How to Stake SOL with Jito

Jito is the highest-yielding liquid staking protocol on Solana, offering ~6.5%+ APY compared to the ~5.5% base staking rate. The difference comes from MEV (maximal extractable value) tips — revenue that Jito’s validators capture from transaction ordering and distribute to JitoSOL holders. This guide walks you through staking SOL with Jito, understanding how JitoSOL works, and what you can do with it after.

What Is Jito and Why Does MEV Matter?

When you natively stake SOL with a validator, you earn the standard network staking reward — roughly 5.5% APY. That’s it. Your SOL is locked for ~5 days if you want to unstake, and you can’t use it in DeFi.

Jito changes two things:

MEV rewards. Jito validators run specialized software that captures MEV tips — fees paid by traders and bots for favorable transaction ordering within a block. These tips are distributed to JitoSOL holders, pushing the APY above the base staking rate. In Q1 2026, Jito’s APY sits at approximately 6.5–8%, depending on network activity levels.
Liquidity. Instead of locked SOL, you receive JitoSOL — a liquid staking token that you can trade, lend, or use as collateral across Solana DeFi. Your SOL earns staking rewards while you retain full flexibility.

Jito currently holds ~$1.15B in TVL and is the most widely integrated LST on Solana. JitoSOL is accepted as collateral on Kamino, MarginFi, and Drift, and as an LP pair on Orca, Meteora, and Raydium.

What You Need

Phantom wallet installed and set up. Download from phantom.app.
SOL in your wallet. Any amount works — there’s no minimum stake. Keep at least 0.05 SOL reserved for transaction fees after staking.
~30 seconds of time. The staking process is one transaction.

Step-by-Step: Staking SOL with Jito

Step 1: Go to Jito

Open jito.network in your browser. This is Jito’s official staking interface. Verify the URL — phishing sites targeting Jito exist. Bookmark it after your first visit.

Step 2: Connect Your Wallet

Click “Connect Wallet” and select Phantom. Approve the connection in the Phantom popup. Your wallet address and SOL balance will appear on screen.

Step 3: Enter the Amount to Stake

Enter the amount of SOL you want to stake. The interface shows you how much JitoSOL you’ll receive in return. You’ll notice you receive slightly less JitoSOL than the SOL you deposit — this is normal. JitoSOL is already worth more than SOL because it has accumulated rewards since launch. As of Q1 2026, 1 JitoSOL ≈ 1.08 SOL.

Important: Don’t stake all your SOL. Keep at least 0.05 SOL for future transaction fees. If you stake everything, you won’t be able to send transactions — including unstaking.

Step 4: Click Stake and Confirm

Click “Stake”. Phantom shows a transaction preview — you’ll see your SOL leaving and JitoSOL arriving. Verify the amounts match what you expect, then click Approve.

The transaction confirms in under a second. JitoSOL appears in your Phantom wallet immediately.

Step 5: Verify Your JitoSOL

Open Phantom and check your token list. You should see JitoSOL with the amount you received. You can also verify the transaction on solscan.io by searching your wallet address — the transaction will show the SOL → JitoSOL conversion with exact amounts.

That’s it. Total time: under 2 minutes. Total cost: one Solana network fee (~$0.005).

How JitoSOL Earns Yield

JitoSOL uses a value-accruing model. Your JitoSOL token count doesn’t increase over time — instead, each JitoSOL becomes worth more SOL as rewards accumulate.

Here’s how it works:

You deposit 100 SOL and receive ~92.6 JitoSOL (at the current exchange rate of 1 JitoSOL ≈ 1.08 SOL).
Jito delegates your SOL to a set of high-performance validators running Jito’s MEV-enabled client.
Those validators earn standard staking rewards (~5.5% APY) plus MEV tips from transaction ordering.
Jito takes a 4% fee on rewards. The remaining 96% flows into the JitoSOL exchange rate.
Over a year, the exchange rate increases. Your ~92.6 JitoSOL might be worth 106.5+ SOL — your original 100 SOL plus ~6.5% in rewards.

You don’t need to claim rewards, compound, or do anything. Holding JitoSOL is enough.

Jito’s Fee Structure

Jito charges 4% of staking rewards — not 4% of your staked amount. If your position earns 6.5 SOL in rewards over a year, Jito keeps 0.26 SOL and you keep 6.24 SOL. Your principal is never touched.

This is competitive among Solana LSTs:

Protocol	Fee
Jito	4% of rewards
DoubleZero	5% of rewards
Marinade	6% of rewards

How to Unstake: Two Options

Option A: Native Unstaking (~5 Days)

Go to jito.network, click Unstake, enter the amount of JitoSOL to unstake, and confirm. Your SOL will be available after ~2 epochs (approximately 4–5 days). This is free beyond the network transaction fee.

Option B: Instant Unstaking via Sanctum or Jupiter

If you don’t want to wait:

Sanctum (sanctum.so): Swap JitoSOL → SOL instantly through Sanctum’s Infinity Pool. Fee is typically ~0.01–0.1% depending on pool depth.
Jupiter (jup.ag): Swap JitoSOL → SOL like any other token swap. Jupiter routes through Sanctum and other liquidity sources for the best rate.

Both execute in under a second. The fee is small enough that instant unstaking is usually worth it unless you’re converting a very large position.

What to Do with JitoSOL

Holding JitoSOL earns you ~6.5% APY passively. But because JitoSOL is a liquid token, you can also use it across DeFi for additional yield — this is called yield stacking.

Use as Lending Collateral

Deposit JitoSOL on Kamino as collateral. You earn staking APY (~6.5%) plus a small supply APY from the lending protocol. You can also borrow against your JitoSOL — for example, borrowing USDC while your collateral continues earning staking rewards.

Risk: If SOL price drops significantly, your collateral value decreases and you face potential liquidation on any borrowed amount. If you’re just depositing JitoSOL as collateral without borrowing, there’s no liquidation risk.

Provide Liquidity in JitoSOL/SOL Pools

Deposit JitoSOL and SOL into a liquidity pool on Orca or Meteora. Since JitoSOL and SOL prices move almost identically (JitoSOL slowly appreciates against SOL), impermanent loss is minimal. You earn staking APY + LP swap fees.

This is one of the most capital-efficient strategies on Solana — low risk (relative to other LP positions), dual yield source, and minimal active management needed.

Kamino Multiply (Advanced)

Kamino’s Multiply feature automates a leveraged staking loop: deposit JitoSOL → borrow SOL → stake the SOL for more JitoSOL → repeat. This amplifies your ~6.5% staking APY to 15–30% depending on leverage level.

Warning: This is a leveraged position with real liquidation risk. If JitoSOL de-pegs from SOL during a market panic, the leverage works against you and your position can be liquidated. This strategy is for experienced DeFi users who understand leverage, monitor positions daily, and accept the possibility of losing their entire deposit.

Risks of Staking with Jito

Smart Contract Risk

JitoSOL is managed by Jito’s on-chain programs. A vulnerability in that code could compromise staked funds. Jito has been audited and has held over $1B in TVL since 2023 without exploit — but no protocol is guaranteed safe. Never stake more than you can afford to lose.

MEV Variability

Jito’s APY premium over base staking comes from MEV tips, which depend on network activity. During low-activity periods, MEV revenue decreases and Jito’s APY advantage narrows. During high-activity periods (market volatility, popular launches), MEV revenue spikes and APY increases.

De-Peg Risk

JitoSOL can temporarily trade below its theoretical SOL value during market stress — when holders panic-sell JitoSOL for SOL faster than the market can absorb. Historical Solana LST de-pegs have been brief (hours), but if you’re using JitoSOL as lending collateral, even a temporary de-peg can trigger liquidation.

Validator Concentration

Jito’s MEV client is widely used among Solana validators, which concentrates the network’s validator software on a single implementation. This isn’t a direct financial risk to JitoSOL holders, but it’s a centralization concern for the Solana network.

Quick Reference

Detail	Value
Current APY	~6.5%+
Fee	4% of rewards
Minimum stake	None
Native unstaking	~4–5 days
Instant unstaking	Via Sanctum or Jupiter (~0.01–0.1% fee)
TVL	$1.15B
DeFi integrations	Kamino, MarginFi, Drift, Orca, Meteora, Raydium

Staking SOL with Jito is one of the simplest and most reliable yield sources in Solana DeFi. You stake SOL, receive JitoSOL, and earn ~6.5%+ APY with no lockup and no active management. If you want to go further, JitoSOL’s deep DeFi integrations let you stack additional yield — just understand that each additional layer adds risk.