Cardano Minimum ADA per UTxO: Why Tokens Need 1–2 ADA

On Cardano every transaction output must carry a minimum amount of ADA that depends on the output's size in bytes. Since the Babbage era the rule is (160 + output size in bytes) × 4,310 lovelace, where 4,310 is the protocol parameter coinsPerUTxOByte (still 4,310 on 21 October 2026). A plain ADA-only output therefore needs just under 1 ADA; an output that also holds native tokens needs more, usually 1.1–2 ADA, and more again for many different tokens. That is why you cannot send a token on Cardano without sending some ADA along with it, and why a wallet may refuse to send amounts below about 1 ADA.

Why Cardano has a minimum per output

Cardano uses an extended UTxO model, like Bitcoin but with tokens and data attached to outputs. Every unspent output has to be stored by every node until it is spent. Without a minimum, anyone could flood the ledger with millions of dust outputs for almost nothing. Requiring a small ADA deposit in each output, proportional to its size, makes storage cost something and keeps the UTxO set manageable. The ADA is not burned: it belongs to the owner of the output and moves on when the output is spent.

The numbers

min ADA (lovelace) = (160 + serialized output size) × coinsPerUTxOByte (4,310)
1 ADA = 1,000,000 lovelace

The sizes are approximations — long token names, multiple policy IDs and datums make outputs bigger. The Cardano min ADA calculator estimates the size from the number of policies, tokens and name lengths and applies the formula.

How Cardano fees are calculated

Fees are deterministic and known before you sign. The basic formula uses two protocol parameters, txFeePerByte (44 lovelace) and txFeeFixed (155,381 lovelace): fee = 44 × transaction size in bytes + 155,381. A simple payment of around 300 bytes costs 44 × 300 + 155,381 = 168,581 lovelace, about 0.17 ADA. Transactions that run Plutus scripts also pay for execution units. There is no fee market and no tip: a valid transaction with the calculated fee is included in order.

The 2 ADA you see when delegating

Registering a stake key to delegate ADA requires a deposit of 2 ADA (protocol parameter stakeAddressDeposit = 2,000,000 lovelace). It is not a fee: it is returned when you deregister the stake key. Wallets such as Yoroi, Eternl and Lace show it during the first delegation. If you sell all your ADA later and want those 2 ADA back, deregister the stake key in the wallet first.

Practical consequences

• Sending tokens always includes ADA. Wallets add the min-ADA automatically to the output that carries the tokens. The recipient receives that ADA too.
• You cannot empty a wallet of ADA while it holds tokens. At least the min-ADA of the token outputs must stay. Sell or send the tokens first.
• Very small ADA payments fail. An output below about 1 ADA is rejected by the ledger; the wallet usually shows an error mentioning minimum UTxO.
• Exchange withdrawals of tokens usually come with the min-ADA included, and the exchange may charge for it.

The not enough ADA for tokens error guide shows how to fix the most common wallet message.

ADA on KOT.CASH

The liquidity provider accepts and pays out ADA on the Cardano network and waits for 15 confirmations before crediting a deposit. Cardano produces a block roughly every 20 seconds on average, so that is about five minutes. The minimum for ADA swaps is currently about 136 ADA, and for USDT to ADA the payout network fee included in the quote is about 0.8 ADA. Send ADA from a wallet that keeps enough ADA for any tokens it still holds — otherwise the wallet will not build the transaction. Routes: ADA to USDT, USDT to ADA, and the Cardano swap overview.

A worked example with tokens

Say your wallet holds 50 ADA and 1,000 units of one token, and you want to send all the ADA to an exchange. The wallet must keep at least one output that carries the token, and that output needs about 1.2 ADA. It also has to pay a fee of roughly 0.17–0.2 ADA. So the most you can send is about 48.6 ADA. If you also want to empty the wallet completely, send the token away first — either to another wallet of yours, together with its min-ADA, or sell it. After that a single transaction can move the whole ADA balance minus the fee.

The same logic explains why receiving a token airdrop does not cost you ADA: the sender attached the min-ADA, which now belongs to you and becomes spendable once you move or burn the token.