TON NFTs are back on top. Resistance Dog, a Telegram collectible gift, just became the number one NFT collection worldwide by 30-day volume. It did 9.8 million TON in a month, roughly $13 million, and pushed CryptoPunks and Pudgy Penguins to second and third. That is a Telegram sticker outselling the two most famous blue chips in NFT history.
So how do you actually buy one? This guide walks you through it from zero. You will set up a wallet, buy some Gram (the coin formerly known as Toncoin), and pick up your first collectible on Portals, Getgems or Fragment. No prior NFT experience needed.
What Are TON NFTs?
TON NFTs are collectibles that live on The Open Network, the blockchain tied to Telegram. Most of today’s volume comes from Telegram Gifts. These started as animated stickers you send to friends inside a chat. Telegram made them upgradeable in early 2025, so a gift can be turned into a collectible with rarity traits and a fixed supply. From there it can be minted on-chain and traded for Gram.
Beyond gifts, the ecosystem also covers Telegram usernames, anonymous +888 numbers, .ton domains and classic PFP-style collections. We covered how this wave started in our piece on the rise of TON NFTs and Plush Pepe. Plush Pepe went from a cheap gift to a five-figure floor, and that story brought a lot of new eyes to the chain.
One naming detail trips people up. Toncoin became Gram (GRAM) in June 2026 after a community vote. The chain is still called TON, the coin is now Gram, and many apps still show prices as “TON” during the transition. Same asset, same balance, nothing to swap.
Why Resistance Dog Is Pumping
Resistance Dog is the hooded dog Pavel Durov drew in 2018 as Telegram’s unofficial mascot. The gift version dropped in August 2025 with a supply of roughly 100,000. On its own that would be a mid-tier collection. Then two things happened.
First, Telegram opened its non-custodial Money wallet to its full user base on October 9. That put a self-custody wallet in front of over a billion people without a separate app download. Second, on Durov’s birthday the Resistance Dog team upgraded more than 100 plush models, and attention snowballed from there. Volume followed, and the collection flipped the Ethereum blue chips on 30-day numbers.
Will it hold? Nobody knows. Gift floors swing hard in both directions. Still, the buying process is the same whether you want a Resistance Dog, a Plush Pepe or a cheap entry-level gift.
Step One: Set Up a TON Wallet
You need a wallet that supports TON NFTs. Three good options:
- Telegram Money, the new non-custodial wallet built into Telegram. It appears in your settings and holds Gram plus collectibles.
- Tonkeeper, the most popular standalone TON wallet, available on mobile and desktop.
- MyTonWallet, another solid self-custody option with full gift support.
Our TON wallet setup guide covers the Tonkeeper flow click by click. Whichever you pick, write down the seed phrase on paper and never type it into a website. Telegram’s own custodial Wallet bot was rebranded to Walt and is useful for buying Gram with a card, but you don’t control the keys there. For actually holding NFTs, go self-custody.
Step Two: Buy Gram on OKX or Bybit
Gifts are priced in Gram, so you need some before you shop. The cleanest route is a centralized exchange.
OKX is our first pick. It lists GRAM/USDT spot plus margin and perpetuals. Read the OKX review for the full setup, or go straight to our OKX referral link. Bybit is the second option, with GRAM spot live since June. Check the Bybit review or sign up through our Bybit referral link.
The flow is identical on both. Deposit cash or USDT, open the GRAM/USDT pair, buy, then withdraw to your wallet. When withdrawing, select the TON network and paste your wallet address. Add a memo only if your wallet asks for one. Most self-custody wallets don’t.
Buy a little extra for fees. TON transactions cost fractions of a cent, but marketplaces charge small amounts for listing, minting and withdrawals. Half a Gram of headroom is plenty.
If you prefer to skip exchanges, Walt lets you buy Gram with a card or via P2P inside Telegram. Fees are higher, but it works for small amounts.
Route One: Buy a Telegram Gift on Portals
Portals is the biggest Telegram gift marketplace and it runs entirely inside Telegram as a mini app. It was launched in May 2025 by Roxman, the creator of the Major game, and Durov himself has called it one of his favorite success stories in the ecosystem.
Here is the process:
- Open the Portals bot in Telegram and launch the mini app.
- Tap the balance in the top right and connect your wallet via TON Connect.
- Send Gram from your wallet to your Portals balance.
- Browse collections. Filter by name, model, backdrop or price, and sort by floor.
- Tap a gift, check the price and the fee line, then confirm.
- The gift lands in your “My Gifts” tab. You can display it on your profile or withdraw it to your wallet.
A few tips. Portals holds gifts in an internal balance, so your purchase is off-chain until you withdraw. Withdrawing costs a small fee but puts the NFT in your own wallet. Also, every offer you make is held in escrow until it fills or you cancel. Finally, never send gifts to anyone who messages you claiming to be Portals support. The real storage account is linked inside the app.
Route Two: Buy on Getgems
Getgems is the original TON NFT marketplace and the best place for everything that isn’t a gift. Usernames, anonymous numbers, Plush Pepes, Scared Cats and standard collections all trade there. It also supports gifts now, with a 1% trading fee.
Steps:
- Go to getgems.io and tap Connect Wallet.
- Approve the connection in Tonkeeper, Money or whichever wallet you use.
- Open a collection and sort by price. Verified collections carry a checkmark.
- Click Buy on the item you want and confirm the transaction in your wallet.
- The NFT shows up in your wallet’s NFT tab and in your Getgems profile under Collected.
Getgems also runs free Pearl drops and domain auctions. Our Getgems listing explains how to farm those, which is a nice way to collect a few free NFTs while you learn the interface.
Route Three: Fragment, the Official Marketplace
Fragment is Telegram’s own platform. It sells usernames, +888 numbers, collectible gifts and Stars, mostly through auctions. The fee is 5% on sales, so it is pricier than Getgems, but it is the most trusted venue for identity assets like usernames.
Connect your wallet, place a bid or hit the buy-now price, and confirm. Username purchases need a small Gram reserve for network fees, so keep a buffer.
Which Marketplace Should You Use?
For gifts, Portals. It has the deepest liquidity and you never leave Telegram. For usernames, numbers and non-gift collections, Getgems. For official username auctions, Fragment. Tonnel and MRKT are smaller alternatives with their own fee models, and arbitrage between all of them is a real strategy for active traders.
Prices for the same gift can differ by a few percent across venues. Check two before buying anything over a few hundred Gram.
Stay Safe: TON NFT Scams to Avoid
The TON ecosystem is beginner-friendly, which means it is also scammer-friendly. We flagged this trend early in our post on TON wallet drainers and it has only grown with the gift boom.
- Fake Fragment and Portals sites. Only open the real bot or type the URL yourself.
- Claim scams. There is no GRAM migration. Anyone telling you to “claim” or “swap” TON to GRAM is stealing.
- Copycat collections. Verify the collection address or the verified badge before buying.
- Support DMs. Nobody from Portals, Getgems or Telegram will message you first.
- Wallet connect prompts on random sites. Disconnect and move on.
If you are new to self-custody in general, read self-custody or exchange before you move serious money on-chain.
My Take as an NFT Veteran
A friend in a Discord I’m in told me to buy these NFTs last week. I was caught up with other stuff and didn’t listen. They are up 250% since. That’s on me, and it is a very familiar feeling after years in the NFT trenches on Ethereum and Solana.
So I’m here today with a full guide, because next time you and I don’t need to miss the wave. The Telegram gift model is the first NFT format since 2021 that feels native to where people already are. You buy it in the chat app, show it on your profile, and send it to a friend. Punks never had that distribution.
The flip side is the same as every cycle. Floors move on attention, and attention is fickle. Buy what you would be happy holding if the chart went quiet for a year. Treat anything above that as a trade, size it small, and take profits on the way up. No single collection is guaranteed to stay number one.
Keep This Content Free
Guides like this one, plus our daily list of TON airdrops, are free because readers use our referral links. If you buy your Gram through the OKX or Bybit links above, we earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. Thank you for the support.
Final Words
Buying a TON NFT takes four moves. Set up a self-custody wallet, buy Gram on OKX or Bybit, send it to the wallet, and pick your marketplace. Portals for gifts, Getgems for everything else, Fragment for usernames. The whole process fits in one evening, and the fees are a rounding error compared to Ethereum.
Resistance Dog outselling CryptoPunks is the headline today. The bigger picture is a billion Telegram users getting a wallet by default. Whether gifts hold their floors or not, this is the NFT on-ramp that reaches the most people. Learn the flow now while it is cheap to experiment.
If you want to understand how Telegram-native rewards work beyond collectibles, read our guide to Telegram airdrops and rewards. The same wallet you just set up qualifies for most of them.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are TON NFTs?
TON NFTs are collectibles on The Open Network, Telegram’s blockchain. Most volume today comes from Telegram Gifts, animated collectibles with rarity traits that can be minted on-chain and traded for Gram. Usernames, anonymous numbers and .ton domains are also NFTs.
Where can I buy TON NFTs?
Portals (inside Telegram) is the largest marketplace for gifts. Getgems is the main venue for usernames, numbers and standard collections. Fragment is Telegram’s official marketplace. Tonnel and MRKT are smaller alternatives.
Do I need Gram or Toncoin to buy TON NFTs?
Yes. Gram is the new name for Toncoin as of June 2026. Many apps still label it TON. Buy it on OKX or Bybit, or with a card through Telegram’s Walt wallet, then send it to a self-custody wallet.
Which wallet should I use for TON NFTs?
Telegram’s built-in Money wallet, Tonkeeper or MyTonWallet all work. All three are non-custodial and display your gifts and NFTs natively.
How much does it cost to buy a Telegram gift?
Common gifts trade for a few Gram. Mid-tier models run into the hundreds. Rare items like Plush Pepe and Durov’s Cap are priced in the thousands. Marketplace fees range from about 1% on Getgems to 5% on Fragment, paid by the seller.
Is Resistance Dog a good buy?
It is the top collection by 30-day volume at the time of writing, with a supply of roughly 100,000. That liquidity cuts both ways. Treat it as a trade, size it small, and don’t chase a green candle.
Can I buy TON NFTs without Telegram?
Yes. Getgems and Fragment work in any browser with a TON wallet connected. Portals requires Telegram since it runs as a mini app.
Credit: Source link
