Airdrops and points programs

Airdrops have handed out some of the biggest wins in Solana's history: JUP, JTO, PYTH and KMNO all rewarded early users. Today most protocols run points programs first and decide later whether, and how, points become tokens.

How points programs work

A protocol awards points for actions it wants: deposits, trading volume, referrals, holding a position over time. Points accrue weekly or per epoch and show on a dashboard. At some point the team may launch a token and convert points at a ratio announced around launch day (the TGE).

What you don't control:

• The conversion ratio, often announced late.
• Vesting: part of your allocation may unlock over months or years.
• Sybil filters: wallets that look like one person farming with many are reduced or cut. Pacifica, for example, slashes sybil activity retroactively.
• Whether a token launches at all. Jupiter's big yearly airdrop, Jupuary, was postponed indefinitely in February 2026.

The real cost of farming

Farming isn't free. Count:

• Fees. Trading for volume costs fees on every trade.
• Risk. Deposits in new protocols carry smart contract risk.
• Opportunity cost. Capital parked for points isn't earning elsewhere.
• Time.

The best farms are ones where you'd use the app anyway: you'd lend USDC regardless, so lending it on a points-paying market is a bonus. Chasing volume you wouldn't trade otherwise usually loses money.

Our Airdrops page lists programs we've checked by hand, with effort and cost for each.

Staying safe

1. Use a separate farming wallet.
2. Get claim links only from the project's verified X account or official site.
3. Read every signature. A real claim adds tokens; it doesn't move your SOL.
4. Ignore tokens that appear in your wallet with links in their names.

Taxes

In many countries airdropped tokens are taxable when received, and again when sold. Rules vary; keep records of what you received and when.