How much does a smart contract security contest cost?
Two numbers decide it: the prize pool and the platform fee. Prize pools start at $45k, and the platform fee is 20% of the total budget for a security contest, or 25% for a security contest run together with a pre-launch bug bounty.
The prize pool
The pool is what security researchers compete for. Researchers earn rewards for verified, exploitable findings, judged on impact, so the pool is spent on outcomes rather than on hours booked.
Pools start at $45k. That floor is deliberate: our model and our quality standard require prize pools at or above that figure.
The platform fee
The platform fee is 20% of the total budget for a security contest. When a pre-launch bug bounty runs alongside the contest, the fee is 25% of the total budget.
Partner pricing sits outside these figures
The prize pool and the platform fee are what DualGuard charges for the contest and, where it applies, the pre-launch bug bounty.
Work delivered by our partners, such as the full-stack security review and formal verification, is priced by those partners. DualGuard is not responsible for partner pricing.
How the pool is split
Not all of the pool goes to the human contest. An AutoGuard round runs first, where AI agents and static analyzers compete for 10% of the prize pool and surface issues before the guard contest opens.
The remaining 90% goes to the guard contest, where security researchers compete publicly using the methods of their choice, with two Lead Guards matched to your protocol.
What the budget covers beyond the contest itself
Findings ship with reproduction steps, severity, and a remediation path: a plan, not a wall of comments.
After the contest there is a Mitigation Review. Lead Guards who finish in the top-10 join it, along with any guards who outrank them and finish inside the top-10.
Scope it with us.
Book a live walkthrough of the platform. We will answer anything your team needs before getting to work.