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How to Create an NFT On Solana
Metaplex provides 3 different standards for creating NFTs on the Solana blockchain including Core, Token Metadata, and Bubblegum. Each standard and protocol provides unique advantages for projects and spread across the wide spectrum of minting and NFT requirements for projects.
Core Asset (Recommended)
Token Metadata is a protocol within Metaplex that focuses on the metadata aspects of NFTs. This standard defines how metadata is stored, retrieved, and associated with NFTs, ensuring that NFTs have rich, meaningful, and verifiable information attached to them.
Why Use Core:
- Newest Standard: Core is the newest and most powerful digital asset standard created by Metaplex to date.
- Simplicity: Core was designed from the ground up with a simplicity first approach.
- Plugins: Core provides an advanced plugin system that allows Core Assets and Collections to store extra state, provide lifecycle validations, and an enhanced dynamic experience. The possibilities here are endless!
- Cost: While not as cheap as Bubblegum, Core is significantly cheaper to create and mint compared to Token Metadata due to the optimized account structures.
Token Metadata NFT/pNFT
Token Metadata is the Solana NFT standard that started it all. Created back in 2021 Token Metadata paved the way for NFTs on the Solana blockchain with a staggering 512 million NFTs minted since first inception.
Why Use Token Metadata:
- Tried and Trusted: Token Metadata has been used as Solana's primary NFT Token Standard for the last 4 years from projects such as Solana Monkey Business, DeGods, Claynosaurus just to name a few.
- Eco System Support: NFTs and pNFTs are supported Solana wide by marketplaces and wallets such as MagicEden, Tensor, Phantom, Solflare and many others.
- SPL Token Based: Token Metadata NFTs/pNFTs are based around Solana's SPL Token program.
Create An NFT/pNFT with Token Metadata
Bubblegum cNFT
When it comes to creating NFTs that are cheap in mass then Bubblegum is the protocol to choose. Bubblegum uses the technology of Compressed NFTs (cNFTs) By applying a Merkle tree approach instead of creating accounts for each individual NFT.
Why Use Bubblegum:
- Cheap to deploy: Being a Merkle tree based product trees are cheap to deploy that can store millions of NFTs if needed.
- Mass Airdrops: Once a tree is created the cost of airdrop cNFTs is close to non existent as the storage of the tree has already been paid for.