Ether.fi is a non-custodial staking and restaking protocol for Ethereum. In our latest snapshot it holds roughly $4.4B in total value and is deployed across 5 chains, which puts it among the larger operators we track under Staking platforms, though it ranks 13/15 there on our combined score of 6.76.
How does Ether.fi work?
When you stake ETH you receive a liquid staking token that represents your deposit plus accrued rewards. Because the model is non-custodial, deposits are governed by smart contracts rather than by a company holding your withdrawal keys. Rewards originate from Ethereum's proof-of-stake consensus, where validators earn for proposing and attesting to blocks. A portion of stake can also be routed into restaking to help secure additional services in exchange for extra yield and extra risk.
What did our measurements find?
We recorded an interface response time of 143 ms, which is fast, and an operating history of about 3.5 years. Our snapshot did not capture completed third-party audit reports for this entry, so its audit signal scores low in our model. That is a gap in our data rather than proof of anything, so before committing meaningful capital, read the current audit and bug-bounty disclosures directly on the project's own site. We also did not detect a dedicated public status page.
What are the main risks?
- Smart-contract risk: funds sit in code that can contain bugs despite review.
- Restaking risk: opting into restaking layers adds slashing and dependency exposure beyond plain staking.
- Peg and liquidity risk: liquid staking tokens can trade below the value of the underlying ETH during market stress.
- Validator penalties: operator downtime reduces rewards, and slashing events can cut principal.
How does it compare in our data?
Within Staking platforms, Ether.fi is one of the larger entries by value we track, yet its overall 6.76 sits mid-pack because our model weights more than size. The category leaders here tend to pair long operating histories with detected public status pages, and this entry lacks a recorded status page and logged audits in our snapshot. Read the ranking as a reliability-signal summary rather than a verdict on the product itself.
Who is it for?
Ether.fi suits ETH holders who want liquid, non-custodial exposure and are comfortable managing DeFi wallets and reading contract-level disclosures. It is a weaker fit for people who prefer a regulated custodian, a phone-in support desk, or who would rather avoid the added complexity that restaking introduces. Whatever your profile, treat staking rewards as variable and never stake funds you cannot afford to lock up or lose.