What Is Pump.fun? A Beginner’s Guide

Pump.fun is a platform where anyone can create and trade memecoins, mostly on the Solana blockchain. This guide explains the basics for complete beginners and, just as importantly, why it is so risky.

Published 1 October 2026

Pump.fun in plain English

Pump.fun describes itself, in its app-store listing, as an app to “discover trends forming in seconds.” You can browse newly created memecoins, see which are being traded most, and follow other users. The same listing says that pump.fun is not an exchange, doesn’t provide investment advice and that memecoins are for entertainment purposes only.

In practice that means: a coin is created, people buy and sell it, and its price moves quickly based on demand. There is no company behind most of these coins and no promise they will be worth anything.

What is a memecoin?

A memecoin is a cryptocurrency built around a joke, trend or community, rather than a product. Most have no utility and no cash flow. Prices are driven by attention. That is why they can jump sharply and fall just as sharply. Pump.fun’s own disclosures say that memecoins have no intrinsic value and that prices can be extremely volatile.

How coins get launched

Pump.fun’s fee page says creating a coin costs 0 SOL or 0 USDC at the time we checked. That low barrier is the point of the platform, and also the reason so many low-effort and fraudulent coins exist. Anyone can launch a coin quickly, including people with bad intentions.

The bonding curve

New coins start on a “bonding curve”, a formula-based price mechanism where the price rises as people buy and falls as people sell. There is no traditional order book. The fee page lists a total fee on the bonding curve (see fees and safety).

Graduation to PumpSwap

When a coin passes a threshold, it can “graduate” from the bonding curve to a pool on PumpSwap, pump.fun’s own decentralised exchange. Pump.fun’s fee page lists a graduation fee of 0.015 SOL. Graduation doesn’t mean a coin is safe or valuable. It only means the coin moved to a different trading venue.

What you need to trade

• A pump.fun account or compatible Solana wallet.
• Some funds in a supported asset such as SOL (or USDC, where supported).
• An understanding of network fees and slippage.

Our how-to guide covers sign-up with a referral code.

Creator fees and who gets paid

Pump.fun’s fee documentation says that on every trade the creator receives a portion of the total fees (the “creator fee”). Fee details differ between the bonding curve and PumpSwap and can change, so check the official page. This matters for beginners because creators are paid when a coin trades, regardless of whether you profit.

What makes pump.fun risky for beginners

• Extreme volatility. A coin can lose most of its value in minutes.
• Rug pulls. A creator or insider may sell a large holding and leave other holders with worthless coins.
• Copycats and fakes. Many coins copy popular names and tickers.
• Bots and snipers. Automated traders are often faster than you.
• Scam sites. Fake pump.fun websites try to drain wallets.

Practical tips for beginners

Learn without risking much

Spend time reading and watching first. Understand how bonding curves, liquidity and fees work before you put real money in.

Set limits

Decide your maximum loss in advance. Do not borrow to trade, and do not trade with money you need for living costs.

Verify everything yourself

Do your own research on any coin and creator. Don’t rely on screenshots, replies or “calls” from strangers. Pump.fun’s Callout terms state that callouts are not advice and that neither pump.fun nor the program operator vets them.

Is a referral code worth using?

A code is only an invite attached to your sign-up. It doesn’t reduce risk. We list SAVE100 on our home page, and explain the difference from Callout Rewards in the referral program explained.

Also see the FAQ.