Documentation-based guide: code examples are from the makers' docs and weren't run by us. Event details were checked on each organizer's own page on Nov 3, 2026.
Four public Web3 hackathons on the chains we track run in November 2026: the online NEAR Hackathon (Nov 1-14), ETHGlobal Mumbai (Nov 5-7, with Ethereum Foundation and Hedera prizes), MLH's online Solana Hackathon (Nov 6-8) and IXH26, an in-person XRP Ledger hackathon in Bari (Nov 20-21). Below are the dates, how to take part, and three or four listed tools per chain to install before day one.
We only list events whose organizer page names the dates and a chain from our list. For everything coming up, see Web3 hackathons. We don't partner with or endorse any of these events.
Contents
- Quick answer
- NEAR Hackathon (online, Nov 1-14)
- ETHGlobal Mumbai (Nov 5-7): Ethereum and Hedera
- MLH Solana Hackathon (online, Nov 6-8)
- IXH26 Italian XRPL Hackathon (Bari, Nov 20-21)
- How to choose: a pre-hackathon checklist
Quick answer
| Event | Dates (2026) | Format | Chains | Set up first |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NEAR Hackathon | Nov 1-14 (submit by Nov 14, 23:59 UTC) | Online | NEAR | near-api-js, cargo-near, NEAR Agent Skills |
| ETHGlobal Mumbai | Nov 5-7 | In person, Mumbai | Ethereum, Hedera | Foundry or Hardhat, Scaffold HBAR, Hiero JS SDK |
| MLH Solana Hackathon | Nov 6-8 | Online | Solana | Anchor, Solana Wallet Adapter, Solana Agent Kit |
| IXH26 Italian XRPL Hackathon | Nov 20-21 (register by Nov 17) | In person, Bari | XRP Ledger | xrpl.js or xrpl-py, XRPL Connect |
Every tool in the table is free to start. The catches are in the sections below.
NEAR Hackathon (online, Nov 1-14)
Dates and rules. Development runs Nov 1-14, with judging and results Nov 16-18. You submit a public repository and a public demo post on X through the form before Nov 14, 23:59 UTC. Code written since the announcement counts, you can build solo, and no wallet connection is needed to submit: you enter a NEAR account address for the prize Source: NEAR Hackathon.
Prizes. A $55K grand prize, plus $10K, $3K and $2K for the top three in each of 13 build tracks, paid in NEAR. Tracks include Unstoppable DeFi, Privacy & Private AI, Autonomous Business, AI Swarms, AI Security & Defense and Agent Economy, and several name NEAR Intents and Chain Signatures Source: NEAR Hackathon.
Set up first:
- near-api-js: one package (npm install near-api-js) for accounts, transactions, keys, contract calls and RPC. Its README says it is meant for backends, CLIs and scripts, and points front-end work to NEAR's web login docs Source: near-api-js README.
- cargo-near: if you write a Rust contract, cargo near new creates a project from a template and cargo near build compiles it. Use the non-reproducible-wasm build during the hackathon; the reproducible build runs in Docker and only uses committed code Source: cargo-near README.
- NEAR Wallet Selector: sign-in for many NEAR wallets. Note that its README says NEAR now recommends exploring HOT Connect for new projects, while Wallet Selector stays supported during the transition Source: Wallet Selector README.
- NEAR Agent Skills: skills for coding agents covering near-api-js, smart contracts, dApp front ends, NEAR Intents and NEAR AI Cloud Source: NEAR Agent Skills. Useful if you lean on an AI assistant for a two-week build.
RPC. NEAR's docs list free public testnet endpoints, including FastNEAR (test.rpc.fastnear.com) and dRPC, and note the near.org archival endpoints are "severely rate limited" Source: NEAR RPC providers. More on our NEAR tools page and NEAR infrastructure.
ETHGlobal Mumbai (Nov 5-7): Ethereum and Hedera
Dates and prizes. ETHGlobal Mumbai runs in person Nov 5-7. Its prize page lists 12 sponsors, including the Ethereum Foundation ($15,000) and Hedera ($15,000) Source: ETHGlobal Mumbai prizes.
- The Ethereum Foundation's Access Layer prizes ask for builds with Anon-RPC (anonymized RPC reads) or the alternative mempool for EIP-8141 frame transactions, or any app built around one of its CROPS properties Source: ETHGlobal Mumbai prizes.
- Hedera's prize asks for at least one x402-protected endpoint that settles on Hedera testnet or mainnet through a facilitator listed in the Hedera docs Source: ETHGlobal Mumbai prizes.
Ethereum: set up first
- Foundry: forge builds, tests and deploys Solidity, cast talks to chains, anvil is a local node. Install with foundryup, then forge init, forge build and forge test Source: Foundry README.
- Hardhat: Hardhat 3 runs Solidity tests and TypeScript tests (with viem or ethers.js) and needs Node.js v22.13.0 or later Source: Hardhat getting started. Pick one framework for the team; we compare them in Foundry vs Hardhat.
- For wallet connection and RPC, see our Ethereum wallet tools and Ethereum infrastructure pages.
Hedera: set up first
- Scaffold HBAR: npm create scaffold-hbar@latest generates contracts (Foundry or Hardhat) plus a Next.js front end with RainbowKit, wagmi and viem, set up for Hedera Testnet or Mainnet through Hashio RPC. It needs Node.js 20.18.3 or later, and the defaults are a blank template, Foundry and testnet Source: Scaffold HBAR.
- Hiero JavaScript SDK: Hedera's native services (accounts, tokens, consensus) from npm install --save @hiero-ledger/sdk Source: Hiero SDK README.
- Hedera WalletConnect: connects Hedera wallets; the README recommends using it through Reown's AppKit Source: hedera-wallet-connect README.
- Hedera Agent Kit: for an x402 or agent build. Hedera's hosted Network MCP is testnet only, holds no keys and hands transactions to your wallet to sign Source: Hedera Network MCP.
See also Hedera developer tools.
MLH Solana Hackathon (online, Nov 6-8)
Dates and rules. Online, from Friday Nov 6 at 12:00 PM ET to Sunday Nov 8. First-time builders are welcome. Initial submissions are due on Devpost Sunday at 10:00 AM ET and final ones at 11:45 AM ET Source: MLH Solana Hackathon.
Prizes. The top three overall projects each get a $1,000 microgrant; the AI and DeFi tracks give each winning team member a $100 digital gift card. The judges want a working product that uses Solana for something it's good at, "not a chain bolted onto a web2 app" Source: MLH Solana Hackathon.
Set up first:
- Anchor: anchor init creates a program and tests; anchor test starts a local validator by default (localnet), and you switch the cluster in Anchor.toml to deploy to devnet Source: Anchor local quickstart.
- Solana Wallet Adapter: React connect button and hooks; the setup example uses Devnet and lets you pass your own RPC endpoint Source: Wallet Adapter APP.md.
- Solana Agent Kit for the AI track: npm install solana-agent-kit. Set isDevnet: its README warns that without it, transactions go to Mainnet Source: Solana Agent Kit README.
More picks on Solana AI agent tools and Solana infrastructure.
IXH26 Italian XRPL Hackathon (Bari, Nov 20-21)
Dates and rules. Two days in person at the University of Bari's Department of Mathematics, Nov 20-21 per the registration page. Registration needs host approval and closes Tuesday, Nov 17. Teams are 3-8 people Source: IXH26 on Luma.
Tracks and prizes. Three tracks (advanced cryptography for blockchain, XRPL applications, tokenisation on XRPL), with EUR 12,000 in total: EUR 2,000, 1,200 and 800 for the top three in each track. Organizers also run a virtual prep workshop through the XRPL Academy Source: IXH26 on Luma.
Set up first:
- xrpl.js (npm install xrpl) or xrpl-py. In xrpl.js, client.fundWallet() creates and funds a Testnet account in one call Source: xrpl.org JavaScript get started.
- XRPL Connect: a wallet modal with adapters for Xaman, Crossmark, GemWallet, WalletConnect, Ledger and others, for Mainnet, Testnet and Devnet Source: XRPL Connect.
- Xaman Developer Platform if you want Xaman sign-in directly.
We wrote a full XRPL hackathon starter stack (faucets, RPC, explorers, data APIs) for this kind of event.
How to choose: a pre-hackathon checklist
- Check the submission rules first. NEAR wants a public repo plus an X post; MLH uses Devpost with a Sunday-morning deadline; IXH26 needs approved registration by Nov 17.
- Pick a track, then the stack. Agent and payment tracks (NEAR Agent Economy, Hedera x402, MLH AI) point to agent kits; DeFi and tokenisation tracks point to contract frameworks and SDKs.
- Stay on test networks. Solana Agent Kit defaults to Mainnet unless you set isDevnet, and Hedera's hosted MCP is testnet only.
- Use one framework per team. Foundry or Hardhat, Anchor for Solana, cargo-near for Rust on NEAR.
- Fund test accounts before the opening talk. Faucet helpers like fundWallet save the first hour.
- Plan RPC limits. Free public endpoints are fine for a demo, but some are heavily rate limited; see the infrastructure page for your chain.
Organizers add events all the time; we update /hackathons/ as dated pages appear.