What is a representative?

Representatives are nodes that vote on transactions to reach consensus. Your account has voting weight equal to its balance, and you can delegate that weight to a representative of your choice.

Why it matters

Representatives with more weight have more influence on confirming transactions. Spreading weight across many reliable representatives keeps the network decentralized.

How to pick one

• Uptime - The node must be online to vote
• Low voting weight - A smaller representative improves decentralization
• Recent version - Current releases carry protocol and performance fixes
• Connectivity - More peers means votes travel faster

How to change it

Change your representative in your wallet settings. It is free and instant, and your balance does not move. The exact steps vary by wallet, but look for the representative field.