Solana has built structurally low and predictable pricing versus roll-up-heavy competitors, reinforcing its role as a high-throughput chain for cost-sensitive high-volume apps.
summary
- Solana has the lowest median fees among the major chains, and one of the second-lowest in recent fee comparison data, behind Avalanche.
- Due to high throughput and parallel execution, Solana’s median user fees are several times lower than Base and significantly lower than the gas cost of Ethereum’s persistent base layer.
- Low and stable fees position Solana as an execution-centric chain for payments, gaming, and on-chain transactions, while Rollup Stack trades slightly higher fees due to its integration with Ethereum.
Solana ($SOLAs of mid-January 2026, it has the second-lowest median transaction fees among major blockchain networks, behind Avalanche, according to recent fee comparison data.
Solana prices remain low
Data shows that blockchain median fees remained several times lower than Base median fees over the same period. Solana’s pricing reflects the design of the execution layer in an ecosystem increasingly dominated by rollup solutions.
According to the data, Ethereum maintained the highest fees among the major chains shown in the comparison, reflecting continued demand and regular congestion at the base layer. Polygon and Linea fell into the mid-price range, while BNB, Arbitrum, and Base recorded lower fees but still above Solana’s cost levels.
Solana ($SOL) The trading chart shows a downtrend from around $84 to the current price of 84.28 USDT, which is down 2.87% in 30 minutes. The chart displays the RSI strategy indicator with multiple “RsiLE +2” and “RsiSE -2” signals marked along the declining price movement, indicating technical analysis entry and exit points in this bearish move. Source L Trading View.
Solana’s fee line has always been near the bottom of the logarithmic scale chart, indicating a structurally low fee environment rather than occasional cheap trades. According to network documentation, the network achieved this through high throughput and parallel execution, which allowed it to absorb spikes in activity without turning demand into higher costs per transaction.
Median prices reflect what typical users pay, not edge cases during busy times. Data shows Solana’s view that most transactions continued to be settled at lower costs even during periods of increased usage.
Blockchain analysts say networks built on the Rollup stack inherit some cost sensitivity from the payments layer, especially at a time of high demand for call data. For applications that require frequent user interaction, such as payments, gaming, and on-chain transactions, predictability of fees remains a key factor alongside transaction speed.
Industry insiders say Solana’s low median fee profile strengthens its position as an execution-focused chain optimized for high-volume trading. Developers building consumer-facing applications often opted for environments that offered higher scale but lower costs, and chains like Base offered tighter integration with Ethereum’s tools and liquidity in exchange for slightly higher fees.
According to network performance analysts, the ability to maintain low median fees without sacrificing throughput has become a key differentiator as usage continues to increase across the blockchain ecosystem.
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