Sherlock (sherlock.xyz) Live Audit Contests

3 Active contests
$170,500$170K Active prize pool
0 Bug bounties
1 Platforms

Last updated Jul 20, 2026 · 16:50 UTC

Showing 1–20 of 301

301 audit contests

Protocol Source Prize Window Link
Raindrops Solana
Solidity
Sherlock Active
$18K
Jul 20 - Jul 26, 2026
6 days
View
Metric Audit Contest
Solidity
Sherlock Active
$121K
Jul 06 - Jul 27, 2026
21 days
View
Tare
Solidity
Sherlock Active
$31K
Jul 20 - Jul 29, 2026
9 days
View
Harpie
Solidity
Sherlock Finished
$8K
Sep 15 - Sep 18, 2022
3 days
View
Sentiment
Solidity
Sherlock Finished
$75K
Aug 29 - Sep 19, 2022
21 days
View
Sherlock
Solidity
Sherlock Finished
$25K
Sep 27 - Oct 04, 2022
7 days
View
Mycelium
Solidity
Sherlock Finished
$10K
Oct 05 - Oct 08, 2022
3 days
View
Notional
Solidity
Sherlock Finished
$100K
Sep 12 - Oct 10, 2022
28 days
View
Knox Finance
Solidity
Sherlock Finished
$50K
Sep 29 - Oct 13, 2022
14 days
View
Merit Circle
Solidity
Sherlock Finished
$10K
Oct 10 - Oct 13, 2022
3 days
View
Mover
Solidity
Sherlock Finished
$25K
Oct 18 - Oct 25, 2022
7 days
View
NFTPort
Solidity
Sherlock Finished
$25K
Oct 19 - Oct 26, 2022
7 days
View
Union Finance
Solidity
Sherlock Finished
$50K
Oct 17 - Oct 31, 2022
14 days
View
Astaria
Solidity
Sherlock Finished
$50K
Oct 20 - Nov 03, 2022
14 days
View
Sentiment Update
Solidity
Sherlock Finished
$10K
Nov 01 - Nov 04, 2022
3 days
View
Illuminate
Solidity
Sherlock Finished
$50K
Oct 24 - Nov 07, 2022
14 days
View
Sense
Solidity
Sherlock Finished
$25K
Nov 02 - Nov 09, 2022
7 days
View
Float Capital
Solidity
Sherlock Finished
$25K
Nov 02 - Nov 09, 2022
7 days
View
DODO
Solidity
Sherlock Finished
$10K
Nov 09 - Nov 12, 2022
3 days
View
Rage Trade
Solidity
Sherlock Finished
$50K
Oct 31 - Nov 14, 2022
14 days
View
Loading timeline...
Sherlock Active

Raindrops Solana

$18K Prize pool
Jul 20 - Jul 26, 2026
View on Sherlock
Sherlock Active

Metric Audit Contest

$121K Prize pool
Jul 06 - Jul 27, 2026
View on Sherlock
Sherlock Finished

Sentiment Update

$10K Prize pool
Nov 01 - Nov 04, 2022
View on Sherlock

About Sherlock

Sherlock launched in 2022 with a unique twist: protocols that pass a Sherlock audit can buy on-chain coverage backed by Sherlock and its watson community. Contests typically run 7 to 30 days with $50,000-$300,000 prize pools. Watsons (Sherlock auditors) submit findings, the judging panel determines severity, and the prize is split across valid unique findings.

This page shows only contests aggregated from Sherlock. For audit contests on other platforms, see the full Web3 audit competition tracker.

Smart Contract Audit Competition & Bug Bounty Platforms Compared

Six major platforms host the Web3 audit competitions and smart contract bug bounty programs aggregated above. Click any platform to see only its active contests.

Comparison of the major smart contract audit competition and bug bounty platforms.
Platform Type Typical Prize Contest Length Best For
Code4rena Audit contests $50K to $500K 3 to 14 days DeFi protocols pre-launch
Sherlock Contests + bounties $50K to $300K 7 to 30 days Insurance-backed audits
CodeHawks Audit contests + First Flights $5K to $200K 3 to 21 days Newer auditors building a track record
Cantina Mega-comps + bounties $200K to $2M+ 14 to 30 days Experienced researchers, high-value protocols
Immunefi Ongoing bug bounties Up to $15M per critical Ongoing Production protocol vulnerability hunting
HackenProof Bounties + crowdsourced audits $1K to $1M+ Ongoing or time-boxed Managed Web3 programs and exchange/protocol bounties

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between Sherlock and Code4rena?

Sherlock contests have stricter judging and include an insurance-backed bounty period afterward. Code4rena focuses purely on time-boxed contests. Sherlock prize pools are typically smaller ($50K-$300K) than Code4rena ($50K-$500K), but Sherlock watsons earn from post-contest bounties too.

How do I find active Sherlock contests?

Every currently-active Sherlock audit competition appears in the listing above, pulled from the Sherlock API every 2 hours. You can also browse all contests directly on audits.sherlock.xyz.

What are the best smart contract bug bounty platforms?

The leading Web3 bug bounty platforms are Immunefi (largest, $15M max payouts on DeFi protocols), Cantina (Spearbit's bounty program plus audit competitions), HackenProof (managed Web3 bounties and crowdsourced audits), Sherlock (audit contests with insurance-backed bounties), and Code4rena (best known for time-boxed audit competitions). Codehawks rounds out the field with Cyfrin-run contests focused on emerging protocols and beginner-friendly First Flights.

Which audit competition platform pays the most?

Cantina runs the largest audit competitions ($2M+ prize pools for protocols like EigenLayer and Uniswap v4). Immunefi pays the highest per-bug bounty (up to $15M for critical findings). Code4rena and Sherlock typically run $100K-$500K audit contests. Codehawks First Flights are smaller but accessible to newer auditors.

How do smart contract audit competitions work?

Audit competitions invite security researchers to review a protocol's smart contract code for a fixed prize pool over 1-4 weeks. Rewards are split based on unique valid findings, weighted by severity (critical, high, medium). Code4rena, Sherlock, Codehawks, and Cantina are the main platforms.

How much can you earn in a smart contract audit competition?

Top auditors earn $10,000-$500,000+ per competition. Cantina and Code4rena regularly run $500K-$2M prize pool contests. Bug bounties can pay up to $15M per critical finding on platforms like Immunefi.

What is the difference between a bug bounty and an audit contest?

Audit contests run for a fixed time window with a fixed prize pool shared among all valid findings. Bug bounties are ongoing programs where each valid submission earns a direct per-vulnerability reward (often $50K-$15M depending on severity). Bug bounties require finding a real vulnerability in production code.

How do I get started with smart contract auditing?

Learn the most common vulnerability classes first: reentrancy, flash loan attacks, oracle manipulation, and access control. The SCH Smart Contract Hacking Course covers all the core attack patterns that audit competitions test, starting from zero experience.

How to Start Competing in Smart Contract Audits

A practical path from learning vulnerability classes to submitting your first contest finding.

  1. Learn the core vulnerability classes

    Master reentrancy, access control, oracle manipulation, flash loan attacks, and arithmetic overflows. These five classes account for most contest findings.

  2. Practice on retired contests

    Read every public report from past Code4rena and Sherlock contests. Try to spot findings yourself before reading the writeup. This is how every top auditor trained.

  3. Start with CodeHawks First Flights

    First Flights are small audit contests designed for newer auditors. Prize pools are under $20K, scope is small, and competition is lighter. They build real submission history.

  4. Enter your first full competition

    Pick an active audit contest from the tracker above filtered by Solidity and a $50K-$200K prize range. Spend 20 to 40 hours on the contest, even if you only find one valid medium-severity issue.

  5. Build a public track record

    Publish your findings, share writeups on Twitter and Mirror, and start accumulating valid submissions across multiple platforms. A documented track record is what opens bug bounty access and full-time auditor roles.