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ZORA101: How to create a Drop (ERC-721)
ZORA101: How to create a Drop (ERC-721)

A step-by-step guide on how to create a drop contract on ZORA

Updated over a week ago

ZORA provides an easy-to-use, no-code-required solution to mint, drop and manage NFT collections. A Drop collection can have unique artworks and metadata for each of the tokens in the collection. Images, Audio and Video file types are supported by our Drops tool.

Want to test out your collection? We recommend using our testnet before setting your collection live. Testing on the testnet provides a risk-free environment where you can ensure that your collection functions correctly and identify any potential issues before they occur on the mainnet, saving you time and ETH.


Creating your Drop

At Zora, we aim to make it as easy and enjoyable as possible for creators to bring their imagination and creativity onchain.

  1. Connect your wallet to zora.co

  2. Follow this link here: https://zora.co/create/drop

  3. Ensure you have verified your account. You must verify your account with an email address to create a collection on Zora. **Learn more here.


Uploading your Artwork

There are two ways that you can upload your drop to Zora:

  1. The first is through “Upload from computer”, which will prompt you to upload an artwork folder containing all your artwork and metadata.

  2. The second is to “Import self-hosted metadata” upload using your IPFS links.


Upload from Computer

To upload your artwork and metadata directly onto Zora, ensure that you have selected the “Upload from computer” tab and follow the instructions below:

Under the title “Artwork Folder”, click “Continue” and select your desired artwork folder. For best practice, download our example folder OR follow our in-depth guide here:

It is crucial to make sure that your folder is formatted correctly and has the following components:

  1. A ‘media' folder containing all of all your artwork files

  2. All artwork files are in the correct number order. e.g. 1.jpg, 2.jpg, 3.jpg, etc.

  3. Check your file type; the following are supported for your drop.

    • Image: JPG, PNG, GIF, SVG

    • File: PDF

    • Onchain image: SVG

    • Video: MP4 (H.264 encoding is recommended)

    • Audio: MP3, WAV

    • 3D: GLB

    • Web: HTML

      • Reminder: You cannot upload a .html file alone; it must be zipped together with all your relevant assets/files. Learn more about creating and formatting a .html collection here.

  4. Optional - ONE .csv file containing your collection’s metadata. An in-depth guide to formatting your .csv can be found here.

    • If you exclude the .csv file, the NFTs will get standard names and descriptions from your collection details.

  5. Optional - A ‘thumbnails’ folder containing the thumbnail(s) you wish to display on your non-image media (audio/video)

Once your artwork folder has been successfully uploaded, select “Continue” at the bottom of the page.


Import Self-Hosted Metadata

To create your drop using a manual upload, ensure you have selected the “Import self-hosted metadata” tab. To manually upload your drop successfully, you will need to input the following components:

  1. Metadata URI Base” - A URL base that returns unique token metadata when appended with a token id (1, 2, 3, etc.). The URL base should end with a trailing slash and work without extensions.

  2. Maximum Supply” - Input the maximum supply for your collection.

Once you have input your information above, select “Continue” to create your drop.

* If you have a large collection of ~1000+, it can take a decent amount of time before your IPFS has synced correctly. If this issue persists for a long time, then please get in touch with our customer support. *


Previewing your Drop

Now that your artwork has been uploaded, you will be taken to the “Preview” page, where you can check to ensure that your artwork and metadata have all been uploaded correctly.

At this stage, you can also randomize the order of your drop by selecting "Randomize tokens". Once you have checked that the metadata of your collection is correct, select "Continue" to begin inputting the details of your collection.


Collection Details

Enter the details of your collection as listed below

*Required Fields

  1. Add the collection Name for your drop.*

  2. Upload a Collection Thumbnail. This field is used as a logo image on most marketplaces. 1080x1080px is recommended.

  3. Enter the Symbol for your drop. The symbol acts as a token name for your drop and cannot be changed once your contract has been created.*

  4. Add a description: This can be any information you want to explain or add to your drop, including external links.*

  5. Set your mint price: Enter each edition's amount (ETH). The price can be updated once your edition has been created.

    • Your price will also determine the Protocol Rewards you can receive from your collection. Learn more about how to receive them here.

  6. Optional - Set a start & end time: By default, drops will run forever from the moment they are created or until the drop sells out. You can select a custom start and/or end time for your drop.

  7. Add a mint limit to your collection. Using this function, you can limit the number of NFTs each individual wallet address can mint.

  8. Add the Royalty percentage: The royalty is a feature the creator sets in the creation process. This feature is a permanent, fixed percent value sent to you on every sale.*

  9. Input a Payout Address: This will automatically fill with the connected wallet; however, it can be your personal wallet, a multi-signature wallet or an external split contract.

Now that you have filled out the details of your collection select "Upload" to finalize your drop.


Finalize Collection

The final step in creating your collection will be to choose the network it is deployed onto. You can deploy your contract on the following networks:

  • Zora Network

  • Optimism Network

  • Ethereum Mainnet

  • Base Network

  • PGN (Public Goods Network)

Select your intended network from the dropdown, ensuring that your wallet is also connected to that network.

Once you have selected the intended network, click the "Create" button to finish creating your drop. This will prompt you to accept a gas fee and follow the steps below:

  1. Approve the Gas fee: A message will appear within your connected wallet for you to approve the gas fee to complete the creation of your drop.

  2. Wait for your transaction to complete: The upload process has begun once you’ve approved the transaction within your wallet. You can check the status of your upload by viewing the transaction on your relevant block explorer (e.g. Etherscan).

  3. Drop Created: Once the transaction has been confirmed, your collection will be created and ready to share with your community.

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