Snapshot¶

Overview¶

Snapshot is a decentralized off-chain governance voting platform that provides simple, free, and transparent community voting solutions for DAOs (Decentralized Autonomous Organizations) and DeFi protocols. Launched in 2020 and incubated by the Balancer team, it has become one of the most popular governance tools in the Web3 ecosystem.

Snapshot's core advantage lies in its off-chain voting mechanism -- users can participate in proposal voting without paying Gas fees, while maintaining transparency and verifiability of voting results. Voting weight is typically based on the number of tokens held by users at a specific block height, with voter identity verified through cryptographic signatures, ensuring the authenticity and immutability of votes.

As of 2024, Snapshot has served over 15,000 DAO organizations and processed over 5 million votes, becoming a vital part of Web3 governance infrastructure. From Uniswap and Aave to ENS, nearly all major DeFi protocols use Snapshot as their community governance platform.

Core Features¶

1. Gas-Free Voting¶

Users participate in voting through wallet signatures without paying any on-chain transaction fees, greatly lowering the participation barrier.

2. Flexible Voting Strategies¶

Supports multiple voting weight calculation methods: - Token balance voting - Liquidity pool share voting - NFT holding count voting - Delegated voting weight - Multi-strategy combinations

3. Snapshot Mechanism¶

Records token holdings at a specific block height when a proposal is created, preventing token transfers during the voting period from affecting results.

4. Multi-Chain Support¶

Supports over 40 blockchain networks including Ethereum, BSC, Polygon, Arbitrum, and Optimism.

5. Customizable Spaces¶

Each DAO can create an independent Snapshot Space with custom branding, voting strategies, proposal templates, and more.

6. IPFS Storage¶

All proposals and voting results are stored on IPFS, ensuring data permanence and censorship resistance.

7. Integration Ecosystem¶

Deep integration with tools like Gnosis Safe, Tally, Discord, and Telegram for a complete governance workflow.

Core Advantages¶

1. Cost Effectiveness¶

The completely free voting mechanism greatly improves community participation, especially during periods of high Gas fees.

2. Rapid Deployment¶

Creating a Snapshot Space takes only a few minutes, requiring no smart contract deployment or complex technical configuration.

3. Secure and Reliable¶

Signature verification based on the EIP-712 standard ensures vote authenticity and tamper resistance.

4. Highly Scalable¶

Supports hundreds of thousands of simultaneous voters without being limited by blockchain TPS.

5. Transparency¶

All voting records are publicly viewable, and anyone can verify the accuracy of voting results.

6. Flexible Governance Framework¶

Supports multiple voting types including single-choice, multiple-choice, weighted voting, quadratic voting, and more.

How It Works¶

Voting Flow¶

1. Proposal Creation:
2. DAO administrators or eligible members create proposals
3. Set voting strategy, start/end time, options, etc.

4. Proposal content is stored on IPFS

5. Snapshot Generation:

6. System records token holdings of all addresses at a specific block height

7. Calculates voting weight for each address

8. User Voting:

9. Users sign their voting choice with their wallet
10. Signed message includes proposal ID, choice, and timestamp

11. No on-chain transaction required

12. Result Calculation:

13. System aggregates all valid votes
14. Calculates weighted results based on preset strategy

15. Results are updated in real-time and publicly displayed

16. Execution (Optional):

17. For proposals requiring on-chain execution, use multisig wallets like Gnosis Safe
18. Or use Snapshot X (on-chain verified version) for automatic execution

Voting Strategy Example¶

// ERC20 token balance strategy
{
  "name": "erc20-balance-of",
  "params": {
    "address": "0x...",  // Token contract address
    "symbol": "TOKEN",
    "decimals": 18
  }
}

// Delegation voting strategy
{
  "name": "delegation",
  "params": {
    "symbol": "TOKEN",
    "strategies": [...]  // Underlying strategies
  }
}

Main Features¶

1. Proposal Management¶

• Create and edit proposals
• Set voting periods and quorums
• Support Markdown and rich text formatting
• Proposal discussion and comments

2. Voting Types¶

• Single Choice: Select one option
• Approval Voting: Select multiple options
• Weighted Voting: Assign weight to each option
• Quadratic Voting: Mitigate large holder influence
• Ranked Choice Voting: Rank options by priority

3. Delegation¶

Users can delegate their voting power to trusted representatives, enhancing governance efficiency.

4. Plugin System¶

• Gnosis Safe Plugin: Execute proposals directly from Safe
• Discord Bot: Proposal notifications and voting reminders
• API Interface: Integrate into custom applications

5. Snapshot X¶

Next-generation product supporting on-chain execution and more complex governance scenarios.

Typical Use Cases¶

DeFi Protocol Governance¶

• Uniswap: Governance parameter adjustments, new chain deployment decisions
• Aave: Risk parameter modifications, new asset listing votes
• Curve: Liquidity mining weight voting
• Balancer: Protocol fee allocation decisions

NFT Communities¶

• BAYC: Community fund usage proposals
• Nouns DAO: Daily auctions and fund expenditures

Layer 2 and Infrastructure¶

• Optimism: RetroPGF fund allocation
• Arbitrum: Ecosystem development direction
• ENS: Domain registration rule changes

Investment DAOs¶

• BitDAO: Investment decisions and fund allocation
• PleasrDAO: Art purchase voting

Application Scenarios¶

1. Protocol Parameter Governance¶

Adjusting fee rates, interest rates, collateral ratios, and other key parameters.

2. Fund Allocation¶

Deciding how treasury funds are used and grant distribution.

3. Ecosystem Development¶

Voting on new feature development, partner selection, marketing campaigns, and more.

4. Emergency Response¶

Quickly collecting community opinions in response to security incidents or market volatility.

5. Soft Governance Signals¶

Collecting community preferences and opinions as a basis for subsequent on-chain execution.

Comparison with On-Chain Governance¶

Best Practices¶

1. Proposal Design¶

• Clearly describe proposal objectives and impact
• Provide sufficient background information and data support
• Set reasonable voting periods (typically 5-7 days)

2. Voting Strategy¶

• Choose appropriate strategies based on project characteristics
• Consider setting minimum voting thresholds to prevent Sybil attacks
• Use delegation mechanisms to improve participation rates

3. Community Communication¶

• Warm up discussions on Discord/Forum beforehand
• Use bots to push voting reminders
• Execute and provide feedback promptly after proposal ends

4. Security Considerations¶

• Verify the accuracy of Space configuration
• Conduct multiple rounds of voting confirmation for major proposals
• Combine with Gnosis Safe and other multisig execution

Limitations¶

1. Execution Dependency¶

Voting results require manual or multisig execution; situations may arise where votes pass but are not executed.

2. Low Participation¶

While free voting lowers the barrier, it may result in lower engagement compared to on-chain voting (which filters through Gas costs).

3. Sybil Attack Risk¶

Reasonable voting strategies and thresholds must be set to prevent malicious vote manipulation.

4. Snapshot Time Dependency¶

Voting weight is based on historical snapshots and cannot reflect real-time token distribution.

Future Development¶

Snapshot X¶

• Support for on-chain verification and automatic execution
• Integration with more DeFi protocols
• More powerful governance toolkit

Shutter Integration¶

Partnering with Shutter Network for MEV-resistant private voting.

AI Governance Assistant¶

Leveraging AI to analyze proposal impact and community sentiment.

Related Links¶

• Snapshot Official Site
• Snapshot Documentation
• Snapshot GitHub
• Snapshot X
• Governance Best Practices