# How staking rewards are calculated: rounds, APY, and why payouts may look smaller

Many users compare a single staking payout with annual APY and conclude that the payout looks smaller than expected.

In practice, staking rewards are distributed by **validation rounds**, and APY is based on **compounding**.

## Rewards are added round by round

A validation round, during which TON validators confirm blocks and keep the network running, lasts roughly **18 hours**.

That means there are about:

`8760 hours / 18 ≈ 482 rounds per year`

So yearly yield is spread across about 482 rounds, not 365 daily payouts.

## APY cannot be calculated with simple division

APY is not calculated as either “yearly reward / 365” or “yearly reward / 482”, because staking uses compounding.

With compounding, the logic is different:

After each round, the total amount in the pool changes because rewards are added to it.

The next reward is then calculated from this larger amount rather than from the starting amount.

That is why an individual payout can look smaller than with simple division, while the annual APY can still be correct.

## Your rewards depend on your share of the pool

In liquid staking, users' funds are combined into one shared pool.

The **STAKED** token shows what share of that pool belongs to you.

To evaluate rewards correctly, look at how much one round adds to your share of the pool, and then compare that with the annual yield using the correct number of rounds and compounding.

## APY formula

If:

* `R` = reward per round.
* `S` = staking position.
* `N` = rounds per year (about 482).

Then:

`APY = ((1 + R/S)^N - 1) × 100%`

## Why one payout can look too small

The usual reason is comparing a single-round reward to a yearly rate using simple math.

To compare correctly, use the proper formula, the correct number of rounds (\~482/year), and compounding.

## In short

A payout that looks small can still match the displayed APY.

When you use the correct formula, the correct number of rounds, and compounding, the result can fully match the displayed APY.

## Related articles

* [What is STAKED, and why do I receive fewer STAKED than TON?](/intro/staking/what-is-staked-and-why-do-i-get-less-staked-than-ton.md).
* [What are the benefits and risks of staking?](/intro/staking/what-are-the-benefits-and-risks-of-staking.md).
* [How to withdraw assets from staking?](/intro/staking/how-to-withdraw-assets-from-staking.md).


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