Complete Pudgy Penguins Guide: NFTs, $PENGU, and how to buy
You’ve probably seen these little penguin guys on your feed at some point. Pudgy Penguins are one of the most recognizable NFTs to have evolved from a profile picture collection into a global ecosystem.
In this guide, you’ll find out everything you need to know about Pudgy Penguins: what they are, their history, and the ecosystem they’ve built that spans several NFT collections, Web3 and browser-based gaming, and their toy range.
What is Pudgy Penguins?
Pudgy Penguins started out as an NFT collection, launched in 2021 on the Ethereum blockchain. It consists of 8,888 hand-drawn cartoon penguin characters, all with unique traits. Today, Pudgy Penguins has evolved into a broader entertainment IP and ecosystem, with its own $PENGU memecoin (on the Solana blockchain), Web3 gaming, a trading card game, and a line of toys and plushies.
Pudgy Penguins started out as a project by four founders who launched the NFT profile picture collection with ambitions to create a broader ecosystem. After its initial success, the founders were accused of cash-grabbing, and community members ousted the creators.
In April 2022, Luca Netz bought the project and became the driving force behind the Pudgy Penguins’ success. One of his first priorities was to engage directly with the Pudgy Penguins community, using their feedback to help shape the project’s future.
The history of Pudgy Penguins
July 2021: The Pudgy Penguins NFT collection is launched. It quickly sells out and the floor price surges.
Late 2021: Community concern about the direction of the project and the founders' intentions.
April 2022: Luca Netz buys the project for 750 ETH. He actively communicated with the community and involved them in decision-making.
2023-2024: Netz expands the Pudgy Penguins IP by launching Pudgy Toys in retailers. Regular Pudgy Penguin events build the community. The $PENGU memecoin launches in December 2024.
2025: Renewed interest in Pudgy Penguins sees Pengu surge 141.2% in just 10 days, doubling the floor price from 8 ETH to 16.75 ETH. The SEC acknowledged the filing of the Pudgy Penguins ETF.
2026: SEC delays approval of ETF.
$PENGU tokenomics
$PENGU launched in December 2024 as the Pudgy Penguins native token. It has a market cap supply of 88.88 billion, and allocation is split into four areas: 50% is dedicated to community growth and rewards, 29.28% goes to the core team, 12.35% is used for liquidity, and 8% is put towards public good initiatives and token proliferation.
Despite the original NFT collection living on Ethereum, $PENGU is on Solana. To bridge, Pudgy Penguins uses Abstract, a community-focused Layer 2 scaling network built on the ZK-stack. This allows users to access ecosystem experiences with lower fees.
The token is currently used to access exclusive content and in-game rewards, and is intended to grow to play a larger role across the ecosystem.
Pudgy Penguins ecosystem
Pudgy Penguins has evolved from an NFT profile-picture project to its own IP with an entire ecosystem.
Pudgy Penguins NFT
The original Pudgy Penguins NFT collection with 8,888 hand-drawn penguins. Owning the NFT comes with a range of extra benefits, including access to exclusive events and licensing of their penguin’s likeness to earn royalties on toy sales.
Pudgy Rods NFT
For a Christmas event in 2021, the original development team released Pudgy Rods, a collection of free NFT fishing rods, which were misspelled (and still commonly known as) ‘Rogs’. The community was disappointed with the release, especially as Rogs lacked real utility. Today, Rogs are now used as a multiplier, essentially increasing the community's rewards.
Lil Pudgys NFT
2021 also saw the release of Lil Pudgys, a collection of 22,222 baby penguin NFTs. Each Pudgy Penguin has a corresponding and free-to-claim Lil Pudgy NFT, leaving 13,334 Lil Pudgys that went on sale. They generally have the same perks as Pudgy Penguins, but when an opportunity has limited availability, Pudgy Penguins hold more weight. Lil Pudgys, unlike their parents, can bridge to Polygon, Binance Smart Chain, and Arbitrum.
Gaming
Igloo Inc. has launched a variety of Web3 games and has worked in partnership with well-known Web3 gaming companies like Mythical Games.
Pengu Clash
This is a play-to-earn, 1v1 multiplayer Telegram game that launched on the TON blockchain. You can play a number of different mini-games from darts to curling and soccer. If you win a duel, you can earn in-game rewards and digital accessories for your penguins.
Pudgy Party
Pudgy Party was a Fall Guys-style mobile game developed with Mythical Games. Despite interest, Igloo shut down Pudgy Party in June 2026, stating that they wanted to focus on the success of Pudgy World.
Pudgy World
If you’re trying to picture Pudgy World, think of Club Penguin. Your penguins come to life in a free-to-play, global, browser-based game launched in March 2026. You can use physical Pudgy Penguin toys to access digital items within the game. This is a clear push towards a less crypto-savvy audience, with subtle blockchain technology running in the background.
Vibes trading card game (TCG)
Vibes is a strategy card game with hand-drawn penguins, where players are encouraged to create a ‘Huddle’ by collecting multiple cards. The cards are phygital releases: physical packs are available in retailers across the US and each pack comes with a QR code to unlock the digital pack.
Pudgy Penguin toys
Pudgy Penguins has a wide range of toys, from plushies to figurines and blind boxes. Each toy comes with a QR code to claim in-game items and accessories for your penguins. NFT owners can license their penguins' likeness to earn royalties from toy sales.
Pengu Card
In June 2026, the Pengu Card, co-branded with KAST, was released. The intention of this card is to bring $PENGU into everyday spending, with KAST claiming that holders can spend the token across 150 million merchants worldwide.
Community
One of the biggest contributors to Pudgy Penguins’ success has been its active community. When Luca Netz bought the IP in 2022, he went straight to the Discord community to receive their feedback and use it as inspiration to push the project forward.
The community has remained loyal to the Pudgy Penguins ecosystem, attending regular events and engaging online. $PENGU tokens are now used to allow community members to vote on changes within the ecosystem. Users are also rewarded for their loyalty with exclusive benefits and perks.
Netz stays in contact with the community, discussing the roadmap, features, and even business advice through his active social media presence.
Pudgy Penguins ETF
In July 2025, the US SEC acknowledged the application of the Pudgy Penguins ETF. This proposed the first ETF of its kind: a hybrid combining a memecoin and NFTs across two blockchains. The idea would be that investors would gain exposure to the Solana memecoin, $PENGU, and the Ethereum NFT ‘Pudgy Penguins’ at the same time. The split would be roughly 80-95% $PENGU, with the remaining percentage in the NFT.
However, in March 2026, the SEC delayed their decision to approve the ETF or not.
The challenges with Pudgy Penguins
Despite having a large ecosystem, the memecoin, NFT, and brand face some challenges.
Volatility: $PENGU is subject to market swings as much as any other NFT-native token or memecoin. Like many memecoins, $PENGU has experienced periods of rapid price appreciation followed by sharp corrections.
Utility: The token is still figuring out its direct utility, with it functioning mostly as a community token within the ecosystem. Pudgy Penguins released their Pengu Card with KSAT, allowing users to spend $PENGU across millions of merchants. So it could gain more utility in the future.
Token supply: The $PENGU token has a massive supply, with over 88.88 billion tokens. Tokens are released incrementally, but it has been speculated that this will continue to cause downward selling pressure and dilution.
Legal cases: In 2026, the Original Penguin Company filed a lawsuit against Pudgy Penguins over branding on merchandise. They claim that consumers would have difficulty distinguishing between the logos. Legal cases can impact the price of $PENGU and introduce a layer of risk not previously faced by the brand.
Community upset: The closure of Pudgy Party left loyal game players disappointed. Having spent their tokens to redeem in-game items, they were confused that Igloo Inc. did not address refunds or whether assets could be transferred between games.
How to buy Pudgy Penguins
If you want to get involved in the world of Pudgy Penguins, here are a few step-by-step guides to get you started.
How to buy Pudgy Penguins NFTs
Get a crypto wallet: If you don’t already have one, set up a crypto wallet like MetaMask. Fund the wallet with Ethereum.
Connect to a marketplace: You can connect to NFT marketplaces like OpenSea and Blur on a desktop browser or through your wallet if it has built-in apps.
Find Pudgy Penguins: Use the NFT marketplace to search for the official Pudgy Penguins or Lil Pudgys NFT collections. It will show you the available artwork, but be sure to avoid counterfeit NFTs.
Complete your purchase: Once you find an NFT you want to purchase, complete the purchase by buying now or making an offer. Just remember, with Ethereum NFTs you will pay gas fees.
How to buy $PENGU
Find an exchange: You will need an exchange that supports the $PENGU token. Some exchanges you could choose from are Binance, Crypto.com, and OKX.
Fund your account: Use your credit card or previously purchased cryptocurrency to add funds into your account.
Purchase $PENGU: You can search for the $PENGU token on the exchange and use the funds in your account to trade for the tokens.
Are Pudgy Penguins taxed?
Yes, if you are selling, or trading Pudgy Penguin NFTs or the $PENGU memecoin, you may be subject to tax.
Pudgy Penguin NFT tax
In the US, the IRS treats NFTs under digital asset rules (although some can still be classed as collectibles), meaning that the same crypto tax rules apply to your NFTs. Selling an NFT or trading it with another buyer is treated as a disposal and therefore subject to Capital Gains Tax.
$PENGU tax
Selling and trading $PENGU is subject to Capital Gains Tax. If you are receiving $PENGU as a reward (including gaming rewards), then you may need to pay Income Tax.
To calculate your crypto tax, you can use a tax calculator like Koinly. Not only will it calculate your gains, losses, and income and allow you to generate country-specific tax reports, but you can also use the free portfolio tracker and NFT dashboard to manage your Pudgy Penguins and investments.
FAQs
What chain is Pudgy Penguins on?
The official Pudgy Penguins NFT collection is on Ethereum. The $PENGU token is native to Solana. The two are bridged using Abstract, a Layer 2 network built on the ZK-stack.
Who owns Pudgy Penguins?
Luca Schnetzler, commonly known as Luca Netz, bought the Pudgy Penguins IP in 2022 and is the CEO of Igloo Inc.
Is Pudgy Penguins still popular?
Yes. Pudgy Penguins remains one of the most recognizable NFT brands. Many NFTs failed to maintain their popularity after the initial 2021-2022 hype, but Pudgy Penguins built on their IP and expanded beyond NFTs into physical products, gaming, and a memecoin.
