Ethereum staking offers a 2.2% annual return, but when compared to traditional savings, the advantage is slim. For €10,000 invested, staking yields about €220 over a year, just €7 more than the average euro household deposit rate of 2.13%. However, this small gain comes with the added risk of Ethereum's price volatility, which can erase rewards quickly.
Despite the narrow margin, demand for staking remains high. As of October 23, 2026, roughly 1.38 million ETH are waiting to enter staking, with an estimated wait of 24 days and nine hours. Over 44.1 million ETH, more than 36% of the supply, is already staked, helping secure the network and earn rewards. The queue has shrunk since August but still leaves new validators waiting weeks to start earning.
Investors like BitMine, which has about $12 billion staked, see staking as a way to earn extra tokens on a large Ethereum position they intend to hold long-term. Fabian Dori, Sygnum's chief investment officer, noted that the marginal staker is no longer primarily focused on returns but on maintaining exposure to Ethereum. Staking allows holders to accumulate more ETH, though lower income makes it harder for treasury companies to justify ETH as a productive asset.
The staking yield gap between stETH and the €STR benchmark is €24.20 on €10,000, but a 5% drop in ETH's euro price would still leave the investment down €291. Over shorter periods, ETH's price movements have outweighed staking income, with stETH performing slightly better than ETH in recent months. The decision to stake often hinges more on long-term Ethereum exposure than on chasing the best interest rate.