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Helius
Solana RPC nodes, gRPC streaming, and low-latency transaction routing backed by Founders Fund
3.8/ 5
Our score
Good
Services
RPC / nodesData APIs
Chains supported
1
Free tier
Yes
Pricing from
$49/month
Enterprise SLA
Yes
What is Helius?
Helius is a dedicated infrastructure platform built specifically for the Solana network, providing high-performance remote procedure call (RPC) nodes, streaming APIs, and specialized transaction landing tools. The platform is designed to handle Solana's high throughput, serving decentralized applications, wallets, and algorithmic traders who require real-time onchain data and prioritized transaction settlement.
Company background and team
Helius was founded in 2022 by Mert Mumtaz (CEO), Liam Vovk (CTO, formerly a software engineer at Amazon), and Nicolas Pennie. Helius is based in Claymont, Delaware. Helius has raised $21.75 million in funding, co-led by Haun Ventures and Founders Fund, with backing from Foundation Capital, Chapter One, 6th Man Ventures, Spearhead, and angel investors including Solana co-founder Anatoly Yakovenko.
Infrastructure and core services
Helius focuses entirely on Solana, deploying services across regional data centers in cities including Frankfurt, Amsterdam, Tokyo, Singapore, Los Angeles, London, Newark, Pittsburgh, and Salt Lake City. Its stack centers on three primary tools: global Solana RPC nodes routed through its Rust-based Gatekeeper edge proxy, the LaserStream gRPC engine for streaming account updates and block data, and the Sender service. Sender routes transactions through staked validator connections across 7 endpoints to improve delivery success during periods of network congestion. Paid plans stream early transaction signals before shreds are completed.
Pricing and plan tiers
Helius operates a tiered subscription model with a free tier. The Free Plan provides 1 million credits per month and 10 RPC requests per second. The Developer Plan costs $49 per month for 10 million credits and 50 requests per second. The Business Plan is priced at $499 per month for 100 million credits and 200 requests per second, while the Professional Plan costs $999 per month for 200 million credits and 500 requests per second. High-throughput data streaming through LaserStream is available as an add-on for Professional users, starting at $400 per month for 5TB. Enterprise agreements with custom pricing are available directly through sales.
Security and limitations
Helius has completed a SOC 2 audit conducted by Sensiba LLP and reports an RPC success rate of 99.99%. In May 2024, the team expanded into validator operations, introducing its own validator and the liquid staking token hSOL. Helius also acquired Light Protocol to build a privacy layer on Solana. Relying on specialized infrastructure carries vendor lock-in risks, particularly because Helius uses proprietary methods such as cursor-based transaction pagination that do not work on standard RPC endpoints. Its infrastructure supports only the Solana network, requiring multichain teams to integrate separate providers.
Founders
Mert MumtazCo-founder and CEO
Liam VovkCo-founder and CTO
Previously worked as an engineer at Amazon.
Nicolas PennieCo-founder
Best for:Solana DeFi protocols and walletsHigh-frequency Solana trading desksDevelopers seeking staked transaction landing
Pros and cons
Pros
- Free plan includes 1 million monthly credits and 10 requests per second
- All outbound transactions route over staked validator connections by default
- SOC 2 compliance verified by Sensiba LLP
- Global coverage across nine regions including Tokyo, Frankfurt, and Los Angeles
Cons
- Supports only the Solana blockchain with no EVM or cross-chain coverage
- LaserStream gRPC data add-ons require the $999 per month Professional plan
- Proprietary API methods create vendor lock-in when migrating away
- WaaS charges developers for signatures even when onchain transactions fail
Our review
3.8/5
Good
Helius delivers specialized, ultra-low latency Solana RPCs and streaming pipelines, but exclusively targets Solana without supporting any other blockchain networks.
Founded in 2022 by Mert Mumtaz, Liam Vovk, and Nicolas Pennie, Helius provides dedicated infrastructure for the Solana network. Backed by $21.75 million in venture funding co-led by Haun Ventures and Founders Fund, the company operates high-throughput RPC nodes, real-time data streaming through LaserStream gRPC, and specialized transaction landing via Sender. Its client base includes prominent ecosystem teams such as Phantom, Backpack, DFlow, and Crossmint, alongside enterprise customers like Bitwise and Chainalysis.
The platform's technical strengths lie in low-latency infrastructure optimized specifically for Solana's architecture. Rather than treating Solana as one network among dozens, Helius routes transactions through staked validator connections by default, mitigating dropped transactions during periods of heavy chain congestion. Its Gatekeeper edge gateway, built in Rust, handles sub-millisecond responses and provides custom archival query methods with cursor-based pagination. For high-frequency searchers and trading desks, LaserStream offers direct gRPC feeds and ShredStream access across endpoints in nine metropolitan areas, including Frankfurt, Tokyo, Amsterdam, and Newark.
Helius structures its pricing around usage credits and throughput limits:
- Free tier at $0 per month with 1 million credits and a 10 RPC requests per second cap.
- Developer plan at $49 per month offering 10 million credits and 50 requests per second.
- Business plan at $499 per month delivering 100 million credits and 200 requests per second.
- Professional tier at $999 per month providing 200 million credits, 500 requests per second, and access to high-volume LaserStream data add-ons.
The primary trade-off of Helius is its deliberate single-chain focus. Development teams seeking a single provider for multichain deployments across Ethereum, Layer 2 networks, or alternative Layer 1s will need additional vendors. High-volume data streaming can also become costly, as dedicated LaserStream bandwidth add-ons range from $400 to $6,000 monthly on top of the Professional tier. For teams operating on Solana, Helius provides RPC, streaming, and transaction-delivery services transaction success rates and streaming performance.
Sources (1)
Specs
| Services | RPC / nodes, Data APIs |
|---|---|
| Chains supported | 1 · unverified |
| Free tier | Yes |
| Pricing from | $49/month · unverified |
| Enterprise SLA | Yes · unverified |
| Open source | Yes · unverified |
| Uptime SLA | 99.99% · unverified |
| Free tier limits | 1M monthly credits, 10 RPC req/s · unverified |
| Server regions | Frankfurt, Amsterdam, Tokyo, Singapore, Los Angeles, London, Newark, Pittsburgh, Salt Lake City · unverified |
Not disclosed by the provider: Token.
Data from the provider's website and public sources. Fees and availability change; confirm on the official site before you sign up.
Key features
Gatekeeper RPC nodes
Globally distributed RPC clusters routed through a custom Rust edge proxy with cursor-based pagination and staked connections by default.
LaserStream gRPC streaming
Streams Solana blocks, transactions, and account updates across nine regional endpoints with redundant node clusters and replay capabilities.
Sender transaction landing
Routes outbound transactions through seven regional endpoints using Solana validator staked bandwidth at a default 50 transactions per second.
Preconfirmations
Paid plans stream early transaction signals with custom filters by signer, instruction, or signature before transactions are shredded.
Wallet-as-a-service
Embedded Solana wallet APIs for developer applications, billed on a per-signature basis for paid tiers.
Inside Helius
Solana RPCs
Globally distributed RPC node access routed through the Rust-based Gatekeeper gateway, supporting default staked transaction delivery and cursor-based address pagination.
LaserStream
A low-latency gRPC streaming service for Solana blocks, transactions, and account updates across nine regional endpoints with redundant node clusters.
Sender
An ultra-low latency transaction routing pipeline using staked validator connections across seven endpoints to land transactions top-of-block.
Validator Services
Enterprise staking infrastructure that supports white-label validator deployments and powers liquid staking through the hSOL token.
Wallet-as-a-Service
Embedded wallet infrastructure designed for developers to create programmatic onchain key management, billed per generated signature.
Helius screenshots
What users say about Helius
The platform offers pricing tiers alongside its technical contributions to Solana.
In their own words
“Spend 5 dollars on Helius.dev and you won't run out I promise. It's very generous.”
Based on 5 Reddit posts and comments from the last 12 months, checked Oct 20, 2026. These are posts by users on other sites, not reviews submitted on CryptoReview.
User reviews
No user reviews yet. Have you used Helius? Share your experience below.
Funding and investors
$21.8MTotal raised
1Round
6Investors
FAQ
Who founded Helius?
Helius was founded in 2022 by Mert Mumtaz, Liam Vovk, and Nicolas Pennie. Mumtaz serves as chief executive officer, while Vovk serves as chief technology officer.
What chains does Helius support?
Helius supports only the Solana blockchain. It does not provide RPC or node infrastructure for EVM networks or other Layer 1 ecosystems.
Does Helius offer a free tier?
Yes, Helius offers a free plan that provides 1 million credits per month and up to 10 RPC requests per second. It requires no credit card to start.
Does Helius have a native token?
The platform issues hSOL, a liquid staking token tied to its validator operations on Solana.
Has Helius undergone a security audit?
Helius has completed a SOC 2 audit conducted by Sensiba LLP.
What is Helius Sender?
Sender is a low-latency transaction routing service that routes transactions through seven regional endpoints using staked validator bandwidth. It is designed to land transactions at the top of the block without consuming standard API credits.
Latest from Helius on X
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