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Get & use CASH

CASH is the spendable balance you see inside the Polkadot app on the Polkadot Products Devnet. It has no real-world value, but it lets you try the real user flow: receive funds, see a balance, and send value to another account.

Before you start

To follow this guide without hitting a wall, have these ready first:

  • An account. CASH lives in your Polkadot app account. If you do not have one yet, create or import it first — see Create an account & get funds.
  • Native tokens for fees — needed to send CASH. Topping up CASH with the in-app "+" button costs you nothing. But sending or spending CASH submits an on-chain transaction on the People chain, which needs a small amount of PAS to pay fees. Fund it from the faucet first — see Fund the account from the faucet.
  • The mobile app. The "+" top-up is on the mobile app (devnet builds); the desktop app has no CASH card.

What CASH is

"CASH" is the name the app uses for the Devnet digital-dollar balance. The app presents it as a simple spendable balance, while the platform handles the chain-specific work behind the scenes.

For developers, the useful detail is that CASH is spent through Coinage on the People chain, and the same logical asset can also be represented on Asset Hub with asset id 50000413. For users, the important rule is simpler: if the CASH card shows a balance, you can use it in app payment flows.

Get CASH

You have a few ways to acquire CASH on the devnet.

1. The in-app "+" top-up button (mobile)

On devnet builds the app can top your account up directly. This is the fastest path. The desktop app has no CASH card and no top-up flow — fund your account on the mobile app.

  1. Open the Polkadot app on mobile (Android or iOS).
  2. Open your Pocket, go to the CASH card, and tap the "+" (top-up) button next to Get CASH. (The "+" top-up button appears only on non-production / devnet builds.)
  3. The app requests a devnet top-up and prepares the funds for spending.
  4. The deposit settles in a few seconds and the CASH card shows the new balance. If it has not moved after a minute, reopen the Pocket to refresh the view and tap "+" again.

You fund your account yourself

New accounts are not funded automatically. Tap the "+" top-up on the CASH card (devnet builds) to add test CASH. The faucet is a separate step, and it pays PAS for fees rather than CASH.

2. Earn it

CASH can also be earned through Devnet reward flows, such as games, judgements, invitations, or prize events. When rewards are paid out, they appear in the same CASH balance as funds from the top-up flow.

Send & use CASH

Once you hold CASH you can send it to another user.

  1. Open your CASH card and choose Send CASH.
  2. Enter the recipient and the amount.
  3. Review and confirm the action. The app prepares the transfer, asks for your approval, submits it, and waits for settlement before reporting success.

Because CASH transfers move value, always check the recipient and amount before you approve.

On desktop, CASH lives in chat

The desktop app has no CASH card or Get CASH button. On desktop you send and receive CASH inside chat conversations, not from a card. Fund your account on the mobile app first.

sequenceDiagram
  participant U as You
  participant App as Polkadot app
  participant P as People chain
  U->>App: Tap "+" top-up (devnet only)
  App->>P: Request devnet funds
  App->>App: Prepare funds for spending
  App-->>U: CASH balance shown
  U->>App: Send CASH to a recipient
  App->>P: Submit CASH transfer
  P-->>App: Transfer complete

Where the value lives

Spending CASH is separate from the native token used for fees. Keep a small amount of native devnet funds available so your account can stay active and pay transaction fees.

Learn more