Validator advantages

• Validators’ rewards range between 5 % and 20 % annually, in  addition to which they receive a share of the nominators’ rewards. Validators  themselves determine the percentage of commission (mostly between 3 % and 10  %) that they receive for allowing nominators to use their services.
• Contributing to the security of the decentralized network.

Nominator advantages

• Being a nominator does not require running your own node or other  concerns such as continuous online availability and technical expertise.
• The nominator incurs almost no initial costs. All they need are the native coins of a given chain, which they will stake at the  validator.
• The  safest interest rate on your digital assets. Rewards  range from 5 % to 20 % APY.

Validator disadvantages

• High upfront costs and high technical expertise are one of the main reasons why most people choose the nominator route.
• You need to be able to handle technical issues and anomalies with your node that you will need to resolve yourself.

Nominator disadvantages

• The disadvantage of a nominator is often the long time you have to wait for the validator to release your staked coins. This time usually ranges from 7 to 31 calendar days. No further rewards are earned during this period.
• In the event that a validator becomes inactive and you want to move the assets to another, active validator, you must wait for your staked digital assets to be released. As in the first case, you will not earn any rewards during that time. Some chains offer the possibility of an immediate restake of assets from validator to validator, in which case you do not lose any rewards.

How to choose a validator?

Unfortunately, there is no universal answer to this question. There are a number of factors to consider, including personal preferences and the beliefs of the nominator that should be considered when selecting a validator.

1. Reputation, history, social media activity, web platform, references, and standing in the community can all be valuable signals of competence and credibility of the validator.
2. Total Stake vs. Validator Performance – Nominators earn rewards based on the relative proportion of their stake to the validator’s total stake. This effectively means that nominating a validator with a high total stake lowers the expected rewards for staking. A high total stake of a validator could be a valuable signal of community trust. Some individuals place more value on trust, while others seek higher returns by supporting validators with a smaller total stake.
3. A larger number of nodes running the validator in the network could be a signal of greater trust, which could prevent unwanted interruptions in the acquisition of rewards.

Conclusion

Network security depends on the active participation of validators and nominators. Becoming a nominator is one of the easiest and safest ways to earn interest on your digital assets, with relatively high returns ranging from 5 % to 20 % per year.
In the case of a validator, it is much more complicated; if you would like to become one, you need high start-up costs and technical expertise.
Fortunately, there are many quality validators in the crypto world with whom you can pledge your tokens to and earn interest over time. As with any investment, it is important to do thorough research (DYOR!) and make wise decisions about who to trust with your digital assets.

Personal Opinion

Validator

Running a validator on a live network is a big responsibility! You will be responsible not only for your stake, but also for the stakes of your current nominators. If you make a mistake, your money and your reputation will be at risk. However, running a validator can also be a very rewarding experience if you are really serious about it. By doing your part, you are contributing to the security of a decentralized network while expanding your stock of digital assets. If you are thinking about starting a validation service, have sufficient capital and technical expertise, you should check out information on secure validation, as security is extremely important to running a successful validator business. Make sure you understand the factors to consider when building your infrastructure.

Nominator

The nominator performs an important role with the validators they choose. When looking for validators, the nominator should pay attention to their own percentage reward for nominating with a particular validator. However, one should not forget the possible risk associated with a validator becoming inactive. In such a case, your rewards will be suspended and you will have to wait out the time specified by the chain for your staked assets to be released (10 - 31 days) in order to restake your tokens to another, active validator. If you are lucky and your chain offers the possibility of an immediate restake from one validator to another, you need not lose any rewards. Aside from the few disadvantages mentioned above, becoming a nominator is the safest way to redeem digital assets with relatively high rewards.