How to create a meme coin on Solana with pump.fun versus a manual SPL token launch and which route fits your goal

Video: Rug Pull Tutorial For Beginners 💰 How to create a meme coin on SOLANA?
To create a meme coin on Solana you either launch it through a no-code platform like pump.fun, which mints the token and seeds a bonding curve for about 0.02 SOL, or you mint an SPL token manually with the Solana CLI or a launch tool, attach Metaplex metadata, and open a liquidity pool on Raydium yourself. The first route takes minutes and costs almost nothing; the second gives you full control over supply, authorities, and where liquidity sits. The walkthrough that inspired this guide, published by the channel dodynoe, also demonstrates the same mechanics from a launch platform you can explore at funrug.cc, and frames them as a security lesson rather than an endorsement of fraud.
What a Solana meme coin actually is under the hood
A Solana meme coin is an SPL token with no utility beyond culture, humor, or a community narrative, and it lives entirely on-chain as a mint account plus associated token accounts. The SPL Token Program defines the mint, the supply, the decimals, and two optional authorities: the mint authority, which can create new tokens at will, and the freeze authority, which can lock a specific holder's account so they cannot transfer or sell. Metadata such as the name, ticker, logo, and socials is stored separately through the Metaplex Token Metadata program, which is why a token can exist on-chain while still showing as unknown on wallets until metadata is attached. Most meme coins use 6 or 9 decimals and a supply between 1 million and 1 billion tokens, purely because round numbers look cleaner in a chart. There is no smart contract to audit in the Ethereum sense: the risk lives in who holds the authorities and who controls the liquidity, not in Solidity code.
Launching through pump.fun step by step
Launching on pump.fun is the fastest path from an idea to a tradable token, and the platform handles minting, metadata, and the initial market in one flow. The process looks like this:
- Install Phantom or Solflare and fund it with at least 0.05 SOL to cover the creation fee and transaction costs.
- Open pump.fun, connect the wallet, and click the create-coin button.
- Upload an image, type the name and ticker, and add a short description plus social links.
- Pay the creation fee, currently around 0.02 SOL, and sign the transaction.
- The token goes live instantly with a bonding curve; buys push the price up along the curve and sells push it down.
- When the curve fills, roughly at a $69,000 market cap, liquidity migrates to Raydium and the token becomes freely tradable on the open market.
The creator keeps a share of the supply, and that allocation is visible from the first second. Because the bonding curve is automated, there is no separate liquidity add and no LP token to lock during the pump.fun phase, which removes one classic rug mechanism but does not remove the creator's ability to dump their own bag.
Minting an SPL token manually with metadata and liquidity
A manual launch gives you control that a launchpad does not, and it is the route most tutorials skip because it involves several separate tools. The standard sequence is:
- Create a file-system wallet with the Solana CLI, or use a browser wallet plus a no-code minting interface.
- Run the spl-token create-token command to mint the token and note the mint address.
- Run spl-token create-account and spl-token mint to create the supply and send it to your wallet.
- Attach metadata with the Metaplex token metadata command, pointing to a JSON file that holds the name, symbol, image, and links.
- Revoke the mint authority with spl-token authorize if you want holders to trust that supply is fixed.
- Create a market on Raydium or another AMM and deposit the token plus SOL into the pool, which sets the opening price.
Budget 2 to 3 SOL for a credible launch: liquidity is the largest line item, followed by account rent and network fees. The critical decision is how much of the supply you pair with SOL. Pairing 100 percent of supply and burning the LP tokens is the strongest trust signal available; pairing 30 percent and keeping the LP tokens in your wallet is the setup behind most rug pulls, because you can withdraw the SOL side of the pool whenever you like.
Authorities, supply, and liquidity settings that decide the risk
Authorities and liquidity control are the two levers that separate a fair launch from an exit scam, and both are readable on-chain before anyone buys. Mint authority retained means the creator can inflate supply and dilute every holder to zero, so a live mint authority is a hard red flag on any token with real volume. Freeze authority retained means specific wallets can be blocked from selling, which is sometimes used to trap buyers while the creator exits. Liquidity that is unlocked, unburned, or held by a single wallet means the pool can be drained in one transaction, collapsing the price to near zero. Liquidity that is burned or locked in a reputable locker means the creator cannot touch the pool, though they can still sell their own tokens. On pump.fun, the bonding curve and the migration to Raydium handle part of this automatically, but the creator's personal allocation still matters. The video by dodynoe walks through these same mechanics from the attacker's perspective, which is exactly why the settings are worth checking on every token you consider.
Red flags to check before buying any new Solana token
Checking four things takes about two minutes and filters out most scams. First, look up the mint address on Solscan or RugCheck and confirm whether mint and freeze authorities are revoked. Second, open the holder list and look for one wallet holding more than 10 to 15 percent of supply outside of the liquidity pool. Third, check the LP status on Dexscreener or Birdeye: burned or locked liquidity is good, an unlocked pool is a countdown. Fourth, compare the token's age against its volume; a token that is hours old with millions in volume and a handful of holders is usually wash trading designed to attract buyers. Social signals matter too, but they are the easiest thing to fake, so treat a polished website and a busy Telegram as marketing rather than evidence. None of these checks guarantee safety, and even a clean token can go to zero on sentiment alone.
Common questions from new launchers and buyers
People who try this for the first time usually hit the same three walls. The first is cost: a pump.fun launch is cheap, but a manual Raydium launch is not, and underfunding the pool produces a token that nobody can buy without massive slippage. The second is metadata: a token with no Metaplex metadata shows up as an unknown asset in Phantom and looks broken to buyers, so the JSON file and image must be hosted at a stable URL before launch. The third is timing and legality: launching a token is technically simple, but marketing it with promises of returns, using insider wallets to buy before the public, or pulling liquidity after soliciting buyers crosses into fraud in most jurisdictions. The platform linked in the source video, funrug.cc, is presented as a launch tool, and the same disclaimer applies to it as to any launchpad: the tool is neutral, the intent behind it is not.
Bottom line
Creating a meme coin on Solana is a 10-minute technical exercise: pick pump.fun for speed and a built-in bonding curve, or mint an SPL token manually for control over supply and liquidity. The real work is in the settings you choose, because revoked authorities and burned liquidity are what let strangers trust your token, while retained authorities and an unlocked pool are the exact pattern behind rug pulls. The breakdown by the channel dodynoe is a useful walkthrough of those mechanics from the launch side, and it is worth watching before you spend a single SOL. If you want to try a launch flow yourself, start at funrug.cc and read every confirmation screen before signing. Treat every token, including your own, as a speculative bet with a real chance of going to zero.
Key takeaways
- pump.fun launches a token in minutes for roughly 0.02 SOL with no coding and a bonding curve that graduates to Raydium near a $69K market cap.
- A manual SPL token launch needs the SPL Token Program, Metaplex metadata, a Phantom or Solflare wallet, and 2-3 SOL for liquidity plus fees.
- Mint authority lets the creator print unlimited new supply; freeze authority lets them block specific wallets from selling.
- Liquidity locked or burned is the main on-chain signal that the creator cannot pull the pool; unlocked pools can be drained at any moment.
- Tools such as Dexscreener, Birdeye, RugCheck, and Solscan expose holder distribution, LP status, and authority settings before you buy.
Questions & answers
How much does it cost to create a meme coin on Solana?
On pump.fun the creation fee is roughly 0.02 SOL plus network fees, so under 0.05 SOL total. A manual SPL token launch with a Raydium pool realistically costs 2 to 3 SOL, because you must supply both the token and the SOL side of the liquidity. Metadata uploads and account rent add small amounts on top.
Can I create a Solana meme coin without coding?
Yes. Launchpads like pump.fun handle minting, metadata, and the initial market through a web form, so no code is required. No-code minting tools can also produce an SPL token with Metaplex metadata, though you still need to add liquidity manually on a DEX if you skip the bonding curve route.
What is the difference between revoked mint authority and burned liquidity?
Revoking mint authority means no one can ever create additional tokens, so the supply is fixed. Burning liquidity means the LP tokens are sent to an unrecoverable address, so no one can withdraw the SOL from the pool. Both are trust signals, but they protect against different attacks and you should check both.
Is launching a meme coin on Solana legal?
Creating a token is generally legal, but how you market and exit it determines whether it becomes fraud. Promising returns, buying through insider wallets before a public launch, or removing liquidity after soliciting buyers can violate securities and fraud laws in many countries. Check your local rules and never treat a launch as a guaranteed profit.
Source: Rug Pull Tutorial For Beginners 💰 How to create a meme coin on SOLANA? · Markdown version