LIVELive Market
6.5
Mixed
Best Liquid Restaking Protocols · Review

Solayer

The leading Solana restaking protocol, applying a model whose Ethereum version is itself still unproven.

Best For
Restaking on Solana
Headline Cost
~5–10% of rewards
Founded
2024
Rank in category
10 of 15
Last Checked
August 2026
The short answer

Solayer brought restaking to Solana and attracted substantial deposits quickly, with fees below the Ethereum incumbents and integration across major Solana infrastructure. The underlying slashing primitives on Solana are younger than Ethereum's, which were themselves new.

Score breakdown

Category rubric →
Added slashing risk · 25%
6.0
Contract security · 20%
6.5
Exit liquidity · 20%
6.0
Operator transparency · 20%
6.5
Fees · 15%
8.0

Usable, but there are better options for most people. The headline 6.5 is the weighted mean of these marks — see our methodology. Not financial advice.

What we liked

  • First mover in Solana restaking with real deposits
  • Lower fees than the Ethereum incumbents
  • Integrated with major Solana infrastructure

Where it falls short

  • Solana's restaking slashing mechanics are less mature than Ethereum's
  • Launched in 2024 with a correspondingly thin record

Restaking's premise is that idle staked capital can secure additional services for extra yield. On Ethereum that premise remains economically unproven — supply vastly exceeds paying demand. Solayer is applying the same model on Solana, one ecosystem earlier in the same experiment.

What it does

Users restake SOL or Solana liquid staking tokens to secure additional services, receiving a liquid token in return. Fees run around 5–10%, below the Ethereum norm, and integration across Solana infrastructure is good.

The maturity gap

Solana's restaking slashing mechanics are less developed than Ethereum's, which only enabled slashing after years of careful staged rollout. A restaking system whose penalties are not yet fully specified or enforced is one where the yield is real and the risk is theoretical — which sounds attractive and means the risk has simply not been priced yet.

Record

Launched in 2024, audited, no incidents. That is a very short record for a system holding meaningful deposits.

Who should use it

Solana users who want restaking exposure and understand they are early in an experiment whose economics are unresolved on the chain that pioneered it. Anyone whose objective is staking yield should use a plain LST such as JitoSOL and skip the extra layer.

FAQ

What is Solana restaking?
Pledging staked SOL or Solana LSTs as security for additional services in exchange for extra yield, with the corresponding slashing exposure.
Is Solana restaking as mature as Ethereum's?
No. The slashing mechanics are younger and less thoroughly specified than EigenLayer's, which were themselves new when they launched.
What does Solayer charge?
Around 5–10% of rewards, below the Ethereum restaking norm.
How long has Solayer operated?
Since 2024, which is a very short record for a protocol holding significant deposits.

Compare

Best Liquid Restaking Protocols →
#ServiceBest forCostScore
1ether.fiThe most liquid LRT with the best-documented stack~10% of rewards7.9
2EigenLayerThe base restaking layer everything else builds onNo protocol fee at the base layer7.6
3Puffer FinanceAnti-slashing technology and lower operator bonds~5% of rewards7.6
4SymbioticRestaking collateral beyond ETHNo protocol fee at the base layer7.3
5Kelp DAORestaking multiple LSTs from one position~10% of rewards7.2
6Swell rswETHRestaking from an established liquid staking operator~10% of rewards7.1
7Jito RestakingRestaking infrastructure from Solana's largest staking operatorSet per vault6.9
8Mellow FinanceChoosing a curated restaking risk profileSet per vault curator6.8
9RenzoMulti-chain restaking exposure~10% of rewards6.6
10SolayerRestaking on Solana~5–10% of rewards6.5
11EigenpieIsolated per-LST restaking positions~10% of rewards6.4
12BedrockMulti-asset restaking including BTC-denominated products~10% of rewards6.3
13FragmetricNormalised restaking positions on Solana~5–10% of rewards6.1
14InceptionIsolated restaking vaults across several assets~10% of rewards6.1
15KarakRestaking a wide range of assets across chainsVaries by deployment6.0