Below is our list of essential NFT tools & resources. Our list doesn’t cover tools related to crypto investing or DeFi (decentralized finance) but instead focuses on the tools to get you grounded in the world of NFTs.
Know of other tools or resources that should be on our list? Drop us a line!
Directory of useful NFT & crypto tools
3Commas
3Commas is a cryptocurrency trading platform designed to help users build automated trading bots. The platform works with most major cryptocurrency exchanges and includes features such as dollar-cost averaging bots and portfolios.
Aave
Aave is an open-source, decentralized protocol where anyone with an Ethereum wallet can lend or borrow many cryptocurrencies. Aave helped to popularize “flash loans,” which are repaid within a single Ethereum transaction. As a safe platform for decentralized crypto loans with high liquidity, it enables users to earn interest on deposits. Aave is becoming a market leader in the lending and borrowing sector of the DeFi space partly on the strength of its native token AAVE.
Blockchair
Blockchair is an all-in-one blockchain search and analytics engine that tracks 17 cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin and Ethereum. It offers a host of cool charts and tracking and comparison tools.
Compound
Compound is an Ethereum protocol that allows borrowers to take out loans and earn money on the crypto they save. Think of it as a crypto version of a money market fund, though perhaps with more risk. Cryptopedia has an explainer.
Dapp Radar
Dapp Radar is a data acquisition and analysis company that tracks more than 3,500 decentralized applications (dapps) across multiple blockchains — see its ranking of top blockchain dapps. The site allows users to track the progress of dapps, analyze their performance over time and discover new ones. You can see the top-selling NFT collectibles, collections and marketplaces at a glance, its portfolio tracker lets users track the value of their NFTs, and there’s also an NFT valuation tool.
Dharma
Dharma is an iOS and Google Play app designed to help regular people enter the world of decentralized finance. It connects people straight from their traditional bank accounts to a personal Ethereum wallet they can set up.
Etherscan
Etherscan is a platform that hosts a number of Web-based tools that let users search data on the Ethereum blockchain. By entering an address into the search box, you can view the balance, value, and all the transactions made through that address in Ethereum’s public ledger. You can also use Etherscan to see daily fluctuations in the market value of ERC-20 tokens.
Kraken
Kraken has been consistently rated one of the best and most secure cryptocurrency exchanges — one that lets you exchange regular currency for Ethereum and other digital currencies.
MetaMask
MetaMask is a software cryptocurrency wallet used to interact with the Ethereum blockchain. It allows users to access their Ethereum wallet through a popular browser extension or mobile app, which can then be used to interact with decentralized applications. There are lots of other wallet choices — such as MyEtherWallet or Binance’s TrustWallet — but make sure you use the hardware version and not a Web wallet, which is more vulnerable to hackers.
MyCrypto
MyCrypto is an open-source tool that lets you to manage your Ethereum accounts privately and securely.
Nifty Scanner
Nifty Scanner is a browser extension that lets you check NFTs before buying them to see whether the associated digital assets are stored on the blockchain or on a centralized Web 2 server without permanent storage.
NFT Price Floor
NFT Price Floor provides a snapshot of the most popular NFT projects and the lowest price at which a single NFT within an NFT collection can be purchased.
NonFungible
NonFungible bills itself as “the best place to analyze, track and discover NFTs” and “the largest database of blockchain gaming and crypto collectible markets.” Its chief value add appears to be the historical data provided for each NFT project together with trends it identifies. The site’s Market Overview section provides a nice snapshot of NFT sales over time.
Rally
Rally is a crypto platform that allows creators to launch their own digital currencies and build an independent economy with their fans powered by the Ethereum blockchain. Fans can buy the creator’s currency and use it to unlock exclusive or unreleased content.
rarity.tools
The site rarity.tools helps solve the problem of how to determine what value to attach to an NFT. Some which command premium prices on the resale market. rarity.tools ascribes a Rarity Score to individual NFTs, a handy metric when trying to decide whether to bid on an item — though not the only factor to consider.
Robinhood Crypto
Robinhood Crypto lets its users buy and sell Bitcoin, Ethereum, Dogecoin and other cryptocurrencies 24/7 and commission-free in a secure fashion.
Tornado Cash
Tornado Cash is a decentralized protocol and app that enables users to make private transactions on Ethereum.
Uniswap
Uniswap is a leading Dex, or cryptocurrency exchange, where active traders can swap decentralized finance tokens. Its simple one-click interface allows traders to swap tokens on-chain by pooling liquidity and through the use of smart contracts. There are no Uniswap investor tokens, no fees paid to the founders and no central authority involved. Uniswap launched in 2018 with funding from the Ethereum Foundation.
Unstoppable Domains
Unstoppable Domains is a San Francisco-based company building decentralized blockchain-based domains. The site sells the equivalent of top-level domains for blockchain, including .nft, .crypto and .wallet and .blockchain. Using a personalized shorthand address like suejones.wallet is much easier on the eyes than a 42-character public wallet address on Ethereum. Best of all, these are one-time purchases, not annual rentals from an ISP like GoDaddy. Be aware, though, that the major browsers don’t (yet) support these domains.
Upshot
Upshot is an NFT appraisal platform that aspires to be the Zillow of the NFT space.
Leading virtual worlds using blockchain
Cryptovoxels
Cryptovoxels is a virtual world, powered by the Ethereum blockchain, that’s a blend of Minecraft and Facebook. Players can buy land and build stores and art galleries. Editing tools, avatars and text chat are built in. Explore the map or search for galleries, artists, portals and curated collections .
Decentraland
Shanghai-based Decentraland is a virtual world built on the Ethereum blockchain. Launched in February 2020, the virtual world is operated by a DAO (decentralized autonomous organization) and owned by its users. Users can buy virtual land in the platform’s world, which gives them control over the environment and applications they create within their land.
The Sandbox
The Sandbox is one of the most popular decentralized virtual reality platforms in crypto. Users can use Ethereum tokens to buy land, estaes and district NFTs within its decentralized metaverse.
SuperWorld
SuperWorld is a virtual world where users can buy, sell, collect and curate more than 64 billion unique plots of virtual land. The SuperWorld virtual real estate platform is mapped over the entire surface of the planet, allowing users to purchase any spot with Ethereum and other crypytocurrencies.
Terra Virtua
London-based Terra Virtua is a cross-platform virtuality reality/augmented reality platform and NFT ecosystem that offers a curated marketplace for NFT creators and collectors to interact. Founded in 2016, it uses an ERC-20 token called Terra Virtua Kolect (TVK) for powering its ecosystem. Terra Virtua’s collectibles offer an immersive experience on mobile, PC, AR and VR, and it has partnered with mainstream digital game studios.
Additional resources
- The venture fund a16z has a great roundup of resources and think pieces for anyone looking to get grounded in the NFT space.
- Decypt provides some of the best day-to-day coverage of crypto and the decentralized Web.
- Messari Research provides high-quality analysis of the Web 3 sector.
- BlockSocial tracks blockchain projects around the world and offers informed coverage of the space.
Publisher’s note: Digital Culture Works does not accept paid placement or advertising. All brands mentions or recommendations are made without compensation and are based on editorial considerations alone.