An NFT is a token that is one of a kind, used to prove you own a specific, unique item rather than an interchangeable balance. On many blockchains, creating one means writing a smart contract. The XRP Ledger is different: it supports NFTs natively, as a built-in feature of the network.
That native design changes a few practical things, from how NFTs are minted and stored to how creators earn royalties. This guide explains what an NFT is, how the XRP Ledger's version works, and what the built-in features mean for a beginner who is minting, buying, or just trying to understand them.
It sits under the parent guide on XRP use cases and cross-border payments. For the general idea of NFTs, which applies across every chain, see NFTs on Ethereum; this page stays on the XRP Ledger's own approach.
What a non-fungible token is
A non-fungible token is a token that is individually unique, so each one has different properties and is not interchangeable with another, unlike a fungible asset where every unit is identical (source: Ethereum.org, NFTs). This lets an NFT represent something specific, like art, a collectible, a ticket, or a real-world claim.
The value of an NFT comes from provable ownership, not from the file itself. Anyone can copy an image, but the ledger records who owns the one authentic token, and that record is public and verifiable. In that sense an NFT works like a certificate of authenticity for a digital item.
Because the concept is the same everywhere, this guide does not re-teach general NFT theory. It focuses on what is specific to the XRP Ledger, and the general concept is covered in the linked Ethereum guide for anyone who wants the broader picture first.
How NFTs work on the XRP Ledger
The XRP Ledger supports NFTs natively through a feature often called by its standard's draft number, XLS-20, where each NFT exists as an NFToken object that users can mint, hold, buy, sell, and burn (source: XRP Ledger, NFTs). An NFT is a unique, indivisible unit, and it is not used for payments the way XRP is.
The important word is native. On networks that rely on smart contracts, each NFT project deploys its own contract code that has to be written and audited, and bugs in that code are a common source of problems. On the XRP Ledger, the rules for minting, transferring, and burning NFTs are part of the protocol itself, so a creator does not have to write contract code to make a standard NFT.
That does not make NFTs on the ledger risk-free, but it does move the risk. Instead of trusting one project's custom contract, you rely on the ledger's shared, well-tested rules, which every NFT on the network uses in the same way.
Because the feature is part of the ledger, every wallet and explorer that supports the XRP Ledger can recognise these NFTs in the same standard way. You do not need to trust or understand a separate project's contract just to view, hold, or transfer one.
NFTs are one of the ledger's native token types
On the XRP Ledger, NFTs are one of three native token standards, alongside two kinds of fungible token, so the ability to issue unique items is built into the same system that handles currencies and stablecoins (source: XRP Ledger, tokens). Anyone can mint one, for uses ranging from art to in-game items.
This shared foundation is why the NFT features feel consistent with the rest of the ledger. The same account model, the same reserve system, and the same transaction engine handle NFTs as handle everything else, rather than NFTs living in a separate contract world bolted on top.
It also means NFTs sit naturally beside the ledger's other assets. A creator can hold XRP, issue a stablecoin, and mint NFTs from related accounts, all on one network. How those pieces fit together across the wider network is laid out in the XRP Ledger ecosystem map.
Minting, storage, and the reserve
When you create an NFT, the ledger stores up to 32 NFTs owned by the same account together in a single page object, so your reserve requirement only rises when a new page is needed rather than for every token. Minting uses a dedicated transaction, and the NFT lives on the issuing account until it is transferred or burned.
This page-based storage is a deliberate, beginner-friendly touch. On a network where each account must hold a small XRP reserve for the objects it owns, batching NFTs into pages keeps the cost of holding several NFTs low, because you are not charged a separate reserve for each one.
Burning matters too. You can destroy an NFT you own, and if the creator minted it as burnable, the issuer can destroy it as well, no matter who currently holds it. That is useful for something like an event ticket that should be voided once it is used. The reserve system that underpins all of this is explained in XRP Ledger transactions, fees, and reserves.
Royalties and creator controls
Many NFT standards let a creator earn a royalty, a percentage of each resale paid back to the original artist through the token's rules (source: Coinbase, what are NFTs). The XRP Ledger builds this in as a transfer fee set by the issuer at mint time, so the ledger enforces the royalty rather than a marketplace's goodwill.
One nuance is worth knowing: if an NFT carries a transfer fee, it can only be traded for tokens the issuer accepts, which is how the ledger makes sure the royalty can actually be collected. It is a small constraint, but it explains why some NFTs on the ledger trade only in specific assets.
Several other settings are fixed at mint time and cannot be changed afterward. The issuer decides whether the token can be transferred at all, whether the holder can sell it for other tokens or only for XRP, and whether the issuer keeps the right to burn it. Because these are locked in at creation, a buyer can check the rules before purchasing rather than discovering them later.
Creators can also delegate. An account can name an authorized minter to create NFTs on its behalf, or a broker to help sell them, which is how many NFT platforms operate on the ledger while the creator keeps ownership of the underlying account.
Buying, selling, and dynamic NFTs
Trading an NFT on the ledger works through offers: the owner or an interested buyer creates an offer to buy or sell, the ledger tracks it as an object, and it is removed when either side accepts or cancels. If the NFT is transferable, it can change hands many times this way, with any transfer fee applied automatically.
Standard NFTs are immutable once minted, but the ledger also supports dynamic NFTs, where the issuer or their authorized minter can update the token's linked data, specifically its URI, after minting (source: XRP Ledger, dynamic NFTs). This suits things that need to change, like a ticket for a rescheduled event or a card that updates with new statistics.
There is a safety point buyers should not skip. Native rules make the minting and trading mechanics more predictable, but they do not vouch for what an NFT represents or who created it. Scams, copied artwork, and worthless tokens are as possible here as anywhere, so checking the issuer and the collection still matters before you buy.
For a beginner, the takeaway is that the XRP Ledger gives NFTs a full lifecycle, mint, hold, trade, and optionally update or burn, using shared network rules. That same asset flexibility is part of the wider tokenization story covered in tokenization and real-world assets on the XRP Ledger.
Frequently asked questions
Do you need a smart contract to create an NFT on the XRP Ledger?
No. Minting an NFT is a native feature of the XRP Ledger, so you use a built-in transaction type rather than deploying custom smart contract code. This is a key difference from networks where every NFT relies on a separate contract. It removes a common source of bugs, though you still need to handle your account and keys carefully.
Why is holding several NFTs on the XRP Ledger cheap on reserves?
Because the ledger stores up to 32 of an account's NFTs together in a single page, and the reserve requirement only increases when a new page is created. So you are not charged a separate reserve for every individual NFT. Holding a modest collection adds far less to your required XRP reserve than one token per object would.
Can an NFT on the XRP Ledger be changed after it is minted?
Usually not. Standard NFTs are immutable, meaning their core data is fixed at minting. The exception is a dynamic NFT, created with a mutable flag, where the issuer or an authorized minter can update the token's linked URI later. Even then, only that reference can change, and only the issuer side can change it, not any holder.
Researched and written for the BloFin Academy. This article is educational and is not financial, investment, or legal advice. Always do your own research.