--- title: Staking withdrawals description: Page summarizing what staking push withdrawals are, how they work, and what stakers need to do to get their rewards lang: en template: staking image: /images/staking/leslie-withdrawal.png sidebarDepth: 2 summaryPoints: - Validator operators must provide a withdrawal address to enable withdrawals - Legacy validators have excess balance over 32 ETH automatically withdrawn every few days - Compounding validators earn rewards on their full balance up to 2048 ETH - Validators who fully exit staking will receive their remaining balance --- **Staking withdrawals** refer to transfers of ETH from a validator account on [Ethereum](/)'s consensus layer (the Beacon Chain), to the execution layer where it can be transacted with. > If you are part of a [staking pool](/staking/pools/) or hold staking tokens, you should check with your provider for more details about how staking withdrawals are handled, as each service operates differently. How withdrawals work depends on your validator's withdrawal credential type: - **Legacy validators (Type 1)**: Excess balance over 32 ETH is automatically and regularly sent to the withdrawal address linked to the validator. Rewards above 32 ETH do not contribute to the validator's weight on the network. - **Compounding validators (Type 2)**: Rewards compound into the validator's effective balance up to 2048 ETH, increasing the validator's weight and earning more rewards. Only balance exceeding 2048 ETH is automatically swept. Users can also **exit staking entirely**, submitting a transaction to withdraw, waiting for any withdrawal queue timeline (based on network demand), and unlocking their full validator balance. ## Staking rewards {#staking-rewards} How rewards are handled depends on the validator's credential type: **Legacy validators (Type 1)** have an effective balance capped at 32 ETH. Any balance above 32 ETH received as network rewards does not contribute to the effective balance or increase the weight of this validator on the network, and these rewards are automatically withdrawn to the validator's dedicated withdrawal address every few days. Aside from providing a withdrawal address one time, claiming these rewards does not require any action from the validator operator. This is all initiated on the consensus layer, thus no gas (transaction fee) is required at any step. **Compounding validators (Type 2)** can have an effective balance anywhere between 32 and 2048 ETH. Network rewards received by these validators compound into their effective balance, increasing the validator's weight and potential to receive future rewards. Automatic sweeps only occur for balance exceeding 2048 ETH. To withdraw rewards below the 2048 ETH threshold, compounding validators must trigger a partial withdrawal manually from the execution layer, which does require gas. ### How did we get here? {#how-did-we-get-here} Over the past few years Ethereum has undergone several network upgrades transitioning to a network secured by ETH itself, instead of energy-intensive mining as it once was. Participating in consensus on Ethereum is now known as "staking", as participants have voluntarily locked up ETH, placing it "at stake" for the ability to participate in the network. Users who follow the rules will be rewarded, while attempts to cheat can be penalized. Since the launch of the staking deposit contract in November 2020, some brave Ethereum pioneers have voluntarily locked funds up to activate "validators", special accounts that have the right to formally attest to and propose blocks, following network rules. Before the Shanghai/Capella upgrade, you couldn't use or access your staked ETH. But now, you can opt-in to automatically receive your rewards into a chosen account, and you can also withdraw your staked ETH whenever you want. ### How do I prepare? {#how-do-i-prepare} ### Important notices {#important-notices} Validator accounts are required to provide a withdrawal address before they can access and withdraw accrued network rewards, or process a full withdrawal upon exiting staking. **Each validator account can only be assigned a single withdrawal address, one time.** Once an address is chosen and submitted to the consensus layer, this cannot be undone or changed again. Double-check ownership and accuracy of the address provided before submitting. If you have not yet provided a withdrawal address for your validator account, there is **no threat to your funds in the meantime**, assuming your mnemonic/seed phrase has remained safe offline, and has not been compromised in any way. Failure to add withdrawal credentials will simply leave the ETH locked in the validator account until a withdrawal address is provided. ## Compounding validators {#compounding-validators} Validators can opt into **compounding** by converting their withdrawal credentials from Type 1 to Type 2. This raises the maximum effective balance from 32 ETH to **2048 ETH**, allowing rewards to compound into the validator's effective balance instead of being automatically swept. With compounding enabled: - Rewards increase the validator's effective balance in 1 ETH increments (subject to a small [hysteresis buffer](https://www.attestant.io/posts/understanding-validator-effective-balance/)), earning more rewards over time - Automatic sweeps only occur for balance exceeding 2048 ETH - Partial withdrawals below the 2048 ETH threshold must be triggered manually from the execution layer (this costs gas) - Multiple validators can be **consolidated** into a single compounding validator, reducing operational overhead **Converting from Type 1 to Type 2 withdrawal credentials is irreversible.** Use the [Staking Launchpad](https://launchpad.ethereum.org/validator-actions) as the official tool for this conversion. For more details on the conversion process, risks, and consolidation, see the [MaxEB deep-dive](/roadmap/pectra/maxeb/). ## Exiting staking entirely {#exiting-staking-entirely} Providing a withdrawal address is required before _any_ funds can be transferred out of a validator account balance. Users looking to exit staking entirely and withdraw their full balance back must initiate a "voluntary exit." This can be done in two ways: - **Using validator keys**: Sign and broadcast a voluntary exit message with your validator client, submitted to your consensus node. This does not require gas. - **Using withdrawal credentials**: Trigger an exit from the execution layer using your withdrawal address, without needing access to the validator signing key. This requires a transaction and costs gas. The process of a validator exiting from staking takes variable amounts of time, depending on how many others are exiting at the same time. Once complete, this account will no longer be responsible for performing validator network duties, is no longer eligible for rewards, and no longer has their ETH "at stake". At this time the account will be marked as fully “withdrawable”. Once an account is flagged as "withdrawable", and withdrawal credentials have been provided, there is nothing more a user needs to do aside from wait. Accounts are automatically and continuously swept by block proposers for eligible exited funds, and your account balance will be transferred in full (also known as a "full withdrawal") during the next sweep. ## How do automatic rewards work (Type 1 validator)? {#how-do-withdrawals-work} Whether a given validator is eligible for a withdrawal or not is determined by the state of the validator account itself. No user input is needed at any given time to determine whether an account should have a withdrawal initiated or not—the entire process is done automatically by the consensus layer on a continuous loop. ### More of a visual learner? {#visual-learner} Check out this explanation of Ethereum staking withdrawals by Finematics: ### Validator "sweeping" {#validator-sweeping} When a validator is scheduled to propose the next block, it is required to build a withdrawal queue, of up to 16 eligible withdrawals. This is done by originally starting with validator index 0, determining if there is an eligible withdrawal for this account per the rules of the protocol, and adding it to the queue if there is. The validator set to propose the following block will pick up where the last one left off, progressing in order indefinitely. Think about an analog clock. The hand on the clock points to the hour, progresses in one direction, doesn’t skip any hours, and eventually wraps around to the beginning again after the last number is reached. Now instead of 1 through 12, imagine the clock has 0 through N _(N being the total number of validator accounts that have ever been registered on the consensus layer, over 1.2 million as of April 2026)._ The hand on the clock points to the next validator that needs to be checked for eligible withdrawals. It starts at 0, and progresses all the way around without skipping any accounts. When the last validator is reached, the cycle continues back at the beginning. #### Checking an account for withdrawals {#checking-an-account-for-withdrawals} While a proposer is sweeping through validators for possible withdrawals, each validator being checked is evaluated against a short series of questions to determine if a withdrawal should be triggered, and if so, how much ETH should be withdrawn. 1. **Has a withdrawal address been provided?** If no withdrawal address has been provided, the account is skipped and no withdrawal initiated. 2. **Is the validator exited and withdrawable?** If the validator has fully exited, and we have reached the epoch where their account is considered to be "withdrawable", then a full withdrawal will be processed. This will transfer the entire remaining balance to the withdrawal address. 3. **Does the balance exceed its maxed-out effective balance?** For legacy (Type 1) validators, this threshold is 32 ETH. For compounding (Type 2) validators, this threshold is 2048 ETH. If the account has withdrawal credentials, is not fully exited, has an effective balance at the maximum, and has balance above this threshold, then a partial withdrawal will be processed which transfers only the excess to the user's withdrawal address. There are only two actions that are taken by validator operators during the course of a validator's life cycle that influence this flow directly: - Provide withdrawal credentials to enable any form of withdrawal - Exit from the network, which will trigger a full withdrawal ### Gas free {#gas-free} Automatic withdrawal sweeps do not require stakers to manually submit a transaction. This means there is **no gas (transaction fee) required** for automatic sweeps, and they do not compete for existing execution layer block space. Note that [compounding validators](#compounding-validators) who wish to trigger a partial withdrawal below the 2048 ETH threshold must do so manually from the execution layer, which does require gas. ### How frequently will my staking rewards be unlocked and available in my wallet? {#how-soon} A maximum of 16 withdrawals can be processed in a single block. At that rate, 115,200 validator withdrawals can be processed per day (assuming no missed slots). As noted above, validators without eligible withdrawals will be skipped, decreasing the time to finish the sweep. Expanding this calculation, we can estimate the time it will take to process a given number of withdrawals: | Number of withdrawals | Time to complete | | :-------------------: | :--------------: | | 400,000 | 3.5 days | | 500,000 | 4.3 days | | 600,000 | 5.2 days | | 700,000 | 6.1 days | | 800,000 | 7.0 days | As you see this slows down as more validators are on the network. An increase in missed slots could slow this down proportionally, but this will generally represent the slower side of possible outcomes. ## Frequently asked questions {#faq} No, the process to provide withdrawal credentials is a one-time process, and cannot be changed once submitted. Setting a validator's execution layer withdrawal address is a permanent change to the validator's credentials on the consensus layer. There is no way to update the consensus layer credentials once they are registered. A validator's withdrawal address credentials can be set to point to either a smart contract (controlled by its code), or an externally owned account (EOA, controlled by its private key). Although execution layer triggered withdrawals ([EIP-7002](https://eips.ethereum.org/EIPS/eip-7002)) now let the withdrawal address trigger exits and partial withdrawals, there is no protocol operation for changing a withdrawal address once it has been registered, and adding this functionality would add unnecessary complexity to the protocol. Users seeking flexible withdrawal management can set a smart contract wallet capable of key rotation (such as a [Safe](https://safe.global/)) as the validator's withdrawal address, effectively allowing the ultimate recipient EOA to be updated. If a user has already set an EOA as the withdrawal credential, they must initiate a full exit to recover their staked ETH and then use those funds to activate a new validator with different credentials. If you use a [staking pool](/staking/pools/) or hold liquid staking tokens, you don't interact with the protocol's withdrawal mechanism directly; the pool's smart contracts and node operators control the validators, and withdrawal credentials typically point to the pool's contracts, not to you. Instead, you typically either redeem your tokens through the provider (subject to its redemption queue and available liquidity) or sell them on the open market. Contact your provider to learn how they handle withdrawals, as processes vary by service. In general, when staking through a provider or pool, you should be free to reclaim your underlying staked ETH, or to withdraw and change which staking provider you utilize. If a particular pool is getting too large, staked ETH can be exited, redeemed, and staked again with a [smaller provider](https://rated.network/). Or, if you've accumulated enough ETH, you could [stake from home](/staking/solo/). For **legacy (Type 1) validators**, yes—as long as your validator has provided a withdrawal address. This must be provided once to enable any withdrawals, then network reward distribution to the withdrawal address will be automatically triggered every few days with each validator sweep. For **compounding (Type 2) validators**, rewards compound into the validator's effective balance (up to 2048 ETH) rather than being swept to the withdrawal address. Automatic sweeps only occur for balances exceeding 2048 ETH. To withdraw rewards below this threshold, you must manually trigger a partial withdrawal from the execution layer. For **legacy (Type 1) validators**, any ETH network rewards that have accrued over the validator's 32 ETH effective balance are automatically pushed to the withdrawal address. Type 1 validators that have submitted a full withdrawal transaction and completed the staking exit process have their full ETH balance withdrawn to their withdrawal address. It is not possible for a Type 1 validator to manually request specific amounts of ETH to be withdrawn. **Compounding (Type 2) validators** can trigger partial withdrawals of a specific amount from the execution layer, as long as the validator's remaining balance stays at or above 32 ETH. This requires submitting a partial withdrawal transaction and costs gas. Validator operators are recommended to visit the [Staking Launchpad Withdrawals](https://launchpad.ethereum.org/withdrawals/) page where you'll find more details about how to prepare your validator for withdrawals, timing of events, and more details about how withdrawals function. To try out your setup on a testnet first, visit the [Hoodi Testnet Staking Launchpad](https://hoodi.launchpad.ethereum.org) to get started. No. Once a validator has exited and its full balance has been withdrawn, any additional ETH deposited to that validator will automatically be transferred to the withdrawal address during the next validator sweep. To begin staking again using that ETH, you must activate a new validator. Legacy validators use **Type 1** withdrawal credentials (withdrawal credential address starts with 0x01) and have an effective balance capped at 32 ETH. Any excess ETH received as network rewards is automatically swept to the withdrawal address every few days. Compounding validators use **Type 2** withdrawal credentials (withdrawal credential address starts with 0x02) and can have an effective balance up to 2048 ETH. Rewards compound into the validator's effective balance, increasing the validator's weight on the network and potential to receive future rewards. Automatic sweeps only occur for balance exceeding 2048 ETH. To withdraw ETH below this threshold, a manual partial withdrawal must be triggered from the execution layer. For more details, see the [MaxEB deep-dive](/roadmap/pectra/maxeb/). You can convert from Type 1 to Type 2 withdrawal credentials using the [Staking Launchpad](https://launchpad.ethereum.org/validator-actions). This operation is **irreversible** — once you convert, you cannot go back to Type 1 credentials. After converting, you can also **consolidate** multiple validators into one, combining their balances into a single compounding validator. For a full walkthrough of the conversion process, risks, and consolidation tooling, see the [MaxEB deep-dive](/roadmap/pectra/maxeb/). Withdrawal functionality was originally enabled as part of the Shanghai/Capella upgrade on **April 12, 2023**. The [Pectra upgrade](/roadmap/pectra/) (May 2025) later introduced compounding validators with a higher maximum effective balance of 2048 ETH, as well as execution layer triggered exits and partial withdrawals. The Shanghai/Capella upgrade enabled previously staked ETH to be reclaimed into regular Ethereum accounts. This closed the loop on staking liquidity, and brought Ethereum one step closer on its journey towards building a sustainable, scalable, secure decentralized ecosystem. - [More on Ethereum history](/ethereum-forks/) - [More on the Ethereum roadmap](/roadmap/) ## Further reading {#further-reading} - [Staking Launchpad Withdrawals](https://launchpad.ethereum.org/withdrawals) - [Staking Launchpad Validator Actions](https://launchpad.ethereum.org/validator-actions) - [MaxEB deep-dive: compounding and consolidation](/roadmap/pectra/maxeb/) - [EIP-4895: Beacon chain push withdrawals as operations](https://eips.ethereum.org/EIPS/eip-4895) - [PEEPanEIP #94: Staked ETH Withdrawal (Testing) with Potuz & Hsiao-Wei Wang](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8UstwmGtyE) - [PEEPanEIP#68: EIP-4895: Beacon chain push withdrawals as operations with Alex Stokes](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CcL9RJBljUs) - [Understanding Validator Effective Balance](https://www.attestant.io/posts/understanding-validator-effective-balance/)