How to Use Solana to Buy NFTs
Reading Time: 4 minutesSolana is host to heaps of NFT collections—but how do you buy them?
Having developed a reputation as an ‘Ethereum killer,’ Solana is one of the biggest players in decentralized finance today. Because of its excellent functionality, Solana has become a natural network to facilitate the purchase of non-fungible tokens more efficiently and cost-effectively than Ethereum.
But how easy is it to use Solana to purchase NFTs online? And how can your non-fungible tokens be stored with ease of access? Let’s take a deeper look at one of DeFi’s most promising blockchain networks.
What Is Solana?
In a nutshell, Solana is a public, open-source blockchain that’s geared towards hosting a high volume of scalable decentralized applications (DApps). Because of its high levels of functionality, Solana comfortably supports the smart contracts used to verify ownership of assets like NFTs, making the network one of the crypto landscape’s best options for the buying, selling, and holding of non-fungible tokens.
Why Is Solana Great for Buying NFTs?
Solana was designed to eliminate the high costs and slow transaction speeds that impact older blockchains like Ethereum. Given that the Ethereum gas fees can rise to phenomenal levels, Solana offers a solution to the problem when it comes to buying and selling NFTs.
With the average cost per transaction on the Solana network standing at around $0.00025 and the ability to host tens of thousands of transactions per second, many anticipate that Solana will overtake Ethereum as the star of decentralized finance.
Despite the value of SOL, Solana’s native currency, falling significantly following its initial market furor, the market cap of the cryptocurrency still stands at around $5 billion at the time of writing.
Despite SOL struggling against the backdrop of crypto winter, its functionality remains superior to many of its rivals when it comes to purchasing NFTs, and investors can build their collections efficiently and cost-effectively through the Solana network. But how easy is it to buy NFTs with Solana?
How to Buy NFTs With Solana
Solana behaves similarly to other blockchain networks throughout the crypto ecosystem. Still, although many of the steps involved in purchasing NFTs may be familiar to those of us who have bought on the Ethereum network, some differences are worth highlighting.
1. Set up a Solana Wallet
The first thing you need to do is set up a wallet that supports SOL transactions. The two most popular Solana wallets that are compatible with leading NFT marketplaces are:
While both have different perks, Phantom is a leading option and operates similarly to the likes of Metamask.
To install Phantom, navigate to the site and click Download. You’ll then be asked to select your browser, which can be any one of Google Chrome, Firefox, Edge, or Brave, and begin the process by clicking Create New Wallet.
One of the most important parts of creating your wallet is setting up your recovery key. Be sure to keep a record of your recovery phrases in case you’re ever unable to log into your wallet. If you cannot remember your login details or recovery phrases, you risk losing access to your NFTs.
2. Buy SOL
To purchase NFTs on the Solana blockchain, you’ll first need to add funds to your wallet. SOL, the native currency of Solana, is available to buy on many exchanges like Binance and Coinbase. By purchasing your SOL via your favored exchange, you can withdraw them to your wallet by copying its address when setting up your transaction. This can be done by using your Phantom browser extension and clicking on your wallet name to display its address.
Alternatively, you can buy SOL directly within your wallet. By clicking the amount you’re interested in depositing and selecting Next, you will be provided the option of purchasing via Coinbase Pay or MoonPay.
3. Head to an NFT Marketplace
Now you have funds in your wallet, you’ll need to find an NFT marketplace that houses the artworks or collectibles that you’re interested in purchasing.
There are many NFT marketplaces available that support Solana. For example, Solanart sells curated collections like Degenerate Ape Academy, Aurory, SolPunks, and Galactic Gecko Space Garage, which are among the market leaders when it comes to popular collections.
Other specialist Solana marketplaces like DigitalEyes and Solsea offer different types of NFT artworks to buy, so it’s worth doing your homework on what you’re looking for and where to find it within Solana’s ecosystem.
4. Connect Your SOL Wallet
Thankfully, connecting your wallet to your chosen NFT marketplace is usually a doddle, and platforms can detect any SOL wallets built into the browser from which you’re accessing the platform.
In the case of Solanart’s marketplace, you will see an option to ‘connect wallet’ to the top right corner of the screen. Click and follow the directions to automatically connect your wallet and begin browsing collections to buy.
5. Purchase Your NFT
Once you’ve connected your wallet to your chosen marketplace, you can browse its menus to identify NFTs you’re interested in buying.
Because your wallet is linked to the marketplace, the checkout process is highly intuitive and straightforward for users. Select your chosen NFT, double-check the costs associated, and click Proceed to checkout (these instructions are for Solanart users, though other marketplaces feature similar purchase processes).
At the checkout process, you’ll be offered the chance to look at the final price for your artwork, along with its associated transaction fees. Then, as long as you have enough SOL in your wallet, you can click to purchase your NFT to start the transaction.
6. Add your Purchase to your Wallet
If you make your NFT purchase with the wallet you plan to store your token, your new NFT should automatically arrive in your SOL wallet within moments of the transaction processing.
However, if you need to transfer your NFT to a different wallet, you can click to Receive Collectible within your Phantom wallet to transfer your token securely using a QR code.
The Cost-Effective Way to Collect NFTs
Although much of the NFT furor of the 2021 boom period took place on Ethereum’s network, with the likes of Bored Ape Yacht Club and CryptoPunks stealing the limelight, Solana remains a highly functional way of building your NFT collection without having to pay out on costly gas fees to make transactions work.
With this in mind, setting yourself up with the Solana network to buy and sell NFTs is a great way to take your first steps into an exciting digital collectibles landscape full of potential.
Reference: https://www.makeuseof.com/how-use-solana-buy-nfts/
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