Definition
A Zap is a Bitcoin micropayment sent across the Nostr network using the Lightning Network. Where a conventional social platform offers a "like" that costs nothing and means little, a Zap moves real satoshis from one person to another and attaches a public receipt to the note being tipped. It is defined by NIP-57 and ties Nostr's signed-message layer to Bitcoin's payment layer.
How a Zap works
When you Zap a note, your wallet pays a Lightning invoice associated with the recipient's profile. A "zap receipt" — itself a signed Nostr event — is published to relays so clients can display the tip. The recipient needs a Lightning address or LNURL endpoint, which can be self-hosted or provided by a custodial wallet. Because the value transfer rides on Lightning, settlement is fast, final, and denominated in bitcoin rather than platform points.
Why it matters
Zaps demonstrate native, permissionless monetization without an advertising middleman, payment processor, or platform taking a cut. For sovereign Bitcoiners running their own node and Lightning channels, Zaps close the loop: speech on a censorship-resistant protocol, paid with money on a censorship-resistant network.
See D-Central's digital sovereignty hub for more on combining Lightning and self-hosted communications.
In Simple Terms
A Zap is a Bitcoin micropayment sent across the Nostr network using the Lightning Network. Where a conventional social platform offers a “like” that costs…