Which perp DEXs have points programs right now?
Short answer: As of 14 Nov 2026, Paradex (XP Season 3), Pacifica and Variational say they're paying out points every week, and Aster's docs list a Stage 6 program. Extended's points ended on 6 Nov 2026, and its XTEN checker opened on 12 Nov with a 31 Dec deadline to accept terms (TokenPost). Lighter has airdropped LIT with no new season confirmed. Points aren't tokens: conversion terms are rarely published.
Points programs at a glance
Listed alphabetically. The number in brackets is the DEX's Perpd risk score.
| DEX | Points status | Token status | How points are earned (as stated) | Known controversy | As of |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aster (52/100) | Stage 6 "Aster Convergence" in its docs, with weekly epochs; no start or end date stated | ASTER live since its 17 Sep 2025 TGE (Blockworks) | Trading fees paid, maker liquidity, position size and holding time, ASTER/asBNB/USDF used as margin, PnL, liquidations, team boosts, 2-level referrals | DefiLlama's head raised wash-trading concerns and delisted Aster's perp volume in Oct 2025 (The Block) | 14 Nov 2026 |
| edgeX (72/100) | "Trade to Own" season launched with V2 on 28 May 2026 (KuCoin News); its program page now describes "Trade to Earn", paying EDGE for trading activity (edgeX). Season dates not confirmed | EDGE live | Converts "user trading activity into protocol ownership"; mechanics not published in that source | EDGE fell from $1.12 to $0.32 on 2 Jun 2026; edgeX found no manipulation, and ZachXBT disputed that (KuCoin) | 14 Nov 2026 |
| Extended (72/100) | Ended: final snapshot at 00:00 UTC on 6 Nov 2026, all 70M points distributed (Extended docs). XTEN checker open since 12 Nov; accept terms by 31 Dec (TokenPost) | XTEN not live; TGE date not announced (TokenPost) | Qualifying trading, liquidity and referral activity, plus testing, bug reports and feedback | 17,384,355 XTEN of the 300M community pool comes from points earned by Extended's own market-making desk (Extended docs) | 14 Nov 2026 |
| GMX (69/100), via GMTrade on Solana | GMTrade ran its own GT points program; status since GMTrade merged back into GMX on 23 Oct 2026, per SolanaFloor, not confirmed (TradingView) | GMX live; GT is "GMTrade's own token, not GMX" (DefiLlama) | Not stated in the sources we read | DefiLlama's adapter maintainers flagged GT points-farming wallets as "one operation rather than a population of traders" (GitHub) | 14 Nov 2026 |
| Lighter (75/100) | No active season found. Tokenomist reports its reserve "will be used for future points seasons" (Tokenomist) | LIT live; the 25% airdrop unlocked on 30 Dec 2025 | Not stated for a new season | Users reported withdrawal issues right after the LIT launch (The Defiant) | 18 Jul 2026 (checked 14 Nov) |
| Pacifica (53/100) | Active since 4 Sep 2025; docs list 10M points a week (Pacifica docs) | No token; still pre-TGE on 13 Nov 2026 (Orbit Perp Screener) | "Organic trading activities on Pacifica via GUI or API"; the formula is "dynamic and opaque by design" | SolanaFloor said its volume lead "more likely stems from airdrop farmers" (SolanaFloor) | 14 Nov 2026 |
| Paradex (63/100) | Active: XP Season 3 since 1 Feb 2026, end TBD, 4M XP a week (Paradex docs) | DIME live since 5 Mar 2026 (FalconX) | "Every contribution to the platform earns XP, from trading to providing liquidity to community engagement" | Open interest peaked at $862M in Jan 2026 during Season 2 rewards, then fell after they ended (FalconX) | 14 Nov 2026 |
| Variational (81/100) | Active: 150K points a week until TGE (Variational) | No token yet; VAR TGE "set for Q4 2026" | Not described in its tokenomics post; Datawallet says wash trades are excluded (Datawallet) | None found in the sources we checked | 14 Nov 2026 |
| Bulk (not yet scored by Perpd) | Crypto Briefing reported a planned "community-focused token airdrop" (Crypto Briefing via Pluang); Solana Compass lists an "Aura" points program (Solana Compass). Not confirmed by Bulk | No token | Not stated | None found; reported as invite-only on 5 Sep 2026 | 14 Nov 2026 |
Variational opened its public mainnet on 11 Nov 2026, with no invite code required (ChainCatcher). Points terms change often, so check each DEX's own page before you rely on a row.
Which perp DEXs have no points program right now?
| DEX | Status | As of |
|---|---|---|
| Hyperliquid (72/100) | No points program found; HYPE has been live since its Nov 2024 genesis (Buildix) | 26 Oct 2026 |
| Jupiter Perps (83/100) | No perps points program found. A DAO vote postponed the wider Jupuary airdrop indefinitely (KuCoin News) | 22 Feb 2026 |
We didn't find a current points program for Velocity (formerly Drift) in the sources we checked.
How do perp DEX points programs work?
Points are a tally a DEX keeps of your activity. Most say points may count toward a future token, but few publish a conversion ratio in advance. On 14 Nov 2026, Extended's points page still said no "allocation methodology, conversion ratio, claim process, distribution date" had been confirmed, 2 days after its checker opened (Extended docs; TokenPost).
Rules also change mid-program. Pacifica calls its formula "dynamic and opaque by design", Paradex says Season 3 "will introduce a brand new earnings mechanic", and Aster may amend its rules each epoch (Aster docs).
What are the risks of farming points?
Wash trading and fake volume
Points reward volume, and volume is cheap to fake. That's why Perpd scores volume quality as its own factor.
- Aster and Extended say they can disqualify or cancel points from wash trading, and Pacifica says self-trading, sybil or other manipulative activity "will not earn points".
- Extended's market-making desk earned points worth 17,384,355 XTEN, trading "under the same programme rules as every other participant" from Dec 2024 to Apr 2026. That's about 5.8% of the 300M community pool (our arithmetic). See Extended risk score: 72/100.
- On GMX's Solana deployment, a proposed DefiLlama adapter change would exclude wallets farming GMTrade's points, and a reviewer cited about 1.5B of volume in a day against about 50M of open interest (GitHub).
- Aster's Stage 6 even awards points when a position is liquidated, scaled to the liquidation fees, plus more points for bigger, longer-held positions. Incentives like these push traders toward more risk, not less. See Pacifica risk score: 53/100 for how farmed volume shows up in a score.
Airdrop dilution
A big airdrop that unlocks at once can mean heavy selling at launch.
- Extended's 30% community allocation is "fully unlocked at TGE" (Extended docs).
- Variational's 32% genesis airdrop is "100% unlocked at TGE" (Variational).
- Aster set aside 53.5% of ASTER for airdrops, released over about 80 months (Blockworks).
Insider allocations
Points farmers share the token with teams and investors who got in earlier.
- Lighter: team 26% and investors 24%, with a 1-year cliff ending on 27 Dec 2026 (Tokenomist). Details: Lighter's LIT unlock in late December 2026: what unlocks and what to watch.
- Extended: founders, team and investors hold 50%, with nothing unlocking before month 12 after TGE (Extended docs).
- Variational: team and investors hold 50%, locked for 12 months after TGE, then unlocking over at least 3 years (Variational).
- Paradex: insiders and core contributors hold 29%, plus 13.4% for private investors (Tokenomics.com).
Points cost real money
Farming means paying taker fees, funding and spread now for an unknown reward later. Compare costs on Perp DEX fees compared: what a $100K trade really costs first, and never trade bigger or with more leverage just to earn points.
How we checked
- Each program's own docs or blog first, checked 9-14 Nov 2026, then news sources for controversies.
- Every row shows the date of its latest source.
- Scores are Perpd's Real Risk Scores; method on How Perpd scores perp DEXs.
Sources
- Aster Convergence: Stage 6, Aster Docs, checked 14 Nov 2026
- Aster transparency report H2 2026, Blockworks, H2 2026
- Aster's token drops 10% after DefiLlama head raises wash-trading concerns, The Block, 5 Oct 2025
- edgeX V2 launches with Trade to Own season, KuCoin News, 28 May 2026
- edgeX releases EDGE flash crash report, KuCoin Blog, 4 Jun 2026
- Points program, Extended Docs, checked 14 Nov 2026
- XTEN tokenomics, Extended Docs, checked 14 Nov 2026
- Extended opens XTEN checker, TokenPost, 12 Nov 2026
- GMX: Solana's largest perp DEX by volume merges with GMX (CoinMarketCal, citing SolanaFloor), TradingView, 23 Oct 2026
- GMTrade, DefiLlama, TVL dated 1 Nov 2026
- DefiLlama dimension-adapters pull request 8085, GitHub, checked 14 Nov 2026
- Lighter LIT tokenomics and the December 2026 cliff, Tokenomist, 18 Jul 2026
- Lighter users report withdrawal issues after LIT token launch, The Defiant, 30 Dec 2025
- Points program, Pacifica Docs, checked 14 Nov 2026
- Airdrop calendar, Orbit Perp Screener, updated 13 Nov 2026
- Pacifica leads Solana perps volume, a flawed metric, SolanaFloor, 29 Sep 2025
- Paradex XP, Paradex Docs, checked 14 Nov 2026
- Paradex DIME: the zero-fee, privacy-first perps DEX, FalconX, 5 Mar 2026
- Paradex unlocks, Tokenomics.com, Oct 2026 snapshot
- VAR tokenomics and TGE timing, Variational, checked 14 Nov 2026
- Variational opens Omni public mainnet, ChainCatcher, 11 Nov 2026
- Variational explained, Datawallet, 28 Sep 2026
- BulkTrade launches as Solana's anticipated perps exchange, Crypto Briefing via Pluang, 5 Sep 2026
- HYPE unlock on 6 November, Buildix, 26 Oct 2026
- Jupiter votes to reduce JUP net release to zero; Jupuary airdrop delayed indefinitely, KuCoin News, 22 Feb 2026
- Trade to OWN, edgeX, checked 14 Nov 2026
- Bulk Trade project page, Solana Compass, checked 14 Nov 2026
FAQ
Which perp DEXs have points programs right now?
As of 14 Nov 2026, Paradex (XP Season 3), Pacifica and Variational say they pay out points weekly, and Aster's docs list a Stage 6 program. Extended's points ended on 6 Nov 2026. Lighter has airdropped LIT and has no confirmed new season.
When can I claim Extended's XTEN airdrop?
Extended's XTEN checker opened on 12 Nov 2026, per TokenPost. Holders must accept the distribution terms in the app by 31 Dec, or their allocation moves to the Ecosystem Fund. The TGE date hadn't been announced as of 14 Nov 2026.
Is farming perp DEX points worth it?
It's a bet, not income. You pay real fees and funding now, conversion terms are usually unannounced, and a large airdrop that unlocks at once can mean heavy selling at launch. Several programs also cancel points earned by wash trading.
Does Hyperliquid have a points program?
Not that we found. Hyperliquid's HYPE token has been live since its Nov 2024 genesis. Perpd scores Hyperliquid 72/100 (Some known risks).
Related
- Extended risk score: 72/100Extended scores 72/100 on Perpd's Real Risk Score. Every factor, reason and source. Updated 14 Nov 2026.
- Pacifica risk score: 53/100Pacifica scores 53/100 on Perpd's Real Risk Score. Every factor, reason and source. Updated 14 Nov 2026.
- Lighter's LIT unlock in late December 2026: what unlocks and what to watch500M LIT held by Lighter's team and investors comes off a 1-year lock in late Dec 2026. The schedule, the burn and what to watch.
- Perp DEX fees compared: what a $100K trade really costsTaker and maker fees for 10 perp DEXs, plus measured slippage on $100K orders. Fees, not slippage, decide most of your cost.
Scores are never for sale. This page has no affiliate links and no paid placements. Not financial advice: perps are leveraged and you can lose more than you deposit.