Complete Guide to Solana Block Explorers (2025 Edition)


Table of Contents

A block explorer is the interface layer for a blockchain. It takes raw ledger data (blocks, accounts, program calls, transactions) and turns it in a way that makes on-chain activity readable, traceable and verifiable.

As Solana has grown, its explorers have evolved from simple transaction lookups into full data products. Everyday users expect fast indexing, complete history and clear wallet views. Developers expect reliable instruction traces, inner calls, and enough context to understand how programs interact through their IDLs.

This article walks through the main Solana explorers and the role each one plays. It focuses on their core strengths so you can see what exists, how they differ and which explorer matches the depth and insight your work actually needs.

Solscan

Solscan has been active in the Solana ecosystem since 2021 and is widely integrated across wallets, DeFi platforms, trading tools and developer workflows. Built for speed, clarity and indexing depth, it supports quick lookups and more involved on-chain analysis with equal reliability.

Website: solscan.io

Solscan Homepage
Solscan Homepage

Solscan Key Capabilities

  1. Advanced filtering tools: Filters cover transaction types, programs, tokens, value ranges and time windows. Group-Based Filtering lets users include or exclude multiple wallets or tokens at once.
  2. Integrated analytics dashboards: Real-time dashboards track network performance, priority fees, stablecoin flows, DeFi protocols and individual token activity.
  3. Extensive tagging and labels: Millions of addresses carry public names and organisational tags, adding clarity to wallet and transaction traces.
  4. Tokens: Real-time price, metadata, holders, markets and history, supported by the Token Reputation system for safer token interaction.
  5. Programs: Program pages include activity, IDLs, upgrade authorities, verification status and security metadata.
  6. Wallets: Portfolio views, stake accounts, real-time activity, transfer heatmaps and historical behaviour.
  7. Market and liquidity analytics: TVL, volume, swap activity and pool behaviour across major AMMs.
  8. Transaction details: Summary mode provides a one-line view of key actions, with instruction logs and program-call breakdowns available when deeper inspection is needed.
  9. Exports and developer integrations: Filtered datasets can be exported to CSV. Solscan APIs, custom RPC settings and custom IDL uploads support developer workflows.
  10. Tools for powered users: Personal labels, grouped accounts, watchlists and activity alerts for long-term monitoring and investigation.
  11. Clean, customizable data tables: Essential transaction fields are shown by default, with options to add, remove or reorder columns for clearer navigation.

If you would like to learn more about Solscan, refer to some of our blog posts below:

Solana Explorer (Official)

The official explorer developed by the Solana Foundation provides a clean, protocol-focused view of the chain. It is built for accuracy and stability rather than enrichment, making it a dependable reference for core network data.

Website: explorer.solana.com

Strengths

  • Minimal, stable interface offering straightforward block and transaction views without additional visual layers.
  • Accurate reflection of canonical network state, useful for checking slot height, epochs, validator sets and feature-gate status.
  • Validator visibility, including performance, activation state and stake-related details.
  • Basic transaction traces, sufficient for verifying outcomes and understanding standard interactions.

The official explorer is most useful when a direct, unembellished view of the network is needed.

Solana Beach

Solana Beach focuses on validator data and network health, making it a preferred tool for users tracking consensus-layer behaviour and stake dynamics.

Website: solanabeach.io

Strengths

  • Clear staking and validator metrics, including uptime, delegation changes and stake-distribution patterns.
  • Network health visualisation, showing validator activity, delinquent stake and cluster-wide trends.
  • Useful for delegators and infrastructure operators who monitor validator performance and overall cluster stability.

Its strength is in infrastructure-level visibility rather than application or token-level analysis.

SolanaFM

SolanaFM provides a modern, visually accessible interface for reviewing transactions, address histories and program interactions. It is designed to be approachable for a broad range of users.

Website: solana.fm

Strengths

  • Readable summaries for common transaction types, making activity easier to interpret.
  • Transaction-flow diagrams and call-stack visualisations, useful for understanding complex program interactions.

Acquired by Jupiter Labs in September 2024, SolanaFM remains functional for everyday lookups, though its development pace has slowed.

Orb (Helius)

Orb is a newer explorer built by Helius, designed for raw speed and developer workflows. It prioritises low-latency data access and efficient debugging.

Website: orb.helius.dev

Strengths

  • High-performance indexing and archival pipeline enabling fast retrieval of on-chain data.
  • Lightweight output that surfaces data without additional interface overhead.

Since it is relatively recent, its ecosystem integration is still evolving.

Specialized Explorers

Jito Explorer

Focused on the Jito ecosystem, this explorer surfaces MEV-related data including bundles, searcher transactions, tip flows and validator participation. It is designed for users examining MEV behaviour rather than general on-chain activity.

Website: explorer.jito.wtf

Wormhole Explorer

Built for Wormhole’s cross-chain messaging system, this explorer tracks VAA attestations, cross-chain transfers and token movements between networks. Its scope is specialised and mainly relevant for users analysing bridging activity.

Website: wormholescan.io

What is the Block Explorer for You?

Reliable explorers translate raw ledger data into information users and developers can actually work with. Each tool fills a different role within the ecosystem. For most day-to-day needs, Solscan remains the most complete and widely integrated option, balancing fast transaction confirmation, wallet visibility, program inspection, debugging support, analytics depth and flexible filtering.

Specialized explorers serve narrower purposes. Jito Explorer is the right choice for MEV-specific activity. Solana Beach works well when the goal is to check validator performance, network health or cluster-level trends. For broader historical or analytical work, explorers can be paired with external tools.

Conclusion

Everything on Solana leaves a transparent, on-chain record, and block explorers make that record understandable. They turn complex program calls and transaction flows into readable information, whether you’re checking a transfer, reviewing contract interactions or tracking wallet activity. For everyday users and developers alike, explorers provide the context needed to interpret what’s happening behind the scenes. In practice, they make Solana’s openness usable by giving anyone a clear view of how the network behaves.

  • Ngoc Tran
Updated