# What is “Wallet points vs leaderboard points”?

Wallet points are spendable and held in a wallet; leaderboard points set rank and cannot be spent — two separate balances so rewards never change a participant's ranking.

Also called: two-currency points model

SSociana team·19 Oct 2026·2 min read

## Wallet points vs leaderboard points in detail

Sociana deliberately runs two points currencies because they answer different questions. Leaderboard points are the scoreboard. They accumulate from participation and feed the unified leaderboard, giving a clean ranking that does not change when someone redeems a reward. Wallet points are the purse. They are earned through activities too, but they can be spent in the reward store, falling as items are bought. The practical differences show up on event day: a participant can buy a reward and still hold their rank; an administrator can correct a leaderboard score without touching what someone has already spent; an organiser can cap redemption through stock and per-person limits without affecting competitive fairness. It is a design choice many point systems skip, merging the two and creating the complaint that spending a reward cost someone first place. When writing points rules, decide per activity whether it earns ranking points, wallet points or both.

## How Sociana uses it

Both balances are configured in the points and rewards module. The unified leaderboard reads only leaderboard points; the reward store reads and decrements only wallet points.

## Example

In a recognition-led programme, participants redeemed booth rewards while the quarterly leaderboard remained untouched.

[Points wallet & reward storeWhere this term lives in the Sociana app.See how it works](https://sociana.in/features/points-wallet-and-reward-store/)

## Questions

What is the main difference?

Leaderboard points decide rank and cannot be spent. Wallet points are spendable in the reward store and decrease when items are redeemed. They are earned through activities too, but they can be spent in the reward store, falling as items are bought.

Can one activity earn both?

Yes. The organiser sets per activity whether it earns ranking points, wallet points or both, and with what values. Both balances are configured in the points and rewards module. Wallet points are spendable and held in a wallet; leaderboard points set rank and cannot be spent — two separate balances so rewards never change a participant's ranking.

Why keep them separate?

So that redeeming rewards never changes ranking, and so ranking corrections never alter what a participant has already spent. Leaderboard points are the scoreboard. Wallet points are the purse. When writing points rules, decide per activity whether it earns ranking points, wallet points or both.

## Keep reading

[Points wallet & reward store](https://sociana.in/features/points-wallet-and-reward-store/)[Unified leaderboard & team boards](https://sociana.in/features/unified-leaderboard/)[Recurring employee programmes](https://sociana.in/event-types/employee-programmes/)[Wallet points](https://sociana.in/glossary/wallet-points/)[Leaderboard points](https://sociana.in/glossary/leaderboard-points/)[Reward store](https://sociana.in/glossary/reward-store/)[Configure the leaderboard and points](https://sociana.in/help/organisers/configure-leaderboard-and-points/)[How to design a points system for an event](https://sociana.in/guides/design-an-event-points-system/)

[Back to Glossary](https://sociana.in/glossary/)

## Want points that people chase?

Our team designs the scoring with you and runs the leaderboard through the event.

[Book a demo](https://sociana.in/contact/)[Talk on WhatsApp (opens WhatsApp in a new tab)](https://wa.me/919145897433?text=Hi%20Sociana%2C%20I'm%20looking%20at%20Wallet%20points%20vs%20leaderboard%20points%20%28%2Fglossary%2Fwallet-points-vs-leaderboard-points%2F%29%20and%20would%20like%20to%20know%20more. "WhatsApp · replies Mon–Sat, 10:00–19:00 IST")

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Canonical: https://sociana.in/glossary/wallet-points-vs-leaderboard-points/
Publisher: Sociana by Alien Brains Private Limited (https://sociana.in/)