DAO and contributor tiers
Structure a DAO or community into newcomer, contributor and core tiers with token, Discord, GitHub, POAP, attestation, points and form requirements, each tier unlocking its own channels and votes.
To structure a DAO or community into tiers with Guild, such as newcomer, contributor and core, make each tier a role. The lowest tier asks for something easy, like being in your Discord server or holding your token. Each higher tier requires the tier below with a Have a role requirement, plus signals of real contribution: Discord tenure, GitHub commits, POAPs, attestations, points, an approved application or a place on a list you keep. Each tier unlocks its own Discord role, Telegram group, gated pages and voting weight, and members move up or down as they meet the requirements or stop meeting them.
Pick signals for each tier
Put cheap signals at the bottom and costly ones at the top:
| Signal | Requirement | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| Holds the governance token | Token balance, or Held continuously for on Ethereum and Base | Any tier; a long holding period for senior tiers |
| Is in the Discord, or has been for a while | Discord member: Server member or Server member since a date | Newcomer, contributor |
| Has a Discord role your moderators give by hand | Discord member: Role | Recognizing work you already track in Discord |
| Writes code | GitHub Commit count or Account age | Contributor |
| Showed up | Attend POAP event, one requirement per event | Contributor |
| Was vouched for | Be attested by an EAS attester you trust | Contributor, core |
| Earned enough | Points, with Greater than or equal to or Range | Any tier |
| Applied and was approved | Submitted a form | Core |
| Was picked by the team | Allowlist | Core |
When you require a Discord role, pick one your moderators assign, not one a Guild reward gives out, or the tier depends on itself. See Requirements for every type.
Chain the tiers
Give every tier above the first a Have a role requirement (under Guild) for the tier below. A contributor is then always a newcomer too, and a member who loses the lower tier loses the higher one with it.
Inside a tier, decide how strict to be with Members should meet:
- All when every signal is required.
- Group when there are several ways to contribute: put Have a role in one group, the alternatives (commits, POAPs, points) in another set to any, and require both groups. A designer without GitHub history can still qualify.
- Some, such as 2 of 4, counts every requirement in the role, Have a role included. Use it in a role without one, for example a separate "Active" role that the tier requires.
Points tie it together: give them with milestone roles, grant them by hand with Adjust points for work Guild can't see, and let tiers require a balance. See Points and leaderboards.
Add manual review where it matters
For the top tier, keep a human in the loop:
- Forms: a role unlocks an "Apply to Core" form with Automatic approval off, and the core role requires Submitted a form for it. Only approved submissions count. Forms are on the Pro plan and above.
- Allowlist: upload the wallets or email addresses you picked, and add people later with Add new addresses or IDs. Free on every plan. See Manage an allowlist.
- Points: an admin's Adjust points grant can push a member over a points requirement, and is recorded in the Audit log.
Give each tier its own space
- Discord and Telegram: one Discord role per tier and a private Telegram group for the upper tiers. See Token-gate a Discord server.
- Pages: a page with Who can see it set to Role holders for each tier, as a feed, announcements or chat. See Gate pages, forms and secret content.
- Voting rights: give tiers votes, for example 1 for contributors and 5 for core, and let core members create proposals. A member's power is the sum of their roles' votes. See Voting rights.
Example: three tiers
Newcomer
- Who gets it: All of Discord member, your server, Server member; and Token balance, your token, at least 1.
- Unlocks: a "Newcomer" Discord role and 10 points.
Contributor
- Who gets it: two groups, both required. The first is Have a role, Newcomer. The second is Any one of: Server member since before a date three months back; GitHub Commit count at least 20; Attend POAP event for your last community call; Points at least 100.
- Unlocks: a "Contributor" Discord role, a "Contributors" feed open to Role holders, the "Apply to Core" form, and Voting rights with 1 vote.
Core
- Who gets it: Have a role, Contributor; and Submitted a form, "Apply to Core", reviewed by hand.
- Unlocks: a "Core" Discord role, a private Telegram group, a "Core" chat page, and Voting rights with 5 votes and Members with this role can create proposals on.
Server member since compares against a fixed date, so move it forward from time to time. Adding a requirement to a tier people already hold removes it from anyone who doesn't meet the new one, so check Why members miss it first.
FAQ
Can a member skip a tier?
Not if each tier requires the one below with Have a role. To allow a shortcut, put Have a role in a group with an alternative, such as an allowlist of people you fast-track, and set the group to Any one.
What happens when a contributor goes inactive?
Selling the token or leaving the Discord server removes the tier and every tier above it. Tenure, commits and POAPs don't decay. For activity that should expire, use an Onchain activity requirement with a Relative period, or deduct points with Adjust points.
Can I hide the core tier from everyone else?
Yes. Set the role's Who can see it to Secret or Hidden on the Starter plan and above, or Self-reveal on Pro and above.
Which parts need a paid plan?
Roles, every requirement used above except Submitted a form, Discord and Telegram rewards, points, pages, voting rights and allowlists work on the free plan. Forms and Submitted a form need Pro. See Plans.