Modulis 1 · First steps

6/13

Jupiter — swap, wallet, and DCA

Video · 3 min.

Jupiter: your first swap

Noah swaps all his SOL for USDC and can't move a cent: with no SOL left, there's nothing to pay network fees with. Jupiter works like a price comparison site, USDC is a digital dollar (not a bank deposit), and slippage is how much extra you accept at the checkout.

Narrated, with light music

The full lesson with numbers and rules is below.

Watch on YouTube

SOL Jupiter

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Jupiter is a Solana network token-swap tool. It finds the best price across all Solana exchanges and executes the swap in a single click. In this lesson you'll learn to swap SOL for USDC and other tokens.

Simple analogy

Jupiter is like a price-comparison site (think Skyscanner or Kayak, but for tokens). Instead of goods, it compares cryptocurrency prices across all Solana exchanges and automatically picks the cheapest option.

What is Jupiter?

Jupiter isn't a standalone exchange — it's an aggregator (a price-comparison tool). It compares prices across every Solana DEX and picks the best route.

Feature	Jupiter
Type	Price-comparison tool (aggregator)
Network	SOL
Fee	Depends on the pair: SOL↔USDC 0.02%, most other tokens 0.1%, brand-new tokens (under 24h old) 0.5%. Manual mode — 0%. Plus the network fee.
Limit orders	Yes
Automated buying (DCA)	Yes

Jupiter swaps are NOT 0% — the fee depends on the token

For a long time you could say "Jupiter charges nothing", but that's no longer true. The default mode charges a fee based on the token category (data as of 2026-09; Jupiter changes these rates — check developers.jup.ag for current ones):

Pair	Jupiter fee
Jupiter tokens and pegged pairs (e.g. USDC/USDT)	0%
SOL ↔ stablecoin	0.02% (2 bps)
LST ↔ stablecoin (jitoSOL, mSOL)	0.05% (5 bps)
All other tokens	0.1% (10 bps)
Tokens under 24 hours old	0.5% (50 bps)

Use this as a safety signal: buying a brand-new token costs 0.5% — 25 times more than a SOL↔USDC swap. If you see a 0.5% fee, Jupiter is telling you directly that the token is less than a day old. That is exactly the category where most scams live.

Why Jupiter instead of going straight to Orca?

Jupiter compares prices across ALL Solana exchanges at once. Your swap might get split: 60% through Orca, 30% through Raydium, 10% through Meteora. That gets you more than swapping through a single exchange.

Connecting to Jupiter

Open jup.ag
Go to the official site jup.ag (or use our link: https://jup.ag/?ref=44a4em4qn1u9).
Check the URL! Scammers build fake Jupiter sites.
Connect your wallet
Click "Connect Wallet" in the top right. Choose "Jupiter Wallet" (or "Phantom"). Your wallet will ask you to confirm — click "Connect".
Check the connection
You'll see your shortened address in the top right (e.g., 7xKX...AsU). That means you're connected successfully.

Swapping SOL for USDC

This is the most common swap — turning some of your SOL into USDC, a stable currency designed to hold its price at $1.

Stable does not mean guaranteed

A stablecoin aims to hold $1, but it is not a bank deposit and deposit insurance does not apply. The price can temporarily break away even when the backing is perfectly fine — a liquidity shortage on one exchange is enough. On 2025-10-10 the stablecoin USDe briefly traded down to $0.65 on several venues; in November 2025 xUSD fell ~77% in a single day. USDC is one of the more reliable options (Circle, a regulated issuer), but the word "always" does not belong here — later, when we cover liquidations and oracles, you'll see why this matters in practice.

Pick your tokens
In the top field (You pay), pick "SOL". In the bottom field (You receive), pick "USDC".
Enter the amount
Enter how much SOL you want to swap. E.g., 20 SOL. Jupiter will automatically show how much USDC you'll get.
Don't swap ALL your SOL! Leave at least 0.05 SOL for network fees.
Review the details
Jupiter will show: the rate, Price Impact (how much your swap moves the price), and Minimum Received (the smallest amount you'll get). If Price Impact is above 1% — swap less or wait.
Click "Swap"
Click the blue "Swap" button. Your wallet will show exactly what you'll receive and what you're giving up.
Confirm in your wallet
Check that the amounts match. Click "Confirm".
Wait for confirmation
The swap confirms in 1–3 seconds. Jupiter will show "Swap Successful".

Other "dollars" in the Jupiter interface

In the swap window you'll see other stablecoins next to USDC. The rule is simple: the strategies in this course use USDC only — it's regulated (Circle, MiCA), has the deepest liquidity on Solana, and earns nothing on its own, so it adds no extra risk. Other tokens that promise a yield always pay for it with risk — issuer, backing, or strategy risk.

JupUSD — Jupiter will also offer its own stablecoin

Since January 2026, Jupiter has its own native stablecoin: JupUSD. You'll see it next to USDC in the interface, so it's worth knowing the difference up front:

	USDC	JupUSD
Issuer	Circle (regulated in the EU)	Jupiter
Backing	Cash + short-term US Treasuries	~90% held in the BlackRock BUIDL fund
Infrastructure	Circle	Built on Ethena infrastructure
Native yield	No	Yes

JupUSD pays a yield, but it also adds issuer and strategy risk that USDC does not carry — yield is always paid for with risk somewhere. The strategies in this course use USDC. If Jupiter offers JupUSD as the more convenient option, remember: it is NOT the same thing as USDC.

Slippage — what it is and how to set it

Slippage is how much the price can move in the second it takes for your swap to execute.

Simple analogy

Imagine a shop's price changing while you're walking to the register. Slippage is how much extra you're willing to accept. If you set it to 0.3%, you're agreeing to pay up to 0.3% more than what you saw on screen.

How to set it

Jupiter → click the gear icon (Settings) at the top
Find "Slippage Settings"
Set it based on the situation:

Slippage	When to use it
0.1%	Stable pairs (USDC/USDT)
0.3%	SOL/USDC — recommended
0.5%	Volatile tokens
1.0%+	NOT RECOMMENDED

Too much slippage = losses

Don't set slippage above 1%. High slippage means you're agreeing to a worse price. If your swap fails at 0.3%, try 0.5% — but no more.

Limit Orders — buy at the price you want

Jupiter lets you set the price you want to buy at.

How to create a Limit Order

Jupiter → in the top menu, pick "Limit" (next to "Swap")
Choose the token pair (e.g., SOL/USDC)
Set the price (e.g., buy SOL when it hits $80)
Set the amount (e.g., 500 USDC)
Click "Place Limit Order"
Confirm in your wallet

Simple analogy

A Limit Order is like leaving a note at the shop: "When this item hits €80 — buy it for me automatically." You don't need to watch the price — it happens on its own.

Feature	Value
Fee	0.1% (only when the order fills)
Duration	Until you cancel it
Gas fee	Only at creation (~$0.001–$0.01)

DCA — automatic buying in installments

DCA (Dollar Cost Averaging) means buying a little at a time on a regular schedule, instead of putting in the whole amount at once.

Simple analogy

Say you want to buy 10 apples. Instead of buying all of them today (when the price might be high), you buy 1 apple a day for 10 days. That way you're never stuck buying all of them on the single most expensive day — your price ends up being the 10-day average.

How to set up DCA

Jupiter → in the top menu, pick "DCA"
Choose what you're buying (e.g., SOL) and what you're paying with (e.g., USDC)
Set the total amount (e.g., 1000 USDC)
Choose the frequency (hourly, daily, weekly)
Choose how many purchases (e.g., 10 purchases of 100 USDC each)
Click "Start DCA"

Parameter	Example
Total amount	1,000 USDC
Number of purchases	10
Amount per purchase	100 USDC
Frequency	Daily
Duration	10 days

Price Impact — what does it mean?

Price Impact shows how much your swap moves the token's price. This matters for larger swaps.

Price Impact	Assessment	What to do
< 0.1%	Excellent	Swap freely
0.1–0.5%	Good	Normal
0.5–1.0%	Moderate	Consider swapping less
1.0–3.0%	Poor	Split into smaller swaps
> 3.0%	Very poor	DON'T SWAP!

High Price Impact = losses

If you see Price Impact above 1%, your amount is too large for the market's liquidity. Split it into smaller swaps or use a Limit Order.

Common mistakes

Error	Why it happens	How to fix it
"Insufficient SOL for fees"	Not enough SOL for fees	Leave 0.05 SOL
"Transaction failed"	Slippage set too low	Raise it to 0.5%
"Route not found"	Too little liquidity for the token	Try a smaller amount
Got less than expected	High Price Impact	Split the amount
Token not found	Wrong name	Use the exact name

Safety tips

Check the URL: only jup.agad is official
Check the token: before swapping any token, check its name
Read the wallet popup: always read what your wallet shows before confirming
Don't click on unknown tokens: scam tokens can show up in your wallet

Unknown tokens — spot them and skip them

Sometimes tokens you never bought show up in your wallet — that's scammer "bait". The fix is simple and one-step: you don't touch them. Don't click, don't swap — just leave them alone. Spotting them is easy — it's any token you didn't personally acquire.

But there's an important exception. Tokens built on Solana's Token-2022 standard can carry a "permanent delegate" extension, which gives the issuer a standing right to move or burn tokens out of your wallet without your signature. So "nothing can happen as long as I don't click" is not universally true.

The practical conclusion: your main protection is not after the purchase, it's before it. Before buying any unfamiliar token, check it on rugcheck.xyz, or look at whether Jupiter is flagging the token's extensions — watch for permanent delegate, freeze authority, transfer hook. If even one is present, don't buy it.

Summary

Feature	What it is	When to use it
Swap	Instant exchange	Everyday use
Limit Order	Swap at the price you want	When you want to buy cheaper
DCA	Automatic buying in installments	Long-term investing

Jupiter is the core tool on the Solana network. You'll use it often — both for swaps and for managing your portfolio.

Jupiter Wallet — a Solana wallet

SOL

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This is an affiliate link. It costs you nothing extra, but the platform pays a commission. That helps keep the school free.

Jupiter Wallet is a crypto wallet for the Solana network. It lets you hold SOL and other Solana tokens, swap currencies, and use DeFi protocols. Think of it like a banking app, but for cryptocurrencies.

Simple analogy

A crypto wallet is like your personal vault. You hold the key (your password). No one else can open your vault. But if you lose the key — no one can help you open it either.

Why Jupiter Wallet?

Feature	Jupiter Wallet	Phantom
Swap currencies inside	Yes (via Jupiter routing)	Yes
In-wallet swap fee	~0.02% (SOL↔USDC via Jupiter)	0.85% (gasless swaps — 1.5%)
Automatic buying (DCA)	Yes (built in)	No
Buy with a card	Yes (Apple Pay, card)	Via third parties
Sign-up	Apple ID / email	Seed phrase required
Networks	Solana	8 networks (Solana, Ethereum, Base, Bitcoin and others)
Browser extension	Chrome	Chrome, Firefox, Brave
Mobile	iOS, Android	iOS, Android

The swap-fee gap is large and easy to miss: 0.85% versus 0.02% is roughly 42x. On a €1,000 swap that's about €8.50 versus €0.20. Convenience inside the wallet has a price — it's worth at least knowing what it is (data as of 2026-09; both platforms change their rates).

Phantom offers leverage right inside the wallet — that is not part of this course

Since July 2025, Phantom has offered perpetual futures with leverage up to 40x directly in the wallet, and they are available to EU users (the US and UK are restricted). That means on your very first day you'll see a button leading straight to the riskiest product in crypto.

Leveraged trading is not part of this course's strategy. At 40x leverage, a ~2.5% price move against you wipes out the entire position — and SOL covers 2.5% in a matter of hours. More on this in lesson 2-6 on the dangers of futures.

Jupiter Wallet — the core Solana wallet

You need Jupiter Wallet to use Kamino, Orca, Meteora, and Jupiter swap ad. Without a Solana wallet you can't use these DeFi protocols.

Installing Jupiter Wallet (browser)

Download the extension
Go to the Chrome Web Store and search "Jupiter Wallet". Click "Add to Chrome". The extension will appear at the top of your browser.
Use ONLY the official extension from the Chrome Web Store! Fake versions can steal your money.
Create a wallet
Click the Jupiter Wallet icon in your browser. You can sign in with Apple ID or email (simplest). Or create a wallet with a seed phrase (12 secret words).
If you choose the seed phrase option — write it on paper! NEVER take a photo of it!
Get your Solana address
Your Solana address is shown on the main screen. Click it to copy it — that's your account number for transfers.
Buy or transfer SOL
You can buy SOL directly with Apple Pay or a card. Or transfer it from the Nexo exchange (cheaper).

Seed phrase — your key, handle it professionally

If you chose the seed phrase option — your 12-word seed phrase is the key to your wallet.

The idea is simple: a seed phrase is the key to the vault. Whoever holds the key unlocks everything, so you keep it to yourself. The two lists below cover everything you need to handle it correctly:

NEVER:

Enter your seed phrase into any website
Store it on your phone, in email, or in the cloud
Take a screenshot of it
Send it to anyone in a message

ALWAYS:

Write it on paper (make 2 copies)
Keep it somewhere secure (a safe)
Double-check that you wrote it down correctly

Jupiter Wallet on mobile

Download the app
App Store (iPhone) or Google Play (Android) — search "Jupiter Mobile" or "Jupiter Solana Wallet".
Sign in
You can use Apple ID, Google, or email. No seed phrase needed for beginners!
Buy SOL
Click "Buy" → choose an amount → Apple Pay / Google Pay / card. SOL arrives in about 50 seconds.

The cheapest way to buy SOL with euros (onramp)

There are a few ways to turn euros into SOL, and the rate between them can vary surprisingly. The cheapest option I've found in practice is buying through Jupiter onboard and paying with Revolut Pay.

Steps

Open Jupiter onboard
On the Jupiter site, go to "onboard" → "Buy crypto with local currencies".
Enter the amount in euros
Enter how many euros you want to convert (e.g., €500) and choose SOL. Jupiter will show how much SOL you'll get.
Choose Revolut Pay
Among the payment methods, choose "Revolut Pay" — this specific combination gave the best rate with low fees.
Confirm and receive SOL
Pay through Revolut. The SOL lands directly in your Jupiter Wallet.

Why not go direct?

Interestingly, that same Revolut, used DIRECTLY (buying SOL inside the Revolut app), gives a WORSE rate than when you use it to pay for a Jupiter onboard purchase. Here's a real comparison I noticed (2026-06-16, €500):

Method	You get for €500
Jupiter onboard + Revolut Pay	~7.7366 SOL
Nexo	~7.5934 SOL
Revolut directly	~7.56 SOL

The gap between the best and worst option is about 2.3%. On €500 that's roughly 0.18 SOL "free" just from picking the right route. For larger amounts, the gap grows proportionally.

Rates keep changing — always check for yourself

These numbers are a one-day snapshot, not a guarantee. Onramp rates and fees change daily, depend on the amount, and can vary by region. Before buying, always compare how much SOL you'll actually get through a few different methods — the number on screen doesn't lie.

Solana address — what is it?

Once you create a wallet, you'll get a Solana address. It looks roughly like this:

7xKXtg2CW87d97TXJSDpbD5jBkheTqA83TZRuJosgAsU

Simple analogy

A Solana address is like your bank account number. You can give it to others so they can send you money. But with that address, nobody can TAKE your money — only send it to you.

Features:

32–44 characters long (letters and numbers)
Every address is unique
Safe to share publicly

How to find your address

Open the Jupiter Wallet extension
You'll see a shortened address at the top (e.g., 7xKX...AsU)
Click it — the address gets copied

Transferring SOL from Nexo to Jupiter Wallet

Nexo → SOL

Now let's transfer SOL from the Nexo exchange to your Jupiter Wallet:

Copy your Jupiter Wallet address
Open Jupiter Wallet, click on the address at the top. It gets copied.
Nexo: Withdraw / Send
Log in to Nexo. Go to "Withdraw" or "Send". Choose "SOL".
Choose network: SOLANA
Nexo will ask which network to send on. Choose "Solana". NOT ERC-20, NOT BEP-20!
ALWAYS choose the SOLANA network when sending SOL! Wrong network = lost money!
Paste your Jupiter Wallet address
Paste (Ctrl+V) your address. CHECK the first and last characters — do they match what you see in your wallet.
Confirm and send
Review the amount and address. Click "Confirm". You may need 2FA confirmation.
The first time, send a small amount (e.g., 0.1 SOL) as a test!

First transfer — always test it!

Always send a small amount (0.1 SOL) the first time. Once you see the SOL in your Jupiter Wallet — then send the rest. Better to pay a few cents to test than to lose hundreds to a mistake.

How long does it take?

Stage	Time
Nexo processing	1–10 min
Solana network	~1 second
Visible in your wallet	Within 1–2 min

Using Jupiter Wallet day to day

Checking your SOL balance

Open Jupiter Wallet — on the main screen you'll see:

Your SOL balance (amount and USD value)
Your token list (USDC and others)
Your DeFi positions (Kamino, Orca, etc.)

Transaction fees

Every Solana transaction costs ~$0.001–$0.01 (from fractions of a cent to a few cents, depending on network load at that moment). That's very cheap, but not free: if you repeat operations often, the cost adds up. Always keep at least 0.05 SOL in your wallet to cover fees.

Gas reserve

Always leave ~0.05 SOL in your wallet. Without SOL you can't do ANY transaction — not even sending other tokens. Think of it like gas in a car — you won't get far without it.

Built-in currency swaps

Other wallets make you go to a separate site to swap currencies. Jupiter Wallet has swapping built in — just open the wallet, pick your tokens, and swap. It uses the same Jupiter routing engine, which looks for the best route across Solana's liquidity sources. That is not a guarantee of the best price — slippage and network load still shape what you actually receive, so always check the amount you're getting before you confirm.

Jupiter Wallet connects directly to every Solana DeFi protocol:

Kamino — lending and borrowing
Orca — liquidity provision
Meteora — liquidity provision
Jupiter swap ad — built right into the wallet!

Security settings

Auto-Lock (automatic locking)

Set Jupiter Wallet to lock itself automatically after 5–15 minutes. This protects your funds if you leave your browser open.

Connected sites

Review which sites have access to your wallet. Remove any you no longer use.

Transaction review

Jupiter Wallet shows what each transaction will do BEFORE you confirm it:

Which tokens you'll receive
Which tokens you'll give up
Whether the transaction looks suspicious

The transaction window — your last checkpoint

The confirmation window works for you, not against you: it shows exactly what you're about to do BEFORE you sign. The habit is simple — read what you'll receive and what you'll give up, and only then click "Approve". If something doesn't match what you meant to do, close the window and you've lost nothing. That way you — not anyone else — stay in control of every step.

Solana wallet alternatives

Wallet	Pros	Cons
Jupiter Wallet	Built-in swap, DCA, fiat purchases	Chrome extension only
Phantom	Most popular, good design	No built-in DCA
Solflare	Long-standing and reliable	Less popular
Backpack	Modern	Less widely used

Our recommendation: Jupiter Wallet — for its far cheaper in-wallet swap (~0.02% vs 0.85%) and the simplest onboarding.

Phantom still works fine

If you already have a Phantom wallet — it works great with all Solana DeFi protocols. But for new users, we recommend Jupiter Wallet for its simplicity.

Next step

If your strategy uses ETH — the next lesson covers MetaMask. If you're sticking to Solana only — you can skip MetaMask and go straight to using Jupiter swap.

Quick check

What is Jupiter in the context of a DEX?

Practice task

0 / 5

Your first swap — a few euros' worth of SOL into USDC

Swapping is a daily DeFi tool, so it's worth feeling it out with your own hands. It'll take about 10 minutes, and the 'tuition' is just the network fee (less than a cent). Only swap a few euros' worth.

Only swap a few euros' worth — this is the cost of learning, not an investment. Leave at least 0.05 SOL for network fees, and never confirm a transaction you don't understand.

This is learning, not investing — use only small amounts you treat as tuition.

You just did an on-chain swap, read the Price Impact and confirmation screen, and did a reverse swap too — plenty of people talk about crypto for years without ever taking this practical step.

MetaMask wallet (ETH)DEX comparison

Mark as read

Jupiter — swap, wallet, and DCA

What is Jupiter?

Connecting to Jupiter

Open jup.ag

Connect your wallet

Check the connection

Swapping SOL for USDC

Pick your tokens

Enter the amount

Review the details

Click "Swap"

Confirm in your wallet

Wait for confirmation

Other "dollars" in the Jupiter interface

Slippage — what it is and how to set it

How to set it

Limit Orders — buy at the price you want

How to create a Limit Order

DCA — automatic buying in installments

How to set up DCA

Price Impact — what does it mean?

Common mistakes

Safety tips

Summary

Jupiter Wallet — a Solana wallet

Why Jupiter Wallet?

Installing Jupiter Wallet (browser)

Download the extension

Create a wallet

Get your Solana address

Buy or transfer SOL

Jupiter Wallet on mobile

Download the app

Sign in

Buy SOL

The cheapest way to buy SOL with euros (onramp)

Steps

Open Jupiter onboard

Enter the amount in euros

Choose Revolut Pay

Confirm and receive SOL

Why not go direct?

Solana address — what is it?

How to find your address

Transferring SOL from Nexo to Jupiter Wallet

Copy your Jupiter Wallet address

Nexo: Withdraw / Send

Choose network: SOLANA

Paste your Jupiter Wallet address

Confirm and send

How long does it take?

Using Jupiter Wallet day to day

Checking your SOL balance

Transaction fees

Built-in currency swaps

Security settings

Auto-Lock (automatic locking)

Connected sites

Transaction review

Solana wallet alternatives

Next step

Free material is easy to put off

What you get for it

Where the money goes