FAQ

Frequently asked questions about light-token.

What is light-token?

Light token is like SPL token stored more efficiently to reduce account creation cost while being more CU efficient than SPL on hot paths. Users receive and send the same tokens.

Creation Cost	SPL	Light
Mint Account	~1,500,000 lamports	15,000 lamports
Token Account	~2,000,000 lamports	~11,000 lamports

	Light Token CU	SPL-Token CU
ATA Creation	4,348	14,194
Transfer (base path)	312	4,645
Transfer (rent-free hot path)	1,885	4,645

Can I start using the Light Token Standard?

Light token is currently deployed on devnet and undergoing security audits.

Do I need to change my client code significantly?

No. The light-token-sdk methods follow similar patterns to SPL. Reveal the interface method in the code example and find a few examples below.

	SPL	Light
Get/Create ATA	getOrCreateAssociatedTokenAccount()	getOrCreateAtaInterface()
Derive ATA	getAssociatedTokenAddress()	getAssociatedTokenAddressInterface()
Transfer	transferChecked()	transferInterface()
Get Balance	getAccount()	getAtaInterface()

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Can light-token accounts hold SPL tokens?

Yes, light-token accounts can hold tokens from light, SPL, or Token 2022 mints.

SPL tokens can be deposited into light-token accounts and withdrawn back to SPL token accounts via the transferInterface method.

Do light-token accounts require rent?

Rent is paid over time when accounts are accessed via a custom rent config instead of the full rent-exemption upfront:

1. The rent-exemption for light-token account creation is sponsored by Light Protocol.
2. Transaction payer’s pay rent per rent-epoch (388 lamports for 1.5h)
   to keep accounts “active”.
3. “Inactive” accounts, where rent is below one epoch, are compressed
   and the rent-exemption can be claimed by the rent sponsor.
4. Transfers to inactive accounts “load” it with the same state (decompress).

This way rent is automatically paid when accounts are used:

Event	Total Cost	Payer	Time of Rent funded
Account Creation	~17,000 lamports	Transaction payer	Funds 24h rent
Automatic Top ups (when rent < 3h)	776 lamports	Transaction payer	Funds 3h rent
Load Account (when inactive)	~17,000 lamports	Transaction payer	Funds 24h rent

What happens if my light-token account runs out of rent?

The account is automatically compressed. Your tokens are preserved as a compressed token account (rent-free). The account is automatically decompressed when someone interacts with it again.

Does light-token support extensions?

Extensions are under development. Additional extensions can be requested.

Coming soon:

• MetadataPointer
• TokenMetadata
• InterestBearingConfig
• GroupPointer
• GroupMemberPointer
• TokenGroup
• TokenGroupMember
• MintCloseAuthority
• TransferFeeConfig
• DefaultAccountState
• PermanentDelegate
• TransferHook
• Pausable
• ConfidentialTransferMint
• ConfidentialTransferFeeConfig
• ConfidentialMintBurn

What is the difference between light-token and compressed token?

• light-token: Solana account that holds token balances of light-mints, SPL or Token 22 mints.
• Compressed token: Compressed account storing token data. Rent-free, for storage and distribution.

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