How To Buy Meme Coins On Solana
The Solana blockchain is undoubtedly the home of meme coins, but if you’re new to crypto (which we assume you are) and meme coins are what brought you here, you might be a bit confused about the purchasing process of meme coins on Solana.
We'll break down the jargon (there’s quite a lot of it) and provide a clear, easy-to-follow process so you can confidently get onboarded into the world of Solana meme coins.
Step-by-Step: How To Buy Meme Coins on Solana
Stick with us, re-read sections if you didn’t quite get it the first time, and try not to rush ahead (that’s how mistakes get made).
We’ve broken every step down into manageable sub-steps to ensure that even the most novice user can follow along, and we’ve put key words and terms in bold for emphasis.
Ok, first things first, you need to open a wallet. This is where you will store your coins.
Step 1: Set Up a Wallet
Before you can buy coins, you will need a Solana-compatible wallet.
Think of it as your meme coin bank account.
There are several excellent wallet options out there, but the big three are:
Phantom [Recommended]: A browser extension and mobile wallet known for its user-friendly interface and built-in staking options.
Solflare: Another excellent option with a web-based and mobile app, offering advanced features like hardware wallet support.
Trust Wallet: A multi-chain wallet that supports Solana and many other blockchains, making it a versatile choice.
Creating your wallet follows the same simple process regardless of your choice, however, we’ll be using Phantom for this example:
Go to the wallet’s official website - https://phantom.com/
Download and install it.
Follow the on-screen instructions to create a new wallet
The process will provide you with a 12 or 24-word seed phrase. This is your recovery key. Write it down on paper and put it somewhere nobody else can find it. Never share it with anyone - it gives them the ability to take everything from you. Don’t even store it digitally. If you lose this seed phrase, you might never be able to access your funds again (in the case that you do lose access).
Set a password. Choose a strong one.
Once your wallet is set up, you’ll be given a unique Solana address - this is like your bank account number, it’s the one you share with other people when you want them to send you something. This address will be used to receive SOL, Solana’s currency, and meme coins.
Step 2: How To Buy SOL
Okay, now you have a wallet, you need to put some money in it, except this is a Solana wallet, so we need to add some $SOL.
You need $SOL to buy/trade for meme coins and pay transaction fees (known as gas fees).
The easiest way to buy SOL is right inside your Phantom wallet!
It used to be the case that you needed to buy it elsewhere and send it to yourself, but the buying journey just continues to get easier.
Some of the information below is taken directly from Phantom’s latest buying guide.
Steps to Buy SOL in Phantom
Open your Phantom Wallet and tap the “Buy” button on the main screen.
Choose Solana (SOL) as the cryptocurrency you want to purchase from the list of available tokens
Input the amount of fiat currency you’d like to convert into SOL.
The platform will automatically load a route that offers the highest return for your transaction.
To view all available quotes, select the “Credit & Debit Card” field, which is above the 'Buy' button.
Next, tap the payment method* "Credit & Debit Card" at the top of the Quotes screen to view all available payment options. You can choose from Apple Pay, Google Pay, debit/credit card, or bank transfer.
After choosing your payment method, a list of live quotes from various providers will appear, sorted in descending order by price. Select your preferred provider.
Once you’ve selected your provider, you’ll be brought back to the screen where the suggested route was initially loaded. Tap “Next,” and a pop-up window will appear to complete your purchase.
Assuming this is your first purchase, you will have to complete KYC - Know Your Customer. This will ask you for some personal information and will require that you upload an identification document to verify who you are. This is a legal requirement for buying cryptocurrency on all platforms.
Once KYC is complete, you can re-confirm your order and complete the purchase.
A SOL balance will appear in your wallet!
Note that when you are a more experienced cryptocurrency user, you might want to shop around for better deals, but for your first purchase, we are in pursuit of simplistic convenience.
* A list of all payment methods compatible with Phantom wallet:
Robinhood Buying Power
Venmo
Apple Pay
Credit and Debit Card
Google Pay
PayPal
Same Day ACH
ACH
Various local payment methods through providers like Banxa and AlchemyPay
Step 3: Find a Meme Coin to Buy
Now that you’ve got some SOL, you can start the most enjoyable part of the process - finding a meme coin to buy!
While this is fun, it’s also laden with risk, so exercise extreme caution and try not to be too naive or optimistic.
Consider that people will say anything to promote a meme coin, a lot of it being untrue.
Ultimately, meme coins are notoriously volatile, which means their price swings are extreme, while others are scams, and could drop to near-zero value in minutes if malicious actors are at play.
So, where to find meme coins? Here are some great places to get started…
CoinGecko & CoinMarketCap: These websites list tens of thousands of cryptocurrencies, including meme coins. You can filter by blockchain (Solana) and browse trending tokens.
DEX Screeners: Tools like DeFiLlama, Birdeye, and DEX Screener provide real-time data on Solana-based tokens, including price charts, trading volume, and market cap.
Social Media: Platforms like X (formerly Twitter), Discord, Reddit, and Telegram are often where new meme coins are first announced and discussed by the community. However, be very wary of hype and shilling, people will say anything to try and get a price action.
Bonkbot Library: Resources like “How to trade meme coins on Solana” can provide valuable insights and tips for finding promising meme coins, while “How to find meme coins early” is a useful guide for when “doing your own research”…
Due Diligence (DYOR)
Before investing in any meme coin, it's crucial to do your own research (DYOR). Consider the following:
Liquidity: Check the liquidity of the token. Low liquidity can make it difficult to buy and sell without significantly impacting the price.
Market Cap: Understand the market capitalization. A very low market cap means the coin is highly susceptible to manipulation.
Community: A strong and active community can be a good sign, but be wary of fake engagement and bots.
Contract Address: Verify the contract address on a Solana block explorer like Solscan to ensure it's legitimate (here’s a guide)
Red Flags: Be cautious of coins with anonymous developers, promises of guaranteed returns, or overly aggressive marketing (shilling).
Step 4: Use a DEX or Trading Bot
Eventually you’re going to find a meme coin that catches your eye. You like the project, believe it has a lot of potential, is early in its journey, and could be a very rewarding purchase.
So, how to get your hands on it? You'll need to use either a Decentralized Exchange (DEX) or a trading bot.
Decentralized Exchanges (DEXs) like Raydium, Orca, and Jupiter allow you to trade directly with other users without the need for a central intermediary.
Connect Your Wallet: Go to the DEX website and connect your Solana wallet.
Select Tokens: Choose the tokens you want to trade (SOL and the meme coin).
Enter Amount: Enter the amount of SOL you want to spend.
Review and Confirm: Review the transaction details and confirm the trade in your wallet.
Slippage: Be mindful of slippage, which is the difference between the expected price and the actual price you receive. High slippage can occur with volatile meme coins.
The best trading bots have clean and simple Telegram interfaces that let you trade directly from your phone. Trading bots like BONKbot can speed up the trading process offering features like faster transaction speeds and advanced order types.
Step 5: Trade Or Hold: DYOR Before You Trade
Well done! If you’ve followed every step so far, then you've just successfully bought your first meme coin on Solana.
Now, you need to decide what to do with them.
Hodl (Hold On for Dear Life): If you believe in the long-term potential of the meme coin, you might choose to hodl. This means holding the coin in your wallet and waiting for its value to increase. You’ll want to pay close attention to the price, set up price alerts, and be ready to sell if the price shoots up.
Trade: When you are good and ready, you can trade your meme coin back to $SOL. This can be a good strategy if you're looking to profit from short-term price fluctuations.
Then, repeat the process. Find another meme coin to invest in.
Remember to always DYOR (we can’t stress this enough) and manage your risk tolerance.
Meme coins are highly speculative assets, and you should only invest what you can afford to lose.
Consider using trading signals (here’s a useful free guide) to help inform your trading decisions, and always remember that these are just analysts’ suggestions and do not guarantee profit.
What Do You Need To Buy Meme Coins on Solana?
Let’s recap. Here's what you need to participate in the Solana meme coin market.
A Solana-compatible wallet: Phantom, Solflare, or Trust Wallet.
SOL: To pay for transaction fees and trade for meme coins.
Access to a DEX or trading bot: Raydium, Orca, Jupiter, or BONKbot.
A token finder: CoinGecko, CoinMarketCap.
A DEX scanner like Birdeye or DeFiLlama: To track price movements and trading volume.
Optional: Accounts on social platforms like X, Discord, and Telegram, to get alpha (exclusive news) about trending tokens
Final Words on Buying Meme Coins on Solana
There’s a duality that comes with meme coin trading.
With risk, there is reward.
With extreme ups, there are extreme downs.
With information and logic, there is the unpredictability and illogical nature of meme coins.
As we have reiterated, DYOR - do your own research, don’t trade with emotion, and be as well informed as you can before investing. Even then, trades might not go as you think.
If, however, you want to cut out most of the complication, the risk, the guesswork, and the jargon, you can give BONKbot a whirl and let our efficient and automated trading bot get to work on your behalf.