Blockchain Quantum Readiness Index / Tezos
L1 · Tezos
Tezos
The current protocol adds post-quantum accounts (ML-DSA, a NIST lattice signature), but the enabling flag is off on mainnet, so users cannot yet hold funds under post-quantum keys. An experimental testnet, Quantumnet, switches those accounts on and replaces the elliptic-curve consensus signatures with hash-based ones; mainnet validators and users still use elliptic-curve signatures, and there is no migration plan beyond research.
Last reviewed 2026-10-19
Is Tezos quantum safe?
Not yet. Tezos is at Stage 3 (Testnet) in LimeChain's Blockchain Quantum Readiness Index, with a progress score of 40/100. Post-quantum accounts run on a testnet, or on mainnet without keeping funds safe at rest, so users cannot rely on them yet.
What Tezos needs for Stage 4: Live option
- Stage 4 needs PQ user accounts on mainnet that keep funds at rest out of reach of ECC keys (U is: testnet, hold: hidden-until-spend)
Caps and adjustments
- cap 40: users cannot hold and spend funds under a production PQ mechanism on mainnet
Rosette slices
| Slice | State | Points | Weight | Reason & evidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| U User keys | Testnet At rest: Hidden until first spend A tz1/tz2/tz3/tz4 address is the hash of its public key; the account stays unrevealed (key not on-chain) until its first operation, so a fresh account is safe at rest. tz5 (ML-DSA-44) accounts would give a PQ option but tz5_account_enable is disabled on mainnet. User-account keys cannot be rotated in place (only delegate consensus keys can). |
6/10 | 25 | Ushuaia adds tz5 ML-DSA-44 accounts, but tz5_account_enable is disabled by default on mainnet (verified via node constants). Quantumnet, an experimental public testnet launched 2026-09-24 by Nomadic Labs and Trilitech, is the first network to switch tz5 accounts on. |
| C Consensus | Testnet | 6/10 | 20 | Mainnet consensus signs with Ed25519, P-256, secp256k1 and BLS12-381 (tz4) keys, all elliptic-curve. Quantumnet (experimental public testnet, 2026-09-24) replaces BLS attestations with hash-based XMSS signatures aggregated by a LeanEthereum-derived STARK system, and drops the VDF randomness; it is 'not intended for production use' and has no amendment proposal yet. |
| P Proof system | Not applicable | — | — | L1 without a validity or fraud proof system. no evidence |
| B Bridges & messaging | Not applicable | — | — | No canonical bridge at the protocol level: the whitepaper defines a self-amending ledger with no cross-chain messaging, and external bridges are third-party deployments. Sources 6 |
| A Admin & upgrade keys | Not applicable | — | — | Protocol changes go through on-chain amendment, voted by delegates over five voting periods; there are no admin/upgrade keys. Sources 7 |
| M Migration & recovery | Discussed | 1/10 | 15 | No migration or ECC-sunset plan in official Tezos sources; tz5 is additive and off on mainnet. The Quantumnet announcement says future experiments may explore stateful addresses that add post-quantum keys without moving funds (research, not a plan). |
Stage gates
| Requirement | Status | Details & evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Current audit of the deployed PQ signing code (Stage 5) | Not met | not claimed |
| Admin timelock of at least 30 days with a PQ override (Stage 6, alternative to PQ admin keys) | Not met | not claimed |
| Ratified migration plan with an activation date (Stage 6) | Not met | not claimed |
| New accounts PQ or hybrid by default (Stage 6) | Not met | not claimed |
| ECC sunset enforced (Stage 7) | Not met | not claimed |
PQ adoption published, not scored
There are no PQ accounts on mainnet yet. Having PQ accounts does not mean people move to them. This tracks the share of value and accounts that actually moved, over time.
Measured exposure
No on-chain probe run yet. Bitcoin, Solana, Cosmos and Substrate probes are planned.
Evidence and sources (8)
Every non-zero rating above cites at least one of these public sources.
Source: chains/tezos.json. Reproduce: python3 score.py chains/tezos.json
Building on Tezos?
LimeChain helps teams plan their post-quantum migration: what is exposed, what to change first, and the engineering to get there.
Talk to usOpen, repeatable scoring. Non-zero ratings need public evidence; missing evidence means unknown. Methodology v0.4 · mechanism registry 2026-10-13.