Best Tools for Minting NFTs

Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) have been primarily known as the latest investment fad; however, they can also be innovative and profitable tools for artists of all backgrounds.

While selling digital files is nothing new, NFTs allow artists to create their digital artwork and sell it as the original creators with no negotiator agents through decentralized NFT marketplaces.

Check out our article on the top six NFT marketplaces to buy and sell NFTs now.

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What Are NFTs?

NFTs can be a jpeg file, an audio/video file, a domain name, or another type of digital file that is minted on the blockchain.

Anyone can download and save an NFT with no legal restrictions for the time being, just like anyone can get a copy of a well-known physical painting. However, they can’t claim ownership of a particular NFT that always belongs to the creator or the current NFT owner.

Minting is the fancy word for turning your work into an NFT and publishing it on the blockchain. It can be a profitable way for artists to monetize their creations.

They can even set a fee, or comission, for future sales of the artwork and earn passive income over time — something like royalty usually in the range of 10-30% — which does not exist in traditional art trading.

How Hard Is it to Create an NFT?

Minting an NFT does not necessarily require coding or technical skills. Due to the technology's rapid, widespread adoption, blockchain-based NFT marketplaces, like OpenSea, have ensured that straightforward processes are in place to allow users to create and trade NFTs easily.

Blockchain technology could be intimidating and discourage the less tech-savvy individual. However, this article will highlight the best tools for beginners to get started on NFT minting and their difference.

The Best Tools to Mint NFTs

Which Blockchain to Mint On?

Let’s start with the blockchains that will hold your NFT. You will also need to acquire a blockchain’s native cryptocurrency once you decide which service is ideal for you. You can buy (or sell) cryptocurrency in any crypto exchange available in your country. Coinbase, Binance are the main ones globally.

You can mint your NFT directly on the blockchain, but the process is recommended more for tech-skilled people. There are several steps to follow and a little technical know-how to use APIs, create smart contracts, and understand a bit of coding.

The most common blockchain to mint NFTs on is Ethereum. Currently, minting NFTs in proof-of-work (PoW) Ethereum is significantly inefficient from an energy standpoint. However, the team behind the blockchain is working on switching it to proof-of-stake (PoS), which is more energy-efficient. This should encourage all skeptical users to take advantage of the platform’s security to mint their NFTs.

Learn more about the difference between PoW and PoS consensus mechanism here.

Minting Directly on a Blockchain

It is possible to mint NFTs directly in a blockchain, but it requires some technical skills or patience to learn the basic process.

Ethereum is the most secure network, and you can view the entire procedure here.

Enjin allows NFT minting using Enjin coin (ENJ), an ERC-20 token issued on the Ethereum blockchain. It provides some reliability because all on-chain ENJ transactions are validated and secured by the Ethereum network.

Flow, Tezos and EOS, which are PoS and therefore favored by environmentally friendly users, are also NFT-friendly blockchains. Their minting processes are relatively more straightforward than minting on a blockchain like Ethereum. However, they still have more burdensome processes than NFT marketplaces built to allow users to have simplified methods.

Binance exchange also allows NFT minting, and the process is quite simple.

Recently, NFTs built on Solana have gained some traction, thanks to its interoperability that allows users to send NFTs between Ethereum and Solana.

Creating NFTs on NFT Marketplaces

The real breakthrough for newbies that want to create an NFT easily comes from blockchain-powered marketplaces.

Regardless of the platform you choose, the following steps are common to most. Usually, the main difference between platforms is the required trading fee when buying or selling an NFT.

Steps to Mint NFT

Choose which NFT marketplace is suitable for you and obtain the cryptocurrency required to open and run your account;
Open or use your existing digital wallet where to send the cryptocurrency. If you’re using a marketplace powered by Ethereum blockchain, you can open an account with Metamask and create your NFT there. You can also connect Metamask to the most popular NFT marketplaces like OpenSea;
Create the digital file (i.e., a jpeg) compatible with the chosen marketplace;
Connect the digital wallet with some cryptocurrency included. It will be needed to publish the artwork. The process of adding its metadata and publishing it makes it “minted.”
Consider adding a smart contract that could add value to your NFT. It allows you to create your terms and conditions and include a physical item or anything else you may want to add.
Your artwork shaped into an NFT is now ready for sale.

Popular NFT Marketplaces

OpenSea

OpenSea is a popular Ethereum-based marketplace with millions of NFTs available. It was launched in 2017 by programmers Alex Atallah and Devin Finzer, who saw the potential in applications like Cryptokitties.

It’s possible to mint all kinds of digital assets in OpenSea, from game items to domain names and collectible arts. It supports 241 payment options, including stablecoins and wBTC.

OpenSea also supports cross-chain interaction through Polygon, allowing users to move their ETH onto its network for gas-free trading through a process called bridging.

Rarible

Rarible is another popular NFT marketplace used for creating, buying and selling NFTs without coding skills. Like OpenSea, it’s powered by the Ethereum blockchain and has over $24 million in trading volume. While OpenSea includes NFTs from other marketplaces, Rarible has unique NFTs from its platform only.

Rarible is extremely easy to use for NFT minting and is available on iOS and Android mobile devices. Accepted digital files are PNG, GIF, WEBP, MP4, or MP3 other than JPEGs.

Nifty Gateway

Nifty Gateway, an Ethereum-based marketplace, was launched in the US in 2018, and it’s owned by the Winklevoss brothers’ cryptocurrency exchange Gemini.

The platform is mainly used by well-known NFT creators, including Beeple and Michael Kagan. It was designed to allow artists to create limited edition and high-quality digital assets only available at the Nifty Gateway platform.

The platform targets an audience not interested in free-for-all arts but exclusive artworks. The team behind Nifty Gateway carefully selects the collectibles allowed to be published on their platform. This rigor encouraged even traditional artists like Trevor Jones and Kenny Scharf to use the platform.

Being such a “premier digital art marketplace” implies that the platform looks at the more expensive end of the market. This is reflected in the 15% high fee they charge for NFTs trading transactions, comparable with regular art galleries’ fee for the sale of any paintings.

SuperRare

SuperRare is another U.S. Ethereum-based marketplace that has been around since 2018. As the name suggests, the platform mainly displays super-rare NFT collections.

SuperRare defines crypto art as NFTs that have their entire history – creation (minting), tokenization, artist, and subsequent purchase and sale – encoded on the blockchain.

The NFTs' idea of scarcity and purchase of a truly unique digital item has been recently challenged by artists who have started to create different editions of the same item. SuperRare aims to revert that trend by focusing on exclusive crypto art.

Foundation

Foundation has been around since 2020 and is also a U.S. Ethereum-based marketplace.

The platform's mission is to make NFTs art auctions accessible and appealing to everyone, allowing for a simple user interface and easy-to-use functionality.

Foundation also takes pride in using NFTs for social good, to promote charitable causes, and has featured live bidding for artworks of various personalities, including Edward Snowden.

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