The cheapest Solana ETF on an all-in basis is Morgan Stanley’s MSOL: a 0.14% sponsor fee plus a 5% cut of staking rewards works out to about $39 a year on a $10,000 position. VanEck’s VSOL costs roughly $155 for the same exposure. US spot Solana funds shed $9.2 million on October 5, 2026, with no fund taking in a dollar.
Key takeaways
- Sponsor fees span just 16 basis points, from MSOL’s 0.14% to VSOL’s 0.30%.
- Staking commissions span 20 points: 5% at MSOL, 25% at VSOL, per Farside.
- Solana ETFs lost $9.2 million on October 5 and $16.1 million over five sessions.
Which Solana ETF has the lowest fee?
On the sponsor fee alone, Morgan Stanley’s MSOL at 0.14% is the cheapest of the seven US spot Solana ETFs with meaningful assets. But the sponsor fee is the smaller of the two charges. Each fund also keeps a slice of the staking rewards it earns, and that slice ranges from 5% to 25%.
That second number is where the money actually goes. Solana’s network reward rate sat near 5.0% a year on October 6, 2026, according to StakingRewards, with 69.53% of supply staked. A 25% commission on a 5% yield costs 125 basis points. The entire sponsor-fee spread is 16.
Here is the full picture. Fee and staking-fee figures are from the Farside Solana ETF tracker as of October 6, 2026, cross-checked against issuer disclosures.
| Ticker | Issuer | Sponsor fee | Staking cut | Cumulative net flow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSOL | Morgan Stanley | 0.14% | 5% | Flat since launch |
| GSOL | Grayscale | 0.19% | 7% | Positive |
| SOEZ | Franklin | 0.19% | 8% | Positive |
| BSOL | Bitwise | 0.20% | 6% | +$1,212.7m |
| TSOL | 21Shares | 0.21% (waived to 0.00%) | 10%+ | -$97.5m |
| FSOL | Fidelity | 0.25% | 15% | Positive |
| VSOL | VanEck | 0.30% | 25% | Positive |
Track MSOL and BSOL yourself
Put Morgan Stanley Solana Trust and Bitwise Solana Staking ETF on one free chart and set a price alert before the Fed decides on October 28, 2026.
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Why did Solana ETFs post a $9.2 million outflow on October 5?
Because demand stalled across the whole crypto ETF complex, not just Solana. On October 5, 2026, US spot Solana funds recorded a $9.2 million net outflow and not a single fund booked an inflow, reversing the prior session’s $1.3 million.
Bitwise’s BSOL gave up $7.1 million and Fidelity’s FSOL $2.1 million. VSOL, TSOL, SOEZ, MSOL and GSOL were all flat. Five-day withdrawals reached $16.1 million.
The day was ugly beyond Solana. FinanceFeeds reported on October 6 that crypto ETFs shed $117.9 million in total on October 5: $89.8 million from bitcoin funds and $18.9 million from ether funds. ARK’s ARKB alone lost $85.2 million while BlackRock’s IBIT took in $69.9 million.
Context matters. Cumulative net inflows into US spot Solana ETFs still stand at $1.59 billion since launch, and the biggest single day on record was $86.7 million on September 25, 2026, per Farside. SOL closed October 6 at $121.27, down 0.10%, with a $71.35 billion market cap, according to CoinGecko.
How much does the staking commission actually cost you?
Roughly three to eight times the sponsor fee. Take a $10,000 position and assume the fund stakes fully at Solana’s 5.0% network reward rate. Gross rewards are $500 a year. The staking cut comes off that $500 before anything reaches you.
The arithmetic on $10,000
- MSOL: $14 sponsor fee + 5% of $500 ($25) = $39
- TSOL: $0 (fee waived) + 10% of $500 ($50) = $50
- BSOL: $20 + 6% of $500 ($30) = $50
- GSOL: $19 + 7% of $500 ($35) = $54
- SOEZ: $19 + 8% of $500 ($40) = $59
- FSOL: $25 + 15% of $500 ($75) = $100
- VSOL: $30 + 25% of $500 ($125) = $155
| Ticker | Sponsor cost | Staking cost | All-in per year | As % of position |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSOL | $14 | $25 | $39 | 0.39% |
| TSOL | $0 | $50 | $50 | 0.50% |
| BSOL | $20 | $30 | $50 | 0.50% |
| GSOL | $19 | $35 | $54 | 0.54% |
| SOEZ | $19 | $40 | $59 | 0.59% |
| FSOL | $25 | $75 | $100 | 1.00% |
| VSOL | $30 | $125 | $155 | 1.55% |
The gap between the cheapest and most expensive fund is $116 a year, or close to 4x. Judged on sponsor fees alone it would look like $16. That is the single most misleading thing about every Solana ETF fee table published so far, including the ones that stop at the expense ratio.
One caveat worth stating plainly: no fund is contractually required to stake everything. Fidelity’s post-effective amendment, filed June 18, 2026, says the trust “may stake up to 100%” of its SOL with “no minimum percentage the Trust is required to stake.” A fund that stakes less earns less, which cuts the staking cost but also the yield.
Is the cheapest Solana ETF the one investors are buying?
No, and the mismatch is extreme. BSOL has pulled in $1,212.7 million of the $1,590 million that has entered US spot Solana ETFs, or 76% of the category, per Farside. It is the fourth-cheapest fund on sponsor fee and mid-pack on all-in cost.
First-mover advantage explains most of it. Bitwise launched BSOL on October 28, 2025 as the first US spot Solana ETP, with the sponsor fee set to “0% for the first three months on the first $1 billion in assets.” That waiver lapsed in January 2026. The fee is now 0.20% and the assets stayed.
The flip side is the strangest data point in the category. 21Shares cut TSOL’s sponsor fee from 0.21% to 0.00% for twelve months starting July 28, 2026. TSOL has still bled $97.5 million on a cumulative basis — the only fund in the group with net outflows.
Free did not win. That tells you something uncomfortable about how crypto ETF assets are actually allocated: distribution, advisor platforms and brand recognition beat 21 basis points. The same pattern shows up in bitcoin, where we looked at ETF fees against self-custody costs.
VanEck’s experience cuts the other way. VSOL launched November 17, 2025 with the sponsor fee and the third-party staking fee both waived, for the first $1 billion or until February 17, 2026, whichever came first. Both waivers are gone. VSOL now carries the highest headline fee and the steepest staking cut in the group.
Which Solana ETF fits which investor?
It depends on exactly two things: whether you are holding for more than a year, and whether the staking yield is the reason you are there. Short holders care about spreads and liquidity. Long holders care about the staking cut, which compounds.
| Investor profile | Cheapest on the metric that matters | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Multi-year hold, yield is the point | MSOL (0.39% all-in) | Lowest sponsor fee and smallest staking cut at 5% |
| Holding under 12 months | TSOL (0.00% sponsor fee) | Waiver runs to July 27, 2027; staking cut still applies |
| Wants deepest liquidity | BSOL ($1.32B AUM) | 76% of category inflows; tightest expected spreads |
| Already on a Fidelity platform | FSOL (1.00% all-in) | Convenience costs about $61 more a year per $10,000 |
| Price exposure, no yield need | Any low-fee fund | Staking cut is irrelevant if the fund stakes little |
Two structural points no fee table captures. Staked SOL carries activation and withdrawal lock-ups, which VanEck’s own release flags as a constraint on redemption liquidity. And an ETF wrapper means no keys, no validator choice and no on-chain use of the asset — the same trade-off we worked through for Ethereum staking ETFs versus staking ETH directly.
Leverage changes the math again. Our breakdown of 3x bitcoin ETFs against spot showed a 2.75% versus 0.14% annual cost gap.
What to watch next
- October 20, 2026 — comment deadline on the SEC’s Regulation Crypto Assets rulemaking, File No. S7-2026-27, published in the Federal Register on August 21, 2026.
- October 27–28, 2026 — FOMC meeting, with statement and press conference, per the Federal Reserve calendar. Rate expectations move crypto risk appetite and ETF flows.
- December 8–9, 2026 — the final FOMC meeting of the year, with updated economic projections.
- July 27, 2027 — TSOL’s sponsor-fee waiver expires. Its all-in cost would rise from roughly $50 to $71 per $10,000 at a 5% reward rate.
Solana ETF fees: frequently asked questions
What is the cheapest Solana ETF right now?
On sponsor fee, MSOL at 0.14%. On all-in cost including the staking commission, MSOL again, at roughly 0.39% a year. TSOL’s sponsor fee is 0.00% through July 27, 2027, but its staking cut of 10% or more pushes its all-in cost to about 0.50%.
What is a staking fee on a Solana ETF?
A percentage of the staking rewards the fund earns, taken before rewards reach shareholders. Fidelity’s prospectus puts it bluntly: “The total amount of the Staking Fee will equal 15% of all staking rewards received by the Trust.” It is charged on top of the sponsor fee.
What is Solana’s staking yield?
The network reward rate was about 5.0% a year on October 6, 2026, per StakingRewards, with 69.53% of supply staked. 21Shares cited an estimated net staking yield of roughly 4.65% for TSOL as of July 23, 2026. Bitwise’s BSOL materials reference Solana’s average 7% rewards.
Why did Solana ETFs see outflows this week?
October 5, 2026 brought a $9.2 million net outflow with no fund posting an inflow, part of $117.9 million leaving crypto ETFs that day. Five-day withdrawals totaled $16.1 million. Cumulative inflows remain $1.59 billion since launch.
Do all Solana ETFs stake their holdings?
Not necessarily, and not fully. Bitwise says BSOL intends to stake 100% of holdings. Morgan Stanley’s MSOL may stake up to 100%. Fidelity’s filing sets no minimum. A fund holding unstaked SOL for redemptions and expenses earns less yield than the headline rate implies.
Is a Solana ETF cheaper than staking SOL myself?
On pure cost, direct staking usually wins, because validator commissions commonly run below the 15% to 25% cuts the pricier ETFs take. The ETF buys brokerage custody, 1099 reporting and no key management. Which matters more is a question about your own operational tolerance, not about fees.
Does a fee waiver make a fund the cheapest?
Only temporarily, and only on one of two charges. BSOL’s three-month waiver lapsed in January 2026 and VSOL’s expired in February 2026. Both funds kept their assets at full price, which is exactly what waivers are designed to achieve.
The bottom line
Measured on all-in cost, MSOL wins. A 0.14% sponsor fee plus a 5% staking cut is about $39 a year per $10,000, against $155 at VSOL — the same asset, the same wrapper, four times the drag. On sponsor fee alone that gap would read as $16, which is why the expense ratio is the wrong number to shop on in this category.
If you are holding under a year, TSOL’s waived sponsor fee narrows the gap to about $11. If you want the tightest spreads, BSOL’s $1.32 billion and 76% share of category inflows are hard to argue with. Everything else on this list is paying for distribution.
And the flows are no longer one-directional. Five straight sessions of withdrawals through October 5 do not undo $1.59 billion of cumulative inflows, but they do end the streak narrative that carried this category through September.
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Sources
- Farside — Solana ETF Flow (US$m), fees, staking fees and cumulative flows, accessed October 6, 2026
- TokenPost — U.S. Spot Solana ETFs Record $9.2 Million in Oct. 5 Outflows
- FinanceFeeds — Crypto ETFs lose $117.9M on October 5
- Bitwise — BSOL launch release, October 28, 2025
- 21Shares — 1-year fee waiver on TSOL, July 27, 2026
- VanEck — VSOL debut release, November 17, 2025
- StakingRewards — Solana reward rate and staking ratio, October 6, 2026
- Federal Reserve — FOMC meeting calendar
- Fidelity Solana Fund, Post-Effective Amendment, SEC filing dated June 18, 2026 — sponsor fee and 15% staking fee
- CoinGecko — SOL price and market cap, October 6, 2026; TradingView — BSOL assets under management
Wealth Engine researches and drafts with AI tools and checks every figure against the sources above. How we report.
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