Wrapped stETH Liquid Staking

wstETH is the wrapped, non-rebasing version of Lido's stETH — a fixed-balance ERC-20 that grows in value rather than in quantity, which makes it simpler to use in DeFi and to account for than rebasing stETH. Staking Rewards tracks two separate numbers for it: the protocol exchange ratio, meaning what Lido will redeem it for, and the market ratio, meaning what it actually trades at. The gap between them is the peg accuracy figure shown on this page.

wstETH's current APY is shown at the top of this page. That figure is a Staking Rewards Benchmark rate rather than a protocol-reported one: the underlying Ethereum benchmark, ETHSRB, divides consensus-layer earnings — block proposals and attestations, net of slashing and inactivity penalties — plus execution-layer earnings from priority tips and MEV by the total ETH staked, observed over the last 24 hours and annualized without compounding. wstETH holders receive that rate net of Lido's 10% protocol fee. Because the calculation is the same every day, this page can also show what wstETH actually returned over the past 90 and 365 days, not only what its current rate promises. Every SRB methodology is published in full, and SRB rates are used by Coinbase, Kraken, Grayscale and Binance.

stETH rebases, so your balance grows daily; wstETH keeps a constant balance and appreciates in value instead. That single difference is why most DeFi protocols and Layer 2 bridges accept wstETH. The two are interchangeable at any time through Lido at the current exchange rate with no fee beyond gas, and they earn identically — but they trade as separate assets, so Staking Rewards tracks each one's market price and peg accuracy separately. The economics are shared; the peg figures are not interchangeable.

wstETH is among the most battle-tested liquid staking tokens, but it is not risk-free. It inherits stETH's risks — Lido smart-contract and oracle risk, validator slashing socialised across holders, and a possible stETH/ETH discount during market stress — plus a thin wrapper-contract layer, and Lido's large share of staked ETH adds concentration risk. Two of those are things you can check rather than take on trust: this page tracks wstETH's peg accuracy, so a discount to redemption value is visible as it happens rather than after the fact, and it publishes reward stability over 90 and 365 days, which shows whether the advertised rate has actually been delivered. The withdrawal queue is the other variable — normally 1–5 days, but it extends when exit demand spikes across Ethereum, and the queue is a network-level constraint rather than a Lido-specific one.

Two routes. Unwrap wstETH to stETH via Lido (instant), then request an ETH withdrawal through Lido's queue, typically 1–5 days. Or swap wstETH straight for ETH on a DEX such as Curve or 1inch for instant liquidity. Which route is cheaper depends on the peg accuracy Staking Rewards publishes on this page: when the market ratio sits below the protocol exchange ratio, selling means accepting that discount, and the queue is the cheaper exit. When the two are level, the DEX costs you nothing beyond gas and slippage.