What is Polygon (POL) and what is it used for?

Polygon crypto refers to a family of networks built to make Ethereum-style apps cheaper and faster, and POL is the token at its center. Its main chain, Polygon Chain (long known as Polygon PoS), processes transactions on its own and then posts checkpoints to Ethereum. POL pays the gas on that chain and is staked by the validators who secure it.

How did MATIC become POL?

Polygon's original token was MATIC. After a community proposal was approved, Polygon upgraded to POL on September 4, 2024. The Block reported that POL took over transaction fees and staking from the start, and that a testnet migration ran first in July 2024.

According to Polygon's announcement, the initial upgrade ratio was 1 to 1. MATIC held on the Polygon PoS chain upgraded automatically, while MATIC on Ethereum could be migrated through the Polygon Portal. Holders on exchanges should check how their exchange handled it. The same announcement described a 2% yearly emission for ten years, split evenly between validator rewards and a community treasury.

How does the Polygon PoS chain work?

Polygon's docs describe it as an EVM-compatible blockchain anchored to Ethereum. It has two main layers. Bor is the execution layer, built on Go Ethereum, which bundles transactions into blocks. Heimdall is the proof-of-stake consensus layer, which checks Bor blocks and submits checkpoints to Ethereum.

A checkpoint is a single Merkle root that summarizes many Polygon blocks. Checkpoints are required for withdrawals back to Ethereum. Staking, validator registration and the bridge live in contracts on Ethereum itself. The docs say validators must stake at least 10,000 POL, with up to 105 active validators, and that blocks reach finality in about 2 to 5 seconds.

Because the chain runs the same virtual machine as Ethereum, common Ethereum developer tools such as Hardhat and Foundry work on it without changes. Polygon's own docs point to its large volume of stablecoin transfers and very low average fees as signs it suits payments, especially where gas fees on Ethereum would be too high.

What is Polygon Agglayer?

Agglayer is Polygon's approach to linking separate chains. Its docs say every chain built with Polygon's Chain Development Kit connects to it by default. Transfers run through a unified bridge, and they settle on Ethereum before they can be claimed on the destination chain.

A key safety feature is the pessimistic proof. Agglayer assumes any connected chain could be compromised and blocks any chain from withdrawing more than has been deposited into it. That limits how far a failure on one chain can spread. For the general risks of moving tokens across chains, see what a crypto bridge is.

What is POL used for today?

As of October 2026, POL pays gas on Polygon Chain and is staked by validators and delegators who secure it. Polygon describes POL as a token whose roles may extend to chains connected through Agglayer, subject to community approval. For background on how tokens like this differ from a chain's coin, see coin vs token.