> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.zama.org/protocol/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.zama.org/protocol/confidential-vault/use-the-app/incentives.md).

# Rewards

How to earn ZAMA rewards on a vault, why Merkl may show 0 for you, and when you can claim.

Some vaults pay extra ZAMA on top of their yield. The rewards come from [Merkl](https://merkl.xyz) campaigns. The APY shown in **Earn** includes them. Hover the APY to see the split.

Three things to know:

1. Share your balance with Merkl when you deposit.
2. Depending on the vault, rewards show up as you go, or only after the campaign ends.
3. You claim them in the Zama app.

## Share your balance with Merkl

Your balance in a vault is encrypted, and Merkl can only reward a balance it can see. When you deposit, the form asks you to share your balance with Merkl, under **Get an extra +X% APY**. Sharing lets Merkl, and nobody else, see your balance in this vault for one year. A balance you do not share earns no rewards.

## Two ways rewards are paid

**Paid as you go.** Merkl tracks your balance and adds to your reward every day. You can check it on Merkl's website by signing in with your wallet, and claim it in the Zama app while the campaign runs.

**Paid after the campaign ends.** Merkl tracks the vault as a whole, not each depositor. Merkl's website shows 0 for your address the whole time, even though you are earning. When the campaign ends, Zama works out each depositor's share and opens a claim in the Zama app, a few days later. If Merkl shows 0 for your address while the vault's APY in **Earn** includes a reward, you are in this case.

For example, you deposit into RockawayX Confidential RWA USDC on 1 October and share your balance. The campaign runs from 3 October to 10 October. On Merkl's website your address shows 0 all along. A few days after 10 October, a claim appears in the Zama app for the ZAMA you earned between 3 and 10 October.

Why the difference? Some campaigns reward every depositor in the vault, confidential or not. Merkl cannot tell confidential depositors apart, so it pays them as one, and Zama splits that payment among them once the campaign ends. Other campaigns reward only confidential depositors, and Merkl pays each of them as it goes. Read [Confidential incentives for DeFi with Zama and Merkl](https://www.zama.org/post/confidential-incentives-for-defi-with-zama-and-merkl) for how this works without Zama or Merkl learning anyone's amount.

## Claiming

You claim in the Zama app. You receive cZAMA, the confidential form of ZAMA.

## Steakhouse Confidential Prime USDC

This vault has no Merkl campaign. Zama adds funds to the vault on a schedule and its share price rises for every depositor. There is nothing to share and nothing to claim. Read [Earn rewards by supplying to the Steakhouse Confidential Prime USDC v2 vault on Morpho](https://www.zama.org/post/earn-rewards-by-supplying-to-the-steakhouse-confidential-prime-usdc-v2-vault-on-morpho).


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