Crypto glossary
Tap-to-earn (Telegram mini apps)
Tap-to-earn games are simple clicker apps, mostly inside Telegram, where users tap their screen to earn points that may later convert into airdropped tokens.
Tap-to-earn games run as mini apps inside Telegram and similar messengers, so users can play without installing anything or creating a wallet first. The core loop is basic: tap a coin or character to earn points, buy upgrades that increase earnings per tap or per hour, invite friends for bonuses and complete daily tasks. Points accumulate off-chain until the project launches its token, usually on The Open Network (TON), and converts them into an airdrop. Notcoin and Hamster Kombat drew tens of millions of players in 2024.
The format proved a powerful distribution channel, putting tokens in the hands of huge numbers of first-time crypto users, especially in Eastern Europe, Asia and Africa, and driving activity on TON.
Most of these tokens fell sharply after launch, as millions of recipients sold at once, and the airdrops were often much smaller than players expected after months of tapping. Rules changed late, bots and multi-accounts were common, and many copycat games had no real token behind them.
Example
A player taps a clicker mini app on Telegram every day for four months, invites ten friends and receives tokens worth about 15 dollars when the game finally holds its airdrop.