Getting SOL into your wallet
SOL is the currency of the Solana network. Here it does two jobs: it pays your evaluation fee, and it pays the tiny network charge on every action you take.
Today it costs you nothing to get, because the protocol is running on a test network.
Today: free, from a faucet
The protocol runs on devnet, and devnet SOL is test money handed out free. Nobody buys it, it cannot be sold, and it has no value off the test network. That is the point of it.
To get some:
- Open your wallet and copy your address. In Phantom and Solflare it is the string of letters and numbers at the top of the main screen, and clicking it copies it.
- Make sure the wallet is switched to devnet (Getting a wallet covers where that setting lives).
- Go to faucet.solana.com, paste your address, choose devnet, and request.
It arrives in a few seconds. The faucet limits how much you can request at a time, so if you need more, come back to it rather than looking for another source.
Devnet SOL is not worth money and cannot be converted into money. Anyone offering to sell you devnet SOL, or offering to buy yours, is running a scam on someone. There is nothing to trade.
Later: buying real SOL at mainnet
When mainnet opens, this step changes and the rest of the platform does not. Two routes will work:
Buy on an exchange and withdraw. Any large exchange lists SOL. You buy it there, then withdraw to your wallet address, choosing Solana as the network. The withdrawal takes under a minute once it clears the exchange's own checks.
Buy inside the wallet. Phantom and Solflare both have a built-in purchase option that takes a card or a bank transfer through a third-party provider. It is the fastest route and usually the more expensive one. For a one-off evaluation fee the convenience is often worth it.
Whichever you use, the first time you send funds anywhere, send a small test amount first and confirm it lands. Every experienced person does this, and it is not a beginner's precaution.
A Solana address pasted incorrectly is a Solana address that belongs to someone else or to nobody. Transfers cannot be reversed, cancelled, or refunded, and no support desk anywhere can claw one back. Copy and paste, never retype, and check the first four and last four characters against what you meant to send to.
What the network charges
Every action on Solana costs a network fee. It is about 0.000005 SOL, which is a small fraction of one cent, and it goes to the network rather than to us.
For context, that is the charge for buying an evaluation, for each trade you place on a token, and for receiving a payout. You will not notice it. It is worth stating only because "there is a network fee" sounds alarming until you see the number, and because it compares well with the wire fee a traditional firm's payout arrives net of.
Keep a little SOL in the wallet rather than spending the exact amount, so there is always enough to cover fees on the next action.
How much you need
Enough for the evaluation you want, plus a little for fees.
Evaluation prices are set per firm and shown in USD, then charged in SOL converted at the live rate at the moment you buy. The firm directory lists what each firm charges. On devnet, request a comfortable amount from the faucet and stop thinking about it.
Reading your balance
Your wallet shows SOL and, after you have been paid, any firm tokens you hold. If a balance looks wrong, check the network selector first. Being on mainnet while expecting devnet funds, or the reverse, explains almost every case of a balance that appears to have vanished.
Next: You passed. Now what?, which is worth reading before you buy rather than after you pass.