Launch on Pump.fun if you want a meme coin that trades from the first second with no liquidity of your own: the bonding curve sells the supply and moves the coin to PumpSwap when it fills. Create your own token if you want to hold the supply, choose decimals or a tax, plan an airdrop, or control when and where trading starts. Then you add the liquidity yourself. Pump.fun is cheaper to start; your own token gives you control and costs a pool.
The two routes side by side
| Your own token | Pump.fun launch | |
|---|---|---|
| Who holds the supply | Your wallet, 100% at creation | The bonding curve; you buy like everyone else (optional first buy) |
| How trading starts | You create a pool and deposit SOL plus tokens | At once on the curve, then PumpSwap after graduation |
| Supply and decimals | Your choice | Fixed 1 billion, 6 decimals |
| Mint and freeze authority | You choose what to revoke | Revoked by Pump.fun |
| Transfer tax | Possible with Token-2022 | No |
| Name, ticker, logo later | Changeable until you revoke update authority | Fixed |
| What you earn | Pool fees on the liquidity you provide | A creator share of trading fees, starting at 0.30% |
| Who sets the price | Your pool deposit | The curve, from the first buy |
What each route costs
| Item | Your own token | Pump.fun launch |
|---|---|---|
| Create | Solana costs of 0.0045 SOL (Token-2022) to 0.0165 SOL (SPL), plus the creator tool's fee | No platform fee; about 0.0072 SOL of rent and network fees measured |
| Liquidity | Your own SOL and tokens, any amount you choose | None needed |
| Pool | PumpSwap about 0.008 SOL of rent, Raydium CPMM about 0.031 SOL plus Raydium's 0.15 SOL fee, plus a tool fee if you use one | Created at graduation, 0.015 SOL charged per coin |
| Trading fees | The pool's fee tier | Starts at 1.25% on the curve, falling as market cap rises |
Your own token costs more up front mainly because of the liquidity you deposit, which you can withdraw again unless you lock or burn it. Sources: our cost measurements per launchpad, the cheapest way to create a token and how to launch a coin on Pump.fun.
When your own token is the better choice
- You want to hold or allocate the supply. Team, treasury, airdrop or rewards allocations need the supply in your wallet first, see how to airdrop a token.
- You want a tax. A Token-2022 transfer fee collects a percent of every transfer, see how to create a tax token.
- You want a different supply or decimals. Pump.fun fixes 1 billion at 6 decimals.
- You want to pick the venue. Raydium, Meteora, Orca or PumpSwap, and the fee tier.
- You want to start trading later. Create now, build the community, open the pool on launch day.
When Pump.fun is the better choice
- You want trading at once without your own SOL in a pool. The curve provides the market.
- You want a fair launch. Everyone, including you, buys from the same curve, and authorities are revoked for you.
- You want creator fees. Pump.fun pays the creator a share of every trade, see how creators earn on Pump.fun.
- You want discovery. New coins appear in Pump.fun's own feeds and in the trading terminals that watch them.
Risks on both routes
Most new coins fail whichever route they take. In September 2026, 17.8% of Pump.fun coins were still trading 24 hours after launch and 3.38% graduated, see the measurements. With your own token, buyers judge the authorities and the liquidity: revoke mint and freeze authority and lock or burn the liquidity, or they will treat it as a likely rug, see the launch checklist.
Decide in one table
| If you | Choose |
|---|---|
| Want a meme coin trading in a minute with no liquidity of your own | Pump.fun |
| Need to hold or allocate the supply | Your own token |
| Want a transfer tax | Your own token (Token-2022) |
| Want creator fees from every trade | Pump.fun |
| Want a custom supply or decimals | Your own token |
| Have little SOL | Pump.fun |
How we checked
Creation costs for your own token come from simulating the creation instructions on Solana mainnet on 3 November 2026. Pump.fun launch costs come from 87 launches measured on 21 to 23 October 2026; fees from the Pump.fun fee schedule; pool rent from creating pools on a mainnet fork in October 2026 at the current rent rate.