Start your staking journey or explore more information about staking on Polkadot's Home Page. Discover this new Staking Dashboard that makes staking much easier and check our extensive article list in the Overview article to help you get started.

This article explains how to use the Staking Dashboard to join a nomination pool.


In this example, we use the Westend testnet, but the process is the same for Polkadot and Kusama.


TABLE OF CONTENTS

How to Join a Nomination Pool


‼️ IMPORTANT

You can now join a nomination pool with tokens that are locked for governance in addition you can vote in governance while your tokens are staked in a pool. The bonded tokens remain in your account and under your control, but cannot be transferred. The pool handles validator nominations and reward distribution.


ℹ️ GOOD TO KNOW

An account can only be a member of one pool at a time.


1. Connect your account to the Staking Dashboard.


2. Navigate to the "Pools" tab and click the "Join Pool" button. The system will show you a random pool, you can select it if it suits you, or click "Choose Another Pool" to view a different one. Alternatively, you can go to the "All Pools" tab to do your own research and choose the pool that best matches your preferences. 

You can learn how to choose the best nomination pool based on your preferences in this article:



3. Find the pool you would like to join and click "More":



ℹ️ GOOD TO KNOW

Nomination pools have the possibility to charge a commission for their services. Always check the pool's commission before joining it.


‼️ IMPORTANT

Choose wisely. As a pool member you must wait for the unbounding period before switching pools: 28 days on Polkadot and 7 days on Kusama.


4. In this panel, under the "Overview" tab, you can see key information about the pool, such as the reward history, total bonded amount, and assigned roles. In the "Nominations" tab, you can check which validators the pool is nominating.

On the right side, you can enter the amount you want to bond and choose how rewards will be claimed. You can allow anyone to claim them to your account, automatically compound them back into the pool, or select permissioned mode, where only you can claim your rewards. When ready, click "Join Pool" and sign to confirm.



5. Once you sign the extrinsic, the "Pools" page will be presented again, displaying the information about the nomination pool you joined.


How to Increase Your Bond in the Pool


1. To increase your stake, click the plus button on the "Pools" page.



2. Enter the amount you want to add to your stake and click "Submit". 


Limitations


  • To switch pools, a member must wait for the unbonding period: 7 days on Kusama and 28 days on Polkadot.
  • Auto-compounding is not enabled by default, but it can be done manually or permissionlessly, depending on your chosen settings.
  • A member can also partially unbond their staked funds in the pool, with up to 16 partial unbonds allowed. See this article for more details on how to unbond or exit a pool.
  • See this article for a comparison between nominating directly and joining a nomination pool.


For guidance on creating or destroying pools, refer to this article.

If you are more of a visual learner, check this video guide at the mark 13:07: