When staking SOL in Phantom, you have two options: native staking and liquid staking. Both earn rewards, but they work differently and suit different needs.
Native staking
With native staking, you delegate SOL directly to a validator on the Solana network. Your SOL is locked in a stake account for the duration of the staking period and cannot be used or traded until you unstake it. Rewards are paid in SOL directly to your stake account.
Native staking is a good fit if you want direct participation in network security, don't need access to your SOL in the short term, and prefer not to hold a separate token.
See Stake SOL natively to a validator.
Liquid staking
With liquid staking, you stake SOL and receive a liquid staking token (LST) in return, such as Phantom Staked SOL (PSOL) or JitoSOL. Your LST earns rewards automatically and can be traded or used in DeFi apps while your SOL remains staked.
Liquid staking is a good fit if you want to keep your assets flexible, use your staked position in DeFi, or avoid the manual withdrawal step required by native staking.
See Stake SOL with Phantom liquid staking or Stake JitoSOL.
Side by side
| Native staking | Liquid staking | |
|---|---|---|
| What you receive | SOL rewards in your stake account | An LST (for example, PSOL or JitoSOL) |
| SOL availability | Locked until unstaked | LST is tradable and usable in DeFi |
| Unstaking | 2–3 day wait, manual withdrawal required | Instant if reserves allow, otherwise 2–3 days |
| Rewards | Paid as SOL to your stake account | Reflected as increased LST value |
| Validator choice | You choose a validator | Managed by the staking pool |
| Fees | None beyond network fees | Protocol fee (4%) and exit fee (0.1%) for PSOL |