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Buying your first Ratio1 license

Purchasing a Node Deed license

Buying your first Ratio1 license

What this covers​

This guide explains how to purchase your first Ratio1 Node Deed (ND) license. It focuses on:

  • What the R1 token is and why it’s required
  • How to get R1 tokens
  • How to buy a Node Deed license from the dashboard
  • What happens after your purchase

A Node Deed license is required for an edge node to participate in the Ratio1 protocol and earn R1 rewards from PoA (Proof of Availability - rewards for node availability) and PoAI (Proof of AI - rewards for executing jobs).

Understanding the R1 token​

The R1 token is the native utility token of the Ratio1 protocol.

You must hold R1 tokens in your Base-compatible wallet to purchase Node Deed licenses.

Key facts:

  • R1 is used to purchase Node Deed licenses
  • Each license has a price denominated in R1
  • You need enough R1 in your wallet before initiating a purchase. It’s recommended to hold a small additional amount of R1 to account for slippage, as well as enough Base Ethereum to cover gas fees.
  • License purchases are completed via onchain transactions

If your wallet does not contain sufficient R1 or Base Ethereum for gas, the purchase cannot be completed.

Getting R1 tokens​

To buy a license, you first need to acquire R1 tokens on Mainnet.

There are two supported methods.

Option A - Buy R1 from the Ratio1 Buy page​

You can purchase R1 directly from the Ratio1 app.

Steps:

  1. Open the Buy R1 page in the Ratio1 app (Buy R1 page is also using USDC/R1 liquidity pool on Uniswap)
  2. Select your payment token
  3. Choose the amount to swap
  4. Sign two transactions:
    • Token approval
    • Swap confirmation

After confirmation, the R1 tokens will appear in your wallet balance.

Option B - Buy R1 on Uniswap​

You can also obtain R1 directly through the USDC/R1 liquidity pool on Uniswap.

Steps:

  1. Open the USDC/R1 pair on Uniswap
  2. Connect your wallet
  3. Enter swap amounts
  4. Sign the approval and swap transactions

Once completed, verify that your R1 balance has updated in your wallet.

Buying a Node Deed license​

Node Deed licenses are purchased directly from the Ratio1 dashboard.

The dashboard displays:

  • Current pricing tier
  • Remaining license supply
  • License cost in R1

Purchase steps​

  1. Go to Dashboard → Licenses
  2. Click Buy License
  3. Select how many licenses you want
  4. Review the total R1 cost
  5. Sign two transactions:
    • Token spending approval
    • License purchase

After confirmation, your licenses will appear in the Licenses & Nodes section of the app.

After purchasing​

Once purchased, your Node Deed license is stored in your wallet and is visible in the Licenses & Nodes section. From this section, you can manage your licenses and link them to your running nodes to activate them.

Notable date​

  • Reviewed on February 18, 2026.