What is PDA Rent?

PDA (Program Derived Address) rent is a core fee mechanism on the Solana blockchain designed to manage state storage and prevent chain bloat. When a Program Derived Address (PDA) account is created—which is necessary for programs to hold state—the owner must deposit enough SOL to cover the storage costs required to keep that account permanently rent-exempt and active on the network

Key Highlights

• 💰 One-Time Deposit: The "rent" isn't paid periodically. Instead, the owner deposits a one-time, upfront amount of SOL when the account is created.

• 🌟 Rent Exemption: This deposited SOL is held in the account to ensure the storage costs are covered, making the account permanently rent-exempt.

Who receives the rent?

It is crucial to understand that the deposited PDA rent used for rent exemption is not a traditional fee paid to any external party, including validators, miners, or any centralized platform. Instead, this rent remains locked within the Program Derived Address (PDA) account itself, serving as a balance reserve that is untouched unless the account is closed or deallocated.