A compressed NFT is a Solana-based non-fungible token that keeps only a compact proof of the asset on-chain while the heavier data lives off-chain. The design cuts storage needs and lets projects mint and distribute large collections at far lower cost than conventional NFTs.
Compressed NFTs emerged from work by Solana Labs and Metaplex. Solana’s account-compression program provides the underlying Merkle tree structure, and Metaplex’s Bubblegum program defines how compressed NFTs are created and managed.
At a high level, compression means shrinking what gets stored directly on the blockchain so less data clogs expensive account space. Think of it like zipping files on your computer so they are quicker to move and cheaper to store, while the actual content stays the same.
More precisely, compressed NFTs organize their data in a Merkle tree. The small Merkle root is written on-chain, and the leaves with the NFT metadata are kept off-chain. Apps can verify any piece of metadata by checking it against the on-chain root, so viewers can confirm they are seeing the correct version.
Solana RPC providers store and serve the off-chain data. Indexers track updates to the tree so wallets, marketplaces, and programs can query and prove state without paying on-chain storage for every field.
Keeping only the proof on-chain slashes minting costs. As an example, Alchemy estimates that minting 1,000,000 conventional Solana NFTs would cost around 12,000 SOL, while a comparable compressed drop would be about 5 SOL. A typical 10,000-item collection is roughly 3.5 SOL with compression.
Both compressed and uncompressed NFTs are issued and verified on chain, but they differ in where metadata is stored and how programs interact with them. Compressed NFTs keep metadata off-chain in a Merkle tree, which reduces cost but means some existing Solana programs need small changes to read or update them. Teams can also decompress an NFT to work with unmodified programs.
Lower costs open the door to high-volume scenarios. Collections and campaigns can mint at massive scale for gaming items, ticketing and music collectibles, metaverse assets, and enterprise workloads like supply-chain tracking or digitized public records.
Even though the bulk of data is stored off-chain, ownership and updates remain provable. Any change to a compressed NFT must be authorized and reflected in the Merkle tree, and clients can check inclusion proofs against the on-chain root to confirm the data has not been tampered with.
Using compressed NFTs introduces new moving parts. Apps depend on RPC providers and indexers to fetch and verify metadata, and some smart contracts need updates to support compressed assets directly. Projects weighing compression should consider those integration steps alongside the significant savings.
Because storage and bandwidth needs are trimmed, creators and collectors face lower fees and faster fetch times. That efficiency makes large drops and everyday interactions more accessible across a wider range of devices and networks.
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