FPPS vs PPS vs PPS+ vs “FPPS+”: What Miners Should Know

1) PPS (Pay Per Share)

What you get paid for

• You are paid a fixed expected value per valid share you submit—regardless of whether the pool finds a block at that moment.

What’s included

• Typically block subsidy only. Transaction fees are usually not included in classic PPS.

Who takes the risk

• The pool absorbs variance risk (block luck and related variance), because you’re paid on shares, not on actual blocks found.

Best for

• Miners who want maximum payout predictability (stable cashflow), even if that means they usually do not receive transaction fees under pure PPS.

2) FPPS (Full Pay Per Share)

What you get paid for

• Same core idea as PPS (fixed value per share), plus a transaction-fee component.

What’s included

• Block subsidy + expected transaction fees distributed to miners on a per-share basis (“Full” PPS).

How fees are computed (typical approach)

• Many pools estimate fees using a recent-window average (e.g., last day or last N blocks) and pay that expected fee value per share.

Who takes the risk

• Mostly the pool, because it commits to paying an expected value for both subsidy and fees—even if actual fee income swings.

Best for

• Miners who want PPS-like stability, but also want fees included in a predictable way.

3) PPS+ (Pay Per Share Plus)

What you get paid for

• Hybrid model:
• Subsidy is paid like PPS (stable per-share expected value).
• Transaction fees are paid based on actual blocks found, commonly using a PPLNS-style distribution (more variance than PPS).

What’s included

• Subsidy (stable) + transaction fees (variable, tied to pool’s real blocks).

Who takes the risk

• The pool absorbs most variance for the subsidy portion (PPS).
• The miner experiences more variance on the fee portion (block-based / window-based distribution).

Best for

• Miners who want stability for the base reward but are comfortable with fee variability in exchange for capturing actual fees when the pool mines blocks.

4) “FPPS+” (Important: not a universal standard)

FPPS+ is not a single, industry-standard definition. Different pools use it
differently—or not at all. Common interpretations include:

1. Marketing synonym for FPPS or PPS+ in some ecosystems (naming can be inconsistent across platforms).
2. FPPS with “extras” beyond normal fee sharing (pool-specific), such as bonuses, incentives, or additional pass-through reward streams.

If a pool advertises FPPS+, evaluate it by confirming:

• Exactly which components are included (subsidy, transaction fees, and any extras).
• Whether fees are paid as expected-value averaged (FPPS-like) or actual block-based (PPS+-like).
• The calculation window, and whether there are caps/adjustments.

Choosing the right one (rule-of-thumb)

• PPS: smoothest payouts; usually no fee upside.
• FPPS: smooth payouts plus fees with minimal variance.
• PPS+: stable base revenue with more variable fee income (real-fee upside when blocks carry higher fees).
• FPPS+: read the fine print—confirm what “+” means on that specific pool.