Sweatcoin Guide | Learn Everything About SWEAT
There’s a new craze in crypto and it’s called ‘Move to Earn‘. Move to earn is being pounced on by companies that want to fuse the worlds of exercise and crypto in a meaningful way. One of the forerunners of this movement is Sweatcoin.
With the strapline ‘Healthier Planet. Healthier, wealthier you’, the team behind Sweatcoin has created an app that works a lot like any other walking, jogging, stepping or running app but with the cunning twist of remuneration.
This article laces up the story on what’s happening with Sweatcoin, and how its new generation currency can be used to buy awesome merch, convert into crypto or give to charity. It also looks at the new proposed coin SWEAT, which will be launched sometime in 2022. But if you’re itching to get moving NOW, and want to be in on the new Move to Earn craze, it’s worth checking out Stepn’s Green Metaverse Token.
Where to buy Sweatcoin?
How Does Sweatcoin Work?
Whether the Sweatcoin app can cause us to prioritise exercise over rest by default is up for debate. However, it’s certainly made being active more attractive. By giving you tokens each time you complete a set number of steps, Sweatcoin is not only rewarding efforts but encouraging you to stay active.
Before we delve into how Sweatcoin works, here are the answers to some important questions:
Is Sweatcoin a scam? No. The app has been verified by Apple and Google. What’s more, the product has been tested and given positive reviews by a number of respected publications, including Forbes, Reuters, The New York Times and TechCrunch.
Is the Sweatcoin app free? Yes. Downloading it doesn’t cost anything and you can earn SWC tokens without a subscription fee.
How does Sweatcoin make money? Sweatcoin works in a similar way to an affiliate system. When you use a sign-up link or click a banner on an affiliate website, you’ll be directed to a third-party vendor. Anything you purchase from said vendor will earn the site owner some money.
Sweatcoin works in a similar way. By cutting deals with various companies, the Sweatcoin offers page allows you to buy goods and services using SWC. Each time you do this, Sweatcoin gets a kickback. The benefit of this model is that it doesn’t cost you anything other than the time you spend accumulating coins.
How do I use the Sweatcoin app? First off, you need to download the software. At present, there is a Sweatcoin iPhone app and Sweatcoin on Android. Once you’ve installed it, you need to create an account and allow the software to access your device’s accelerometer and GPS. When everything is set up, leave the app running in the background and start walking. Each time you’re outside, the software will record the number of steps you’ve taken and convert them into SWC tokens as a rate of 1,000 steps/SWC 0.95.
What is Sweatcoin?
Like many of the leading altcoins, Sweatcoin (also known as Sweatcoin Hack) has given commercial value to something non-commercial. Expanding on the idea of walking increasing your health, the Sweatcoin app has made it possible to increase your wealth. However, unlike Bitcoin (BTC) or Ethereum (ETH) tokens, Sweatcoin isn’t a tradable asset. In fact, it’s technically incorrect to call the Sweatcoin a cryptocurrency, because it can’t be bought, sold or exchanged on the open market. However, as founder Oleg Fomenko told TechCrunch in January 2018, there are plans to create open-source DLT blockchain technology around Sweatcoin which would allow coins to be traded on exchanges. In this sense, Sweatcoin is or, at least, has the potential to become a tradable altcoin.
When it was created in 2015, Sweatcoin was designed to monetise exercise. The end result was the Sweatcoin app and, in turn, a digital token known as SWC. When you join the network, the app tracks your daily steps and converts them into coins. Although these digital coins share many similarities with BTC, XRP et al, they only exist in the Sweatcoin ecosystem. Therefore, Sweatcoin value is internal only.
However, despite not being able to trade SWC, users can take advantage of various Sweatcoin offers. Members of the community can use their tokens to purchase selected items or experiences from the company’s partners. These prizes are typically linked to the fitness industry. However, in recent times, users have also been able to convert SWC coins into PayPal cash.
In essence, Sweatcoin is a crypto hybrid or, to put it another way, a new type of altcoin. It takes some of the properties of open-market tokens like Bitcoin but encloses them in a unique ecosystem. In essence, the real aim of the Sweatcoin app is to reward users with tokens that can then be spent within the Sweatcoin world. However, if and when the creators get around to developing a blockchain, SWC will also join the list of altcoins available to trade online.
Why Was Sweatcoin Created?
Sweatcoin was created in 2015 by Oleg Fomenko, Egor Khmelev, and Anton Derlyatka. Their aim was to get people active and push back against our natural desire to procrastinate. Taking the behavioral economics principle of “present bias”, the trio found that most people are inactive because nature intended us to preserve energy in times of plenty. Given that we’re no longer forced to forage for food, our natural instincts are to rest.
In other words, our present conditions create a bias towards rest and relaxation. The way to counter this is instant gratification. By giving you something in return for exercising, the Sweatcoin app is changing your present bias, rewarding activity over rest. Therefore, the Sweatcoin team hopes to alter our perception of physical activity by making it feel natural.
The Sweatcoin App
OK, so steps = SWC tokens. However, is it really worth downloading the Sweatcoin app? We already know that 1,000 steps will get you SWC 0.95. According to the official website, you can get $50 credit towards a pair of Vivobarefoot trainers once you’ve got SWC 75. To earn that amount of coins, you’d need to complete just over 78,000 steps.
According to Japanese researchers led by Dr. Yoshiro Hatano, the average person takes between 3,500 and 5,000 steps per day. Even though Hatano’s research was conducted in the 1960s, the averages still apply today. Therefore, it should take around 15 days to hit the 78,000 step mark.
However, there are some caveats you need to be aware of. Although there aren’t any differences between the Sweatcoin iOS and the Sweatcoin Android apps, the software isn’t available for Blackberry or Windows Phone devices. Additionally, only outdoor steps are counted. If you’re walking around the house, the tracker won’t monitor your movements. Similarly, if you’re on a treadmill in the gym, the Sweatcoin app won’t record your steps either. Although this dynamic is inconvenient, it’s designed to stop people devising a Sweatcoin hack and duping the system.
Sweatcoin Earning Potential
The final caveat you need to be aware of is the earning restrictions. Basic membership is free but you’ll only be able to earn five SWC coins and one free Sweatcoin token per day. This means basic users will only be rewarded for approximately 5,000 outdoor steps per day maximum. There is a way to increase your earning power, and that’s to pay a monthly subscription fee. These fees are taken from your SWC balance, which means you don’t actually have to spend your own money. However, you will have to weigh the monthly cost against your earning power:
- Shaker = Earn up to SWC 10 per day at a cost of SWC 4.75 per month.
- Quaker = Earn up to SWC 15 per day at a cost of SWC 20 per month.
- Breaker = Each up to SWC 20 per day at a cost of SWC 30 per month.
Although it’s not easy to make a direct comparison with your gym membership, it’s possible to say that SWC 75 is equal to $50. This would mean SWC 1 = $1.50 (75/50 = 1.5). Based on this, a Breaker subscription will cost you $45 per month (1.5 x 30). This isn’t too far off the average price of a gym membership. Of course, the reality is that the Sweatcoin USD value isn’t real. However, it’s not a bad idea to think about it in this way for purposes of comparison.
Obviously, you can be a gym member and use Sweatcoin. However, your steps indoors won’t count and, to get max value from being a Breaker, you’ll need to walk 20,000+ steps outside. That will take some time. So, unless you have an active outdoors job, it may not be possible to meet your daily step quota and have time for the gym.
Why invest in Sweatcoin?
Why invest in Sweatcoin? At this stage, the main reason to download the Sweatcoin app is to improve your health and wellbeing. Although the coins and subsequent purchases you can make are a great incentive to stay active, the goal of this app is to get you out of the house. If you need help with that, Sweatcoin is great. In fact, if fitness is your goal, there are various alternatives to Sweatcoin such as Bitwalk and LifeCoin.
From an investors point of view, Sweatcoin value is fairly low right now as it can’t be traded on any exchanges. Unlike established altcoins, you can’t read through our eToro review, create an account and start trading SWC. However, there are plans to make this possible in the future. In fact, when the founders announced their intention to create their own blockchain and go live on some of the leading cryptocurrency exchanges, the Sweatcoin price among those selling coins privately increased. However, as yet, these plans haven’t come to fruition. Therefore, if you’re considering going down a Sweatcoin investment route, you should think about this as a long-term proposition.
To help you decide is Sweatcoin worth it or not, here are some pros and cons:
Pros:
- It doesn’t cost anything to download the app or earn coins.
- You don’t have to be a computer expert to earn coins.
- You get paid to do something you would naturally do.
- It’s possible that SWC will be a tradable commodity in the future, which means you could turn your steps into real cash.
Cons:
- To avoid Sweatcoin hack attacks, the developers have limited the tracking to outdoor steps. This makes it tougher to accumulate credits.
- The app has to be running in the background in order to track your steps. This means you’re giving away your location each time you use it.
- Running the app constantly will drain your battery (although there is a battery saver mode).
- You need to pay a membership fee to unlock the full earning potential.
Sweatcoin Wallets
Because this isn’t a coin you can use outside of the Sweatcoin ecosystem, there aren’t any third-party wallets you can use to keep your tokens. What’s more, you don’t need one of our recommended crypto wallets because your funds will be stored safely in the Sweatcoin app.
Sweatcoin vs. Bitcoin
How does Sweatcoin compare to Bitcoin? Well, in practice, they’re two different products. Bitcoin is more of a general cryptocurrency and blockchain that has external value. Because BTC can be traded on the leading crypto exchanges, it’s something you can invest in and either make or lose money. What’s more, Bitcoin forms the base for a number of innovations. In contrast, Sweatcoin is an entity on its own. Therefore, any value it has right now is internal. Although they share similarities in the sense that they’re both digital coins, their place in the crypto community is vastly different.
In short, Bitcoin and Sweatcoin sit at different ends of the crypto spectrum. The former is a truly digital currency and blockchain. The latter is an innovative use of digital currency technology that exists in its own little world, at least for now.