The short answer
A Solana wallet does not hold tokens directly. For each token it owns, there is a token account that stores the balance, and the standard one is the associated token account (ATA), whose address is calculated from the wallet address, the token program and the mint. Because anyone can calculate it, senders know where to deliver a token without asking.
| SPL Token | Token-2022 | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | 165 bytes | 170 bytes, more with some extensions (182 with a transfer fee) |
| Rent deposit | 0.00148844 SOL | 0.00151384 SOL, 0.0015748 SOL with a transfer fee |
| Program | Associated Token Account ATokenGPvbdGVxr1b2hvZbsiqW5xWH25efTNsLJA8knL | Same |
Who pays for it
Whoever creates the account pays the rent deposit. When you buy a new token, your swap usually creates your ATA, so the first buy costs a little more. When someone airdrops a token to many wallets, the sender pays for every new ATA, which is why multisends cost more than the transfer fees alone, see how to airdrop a token.
Getting the deposit back
An empty token account can be closed and its rent returned to you. Spam tokens and dust leave many such accounts behind, see how to close empty token accounts and reclaim SOL.
How we checked
Account sizes from the SPL Token and Token-2022 account layouts; deposits from simulating account creation on Solana mainnet on 3 November 2026 at the current rent rate.