In this post, I will be sharing about the difference between Steem Power and voting power. I will also briefly discuss the vote slider (and why you probably have not seen it yet).
Steem Power
Steem Power is an important part of our Steemit ecosystem. The amount of Steem Power you currently control impacts how much of an upvote you can give to another person.
Important: You may own a large amount of Steem Power but if you have delegated SP to another account then you do not currently control it.
If you go to your wallet then you will see 1 or 2 numbers that reference your Steem Power:
- The number that is not in a parenthesis is the amount of Steem Power you own. If you have not delegated SP power or been delegated SP, then you will only see this 1 line.
- The second number references SP that you have delegated or that has been delegated to you.
- If a number has a minus ( - ) next to it, then you have delegated more Steem Power to another user or account than you have received.
- If a number has a plus ( + ) next to it, then someone has delegated more Steem Power to your account than you have delegated to other accounts.
Let's use my account as an example.
- I currently own 1,578.197 STEEM.
- I have given control of 1,102.177 STEEM to other accounts. That Steem Power is still mine, but since I do not currently control it, it does not increase the value of my upvote.
Voting Power
The value of your upvote changes as you give out more upvotes. This is because you are using your voting power.
As you give out upvotes, you use up a percentage of your overall voting power. To be exact, a full upvote will decrease your voting power by 2%. As your voting power decreases, your upvote value decreases as well.
Let me give you an example. Let's say that your Steem Power is 500SP which means that a 100% upvote is worth about 10 cents.
| Steem Power | Voting Power | Value of your upvote |
|---|---|---|
| 500SP | 100% | 10 cents |
| 500SP | 80% | 8 cents |
| 500SP | 60% | 6 cents |
| 500SP | 40% | 4 cents |
| 500SP | 20% | 2 cents |
| 500SP | 0% | 0 cents |
But don't worry! Upvoting does not take away from you Steem Power.
There is good news. Your voting power recharges. Every 24 hours your voting power recharges about 20%. This means that in 24 hours you will recharge your voting power at the same rate as ten 100% upvotes that are decreasing your voting power.
There is a great tool called Steemnow.com that can show you your voting power and other important information.
Once my voting power drops between 75-80%, I usually stop upvoting so that I can recharge. I want to give out the equivalent of ten full upvotes each day so that I can help other users and benefit from curation rewards.
For me, it is irresponsible not to use those upvotes.
The Vote Slider
I do not know the exact figure, but around the 500 SP mark you will have access to the vote slider.
Remember that if you have delegated Steem Power to someone else then you are not controlling that SP and it will not be counted towards the 500SP limit I just mentioned above.
The reason why the vote slide is important is because it allows you to determine how much of an upvote your want to give. You can give someone a vote that is 0-100% of current voting power. The higher the percentage of the upvote the more value of the upvote.
Delegating
I have delegated my Steem Power to other accounts on a few occasions.
One reason I have delegated SP is to create a secondary account.
I have also delegated Steem Power is to support a cause or delegate as an investment.
If you ever decide to remove your delegation from another account, you will have to wait 7 days before that Steem Power is available for your personal use again.
Let's Continue The Conversation
Steem Power and Voting Power are important topics to understand.
Do you have any questions about these topics? Is there something that is still unclear for you?
Let me know in the comments section.
Image Source: https://pixabay.com/en/light-bulb-idea-self-employed-3104355/