// Comparison
Solana gRPC providers compared.
The Solana gRPC market has grown rapidly. Multiple providers now offer Yellowstone gRPC endpoints, but they differ significantly in pricing, filtering capabilities, output format, and latency. This comparison helps you choose the right provider for your use case.
The Yellowstone gRPC landscape
Yellowstone gRPC — formally known as Dragon's Mouth — is the standard protocol for streaming real-time Solana data. It is maintained by Triton One under the rpcpool/yellowstone-grpc repository on GitHub. The plugin hooks directly into the Solana validator through the Geyser interface, capturing transactions, account updates, slots, blocks, and entries the moment the validator processes them. Most gRPC providers in the Solana ecosystem run this same open-source Yellowstone plugin on their validator infrastructure.
Because the plugin is standardized, the raw capabilities are similar across providers: all of them stream the same on-chain data over persistent gRPC connections using Protocol Buffers. Where providers differentiate is in everything around the protocol — pricing, filtering capabilities, output format, regional coverage, and additional features like pre-parsing, custom SDKs, or bundled RPC access. These differences matter significantly depending on what you're building.
The key question for most teams is this: do you need raw Yellowstone output — binary protobuf with Borsh-encoded instruction data — or pre-parsed output that delivers structured JSON? For analytics and indexing use cases, raw protobuf is often fine because you have a dedicated parsing pipeline. For trading bots, the parsing step is the biggest pain point. Decoding Borsh, mapping instruction discriminators, resolving account indices, and converting lamports to SOL all add latency and engineering complexity. That parsing step is exactly where providers differentiate — and where Subglow takes a different approach. For background on how the Geyser interface works at the validator level, see our Solana Geyser plugin guide.
Provider comparison
Side-by-side comparison of the major Solana gRPC providers as of April 2026. Pricing reflects publicly available starting tiers — actual costs may vary by plan level and usage.
| Feature | QuickNode | Chainstack | Helius | Solana Tracker | Subglow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Protocol | Yellowstone gRPC | Yellowstone gRPC | Laserstream (custom) | Yellowstone gRPC | Yellowstone gRPC |
| Output format | Raw protobuf | Raw protobuf | Custom binary | Raw protobuf | Pre-parsed JSON |
| Server-side filtering | Basic | Basic | Advanced | Basic | Program-level |
| Borsh decoding required | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No |
| Starting price | ~$499/mo | ~$399/mo | ~$499/mo | $247/mo | $99/mo |
| Regions | US, EU, Asia | US, EU, Asia | US, EU | US, EU | US, EU, Asia, US West |
| Free trial | Limited | Limited | Limited | No | Yes (100 req/day) |
| Standard Yellowstone client | Yes | Yes | No (custom SDK) | Yes | Yes |
Pricing and feature data as of April 2026. Check each provider's website for the latest plans. Helius Laserstream requires the Helius SDK — standard Yellowstone clients will not connect.
Raw Yellowstone vs pre-parsed output
With raw Yellowstone gRPC, you receive binary protobuf messages containing Borsh-encoded instruction data. To extract meaningful information from a single Pump.fun buy event, you need to: decode the protobuf SubscribeUpdate wrapper, identify the Pump.fun program within the transaction's instruction array, read the 8-byte discriminator to determine the event type, deserialize the remaining bytes using the Pump.fun IDL and a Borsh library, resolve account indices to actual wallet addresses, and convert lamports to SOL. That's six discrete steps — each requiring specific knowledge of protobuf schemas, Borsh encoding, and program-specific IDLs.
With Subglow's pre-parsed output, you receive structured JSON with human-readable field names, native types, and program-specific event types already extracted. The same Pump.fun buy event arrives with fields like type, token, sol_amount, buyer, and bonding_curve_pct — ready for your trading logic with zero parsing on your end.
The trade-off is coverage. Raw Yellowstone gives you everything — every program, every instruction, every account update on Solana. If you're building an indexer that needs to process arbitrary programs, raw output is the right choice. Pre-parsed output is limited to programs Subglow supports (currently Pump.fun, Raydium, and Jupiter), but for those programs it eliminates weeks of parsing development and ongoing IDL maintenance. For most trading bots, the supported programs cover the primary use cases.
// Raw Yellowstone
// With Subglow
For a deeper look at how Subglow processes Pump.fun data specifically, see the Pump.fun streaming guide. For Raydium AMM parsing, see the Raydium gRPC guide.
What to look for in a provider
Not every gRPC provider is built for every use case. These six criteria will help you evaluate which provider fits your architecture, budget, and performance requirements.
Latency
How fast does data arrive after slot confirmation? Sub-10ms is table stakes for competitive trading. Measure slot lag — the time between the validator processing a slot and your client receiving the event. Provider infrastructure, geographic proximity, and network routing all affect this number.
Filtering
Can you filter server-side or do you process everything client-side? Server-side filtering saves bandwidth, CPU, and processing time. Basic Yellowstone filtering lets you select by program ID. Subglow goes further with program-level event filtering for Pump.fun, Raydium, and Jupiter.
Output format
Raw protobuf requires significant parsing work — protobuf deserialization, Borsh decoding, account resolution, and type conversion. Pre-parsed JSON accelerates development and eliminates an entire class of parsing bugs. Consider how much engineering time you want to invest in the parsing layer.
Protocol compatibility
Does the provider use standard Yellowstone gRPC? Or a custom protocol requiring a provider-specific SDK? Standard Yellowstone means no vendor lock-in — you can switch providers by changing the endpoint URL. Custom protocols offer potential advantages but tie you to a single vendor.
Pricing
gRPC endpoints range from $99/mo to $500+/mo depending on the provider and tier. Consider what’s included in the base price vs add-on pricing for features like higher rate limits, additional regions, or dedicated infrastructure. The cheapest option isn’t always the best fit.
Regions
Where are the provider’s endpoints hosted? Closer regions mean lower network latency between your infrastructure and the gRPC server. If your bots run in US East, an EU-only provider adds 80-120ms of network round-trip time. Check that your preferred provider has endpoints near your deployment.
When to choose each provider
Every provider has strengths. The right choice depends on your existing stack, your engineering resources, and what you're building. Here's an honest assessment of when each provider is the best fit.
QuickNode
Best for teams already in the QuickNode ecosystem with existing RPC endpoints. QuickNode offers strong documentation, a mature dashboard, and a wide range of Solana tools beyond gRPC. If your team already manages RPC endpoints through QuickNode, adding gRPC keeps your infrastructure consolidated. The trade-off is premium pricing — gRPC access typically starts at ~$499/mo.
Chainstack
Best for multi-chain teams that need gRPC alongside EVM chains. Chainstack supports Ethereum, Polygon, BNB Chain, and other networks alongside Solana, making it a natural choice for teams building cross-chain applications. Their global presence spans US, EU, and Asia. If you need a single provider for both Solana gRPC and EVM WebSocket/RPC, Chainstack simplifies vendor management.
Helius Laserstream
Best for teams committed to the Helius ecosystem. Laserstream offers advanced filtering and fast delivery, with the Helius SDK handling protocol details for you. The trade-off is vendor lock-in: Laserstream is not Yellowstone-compatible, so switching providers means rewriting your client code against a different protocol. If you’re already using Helius RPC, DAS API, and webhooks, adding Laserstream keeps your stack unified.
Solana Tracker
A good balance of price and raw Yellowstone access, starting at $247/mo. Solana Tracker is focused specifically on Solana trading infrastructure, which means a leaner product surface area but strong alignment with trading use cases. If you need standard Yellowstone gRPC at a lower price point than QuickNode or Chainstack and are comfortable building your own parsing layer, Solana Tracker is a solid option.
Subglow
Best for bot developers who want pre-parsed JSON without Borsh decoding. Subglow is the only Yellowstone-compatible provider that delivers structured, human-readable output for Pump.fun, Raydium, and Jupiter events. Starting at $99/mo, it’s the lowest entry price for gRPC access. Because it uses standard Yellowstone gRPC, there’s no vendor lock-in — switching away is a one-line endpoint change.
For a full overview of how gRPC compares to JSON-RPC and WebSocket on Solana, see our gRPC vs RPC comparison. For a step-by-step guide to connecting to any Yellowstone endpoint, see the Yellowstone gRPC tutorial. If you're building a copy trading bot specifically, see our copy trading provider guide.
Migration is simple
If you're currently using any Yellowstone-compatible provider — QuickNode, Chainstack, Solana Tracker, or a self-hosted validator — switching to Subglow takes three lines of code. The Yellowstone gRPC protocol is standardized: the same @triton-one/yellowstone-grpc client in Node.js and the same yellowstone-grpc-client crate in Rust work across all Yellowstone providers. Change the endpoint URL, update the API key header, and your existing subscription logic works unchanged.
The only difference you'll notice is the output format. Where other providers return raw protobuf with Borsh-encoded data, Subglow returns the same events as pre-parsed JSON. Your existing protobuf deserialization code becomes unnecessary — you can remove it and read structured fields directly. For teams migrating from Helius Laserstream, the change is larger because Laserstream uses a custom protocol. You'll need to replace the Helius SDK with the standard Yellowstone client library. See the full migration guide in the documentation.
Same client library. Same subscription API. Same filter syntax. The only change is the endpoint and key.
Head-to-head comparisons
Detailed side-by-side breakdowns of Subglow against each major provider — covering protocol, pricing, execution latency, and migration.
Subglow vs Helius
Yellowstone gRPC vs proprietary Laserstream. Protocol lock-in, pricing, and execution latency compared.
Read comparison →Subglow vs QuickNode
Both use Yellowstone — but output, pricing, and parse overhead differ. Full breakdown.
Read comparison →Subglow vs Chainstack
Multi-chain infrastructure vs Solana-only streaming. Pricing models and execution latency.
Read comparison →Subglow vs Solana Tracker
Analytics platform vs pure gRPC streaming. Which is right for your trading bot?
Read comparison →Frequently asked questions
Which Solana gRPC provider is cheapest?
Subglow starts at $99/mo for filtered Yellowstone gRPC with pre-parsed JSON output. Solana Tracker starts at $247/mo for raw Yellowstone access. QuickNode, Chainstack, and Helius typically start at $399–$499/mo for gRPC-tier plans. Pricing varies by plan level, usage limits, and add-ons — always check each provider’s current pricing page for the latest.
Do all providers use Yellowstone gRPC?
Most do. QuickNode, Chainstack, Solana Tracker, and Subglow all run the standard Yellowstone gRPC plugin (rpcpool/yellowstone-grpc) maintained by Triton One. This means you can use the same @triton-one/yellowstone-grpc or yellowstone-grpc-client libraries across these providers. Helius is the exception — they use a proprietary streaming protocol called Laserstream, which requires the Helius-specific SDK and is not Yellowstone-compatible.
What is Helius Laserstream?
Laserstream is Helius’s proprietary streaming protocol for real-time Solana data. It is not based on Yellowstone gRPC — you cannot connect to it with standard Yellowstone client libraries. Instead, you need the Helius SDK. Laserstream offers its own filtering and data delivery features, but the trade-off is vendor lock-in: switching away from Helius means rewriting your client code against a different protocol. Yellowstone-compatible providers allow migration by changing only the endpoint URL.
Why is Subglow different from other providers?
Subglow is the only Yellowstone-compatible provider that delivers pre-parsed JSON with server-side program-level filtering. Other Yellowstone providers give you raw protobuf with Borsh-encoded instruction data — you must decode, identify, and parse the data yourself, adding 15-30ms of execution latency. Subglow extracts event types, human-readable field names, native amounts, and wallet addresses before delivery. For programs like Pump.fun, Raydium, and Jupiter, this eliminates the entire parsing pipeline. Plus, Subglow uses flat monthly pricing with no credit metering — your cost stays the same at any volume.
Try the difference.
Pre-parsed JSON. Server-side filtering. Yellowstone-compatible. Start with 100 free requests per day.