TL;DR
The Solana ecosystem is flying, and Solana NFTs are looking primed to expand, having flipped Ethereum NFTs. Tensor has emerged as a major marketplace aimed at traders, and in addition to regular Solana NFTs, there are Solana Inscriptions. Some top collections across both categories include Mad Lads, Tensorians, Claynosaurz, Flash Beasts, and Blockrons.
Solana is back in a huge way, and alongside takeoffs for SOL, Solana DeFi, and memecoins, rocket fuel has been pumping into Solana NFTs. Let’s take a look at the top collections of the moment, along with an overview on how the Solana NFT market is performing overall, and an update on where to trade.
Solana NFTs Flip Ethereum
Solana recently flipped Ethereum for NFT sales volume (excluding wash trades) over seven days, coming in–at the time of writing–at around $105 million, compared to just under $80 million.
Ever since NFTs really took off back in 2021, Ethereum has been the go-to JPEG chain, so this is a significant flip. However, Solana is not the only network to have climbed above Ethereum, and is in fact only in second place overall, because Bitcoin is currently doing the most NFT trade.
As for why Solana is doing so well right now, there are cNFTs and pNFTs (meaning cheap-to-launch compressed NFTs, and royalties-enforcing programmable NFTs), with the Metaplex protocol central to these developments, but perhaps most importantly, there are Solana’s high speed, low fees, and ease of use.
Tensor and Magic Eden
The major marketplace for Solana NFTs right now is Tensor, which launched in 2022, but has grabbed market share this year and recently became the most popular Solana marketplace by volume.
Its interface is built for traders, with detailed charts and indicators, so if you’re wondering whether TA works for NFTs, you can find out: select Pro Mode for charts, or use Lite Mode for a simpler version. Tensor also functions as a launchpad, and platform users can accumulate points, with rumors of a token to follow.
Among the ways to earn points–including simply using the platform–you can get hold of and then stake the protocol’s Tensorian NFTs (more on those below.)
Prior to Tensor growing in popularity, the top Solana marketplace was Magic Eden, which still maintains a lead in unique wallet numbers. Magic Eden remains a very solid choice, and has the advantage of being multi-chain and having a busy launchpad.
Solana NFT Collections
Mad Lads
Part of the Backpack project, which is building a wallet and a crypto exchange, Mad Lads has experienced huge gains recently and become the most recognized Solana NFT collection. As these are not only nice-looking PFPs but are interlinked with everything Backpack-related, they have a lot in their favor.
Tensorians
Like Mad Lads, these items are connected with an exchange, but in this case Tensor. Utility includes the ability to stake Tensorians and both earn points passively and also boost other points earnings. As Tensor has taken off, Tenorians have gained a lot in value, but that’s connected to reward expectations, so there’s likely to be volatility when those rewards get distributed.
Flash Beasts
Flash.Trade is a newly launching Solana perp DEX, and it just minted out a 5,555 item NFT collection called Flash Beasts, which launched through Tensor. These are marketed as “yield-bearing NFTs that evolve with owners’ actions on Flash.Trade”, and have been flying off the shelves on secondary.
Homeowners Association
This collection of 7,777 digital homes launched back in 2022 but has been picking up a lot of traction this month. It was produced with Parcl, a Solana-based protocol which is for speculating on real estate markets, and has introduced a points-earning system for users, with Homeowners Association NFTs providing earning boosts.
Claynosaurz
Created by a well-credentialed animation team whose members have experience at the likes of Disney and Marvel Studios. Claynosaurz minted in November 2022, links up NFTs and physical merchandise, and is building out a brand that crosses over between traditional entertainment and Web3.
There are also plenty of OG Solana projects that are active and developing, including Solana Monkey Business, Galactic Geckos, Okay Bears, and Degenerate Ape Academy.
Solana Inscriptions
Ordinal Inscriptions started on Bitcoin, but similar techniques have spread to Solana and other chains, allowing for digital assets that can be placed directly on-chain.
Solana Punks
Every NFT ecosystem has its own version of CryptoPunks, and Solana is no exception. Actually, it already had several before (take a look at SolPunks), but now it has an Inscriptions version too, called Solana Punks.
Blockrons
The first inscribed Solana collection, there are only 100 Blockrons, they have a CryptoPunks-inspired pixel-art vibe, a niche collectibles kind of appeal, and they’re being individually auctioned off week by week. There are over 40 still remaining to be sold, and weekly auction details are announced on X.
Fossils
Inscriptions have–not surprisingly–inscriptions numbers, meaning we know the order in which they were created, and lower numbers tend to be more collectible. Fossils 1/1s are all within the first 1,000 Solana Inscriptions, and have seen gains in value as a result.
Comparisons and Zoomed-out Thinking
No-one wants to buy into a project straight after the price soared, but it’s worth comparing ecosystems to get some perpsective. As an example, Mad Lads climbed to a 227 SOL floor, which is equivalent to about 8.5 ETH, and to take a major Ethereum collection for comparison, Azuki had a much higher floor price–close to 32 ETH–at its 2022 peak.
The point is that no-one can say for sure where Solana NFTs are headed in the coming year or two, but with sentiment this positive, it’s worth taking a zoomed-out view.
