TL;DR: Network fees, pool fees, transfer taxes and holder rewards are separate flows. Follow what leaves your wallet and where it goes.
Sources checked September 12, 2026. Educational information, not financial advice.
Start with the total cost
A low number labeled “fee” might describe only one part of a transaction. Write down the amount spent, expected amount received and asset used for each charge. A third-party interface can add costs to those of the underlying market.
On Solana, network fees are paid in SOL and may include an optional priority component. They are distinct from a launchpad’s trading fee. Solana’s fee documentation.
pump.fun: stage and market matter
The fee schedule lists a 1.25% total bonding-curve trading fee for SOL/USDC pairs and tiered fees for their graduated canonical PumpSwap pools. That page is labeled May 20, 2026. It does not fully explain the September Custom Pairs and Holder Rewards update, so do not apply its SOL/USDC rows to every new pair.
The September 12 fee announcement says SOL/USDC Holder Reward tokens retain market-cap-based tiers. For Custom Pairs, creators can choose a flat fee from 0.01% to 3%, which is fixed once set. Protocol fees do not change merely because a token uses Holder Rewards. Check the complete quote; the configurable percentage alone does not establish all charges.
Read the row that applies to the actual market. A creator’s share of a fee is not automatically a percentage paid to all token holders. And an interface displaying a zero coin-creation fee does not establish that every associated onchain action costs nothing.
pump.fun Holder Rewards: who receives what?
According to pump.fun’s September 12 distribution announcement, fees for Holder Reward tokens go to a pump.fun distribution wallet. Payments are automatic, proportional to holdings, and made several times per hour. The announced eligibility threshold is more than $20 worth of the token.
Payments arrive in the quote asset: a SOL-paired token pays SOL; a PUMP-paired token pays PUMP. That does not mean holders of every token receive PUMP, or that owning the platform token alone qualifies you for every distribution. These are the platform’s announced rules, not a funded payout test by Easy as Pie DeFi.
What happened to Cashback?
The new launch choices are standard Creator Fees or Holder Rewards. Cashback is no longer offered for new launches. Existing Cashback and Creator Fee tokens can apply to switch; they do not all convert automatically.
The conversion process requires an application from a token team or community. A Custom Pair application must specify its new fixed fee; SOL/USDC pairs retain the tiered structure. Once converted to Holder Rewards, the mode cannot be changed, according to the announcement. Follow the form linked from the official post if researching this process.
StonkFun: standard and reward modes
StonkFun’s rewards page distinguishes newer transfer-tax-funded reward coins from older fee-funded arrangements. The current launch interface offers 1% or 3% holder-reward tax options alongside an untaxed standard mode. Inspect the token’s version and settings before applying either description.
A Solana Token-2022 transfer fee is a token feature, separate from a pool’s charge. Solana explains transfer fees, and Raydium explains how they interact with pool fees.
Who funds the reward?
Imagine a fictional arrangement that collects fees and distributes them to eligible holders. Money received by those holders came from another flow; it was not generated merely by labeling the coin a reward token.
A holder could receive $5 in distributions while the market value of their position falls by $50. Before other costs, that is a $45 decline. An account of rewards alone would hide most of the outcome.
Use dated payout records and the actual asset received. StonkFun’s rewards dashboard states that its displayed dollar values use current token prices. That is different from recording each payment’s dollar value at the time it arrived.
Frequently asked questions
Can I treat recent rewards as a predictable yield?
No. Activity, eligibility, asset prices and distribution settings can change. Do not annualize a brief burst of payouts as if it were a promised rate.
What if the docs and screen disagree?
Resolve the discrepancy using the token’s current settings and transaction preview before signing. Do not choose whichever figure looks cheaper.