transactions, relay data, or provide storage. This spreads the load — and, in many cases, the rewards.

There are several types of nodes, and the opportunities vary depending on what the network is building:

• Validator Nodes — Required for Proof-of-Stake networks. Usually need staking collateral ($1,000 to $100,000+), reliable uptime, and some CLI experience. Best for high-capital users or groups.

• RPC / Light Nodes — Lower entry barrier, usually don’t earn much directly, but can still qualify for retroactive rewards if the network distributes to early infra supporters.

• Pre-Mainnet / Test Nodes — These are set up before the chain goes live, sometimes for months. Projects like Celestia, Nibiru, or Berachain have rewarded early node runners handsomely.

Running a node isn’t passive income unless you automate well. You’ll often need:

• A VPS (virtual private server) or home setup with solid uptime;

• To monitor logs, updates, and chain events;

• Some Linux terminal comfort.

Initial costs can range from $100 to $500+ upfront for a decent setup, higher if the project requires significant storage or memory. Maintenance adds recurring costs, too.

This approach is best suited for technical users with mid-to-high capital ($500–$5,000+) who want a more hands-on way to earn or support credible ecosystems.

We’ll explore top node opportunities, setup walkthroughs, and risks in a dedicated part of this series.

Degen Trading

Degen trading is the fast lane of crypto — a mix of speculation, narrative chasing, and high-risk, high-reward positioning. In 2025, this method remains one of the most capital- and time-efficient ways to make (or lose) money quickly.

Why does this exist? Crypto thrives on narrative rotation. One week it’s meme coins, the next it’s modular L2s or AI tokens. Retail traders, influencers, and even venture capitalists (VCs) often rotate between sectors in search of asymmetric upside. Degen trading is about spotting these trends early and riding the wave before it crashes.

This strategy includes:

• Narrative rotation — Identifying what’s gaining traction on X (Twitter), Telegram, or Discord. Is the market rotating into Solana-based meme coins? Is EigenLayer suddenly hot again?

• Low-cap speculation — Buying into under-the-radar tokens on DEXs before major influencers or whales enter. This typically involves tracking wallets, monitoring token deployments, and analyzing on-chain data.

• Fast exits — Unlike traditional investing, the goal isn’t to hold — it’s to ride momentum and exit before the hype fades. Timing is everything.

You can start with as little as $50–$100, but returns are uneven, and one bad trade can wipe out multiple wins. Many who enter this space get rekt by front-running bots, illiquidity, or narrative shifts they didn’t see coming.

This strategy is designed for highly active users with fast reflexes and a high risk tolerance. It rewards intuition, speed, and emotional control — but punishes hesitation, overconfidence, or copying others blindly.

We’ll break down narrative-tracking tools, filtering techniques, and wallet tracking strategies in a dedicated part of this series.

Token Accumulation & Yield Setup

Not all crypto strategies are flashy. Some are slow, deliberate, and long-term — like accumulating high-conviction tokens and later deploying them for yield. In 2025, this approach is gaining renewed attention as users seek to maximize capital efficiency without incurring daily costs.

Why should you? Because market cycles take time, and smart capital prefers building positions during low volatility. Meanwhile, protocols want liquidity and long-term holders. To attract them, they offer staking, lending, and incentive rewards, which turn idle assets into earning machines.

This strategy usually unfolds in two phases:

1. Accumulation phase — Gradually buy tokens you believe in. This might be L1s like $ETH, ecosystem bets like $TIA, or governance tokens with utility. The key is buying over time (DCA-style), often during narrative cooldowns or dips.
2. Yield phase — Once you hold enough, you put them to work:

• Stake directly (on-chain or via exchanges);
• Join protocol-native incentives (e.g., EigenLayer restaking, Pendle yield slicing);
• LP (liquidity provider) on DEXs, if you're comfortable with impermanent loss.

You can start small — even with $100–$200 — especially if you're accumulating in liquid markets. But the larger your stack, the more yield options unlock.

Some are simple (like Binance Simple Earn), while others require bridging, locking tokens, or multi-step DeFi flows.

This method suits users who prefer lower activity but still want returns over time. It rewards patience, research, and capital discipline — not hype or speed.

We’ll explore token selection frameworks, safe yield platforms, and compounding strategies in a dedicated part of this series.

Wrapping Up Part 1

We’ve just run through the complete list of crypto earning methods we’ll be covering in this series — from exchange promos to node-running, from passive staking to active testnet grinding.

For some advanced users, this overview already sparked ideas or helped connect the dots. For others, it’s just the beginning.

As mentioned earlier, each strategy will get its own dedicated breakdown. We’ll walk through specific examples, practical tips, platform comparisons, and capital/time requirements — so you can figure out what fits your style, risk level, and available budget.

Stay tuned. The deep dives are where the real alpha is.

Visual Summary