The two most common types of cryptocurrency protocols are Proof of Work (PoW) and Proof of Stake (PoS). Both have their own advantages and disadvantages, but which one is better?

Proof of Work The most well-known cryptocurrency that uses PoW is Bitcoin. With PoW, miners compete against each other to solve complex mathematical problems. The first miner to solve the problem gets to add the next block to the blockchain and is rewarded with Bitcoin. The main advantage of PoW is that it is very secure. It is very difficult to tamper with the blockchain because doing so would require a huge amount of computing power. This makes PoW ideal for cryptocurrencies that are meant to be secure and trustless. However, there are also some disadvantages to PoW. The biggest one is that it is very energy-intensive. The amount of electricity used by Bitcoin miners is estimated to be about the same as the annual electricity consumption of the country of Ireland!

Proof of Stake The most well-known cryptocurrency that uses PoS is Ethereum. With PoS, there is no mining. Instead, users stake their coins by holding them in their wallets. The more coins you stake, the greater your chances.