Orca DEX
Solana DEX built on concentrated liquidity pools (Whirlpools), with fee tiers from 0.01% to 2%.
No project pays to be listed. How we rank
Orca key facts
| Category | Decentralized exchange |
|---|---|
| Chains | Solana |
| Platforms | Web, SDK, API |
| Custody | Non-custodial |
| Fees | 0.01% to 2% by pool fee tier |
| Token | ORCA, launched August 9, 2021 |
| Security audits | Whirlpools double audited |
| US availability | The US is not on Orca’s blocked-regions list |
ORCA token
- Price
- $1.38 +2.1% 24h
- Market cap
- $84.1M
- Fully diluted value
- $103.8M
- 30-day change
- -42.7%
Market data: CoinGecko, updated Nov 9, 2026. Educational content, not financial advice.
What is Orca?
Orca is a decentralized exchange on Solana that uses concentrated liquidity pools called Whirlpools. Pool creators pick a fee tier from 0.01% to 2%; 87% of trading fees go to liquidity providers. The ORCA governance token launched on August 9, 2021.
How Orca works
Orca pools are Whirlpools, concentrated liquidity pools where each LP picks a price range.
When a swap routes through a pool, the fee is taken from the input token: in a SOL to USDC trade, it comes out of the SOL. Pools are either fixed-fee or Adaptive Fee Pools, where a dynamic component on top of the base tier rises during volatile periods. Each fee tier is tied to a tick spacing chosen when the pool is created.
The trading fee splits 87% to liquidity providers, 12% to the Protocol Treasury and 1% to the Climate Fund. The treasury share is divided again: 50% to the initial development team, 10% to the Orca DAO Fee Treasury and 40% used to buy ORCA for the xORCA pool. Fees are shown before you submit a swap. How much any single LP earns depends on active liquidity, pool activity and whether the position range covers the current price.
How to start with Orca
- You need a Solana wallet such as Phantom or Backpack, SOL for network fees, and the token you want to swap.
- Connect at orca.so, pick the token to sell and buy, and review the rate, price impact and minimum received.
- You can route directly through Orca pools or through supported aggregators such as Titan, Jupiter and DFlow.
- The UI blocks 25 listed countries plus Crimea, Donetsk and Luhansk, and screens wallet addresses; the United States is not on that list.
Orca fees and limits
- The fees page lists position rent of about 0.0088 SOL, refunded when the position closes, network fees of 0.000005 to 0.000010 SOL, variable priority fees, and in uncommon cases a non-refundable 0.07 SOL account for a new TickArray.
Orca charges no interface fee on standard swaps and no fee to create a pool or a position. You still pay Solana costs. Pool creation costs more when more TickArrays need to be set up.
Risks to know before using Orca
- The FAQ says Whirlpools is double audited, with amendments also audited, and links the reports on GitHub; it adds that audits do not remove wallet, token or phishing risk.
- In Adaptive Fee Pools the effective fee can exceed the base tier in volatile markets, which raises your trading cost.
- If your country is added to the blocked list later, you can only close positions and withdraw through the UI.
Orca usage
From DefiLlama (TVL) (fees users paid), updated Nov 9, 2026.
Orca alternatives
Other projects people compare with Orca.
Multichain DEX and trading platform with Liquidity Book pools, a meta-aggregator and limit, DCA and stop-loss orders.
Multichain DEX on BNB Chain, Ethereum, Solana, Base and seven more chains, with farms, Syrup Pools and CAKE.
Automated market maker DEX with v2, v3 and v4 pools on Ethereum and other networks, governed by UNI holders.
Programmable AMM with weighted, stable, boosted and liquidity bootstrapping pools on Ethereum and other EVM chains.
Solana AMM and DEX with constant-product and concentrated liquidity pools and the LaunchLab token launcher.
DEX and liquidity hub on Base where veAERO holders vote on AERO rewards and earn trading fees.
Where Orca ranks on DappAtlas
Listed next to Orca
- Curve Finance Decentralized exchange
- Pump.fun Token launchpad
Orca pros and cons
- Fee tiers as low as 0.01%
- 87% of trading fees go to liquidity providers
- No interface fee on standard swaps
- Adaptive fee pools can charge more than the base tier in volatile markets
- Some tick ranges need a non-refundable account costing about 0.07 SOL
- UI blocked in over 20 sanctioned countries and regions
Orca FAQ
What is Orca?
Orca is a decentralized exchange on Solana that uses concentrated liquidity pools called Whirlpools. Pool creators pick a fee tier from 0.01% to 2%; 87% of trading fees go to liquidity providers. The ORCA governance token launched on August 9, 2021.
How much value is locked in Orca?
$276.9M according to DefiLlama on Nov 9, 2026. It is deployed on 2 chains: Solana, Eclipse.
How much does Orca cost?
0.01% to 2% by pool fee tier, according to Orca’s own page (checked Sep 26, 2026).
How much do users pay Orca in fees?
$6.1M over the last 30 days, according to DefiLlama on Nov 9, 2026.
Does Orca have a token?
Yes, ORCA. Its market cap was $84.1M on CoinGecko on Nov 9, 2026. Educational content, not financial advice.
Is Orca available in the US?
The US is not on Orca’s blocked-regions list, according to Orca’s own page (checked Sep 26, 2026).
Does Orca hold my funds?
No. Orca is non-custodial: you keep your funds in your own wallet and sign each transaction.
Sources
How this page works
Sources: Orca: official site, Orca: Docs, Trading Fees, Orca: Docs, FAQs. Data as of Sep 26, 2026.
Not affiliated with any project listed. Educational content, not financial advice.