Helium
Community-built wireless network where hotspot hosts earn HNT for providing Wi-Fi and IoT coverage.
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Helium key facts
| Category | DePIN network |
|---|---|
| Chains | Solana |
| Platforms | Hotspot hardware, Web, iOS, Android |
| Token | HNT, native token of the Helium Network, on Solana |
| Launched | First HNT emitted July 29, 2019; moved to Solana April 18, 2023 |
| Open source | Yes, public repos such as helium-program-library (Apache-2.0) |
| Fees | Data Credits at $0.00001 each; Mobile data $0.10 per GB |
| Chains | Solana |
| US availability | Available in the US |
HNT token
- Price
- $0.2581 -5.8% 24h
- Market cap
- $51.8M
- Fully diluted value
- $51.8M
- 30-day change
- -47.3%
Market data: CoinGecko, updated Nov 10, 2026. Educational content, not financial advice.
What is Helium?
Helium is a decentralized wireless network whose coverage comes from hotspots run by the community, rewarded in the HNT token. The first HNT was emitted on July 29, 2019, and the network moved from its own blockchain to Solana on April 18, 2023. Data transfer is paid in Data Credits, a USD-pegged utility token derived from HNT.
How Helium works
Helium runs two wireless networks.
The IoT network uses LoRaWAN: any gateway can join as a Hotspot by running the gateway-rs client next to its packet forwarder, or through a multi-gateway server for fleets. Hotspots do not talk to a network server directly. They send packets over gRPC to the Helium Packet Router, which forwards them to the LoRaWAN Network Server that owns the device's OUI and route, and anyone can run such a server.
The Mobile network is a carrier offload network. Community-owned Helium Mobile Wi-Fi Hotspots and converted Passpoint Wi-Fi networks connect to a common core, so subscribers of participating carriers join automatically. Owners of existing Passpoint-enabled Wi-Fi networks can convert them through Helium Plus or self-serve guides. Deployers are rewarded in HNT for the coverage and data they provide.
All usage is paid in Data Credits. One DC equals $0.00001 and is created only by burning HNT at the price reported by a Pyth oracle feed, a burn-and-mint design. DCs cannot be transferred once created. HNT issuance follows a two-year halving schedule that began August 1, 2019; the schedule sets 7.5 million HNT for the years starting August 2025 and August 2026, falling to 3.75 million from August 2027.
How to start with Helium
- To add coverage, buy a Helium Mobile Wi-Fi Hotspot through helium.com, or bring an existing LoRaWAN gateway, then add it to a wallet and assert its location with the CLI Wallet.
- The Helium Wallet app creates accounts with a 24-word seed phrase, imports 12- or 24-word phrases or a Ledger, holds up to 10 accounts, and shows HNT, MOBILE, IOT, DC, SOL and USDC balances.
- To connect your own devices through your own network server, you buy an OUI and a devAddr slab by contacting Helium, keep at least 3,500,000 DC ($35) in the OUI escrow account, and configure routing rules for your ChirpStack server.
- If the DC balance falls below that minimum, device traffic to your routes stops until you top it up.
Helium fees and limits
- Mobile data costs $0.10 per GB, or 10,000 DC.
- Mobile onboarding is $20 for an indoor Wi-Fi Hotspot and $30 for an outdoor one, both included with the hotspot, and $2 for a converted network.
- IoT Hotspot onboarding and each location assert cost $0.50.
- Running your own network server costs at least $235: $100 for the OUI, $100 for a slab of 8 devAddrs at $12.50 each, and the $35 DC minimum balance.
- Operators with their own LoRa Alliance NetID skip the slab and start at $135.
On the IoT network, data is billed in 24-byte increments of application payload, only when a message is delivered, and each extra copy of a packet you choose to buy costs its own DC. Helium's docs say the network charges no annual fee; you pay only for data used.
Risks to know before using Helium
- The Helium Wallet is self-custodial.
- The seed phrase is the only way into an account and cannot be recovered if lost, and whoever holds it controls the wallet and everything in it.
- Data Credits hold a fixed USD value, but the HNT burned to create them does not, so the amount of HNT a fixed data budget needs moves with the market.
- Network fees and rules change through community governance: HIP-89 set the Mobile onboarding fees and HIP-116 cut devAddr prices and set a path to pay for OUIs and devAddrs in IOT tokens.
- Hotspot income depends on those governance decisions and on the HNT emission schedule, which halves every two years.
Helium usage
From DefiLlama (fees users paid), updated Nov 10, 2026.
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Where Helium ranks on DappAtlas
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Helium pros and cons
- No pre-mine of HNT before the network launch, per Helium docs
- Data Credits are pegged to USD, so data costs do not follow the HNT price
- Core libraries are public on GitHub under Apache-2.0
- The number of Data Credits made by burning one HNT changes with the HNT price
- Hotspot hosts are rewarded in HNT, so reward value moves with the token
- The network already moved chains once, to Solana on April 18, 2023
Helium FAQ
What is Helium?
Helium is a decentralized wireless network whose coverage comes from hotspots run by the community, rewarded in the HNT token. The first HNT was emitted on July 29, 2019, and the network moved from its own blockchain to Solana on April 18, 2023. Data transfer is paid in Data Credits, a USD-pegged utility token derived from HNT.
Which chains does Helium support?
Solana.
How much does Helium cost?
Data Credits at $0.00001 each; Mobile data $0.10 per GB, according to Helium’s own page (checked Sep 26, 2026).
Does Helium have a token?
Yes, HNT. Its market cap was $51.8M on CoinGecko on Nov 10, 2026. Educational content, not financial advice.
Is Helium available in the US?
Available in the US, according to Helium’s own page (checked Sep 26, 2026).
Sources
How this page works
Sources: Helium: official site, Helium: HNT token docs, Helium: GitHub. Data as of Sep 26, 2026.
Not affiliated with any project listed. Educational content, not financial advice.