Analyzing Solana On-chain Data: Tools & Dashboards

Introduction

Solana’s high-speed, low-cost architecture has made it one of the most exciting ecosystems. But with speed comes complexity—understanding Solana’s data can overwhelm newcomers. Unlike other blockchains where data retrieval follows well-established patterns, Solana’s parallel processing and account-based model introduce unique challenges when querying, indexing, and analyzing on-chain activity.

Whether you’re a developer building an application, an analyst tracking trends, or just an enthusiast trying to make sense of transaction flows, having the right tools is crucial. 

This guide is designed to help you navigate the Solana data landscape. It introduces the most effective ways to access, analyze, and use blockchain data. From raw RPC endpoints to powerful indexing services, we’ll break down the essential resources you need to gain data insights from Solana.

By the end of this post, you will clearly understand where to find the data you need, how to interact with it efficiently, and which tools are best for each use case.

Let’s dive in!

Solana RPCs

RPC services allow developers and applications to interact with Solana, providing access to blockchain state, transaction submission, and historical data retrieval. 

Key Use Cases

Common use cases for accessing data from an RPC provider include:

• DeFi Apps – look up token owners, fetch account balances, etc.
• NFT Apps – track mints, look up metadata, and ownership changes
• Data Apps – aggregate data for app metrics and dashboards

RPC Providers

There are many different RPC providers to choose from. While the core functionality is generally the same, a few essential things to consider when comparing RPC providers are latency, uptime, data accuracy, rate limits, cost, Solana-native experience, and support. 

The most common providers include:

• Helius
• Triton 
• QuickNode
• Alchemy
• Ankr
• ChainStack

Tools like Webhooks, WebSockets, and gRPC are more appropriate for data needs that are more latency-sensitive, such as real-time account or program monitoring.

Real-time Data Streaming Tools

For real-time data access, Geyser streams and webhook-based services push continuous updates on Solana’s blockchain activity without requiring pull-based RPC polling. These solutions are critical for trading bots, analytics platforms, and live monitoring applications, where low-latency data is essential.

Geyser streams work by directly subscribing to a Solana validator, allowing external services to receive real-time updates on transactions, account changes, and program interactions. This approach is more efficient than constantly querying an RPC, as it reduces unnecessary requests and provides instant access to new blockchain events.

Geyser Streams

Solana’s Geyser Plugins allow validators to stream real-time data directly to external services. This makes it a powerful tool for indexing, custom data aggregation, and on-chain analytics. However, setting up a gRPC stream requires running your own node or using a dedicated node.

Webhooks, WebSocket & Real-Time APIs

Webhooks offer an alternative to RPCs and dedicated nodes for gRPC streams by providing push-based event notifications for specific blockchain activities.

Instead of setting up a Geyser plugin, developers can subscribe to events like wallet transactions, token transfers, or on-chain program interactions, receiving updates without excessive RPC polling.

Similarly, WebSocket connections enable real-time streaming of blockchain data, allowing applications to stay updated without continuously making new requests.

For real-time applications, Geyser, WebSockets, and Webhooks provide the lowest-latency access to Solana data, reducing infrastructure overhead and improving responsiveness. 

However, real-time data streaming tools and RPC nodes are not the best choice for historical data analysis. SQL-based solutions like Flipside and Dune are more suitable for historical data use cases.

Historical Solana Data Tools

Flipside and Dune provide SQL-based access to Solana’s on-chain data, allowing users to query and analyze historical blockchain activity without dealing with raw RPC calls. 

Both platforms index and structure Solana data, making it more accessible for analytical use cases. Because their datasets are updated with a delay, they are not designed for real-time data retrieval like RPC methods and data streaming tools.

For example, Flipside has approximately a 15-minute delay between updating datasets, and Dune’s data lag varies between 1 minute and 60 minutes, depending on the dataset.

Dune

Dune enables users to write SQL queries against curated Solana datasets, offering greater flexibility in defining data models. Users can create custom tables and dashboards to track blockchain activity. The platform operates on a pay-as-you-go model, and query costs can increase depending on usage.

Flipside Crypto

Flipside provides structured tables for querying Solana data through SQL. It includes pre-indexed Solana datasets that simplify transaction access, token transfers, DeFi protocols, and NFT activity. The platform offers a free tier with high query limits, making it accessible for various use cases.

SQL-based historical analysis tools are excellent for intermediate to advanced data analysts querying large data sets. Still, tools like Google BigTable and custom indexers may be more appropriate for accessing archival data or custom datasets. 

Archive Data & Custom Indexing Tools

For in-depth blockchain analysis, custom indexing solutions provide a more efficient way to query historical data than raw RPC calls.

Solana’s transaction history is massive, and pulling past data directly from RPC nodes can be slow, costly, and inefficient.

Instead, indexing solutions store and structure blockchain data, allowing faster and more flexible queries.

Custom Indexers

Custom indexers allow developers to define their own indexing logic, making it easier to analyze long-term trends, DeFi activity, and token movements without constantly fetching raw blockchain logs. Unlike pre-built analytics tools such as Flipside and Dune, custom indexers provide complete control over how data is stored and accessed.

Google BigQuery

Platforms like Google BigQuery offer SQL-based access to Solana’s blockchain history, enabling large-scale analysis without running a personal indexer. Unlike Flipside and Dune, which have pre-structured datasets, BigQuery allows users to define their own data models, making it ideal for custom analytics and business intelligence applications.

Decentralized Data Storage

For long-term blockchain archiving, Filecoin's Old Faithful project, Arweave, and Shadow Drive store raw blockchain data in a permanent without relying on centralized databases.

For more casual data analysts who don’t need archive data or large historical datasets, block explorers provide a more user-friendly interface for understanding what’s happening on-chain

Block Explorers

Block explorers provide a structured way to view, analyze, and verify on-chain transactions, account balances, token movements, and on-chain program interactions. They are essential tools for traders, developers, and analysts to track blockchain activity in a clear, accessible format.

These platforms allow users to search by transaction ID, wallet address, token, or contract, displaying relevant details such as execution paths, fees, and account changes. While all block explorers serve the same fundamental purpose, they vary in data presentation, feature sets, and user experience.

Popular Block Explorers

Some of the most popular block explorers include:

• Solscan
• SolanaFM
• XRay (by Helius)
• Solana Explorer

Each explorer provides access to Solana network data, offering different ways to navigate and interpret blockchain transactions.

Solana Data Dashboards

There are many public Solana dashboards for tracking higher-level data across the Solana ecosystem for network revenue, validator performance, token activity, and MEV.

These dashboards help Solana research companies such as Pine Analytics, developers, analysts, and investors report on Solana’s economic health, macro trends, and on-chain dynamics. Various platforms specialize in hosting and presenting this data, making it more accessible for multiple use cases.

Revenue and Network Metrics

Understanding Solana’s revenue sources, including transaction fees, staking rewards, and protocol-generated income, is essential for viewing Solana’s network sustainability and growth.

Here are a few dashboards:

• Blockworks – research and financial reports on Solana’s ecosystem
• Artemis – protocol revenue, fees, stablecoin inflows/outflows, etc.
• DeFiLlama – fees, revenue, Total Value Locked (TVL), and yield
• Nansen – institutional-grade analytics for on-chain activity

Validator and Staking Dashboards

Validator data helps track Solana’s decentralization, staking distribution, validator health, staking APYs, uptime, and many other metrics.

• Stakewiz – validator analytics, staking data, APYs, and more
• Solana Beach – validator performance, distribution, and governance
• Validators.app – validator metrics, software versions, ping tests, etc.
• VX Tools – cluster vote statistics, total blocks, and block rewards

Blockchain Forensics Tools

Solana forensic analysis tools track wallet movements, suspicious activity, and risks. These platforms are most often used by enterprises and teams requiring high levels of compliance.

• Chainalysis – monitoring, risk assessment, and forensics
• Arkham Intelligence – wallet identity tracking, fund flows, etc.

Solana Token and Market Data

Token analytics platforms provide insights into token supply, liquidity, and market performance.

• Birdeye – token analytics and price tracking for Solana assets
• Token Terminal – token metrics, P/E ratios, user growth, etc.
• Messari Token Portal – token reports, fundamental analysis, etc.

MEV (Maximal Extractable Value) Dashboards

MEV data helps analyze front-running, sandwich attacks, and priority gas auctions in Solana’s ecosystem.

• Jito Explorer – auction data, MEV tips, and transaction details
• Sandwiched.me – real-time sandwiches and transaction data

These platforms provide structured data for analyzing Solana’s performance, security, and economic activity. Whether tracking network revenue, validator metrics, or trading behaviors, they offer valuable insights for developers, analysts, and investors who want to engage more effectively with Solana’s ecosystem.

Conclusion

Solana’s data ecosystem includes various tools optimized for different use cases. Whether you need real-time data streaming, historical analysis, structured indexing, or simple transaction lookups, choosing the right tool depends on your specific needs.

For low latency data with granular controls, RPCs, WebSockets, Geyser (gRPC), and webhooks will be your best option. For querying historical state or analyzing curated datasets, tools like Dune, Flipside, and Google BigQuery are great options. For analyzing individual transactions or looking at trends, block explorers and pre-made dashboards by Solana analytics companies will cover most use cases.

If you have more questions about data, reach out on X (@jackthepine) or connect with the Helius community on Discord and Telegram.