Solana Foundation Milestone-Based Grants
Rolling milestone-based grants for public goods on Solana; no grant size is published, and applications are reviewed continuously.
What you get
Can you apply
Solana is an open-source, public blockchain. Anyone can apply for funding from the Solana Foundation or other sources. That includes individuals, independent teams, governments, nonprofits, companies, universities, and academics. Public Good: We typically consider a project to be a public good if it either makes a significant open-source contribution to the Solana ecosystem, or if it has a meaningful free community offering. Open Source: Not all projects require code, but they should be built in the spirit of open-sourcing your learnings for everyone to learn from. Projects should benefit the community at large, and while not all parts of the project should be open source, the usable parts should be available to all. Only Possible on Solana: The proposal should make it clear why the project is building within the Solana ecosystem, as opposed to other places or other ways. Clear Use of Funds: Set clear, measurable funding milestones, and make sure the funding you request is correlated to the impact to the community your project is providing.
When
Always open, applications reviewed on a rolling basis.
What Solana Foundation funds
Funds projects that generate public goods for the Solana community and that other ecosystem participants can learn from and build on. Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis and are judged on public-good value, open-sourcing, why the work is only possible on Solana, and a clear milestone-based use of funds.
Everything Solana Foundation funds →Details
"All applications are reviewed on a rolling basis." Review takes roughly a week, with decision and contact roughly three weeks in. Applications warranting in-depth review get a call with Solana Foundation subject-matter experts, and due diligence "can include technical due diligence, market research, and other analyses". Approved applicants work with the Foundation's Legal Team to finalise the grant agreement. "Projects that are primarily commercial in nature usually won't qualify for a standard grant from the Solana Foundation, and should consider a convertible grant." The Foundation reports 500+ projects funded and $100M+ in funding across 6 continents, but publishes no per-grant range.