What is Solana? A 2026 Guide for Australians

What is Solana?

Solana is a decentralised blockchain and software platform. Like Ethereum, it can run code — smart contracts that execute as written and are visible to anyone — but it was designed from the start around throughput: many transactions, confirmed quickly, at very low cost. SOL is the asset that powers it: you pay network fees in SOL, and validators stake SOL to help secure the chain. Solana's own explainer at solana.com is the best primary source for the technical version.

Solana's mainnet beta launched in March 2020, well after Bitcoin (2009) and Ethereum (2015). If those are new to you, start with our what is Bitcoin explainer and our what is Ethereum explainer.

Solana the network vs SOL

People search "what is solana" meaning two different things. In everyday talk, buying Solana means buying SOL — the tradeable asset you see priced in Australian dollars on an exchange or on our Solana coin page. The network is the shared system underneath.

• The network runs smart contracts (called programs), tokens, stablecoins, NFTs and consumer apps.
• SOL pays transaction fees and is staked or delegated to validators.
• Other tokens can live on Solana, but network fees are still paid in SOL.

What makes Solana different

Solana's pitch is scale on a single base layer: rather than pushing activity onto separate layer-2 networks, it aims to process everything on the main chain with sub-second confirmation times and fees small enough that most everyday transfers cost a fraction of a cent. That makes patterns like micro-payments, high-frequency trading apps and consumer-scale apps practical in a way they are not on slower or more expensive chains.

We deliberately do not publish a headline transactions-per-second figure here — real throughput varies with network conditions and how it is measured. For the current official description of performance, read Solana's own "what is Solana" page. Low fees are a design goal, not a guarantee of a good outcome on any particular token.

How Solana works, simply

Solana is secured by proof of stake. Validators — computers run by independent operators around the world — lock up SOL as a deposit and take turns producing and verifying blocks. Holders who do not want to run hardware can delegate their SOL to a validator instead. Behaving honestly earns rewards; there are penalties for misbehaviour. Our Australian staking explainer covers how staking and its tax treatment generally work here.

Solana also uses an idea it calls Proof of History. In plain English, it is a way of timestamping and ordering transactions before they are agreed on, so validators do not have to spend as much time negotiating what happened first. It is not a separate consensus system on its own — it is an ordering technique that sits alongside proof of stake and is a large part of why Solana can confirm quickly.

What people use Solana for

• Payments and transfers. Low fees make small transfers and stablecoin payments viable.
• Stablecoins. Major tokens designed to track a currency are issued on Solana as well as other chains.
• DeFi. Swapping, lending and trading applications running as on-chain programs.
• NFTs and consumer apps. Cheap transactions suit collectibles, gaming and mobile-style apps.
• Meme coins. Solana is heavily used for launching speculative meme tokens. Anyone can create one in minutes, many go to zero, and rug pulls are common. We mention this as a risk, not a suggestion — see our crypto scams guide.

Solana vs Bitcoin vs Ethereum

None of these is "better" — they answer different questions and carry different trade-offs.

What this means in Australia

Buying SOL with AUD. The everyday route is an account on a platform that accepts Australian dollars, with identity (KYC) checks. Businesses exchanging virtual assets for money must be registered with AUSTRAC as a virtual asset service provider — the old name was digital currency exchange. That registration is an anti-money-laundering requirement: it is not a quality stamp and it is not an Australian financial services licence. See AUSTRAC's page on virtual asset designated services, and our crypto exchange explainer.

Tax. Crypto you hold directly is generally a CGT asset in Australia. Selling SOL for AUD, swapping SOL for another token, or spending it can each be a disposal you need to record. We do not publish rates or calculations here — start with our Australian crypto tax explainer and current ATO guidance.

Staking. Delegating SOL to a validator produces rewards, and rewards can have tax consequences at the time you receive them. Read our crypto staking Australia guide and current ATO crypto-asset guidance rather than relying on a rule of thumb.

Custody. SOL left on an exchange is effectively an IOU with that platform — you do not hold the keys until you withdraw. If you do withdraw, you need a wallet you control: see our crypto wallets guide and the crypto scams guide.

How Australians typically get SOL

This is the shape of it, not a tutorial and not a prompt to act:

1. Check the provider on AUSTRAC's public register.
2. Open an account and complete KYC identity checks.
3. Deposit Australian dollars, usually by PayID or bank transfer.
4. Buy SOL, understanding whether you are paying a spread or a stated fee.
5. Decide whether to leave it in platform custody or withdraw to your own wallet.
6. Keep records of every buy, sell and swap for tax time.

We keep a plain Solana page and a live SOL price page on this site. For the general step-by-step shape of a first purchase, see our how to buy Bitcoin in Australia guide — the account and deposit steps are the same regardless of the asset.

Risks to understand first

• Volatility. SOL can move sharply in both directions, around the clock.
• Outages and congestion. Solana has had periods where the network stalled or slowed badly under load. Reliability has improved with successive upgrades, but a fast chain is not automatically an always-available one.
• Token and smart-contract risk. Cheap token creation means an enormous number of low-quality or outright fraudulent tokens; program bugs and wallet approvals can also drain funds.
• Phishing. Fake wallet apps, fake airdrops, fake support and lookalike sites are common.
• Platform custody risk. While SOL sits on an exchange you are relying on that business.
• Irreversible transactions. On-chain transfers cannot be recalled once confirmed.

Frequently Asked Questions