Staking coins -- holding them in the proper wallet to earn passive income -- is on the rise in the crypto space. After all, who doesn't like money for doing nothing?

In the case of Cardano (ADA), they're letting users play with TestNet funds, but earn real ADA in the process.

Here's how it's done:

1. Determine eligibility

So long as you held ADA in either the Daedalus or Yoroi wallet prior to the balance snapshot taken on Nov. 29, 2019, you can participate. 

2. Confirm ownership of seed phrase

Before you can stake, you'll need to import funds from the MainNet wallet to the TestNet wallet. Remember those 12 words you wrote down when you first set up your wallet? Find them.

Don't worry; MainNet funds stay in your wallet and can be withdrawn as usual.

3. Download rewards wallet

The Cardano team created a special edition of the Daedalus wallet to perform testing.

Once inside the TestNet wallet, you'll restore your MainNet wallet and migrate funds.

4. Select a staking pool, or run your own

The rewards wallet will guide you through the entire process.

5. Wait for Cardano to issue rewards

Staking rewards don't accumulate the same way they will when the staking mechanism is fully operational. For now, get your funds staked in the rewards wallet. At the end of the testing period, real, spendable ADA will appear in your MainNet wallet.

Full details found here: https://staking.cardano.org/

Lastly, here's a PDF with step-by-step instructions: https://static.iohk.io/docs/testnet/Daedalus_Rewards_Wallet_Instructions.pdf

Remember, your MainNet funds are unaffected by test staking. And, this rewards calculator provides an estimate of what you can expect to earn.

Happy staking, everyone!