Photon's official docs publish no fee discount for people who sign up through a referral link. Here's what a Photon Sol referral link actually does and what you'll pay.
Rank 1Why it’s here: Best for simple web trading with limit orders. Plain 1% fee on buys and sells, documented officially.
Photon has no published fee discount for people who use a referral code. Its fee docs say the fee is "1% of the initial token used for every buy and sell transaction", with no tiers, rebates or cashback, so you pay 1% per trade whether or not you sign up through a referral link.
Risk notice: Crypto trading is high risk and memecoins can go to zero in minutes. Trading bots and wallet connections use hot wallets. This page is not financial advice; only trade what you can afford to lose.
Facts on this page were checked October 23, 2026, from Photon's own docs and the sources linked below. This is a research-based review built from published docs, not a hands-on trial.
Photon (6.9/10) is the original Solana web terminal. Full details are in our Photon review.
Photon doesn't use a code you type. Referrals work through a handle in the URL, in the format photon-sol.tinyastro.io/@name. When someone opens that link and signs up, Photon records the referrer.
The only official description of what happens next is Photon's points leaderboard page. It says: "If you refer someone to sign up to Photon and they start trading, you'll earn points for their trades." It adds that Photon is "tracking anyone who signs up through your unique handle", and that this tracking "will be used to distribute future rewards and benefits".
So, per the docs:
For the person signing up (you):
For the referrer:
Two caveats on that points page. It sits in the "Photon on ETH" section of the docs, and it describes the leaderboard as running "for the next few weeks/months", so it may be out of date. We found no newer referral page in Photon's docs index, and the terms of use (published by Tiny Astro Inc.) don't mention a referral program at all.
A competitor's comparison, Trojan's 2026 terminal guide, describes Photon's referral program as earning "only points with no disclosed redemption path or associated monetary rewards". Trojan is a rival, but that matches what the official docs show.
Photon's fee is collected in SOL on both sides of a trade. The docs' own example: spending 5 SOL on a buy costs 0.05 SOL in fees, and the sell fee is 1% of the SOL you receive.
| Cost | Without referral | With referral link | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Photon fee | 1% per buy and sell | 1% (no discount documented) | Photon fee docs |
| Volume tiers or cashback | None | None | Photon docs |
| Priority fee and Jito tip | You set them | You set them | Photon settings |
| Pump.fun bonding curve | 1.25% per trade | 1.25% per trade | Pump.fun fees |
In dollars (our calculation):
Priority fees and tips matter as much as the platform fee on small trades. A 0.005 SOL tip on a 0.2 SOL buy is another 2.5%. See Solana priority fees and slippage and our full Photon fees guide.
Our how to use Photon guide walks through each screen. We're an affiliate: if you sign up through our link, we may earn points or rewards from Photon's referral program. Based on the docs, your fee is 1% either way.
| Platform | Documented benefit for a referred user | Net fee for a new user |
|---|---|---|
| Photon | None documented | 1% |
| Axiom | 10% off trading fees | ~0.86% (entry tier, our calculation) |
| Trojan | None extra; 20% cashback for all users | ~0.8% |
| GMGN | None documented | 1% |
| Padre (Terminal) | Up to 35% cashback advertised; tiers unpublished | 1% reported, less cashback |
| BONKbot | None for invitee; Telemetry cashback for all | 1% |
Photon is one of the more expensive options for a new user, because it has neither a referral discount nor cashback. If cost is your priority, see cheapest Solana trading bot and Solana trading bot fees compared.
If you already use Photon, your referral handle is the @name in your link. What you earn is points, not a fee share that Photon publishes. That's the key difference from most rivals:
Search results for "Photon referral code" include pages and PDFs promising 10% or more off Photon's fee with a specific handle. None of them is a Photon source, and Photon's docs don't describe any referee discount. A referral link can't change a fee that Photon applies to everyone.
Red flags:
More on staying safe in is Photon safe? and Telegram trading bot security.
Photon still works and still earns: DefiLlama shows about $513,000 in fees over the last 30 days (DefiLlama, checked October 23, 2026), against about $440 million cumulative. That's a fraction of its early-2025 peak. It keeps limit orders with take profit and stop loss, DCA orders, the Memescope screener and MEV protection, and we found no confirmed platform breach.
What it lacks is a reason to pay more: no copy trading, no Telegram bot, no cashback and no referral discount. Traders choosing on cost usually pick Axiom or Trojan instead. Compare directly in Axiom vs Photon, Trojan vs Photon and FOMO vs Photon, or see all Photon alternatives.
We read Photon's fee page, docs index, terms of use and points leaderboard page on October 23, 2026, and calculated costs from the published 1% fee. We did not trade on Photon. If Photon publishes a referral discount, it should appear in its docs or on the trade confirmation, and we'll update this page. Our scoring method is on the about page.
FAQ
Not according to Photon's official docs. They list a flat 1% fee on every buy and sell and describe no discount, rebate or cashback for referred users, as of October 2026.
It ties your sign-up to the referrer's handle. Photon's points page says referrers earn points for their referrals' trades, which it says will be used to distribute future rewards and benefits.
The same 1% as without one: Photon's fee docs say it is 1% of the SOL used in every buy and sell. Priority fees, tips and venue fees such as Pump.fun's are extra.
No. Photon referrals are handle-based links (photon-sol.tinyastro.io/@name), so there is nothing to type. Opening the link before you create your account is what attaches it.
Axiom is the clearest case: its docs give referred users 10% off trading fees. Pump.fun's Terminal (formerly Padre) advertises up to 35% cashback, but it doesn't publish who gets which rate.
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