“Mining crypto on your phone” sounds too good to be true when you’re used to images of humming warehouses and power-hungry rigs. Pi Network proposes something very different: a mobile-first approach that swaps constant computation for lightweight participation and social trust. The result is a project with a very large user base and an onboarding experience closer to tapping a daily app reminder than running specialized hardware.
Why do people care? Zero (or near-zero) hardware costs, a simple daily check-in that keeps newcomers engaged, and the long-standing hope that today’s activity will translate into real-world liquidity tomorrow.
Pi exited its enclosed phase and moved to Open Network on Feb. 20, 2025. Trading now exists on select exchanges, but availability is not universal, and pricing remains volatile as order books deepen and regional compliance rules evolve. In short, there’s genuine progress, alongside risks that readers should weigh carefully as they decide whether and how to participate.
Pi Network is a mobile-first blockchain project that aims to make cryptocurrency participation as simple as tapping a button on your phone.
Instead of relying on energy-intensive mining hardware, Pi emphasizes low-energy engagement and social trust to bring newcomers into crypto. In practical terms, users “mine” PI through periodic check-ins in the app to use PI coin across an ecosystem of apps and services as the network matures. See the Pi Whitepaper and Roadmap for the project’s mission and phased rollout.
Note: Availability of features and participation requirements (e.g., KYC) can vary by region; always consult official Pi Network materials for your locale.
Before diving into features, it helps to separate Pi Network’s two moving parts: how individuals earn PI on their phones and how the network itself reaches agreement.
The earning side is intentionally simple: periodic check-ins that maintain your eligibility to receive emissions. Under the hood, however, Pi relies on a consensus model that uses trusted connections between participants rather than energy-hungry hardware. Understanding this split, everyday “mining” habits versus the consensus engine, makes the rest of the mechanics much easier to follow.
At its core, Pi’s “mining” is a lightweight participation routine: you open the app and start a 24-hour session by tapping once, then return after the session ends to tap again and keep earning. The process ties your emission to your account status and to the strength of your “security circle” (trusted contacts). For complete beginners, think of it like checking in daily to maintain a streak; miss the window, and the streak pauses until you return.
Official materials describe the cadence and common pitfalls (for example, signing out before a session ends can forfeit that session’s earnings) in the Community Wiki and Support portal (referenced above).
For a plain-English walkthrough of the flow, don't miss our beginner's guide to mining PI.
Quick reference:
Note: Program parameters and eligibility may vary by region and account status; always confirm details in official Pi materials for your locale.
As we mentioned, Pi adapts the Stellar Consensus Protocol (SCP), a Federated Byzantine Agreement model that reaches agreement through overlapping “quorum slices” of trusted participants rather than through energy-intensive competition. In simple terms, instead of proving work with machines, nodes prove agreement by aligning with enough peers they trust; as overlapping trust relationships spread across the network, a global decision emerges.
In Pi’s design, peer trust sets and security circles feed into this process to prioritize real users over bots or farms, hence the project’s emphasis on account verification and social trust. Mainnet participation is linked to identity checks. Pi has explained its approach and rationale in its KYC FAQs and KYC program update, as discussed. As with any identity-based system, there are ongoing discussions about data handling and local requirements; Pi provides general safety guidance in its Account Safety resource.
Regional note: KYC availability, documentation needs, and processing times can differ by country and over time.
The Pi ecosystem has two layers to consider: the PI Coin currency itself and the apps and services where it’s meant to be used. On one side are issuance and exchange listings that shape price discovery and liquidity. On the other are marketplaces and pilot integrations that test day-to-day utility. Keeping both in view helps explain why progress can appear uneven across regions and platforms.
Pi Network’s native asset is the Pi Coin, or PI, designed for use within the project’s app ecosystem and, increasingly, on external venues as connectivity has expanded. Distribution has emphasized community participation from the outset, with ongoing emissions linked to user activity and network rules described in the Token Model (Community Wiki).
Following the transition to an open environment, PI began appearing on selected centralized exchanges; for example, OKX’s listing notice and Gate.io’s announcement set out timelines for PI/USDT spot markets in February 2025. Liquidity and pricing are still developing, and market conditions can vary significantly across venues and over time.
Read our beginner's guide on how to buy PI coin. Also check out our top picks for the best Pi Coin wallets.
Callout: Pricing can be volatile, and exchange availability may differ by region and platform. Always review local access rules, verification requirements, and fees before attempting to trade.
Beyond exchange trading, Pi’s goal is a network of apps where PI is useful for everyday transactions. New and updated apps have been highlighted through periodic ecosystem posts, such as the Mainnet Ecosystem Interface update, which added community-built applications for Pioneers to explore. Access typically flows through the Pi Browser and the platform’s developer stack; developers can onboard via the Pi Apps Platform and deploy to users who sign in with their Pi credentials.
Partnerships to date are mostly pilot-stage and focused on testing specific use cases rather than large-scale integrations. The broader plan is to expand utility and external connectivity following the open-network transition, aligning app development with payments, identity, and other on-chain interactions.
For readers new to exchange mechanics and liquidity, our very own overview of order-book depth and market quality in this primer offers helpful context when evaluating early trading conditions for PI.
Debate around Pi Network generally falls into three areas: how it grew, how long it took to reach exchange trading, and what the project asks of participants.
The growth model leans on referrals and community-driven activity; the path to broad, real-world liquidity has been gradual; and participation increasingly relies on identity checks, which raises regional and privacy considerations. For a beginner, it helps to evaluate signals rather than headlines: what has officially launched, what safeguards exist, and where trading actually happens.
Pi’s referral-influenced growth has drawn comparisons to multi-level marketing mechanics in the public discourse. Without labeling Pi as an MLM, it’s useful to understand how regulators evaluate such programs; the U.S. Federal Trade Commission provides plain-language guidance on multi-level marketing and related consumer resources.
Separately, the long period before broad exchange connectivity invited skepticism about whether PI would ever trade widely. Identity verification has also become central to mainnet participation, which means data handling and regional documentation requirements matter; Pi points users to its Support & Policy hub for items like the Privacy Policy and safety resources.
The project has publicly communicated its transition out of the enclosed phase and into an open environment (see the official announcement archive for the February 2025 rollout timeline). KYC processes continue to expand, including the introduction of Fast Track KYC in September 2025 to onboard participants more quickly. On trading, multiple centralized venues now list PI, though liquidity and market quality still vary by platform and jurisdiction. As always, access depends on where you live and which compliance rules apply.
We have a lot more detail on KYC/AML to help you understand it better.
Pros
Cons
Pi’s design combines a social, phone-based earning flow with a consensus engine that seeks agreement through webs of trust rather than raw computing power. Let's see how that engine works, how rewards are determined, and what safeguards the project highlights for the open-network environment.
As noted, Pi builds on the Stellar Consensus Protocol (SCP). In practice, groups of nodes accept updates when enough of their trusted sets also accept them, allowing the decision to propagate network-wide. For background on this approach, see Stellar’s “Proof and Code” introduction and the fundamentals overview that contrasts proof-of-agreement with proof-of-work. In Pi’s context, the trust links originate from participant relationships and app-level signals, aligning with the project’s goal of broad, low-energy participation.
SCP vs. PoW (why mobile works): Because agreement hinges on trust quorums, not hashpower, phones aren’t solving puzzles. This keeps energy use low and helps explain why Pi frames participation as lightweight check-ins rather than continuous computation.
Pi’s earning flow ties a base rate to actions that indicate real participation, then layers multipliers from features like security circles, referrals, app engagement, and optional lockups. The project describes this merit-based approach in its “How do I mine more Pi coins?” FAQ and details security-circle bonuses in a dedicated Security Circles FAQ. Lockups, which are voluntarily committing balances for a period, are positioned as rate boosters in on-chain lockup updates and subsequent reminders. The network has also referenced periodic base rate adjustments, so any published figures should be cited with an “as of” date from official materials.
Objective: Incentivize verified, consistent activity and discourage spammy or automated behavior.
Pi links mainnet participation to identity checks and business verification, describing these requirements in the Open Network launch note and the KYB guidance. The idea is to prioritize real users and accountable service providers while limiting Sybil risks (many fake identities), fake circles, and device farms, which are threats that social-trust checks and KYC/KYB are meant to reduce. The project has also outlined migration and tokenomics safeguards for the open phase in a Mainnet migrations & tokenomics update.
Pi’s open-network transition in early 2025 enabled external connectivity, which is why you’ll now see PI quoted on multiple exchanges. To make sense of today’s market, it helps to separate three moving parts: where PI is listed, what the token’s supply looks like, and how much real liquidity sits in order books. The highlights below focus on official disclosures and widely used market trackers.
Open Network has been live since February 20, 2025. PI trading is available on several centralized exchanges, where common pairs include PI/USDT, and reported volumes vary between venues. For a consolidated view of live pairs, venues, and reported turnover, consult CoinGecko’s PI markets list.
Price context: Through much of 2025, PI has traded in roughly the $0.26–$0.30 range with sharp moves around major milestones. Data aggregators show an all-time high on Feb. 26, 2025; see CoinCodex’s PI page for the latest timestamps and figures, especially considering frequent fluctuations.
Reference table:
Note: All 24h volumes were extracted from Coingecko on Oct. 2, 2025.
Figures auto-update via CoinGecko; always verify on your chosen exchange before trading.
Pi states a maximum supply of 100 billion PI, with the majority allocated to community mining rewards and the remainder to the foundation, liquidity, and the Core Team. The project explains that these buckets track the pace of migrated mining rewards so proportions stay constant as the effective supply grows; revert to the official Mainnet migrations & tokenomics update for details.
Public discussion continues around supply policy and burns; coverage from reputable outlets has highlighted the design and the debates without changing the official allocations.
Reference table (tokenomics overview):
Reported 24h volumes fluctuate with listings, market cycles, and regional demand. Spreads and depth can vary meaningfully between venues, where some books are thin, which can increase slippage.
A practical way to assess conditions is to review top-of-book spreads and order-book depth on the same CoinGecko markets list referenced above, then compare across two or three exchanges before trading.
As Pi’s open-network era matures, converting PI into fiat (or other crypto) depends on two parallel tracks: exchange coverage and on-platform spending. Exchange listings determine where PI can be traded for currencies like USDT or USD, while ecosystem commerce allows members to spend PI directly with participating merchants. Availability on both tracks varies by region and can change as compliance requirements evolve.
A growing, but still selective, group of centralized exchanges lists PI, with access, pairs, and payment rails differing by jurisdiction. For an aggregated snapshot of active pairs and reported volumes, consult the markets section on the main price aggregators mentioned earlier.
Inside the ecosystem, Pi continues to promote real-world spending through community events and app interfaces, for example, PiFest 2024 encouraged local merchant acceptance, and Open Network PiFest guidelines outline in-store payment flows using Mainnet wallets. Pi also maintains a KYB list to identify verified businesses allowed to hold Mainnet wallets, reinforcing a focus on accountable counterparties.
Check out our step-by-step guide on how to sell PI coin. We also have a guide on the best PI coin exchanges.
Liquidity should improve as three factors develop: broader exchange coverage, deeper order books, and clearer compliance pathways for individuals and businesses. On the ecosystem side, the team highlights continued onboarding of apps and merchants during the open-network period; see 100 Days of Open Network for the project’s own description of KYB-enabled integrations) and ongoing hackathon and incubator initiatives that aim to expand practical use cases. If these efforts lead to more places to spend PI and more venues to trade it, market depth and conversion options should become more robust over time.
Pi’s appeal comes from a low barrier to entry and a design that favors everyday participation over specialized hardware. At the same time, its path to broad liquidity and its identity requirements introduce trade-offs that beginners should weigh carefully.
Read: Is Pi Network Legit?
Risk table
Pi reframes “mining” as participation rather than computation. By letting people earn from their phones instead of specialized rigs, the project lowers technical and financial barriers; for newcomers, it feels closer to maintaining a daily streak than running a server farm. This kind of accessible onboarding can widen the top of the crypto funnel, especially in regions where power, hardware, or capital make traditional mining impractical.
Compared with legacy proof-of-work and newer proof-of-stake systems, Pi’s approach leans on trust quorums (outlined earlier) instead of hash power or bonded stake.
The outlook depends on execution. If exchange access broadens, order-book depth improves, and compliance pathways remain clear for individuals and businesses, Pi could serve as a large, mobile-first on-ramp to blockchain apps. Without those ingredients, user interest may not translate into durable liquidity or everyday utility.
Overview
Checklist:
Example (hypothetical):
Allocate $100 for a test trade on one listed exchange. Note the quoted price, the fee you paid, the realized slippage from quote to fill, and the withdrawal fee/time for moving funds off the platform. Use the results to decide whether depth and costs are acceptable before scaling up.
Pi Network set out to make crypto participation as simple as tapping a phone, and it now operates in an open-network environment with a growing footprint across exchanges and ecosystem apps. For beginners, the key idea is that Pi replaces energy-heavy mining with a trust-based model: users maintain activity through periodic check-ins while the network’s consensus is driven by social connections and verified participation. That combination explains both Pi’s scale and the scrutiny it attracts.
From a practical standpoint, conversion to real money still depends on where PI is listed, the quality of each order book, and your local compliance requirements. Token supply is large and issuance continues over time, so market depth and utility will matter more than headlines. If exchange coverage broadens, merchants and apps adopt PI, and verification pathways remain clear, the experience could feel more like using a mainstream digital wallet than a niche crypto project.
For readers deciding what to do next, keep it simple: verify local access, compare venues, start small, and secure your accounts and devices. Approach Pi as an evolving platform, as it is useful to learn from today, and worth re-checking as the ecosystem and liquidity mature.
Pi is active and in its Open Network phase (since Feb 20, 2025). Trading exists on select exchanges, but liquidity is uneven and access varies by region.
There are no guarantees or timelines. Monitor official Pi announcements and each exchange’s disclosures for any future listing decisions.
Only where PI is listed and supported for your country and payment rails. Check local availability, verification requirements, and withdrawal options before attempting to trade.
Pi uses an SCP-style model with trust circles and identity checks. Security depends on honest participation, app/device hygiene, and the quality of the network’s verified users.
Mobile-first onboarding, consensus via trust quorums rather than hashpower or bonded stake, and a very large community focused on low-friction participation.
It’s contingent on real utility (apps and merchants), broader and deeper liquidity, and clear compliance pathways. Revisit these signals periodically to reassess.
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At The Coin Bureau, I specialize in crypto-focused content, covering exchanges, wallets, trading strategies, security practices, and emerging trends in blockchain. My work ranges from in-depth platform reviews and beginner-friendly guides to advanced analyses of trading bots, DeFi, and regulatory developments.
Beyond crypto, I also write fiction in my spare time and look forward to publishing my first collection of short stories.
Disclaimer: These are the writer’s opinions and should not be considered investment advice. Readers should do their own research.
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