Energy vs bandwidth: what’s the difference?
Two resources are used when you send on TRON: bandwidth and energy. The names sound technical, but the difference is simple.
Bandwidth: a little for every transaction
Bandwidth is used according to the size of the transaction data. Every transaction needs it, TRX or USDT. Activated wallets get 600 free bandwidth each day. A TRX transfer uses about 270 and a USDT transfer about 345, so one or two a day are free.
Energy: only for contracts like USDT
Energy is used only when a smart contract runs. Sending TRX doesn't need it; sending USDT needs a lot — about 65,000 if the recipient holds USDT, about 131,000 if not.
How much TRX burns without them?
- Short on bandwidth: about 0.35 TRX per USDT transfer
- Short on energy: about 6.5 TRX (about 13.1 TRX if the recipient holds no USDT)
So energy is what matters for cutting fees. Free bandwidth covers most needs, but energy never comes for free.
How to get them
Staking TRX gives you both, but getting 65,000 energy every day means locking up thousands of TRX. If you send occasionally, renting energy when you need it is far cheaper. (How to rent energy)
Check your wallet
See your remaining energy and bandwidth under “My wallet” on the Tools page.
Rent energy · 2.4 TRXMore guides
- 5 ways to cut USDT (TRC20) transfer fees
- Why does sending USDT burn TRX?
- 65,000 or 131,000 energy — which do I need?
- How to rent energy by address (TronLink · TokenPocket)
- USDT transfer failed with OUT_OF_ENERGY
- No TRX? How to send USDT anyway
- Watch out for look-alike fake addresses
- How to activate a new TRON wallet
- Asked to “approve” when sending USDT? It’s a scam