Discover Marinade, Solana's liquid staking solution. Stake SOL, earn mSOL, and maintain liquidity. Access DeFi integrations and instant unstaking options.
About Marinade
Marinade is a Solana staking protocol that gives you two clean ways to stake SOL: liquid staking with mSOL and smart-contract-free native staking. Liquid staking issues mSOL—a token that represents your staked SOL and accrues staking rewards—so you can put that value to work across Solana DeFi while still earning network yields. Native staking delegates SOL directly from your wallet to a curated validator set without creating any wrapped asset. Both options use Marinade’s delegation strategy to spread stake across high-performing validators.
Marinade builds around reliability and security. It publishes audits, maintains a security hub, and has rolled out additional protections such as Protected Staking Rewards (PSR)—an on-chain bond system that covers certain validator underperformance events. Marinade is also SOC 2 Type I compliant, adding an external assurance layer around its internal controls. Governance runs through the Marinade DAO, where holders of MNDE can lock to gain veMNDE voting power and influence parameters like validator strategy.
For traders and beginners, the practical advantage is choice. If you want composability, use mSOL. If you only want staking with minimal surface area, use Marinade Native. And when you need SOL back, you can unstake with a delay (epoch-based) or choose instant options that trade a small fee for immediate access.
What makes Marinade special?
Marinade combines two things that are rare to see together on Solana staking:
✨
Choice of risk surface
If you want DeFi composability, mSOL is designed for that. If you prefer to avoid smart-contract exposure, Marinade Native delegates straight from your wallet. That flexibility matters for traders and treasuries with varied policies.
✨
Safety overlays like PSR and audits/SOC 2 compliance
PSR’s validator-bond design helps protect staking rewards from commission surprises and prolonged downtime in the validator set, and Marinade publishes audits alongside a security commitment. This operational posture aims to reduce unpleasant shocks for everyday stakers.
Pricing
Discover the pricing options available for Marinade
Paid
Marinade’s fees depend on the product and exit path:
Marinade Native (smart-contract-free): Marinade states no deposit or management fee and no exit fee if you wait out the cooldown (epoch). Marinade offers an instant exit option for native positions with a small fee (documented as 0.05%) plus network fees; availability and pricing are displayed in-app.
Marinade Liquid (mSOL):
Protocol fee on rewards: 6% of staking rewards (not principal).
Delayed unstake: Marinade documents a 0.1% fee for mSOL holders who use delayed unstake; it is redistributed to mSOL holders to discourage timing games.
Instant unstake: Variable fee based on liquidity conditions in the protocol’s mSOL/SOL pool. Always check the live preview in the app before confirming.
Unstaking timeline: If you choose delayed exit, one Solana epoch (~2–3 days) applies. The app shows your estimated completion window before you sign.
Fees and limits can change; rely on the live app/help screens for the latest numbers at the time you transact.
How to get started
1
Connect a Solana wallet on Marinade
2 minutes
Easy
Visit the official app and connect your wallet. You’ll see options for Liquid (mSOL) or Native staking.
2
Choose Liquid or Native
2 minutes
Easy
Pick Liquid to mint mSOL and use it across DeFi while rewards accrue in the mSOL/SOL rate.
Pick Native to delegate SOL directly from your wallet to Marinade’s validator set with no wrapped token.
3
Select amount and confirm
2 minutes
Easy
Enter how much SOL you want to stake, review any prompts (e.g., small rent/fee notices), and approve the transaction in your wallet. Rewards accrue automatically each epoch.
4
(Optional) Explore validator features
2 minutes
Easy
If you want deeper control or visibility, read up on Stake Auction Marketplace and Protected Staking Rewards—these shape how your stake is allocated and protected within Marinade’s framework.
5
Unstake when needed
2 minutes
Easy
mSOL: choose Delayed (epoch-based; 0.1% fee for mSOL holders) or Instant (variable, shown in-app).
Native (external stake accounts): use Marinade’s instant unstake tool for a small documented fee, or wait a full epoch to exit fee-free. The app/help screen shows the current fee and ETA.
Pro Tips
Tip 1
Leave a small amount of SOL in your wallet for network fees when you stake, restake, or unstake—especially if you plan to batch multiple actions. (The app will prompt you as needed.)
Frequently Asked Questions
Get answers to the most common questions about this tool
What is Marinade?
Marinade is a non-custodial staking protocol on the Solana blockchain that allows users to stake their SOL tokens and receive mSOL, a liquid staking derivative.
How does Marinade work?
Users stake their SOL tokens with Marinade, which delegates them to a diverse set of validators. In return, users receive mSOL tokens, representing their staked SOL plus accrued rewards, enabling participation in DeFi activities while earning staking rewards.
What is the difference between mSOL and Marinade Native?
mSOL is a liquid staking token you receive when you stake SOL through Marinade. It accrues staking rewards in its exchange rate and can be used in DeFi. Marinade Native delegates SOL directly from your wallet to validators—no token is minted, and Marinade lists no ongoing user fee for this mode (instant exit is optional with a small fee).
How long does it take to unstake without paying an instant fee?
Delayed exits complete after one Solana epoch (about 2–3 days). The app shows your estimate before you sign.
How do instant unstake fees work?
For mSOL, instant unstake uses a liquidity pool and the fee varies with liquidity conditions (check the live preview). For native stake held outside Marinade, Marinade documents a 0.05% instant unstake fee plus network fees.
Is Marinade audited or otherwise evaluated for security?
Yes. Marinade publishes audits (e.g., Neodyme’s 2024 review of Validator Bonds; earlier audits such as Ackee) and maintains a security hub. Marinade also announced SOC 2 Type I compliance in 2025. As always, smart-contract and network risks exist; read the docs before using.
What is Protected Staking Rewards (PSR)?
PSR requires validators to post SOL bonds that cover certain reward shortfalls from commission changes or downtime, with defined coverage splits between validator and Marinade. It’s an on-chain safety layer designed to keep staking performance steady while staking to more validators.
