Cardano is the new darling of the NFT world.
While Ethereum opened the door to peer-to-peer trade of tokenized digital art, Cardano has made its mark as the new kid on the block.
If you are a digital artist who wants to know more about where to mint Cardano NFTs, then read on:
- Are Cardano NFTs worth it?
- How to mint Cardano NFTs
- Where to mint Cardano NFTs
- A quick comparison of Cardano NFT minting sites
Let's get right to it!
But First, Are Cardano NFTs Worth It? Collectors and Artists Think So!
Your interest in non-fungible tokens (NFT) for digital art might be sparked by stories of Grimes scoring in the millions for her NFTs or because ape art seems to be selling like hot cakes. Very lucrative hot cakes, we might add.
It could just be because NFTs have erupted on the scenes and everyone is talking about it, and you’re curious.
Or you’ve heard of the waves Cardano NFTs (CNFTs) are making in the marketplace.
Whatever the reason, you’re on the right track if you want to use Cardano blockchain to develop, or mint, your own NFT.
NFTs are fantastic as a means of trading something that is absolutely unique and non-exchangeable.
A Bit About Cardano NFTs
This is the hottest blockchain for NFTs and artists and collectors are taking note. While there are many other contenders you can choose from, as the newcomer, Cardano has learned from predecessors and is tops at keeping things safe, secure, and highly lucrative.
In less than a year, over ₳391 million was traded by artists and collectors - that is, 1,649,096 Cardano native assets.
In fact, CNFT’s top 15 collections are valued to be worth more than ₳195.73 million. In one bumper month earlier this year, Cardano NFT marketplaces traded over 182,400 native assets estimated at close to $27 million.
For those in the room who care about safety and best practice, Cardano is also the first proof-of-stake blockchain platform that was created based on peer-reviewed research, and built on evidence-based methods.
What does this mean for you?
Essentially, this means it is really good at doing what it needs to do best: keep track of who’s holding and trading NFTs. Your NFTs.
What else is great, is that transaction fees on Cardano are significantly lower than Ethereum. This makes it much more affordable to mint NFTs on the Cardano blockchain, particularly so for larger collections.
Cardano NFT Projects
When it comes to Cardano NFT (CNFT) projects, you’re entering exciting airspace. CNFT has some of the most desirable and significant projects that are top-notch in the marketplace.
These include SpaceBudz, Clay Nation and Knitties, amongst others.
If you’re keen to start your own art collection and need a bit of inspiration, check out some popular examples of NFTs on Cardano here.
How To Mint a Cardano NFT
Well, the long answer is multi-stepped and quite technical.
The short answer is that the Cardano NFT marketplace kind of takes care of everything for you. Platforms like Buffy Bot, JPG Store, Cardahub and NFT Maker (in the works) have both CNFT marketplaces and minting services to take take care of all the minting setup steps right up to listing NFTs for sale.
These service providers mean you can mint NFTs on Cardano. The marketplace/minting sites are really great at giving creators a one-stop solution to launch, market, and sell your art collections, without the need for having a technical degree!
Where To Mint Cardano NFTs Today
There are some important questions that need answering:
- How much does it cost to mint NFT on Cardano? It costs between .17 to 1.5 ADA ($0.13 - $1.15).
- Are there free NFT minting sites? Free-to-mint NFTs are wildly popular. These collections give artists and collectors a means to mint an NFT for free (or for a very small cost). These are usually offered at event launches to drive interest, and create a bit of buzz — check out Cardahub’s free minting service.
- How are NFTs created? NFTs are “minted” on blockchains (like Cardano) that not only create NFTs, but also help with the trading of these tokens by handling the transactions.
- What do I need to transact on Cardano? You will need a Cardano wallet to safely store your NFTs and currency (ADA). Here are a few of the Cardano cryptocurrency wallets you can choose from.
A Quick Comparison of Four Cardano NFT Minting Sites and Platforms
NFT Maker
As the longest-running NFT minting service provider on Cardano, NFT Maker is super-robust. You can mint one NFT, or 10,000 NFT collections, and it won't break a sweat. With over one million NFTs minted, this is definitely the leading minting site on Cardano.
Things To Know
- Metadata: Generate your own metadata with JSON.
- Payment gateway: NFT Maker has a payment gateway that helps standardize your NFT-buying process, like a normal checkout feature.
- Winning features: Minting API, drop calendar integration, and analytics dashboard.
- User-friendliness: More control for advanced users.
- Cost: The cost to mint an NFT on this platform is 2₳ for a single mint, and 500 = 2250₳ for bulk minting + network fees.
How To Mint an NFT on NFT Maker
- Create an account on NFT Maker
- Create a wallet or connect an existing wallet
- Add ADA to your wallet or ensure you have enough to cover buying mint tokens
- Go to your dashboard and click ‘New Project’
- Fill out all the fields on your new project form.
Follow this useful video guide on how to create an NFT on NFT Maker.
Buffy Bot
As the second longest-running minting site on Cardano, Buffy Bot offers great functionality, particularly for large NFT collections. The platform has a great vending machine setup and offers NFT minting consulting.
However, this is not the NFT minting site for you if you want just one NFT, or if you want to manually mint an NFT.
Things To Know
- Metadata: This is generated by the site using user inputs from a .csv file
- Asset generation: Buffy Bot assists with asset generation.
- Winning features: Can only take seven days to launch your project, depending on total supply.
- User-friendliness. It’s a done-for-you service provider.
- Cost: 20% of project revenue.
How To Mint an NFT on Buffy Bot
Buffy Bot consulting services are usually booked one to two months ahead, so be sure to enquire well ahead of your project launch date.
- Go to the website
- Select 'Minting Services'
- Submit project details
Cardahub
This NFT minting service provider offers basic minting features and its own marketplace. Its free minting service includes a “default minted by” attribute where the premium version removes it. While this minting site is likely the easiest site for NFT minting, it is not ideal for bulk NFT collections, as you can only mint one NFT at a time.
Things To Know
- Metadata: Cardahub allows you to easily set your own metadata.
- Winning features: Minting API, marketplace, clean and easy minting process.
- User-friendliness: For beginners.
- Cost. 1₳ per NFT + network fees for the premium minting service.
How To Mint an NFT on Cardahub
- Create a wallet or connect an existing wallet
- Add ADA to your wallet or ensure you have enough to cover the minting costs
- Add your art assets to the platform.
- Fill out the fields in the form and click ‘Start Minting’.
You can view this handy guide to help you mint NFTs on Cardahub.
JPG Store
JPG Store is a smart contract based marketplace for Cardano NFT collections where the NFTs are sorted by collection. This NFT marketplace is the biggest on Cardano and has recently also rolled out its own minting service.
Things To Know
- Metadata: JPG Store allows you to easily add all your own traits and metadata.
- Winning features. Royalties are tracked on the blockchain with automatic payments made from the marketplace.
- User friendly: For beginners.
- Cost. 1 ADA + network fees.
How To Mint an NFT on JPG Store
- Create an NFT wallet, such as Eternl, or connect your existing wallet
- Select the Creators dropdown option and ‘Create your Collection’
- Click ‘Create your own NFTs’ and complete the process as instructed.
We’ve put together a walkthrough on how to mint an NFT on JPG Store here.
Closing Thoughts
NFT minting sites give you a wide variety of ways to mint Cardano NFTs the way you like it. Whether you want maximum control and transparency, only want to mint one NFT at a time, or want to go bulk, there is a minting site on the Cardano blockchain that will allow you to do so.
As an artist looking to mint your digital art and sell it, you can find more information about where to mint Cardano NFTs on our NFT minting review page and our NFT minting specs page.
