The Ultimate Telegram Stars Guide: How to Buy, Earn, and Sell Safely
Telegram Stars are Telegram's in-app currency. This guide covers how to earn and buy them, what each route costs, and how to cash out through Fragment or a broker such as StarStore.
What Are Telegram Stars?
Telegram Stars are the official in-app digital currency used within the Telegram ecosystem. They allow users to purchase digital goods and services offered by bots and mini-apps, support content creators through donations, and send digital gifts.
How to Get Telegram Stars
There are two primary ways to acquire Telegram Stars: earning them through platform activities or purchasing them directly.
1. Earning Stars
- Content monetization: creators can lock exclusive content (photos or videos) on their channels, requiring subscribers to pay a specific amount of Stars to view it.
- Audience reactions: users can reward public channel posts by reacting with Stars as voluntary tips or donations.
- In-app tasks and referrals: many Telegram mini-apps and web3 projects award Stars to users who complete specific promotional activities or invite friends via referral links.
2. Purchasing Stars
Stars can be bought directly through official mobile app stores, through the native decentralized platform Fragment, or through verified third-party marketplaces such as StarStore.
Comparison Table: Buying and Selling Telegram Stars
| Method | Operation | Pros | Cons |
|---|---|---|---|
| App Stores Google Play / Apple App Store |
Buying | Simple Extremely easy for non-crypto users No KYC No identity verification required |
Platform fee Heavy 30% fee added by Apple or Google Payment limitations Tied to traditional banking cards |
| Fragment Official decentralized platform |
Buying and selling | Lowest prices No app store fees Official platform Highly secure and officially supported Direct withdrawals Allows direct channel withdrawals |
KYC required Mandatory verification Country restrictions Restricted in some countries Complexity More difficult for non-crypto users Cash-out minimum Requires at least 1,000 Stars |
| Third-party services e.g. StarStore |
Buying and selling | No KYC No identity verification required Lower prices Cheaper than app stores Low cash-out minimum Only 50 Stars |
Higher price Slightly higher buying price than Fragment Withdrawal limitation Channel balance cannot be directly withdrawn |
How to Sell and Withdraw Telegram Stars
When you accumulate Stars as a creator or developer, you can convert them into cryptocurrency (TON) or cash.
Withdrawing via Fragment
Fragment is the official exchange platform for Telegram Stars. Withdrawals are handled directly through your channel or personal account settings. However, the platform enforces strict security parameters:
- You must pass a comprehensive identity check (KYC).
- For channel balances, you must accumulate a minimum of 1,000 Stars.
- You must wait out a 21 day holding period before the withdrawal button becomes active.
Withdrawing via StarStore
For users facing geographical restrictions with Fragment's KYC, or those with smaller balances, third-party platforms like StarStore serve as alternative brokers. They purchase your Stars (minimums as low as 50 Stars) without identity verification, handle the bulk processing on Fragment themselves, and pay you out after deducting a small service commission.
If you are weighing the two routes, the practical split is this: Fragment if you can pass KYC and hold more than 1,000 Stars, and a broker such as StarStore if you cannot, or if your balance is smaller than Fragment will settle.
More of our reporting on Telegram and the creator economy is in the archive.