The answer to how to buy Polygon crypto starts with the ticker. The asset is now POL, which serves as the gas and staking token on Polygon Chain as of October 2026. Buy POL, then pick the withdrawal network with care: on Polygon PoS the coins arrive as the native token that pays gas there, while on Ethereum they sit on a different chain and need the bridge to reach Polygon.
What is POL (previously MATIC)?
POL is the successor to MATIC and, since September 2024, the token that pays for transactions on Polygon PoS. Polygon Labs announced that from 4 September 2024 every Polygon PoS transaction uses POL as the native gas token.
The conversion rate is fixed. The developer docs state that the MATIC to POL migration runs 1-to-1, and holders of MATIC on Ethereum get a 1:1 migration through the Polygon Portal. By 3 September 2025, Polygon Labs reported that 99% of MATIC on the network had migrated to POL.
For a buyer, POL is the token to look for. MATIC is the pre-migration name of the same asset.
Polygon PoS or Ethereum: which withdrawal network to pick
The network chosen at withdrawal decides which chain holds the coins, and with it whether POL can pay gas where they land. Polygon's docs name POL as the gas token for Polygon mainnet, and treat Ethereum as its parent chain. The two sides connect through the bridge:
| Withdrawal network | Chain the coins sit on | POL pays gas there | Bridge result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polygon PoS | Polygon mainnet, chain ID 137 | Yes | Bridging to Ethereum disburses POL |
| Ethereum | Ethereum, the parent chain | No, POL is gas on Polygon | Bridging to Polygon Chain delivers native POL |
Bridging POL to Polygon Chain delivers native POL on arrival, and in the other direction the bridge disburses POL on Ethereum. A withdrawal on the Ethereum side therefore leaves the coins one bridge step away from the chain where POL is the gas token.
Adding Polygon to a wallet: chain ID 137, not 80002
A wallet network entry has to point at Polygon mainnet, listed as chain ID 137 with POL as gas. The Amoy testnet also uses POL as its gas token but sits on chain ID 80002 for Amoy, so the gas token alone does not tell the two networks apart. The chain ID does.
Migration scams and the unmigration switch
Polygon's docs warn about fraudulent swap and transfer claims tied to the token migration. The conversion path they describe is the migration contract, which also carries an unmigration feature from POL back to MATIC; governance decides whether it is enabled.
Supply note: POL emission
Under the current schedule, POL emission runs at an effective 2% a year, beginning after June 2025. The roadmap and supply outlook sit in the future of Polygon crypto sector read.
Sector questions
What is Polygon used for?
Polygon Chain is a network whose transactions pay gas in POL, and POL is also the token used for staking on it, per Polygon's developer docs as of October 2026.
How to create a Polygon crypto wallet?
Add Polygon mainnet as a network in the wallet with chain ID 137 and POL as the gas token. Chain ID 80002 belongs to the Amoy testnet, which also uses POL for gas, so check the chain ID rather than the token name.
Does Polygon have any future?
The migration that defines the current token is close to finished: Polygon Labs reported 99% of MATIC on the network had moved to POL by 3 September 2025. POL emission is set at an effective 2% a year beginning after June 2025.
Data sources
- Polygon Labs, POL - Polygon Developer Docs, accessed 2026-10-27
- Polygon Labs, RPC endpoints, accessed 2026-10-27
- Polygon Labs, MATIC to POL Migration Is Now Live, 2024-09-04
- Polygon Labs, MATIC to POL Migration Is 99% Complete, 2025-09-03
