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<p class="crumb"><a href="/guides">Guides</a> / Why testnet coins have no value</p>

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      <h1><span class="grad">Why testnet coins have no value</span></h1>
      <p class="lede">Testnet coins are free, effectively unlimited, and worthless on purpose. That worthlessness is what makes them useful for learning.</p>
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    <h2 id="why">Why they're worthless <a class="anchor" tabindex="-1" href="#why" aria-hidden="true">#</a></h2>
    <p>Value comes from scarcity, and testnet coins have none. They're handed out for free by <a href="/faucet">faucets</a>, <a href="/mining">mined</a> trivially because the difficulty is low, and the networks can be reset at any time. There's nothing to be scarce about, so there's no market price. That's by design.</p>

    <h2 id="must">Why they must stay that way <a class="anchor" tabindex="-1" href="#must" aria-hidden="true">#</a></h2>
    <p>The whole reason testnets exist is to be a <strong>risk-free sandbox</strong>. If testnet coins were worth money, people would hoard them, faucets would be drained by speculators, and developers couldn't get the coins they need to test. Worthlessness is a feature that keeps the sandbox open for everyone.</p>

    <div class="callout danger">
      <p class="co-title">Anyone selling testnet coins is scamming you</p>
      <p>If someone offers to buy or sell testnet coins, or claims they'll be "worth something later," it's a scam. Testnet coins are not an investment and never will be. Don't pay for them, and don't sell them, because you'd only be helping a scammer look legitimate.</p>
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    <h2 id="etiquette">Good etiquette <a class="anchor" tabindex="-1" href="#etiquette" aria-hidden="true">#</a></h2>
    <p>Because the supply is shared, take only what you need, and return coins to the <a href="/faucet">faucet</a> when you're done so the next learner can use them.</p>

    <h2 id="freedom">The upside <a class="anchor" tabindex="-1" href="#freedom" aria-hidden="true">#</a></h2>
    <p>There's an upside to all of this: <strong>because they're worthless, you can make every mistake safely.</strong> Send to the wrong address, set a silly fee, or break your own transaction. It costs nothing to learn. That freedom is the point of a testnet.</p>
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      <h3>Testnet coins are fake money</h3>
      <ul>
        <li>They have no market value, so never buy or sell them.</li>
        <li>Never use a real seed phrase or import a real wallet on testnet.</li>
        <li>Never send mainnet BTC, LTC, or XMR to a testnet address.</li>
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