A regular Telegram gift can be exchanged for Stars within 7 days of receipt. The exchange returns 85% of its price, rounded to the nearest whole Star: a 100-Star gift returns 85 Stars, and a 15-Star gift returns 13. The gift disappears permanently upon exchange. Collectible gifts and gifts obtained from auctions cannot be exchanged for Stars. The figures below are from the Telegram gift showcase as of September 26, 2026.
How to Exchange
- Open the gift: either in the message where it was received or in your profile, under the "Gifts" tab.
- Tap "Exchange for Stars". The exchange amount is written on the gift itself.
- Confirm. The Stars are added to your balance, and the gift disappears.
Exchanging destroys the gift: it cannot be recovered or exchanged back.
How Many Stars Will Be Returned
Telegram stores the exchange amount separately for each gift (convert_stars in the API). Across the entire showcase of 151 gifts, it equals 85% of the price, rounded:
| Gift Price, Stars | Exchange, Stars |
|---|---|
| 15 | 13 |
| 25 | 21 |
| 50 | 43 |
| 100 | 85 |
| 500 | 425 |
| 1 000 | 850 |
| 5 000 | 4 250 |
| 10 000 | 8 500 |
| 20 000 | 17 000 |
The most expensive gift in the showcase cost 41,000 Stars; its exchange value is 34,850.
Currently, 11 gifts are on sale: for 15, 25, 50, and 100 Stars. The remaining 140 were limited editions, and all their runs have sold out.
How Much This Is in Money
Stars obtained by exchanging a gift are subject to the conditions for creators — the same as for channel and bot revenue. Under these conditions, they can be withdrawn via Fragment:
- no earlier than 21 days after receipt;
- from 1,000 Stars at a time (
stars_revenue_withdrawal_minin client parameters); - at a rate of $0.013 per Star — $13 per 1,000 (
stars_usd_withdraw_rate_x1000as of September 26).
Exchanging a 100-Star gift yields 85 Stars — at this rate, about $1.10. They can be withdrawn once your balance reaches 1,000. Stars purchased with money cannot be withdrawn: they can only be spent within Telegram.
When Exchange Is Not Possible
- More than 7 days have passed. The deadline is set in Telegram's client parameters:
stargifts_convert_period_maxis 604,800 seconds. The gift remains yours, but it can no longer be exchanged. - Gift from an auction. Since November 19, 2025, new limited-edition gifts are sold via auction, and such gifts cannot be exchanged for Stars.
- Gift has already been upgraded. A collectible gift cannot be exchanged for Stars — it can be sold on the gift marketplace.
Exchange or Upgrade
The eleven gifts currently sold in the showcase cannot be upgraded: they can only be set as a profile gift or exchanged.
A limited-edition gift can most often be upgraded to a collectible gift. Out of 140 limited-edition gifts, 118 can be upgraded, and for 89 of them, the upgrade costs 25 Stars. The upgrade price can also be higher — up to 4,000 Stars for Intelligence Cup and Algorithm Cup.
After upgrading, the gift receives a model, backdrop and symbol, a number, and a t.me/nft/… link, and it can no longer be exchanged for Stars. However, it can be sold. The cheapest collectible gift on Fragment on September 26 cost 5 GRAM, about $7.40. Prices for all 120 collections are in the gift catalog.
What Was Before Auctions
Before auctions, limited-edition gifts were sold at a fixed price until the run sold out. A total of 21.9 million such gifts were released. Some runs sold out in minutes: Durov’s Glasses (5,000 units at 30,000 Stars each) and Westside Sign (12,000 units) sold out on their release day.
