How to Create a Liquidity Pool on Orca — Whirlpools & Splash Pools Guide (2026)

Orca is one of Solana's largest decentralized exchanges, known for its clean interface and concentrated liquidity pools called Whirlpools. Orca also offers Splash Pools — simplified full-range pools for easier setup. This guide covers how to create both pool types on Orca, when to use each, and how they compare to Raydium and Meteora for your token launch.

Orca Pool Types

Whirlpools (Concentrated Liquidity)

Orca's flagship product. Whirlpools let you concentrate liquidity within a specific price range for higher capital efficiency.

| Feature | Whirlpool | |---------|-----------| | Liquidity model | Tick-based concentrated | | Capital efficiency | Very high (within range) | | Fee tiers | 0.01%, 0.02%, 0.04%, 0.08%, 0.16%, 0.64%, 1%, 2% | | Active management | Required (rebalance when price moves out of range) | | Best for | Established tokens with predictable price ranges | | Token-2022 support | Yes |

Splash Pools (Full-Range Pools)

Orca's simplified pool type. Splash Pools provide liquidity across the entire price range, similar to a traditional AMM.

| Feature | Splash Pool | |---------|-------------| | Liquidity model | Full range (no active management) | | Capital efficiency | Standard (similar to Raydium CPMM) | | Fee tier | Fixed (set at creation) | | Active management | Not required | | Best for | New token launches, passive LPs | | Token-2022 support | Yes |

Orca vs Raydium vs Meteora

| Feature | Orca Whirlpool | Orca Splash | Raydium CPMM | Meteora DLMM | |---------|---------------|-------------|--------------|--------------| | Pool type | Concentrated | Full range | Constant product | Bin-based concentrated | | Management | Active | Passive | Passive | Active | | Fee structure | Multiple tiers | Fixed | Fixed | Dynamic | | Token-2022 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Varies | | Jupiter routing | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | | LP burning | Complex | Complex | Simple (SPL tokens) | Complex | | Best for | Active LPs | Easy launch | Token launches | Volatile tokens |

Key difference for token creators: Raydium CPMM LP tokens are standard SPL tokens that can be easily burned using SolTokenCreator's burn tool. Orca LP positions are NFTs (position tokens), making LP burning more complex.

How to Create a Whirlpool on Orca

Step 1: Prepare Your Token

Before creating any pool:

1. Create your token at SolTokenCreator.io (0.1 SOL)
2. Revoke authorities for trust (0.2 SOL)
3. Have tokens in your wallet for the pool deposit
4. Have SOL (or USDC) for the pair side

Step 2: Go to Orca

1. Visit orca.so
2. Connect your Solana wallet (Phantom, Solflare, or Backpack)
3. Navigate to the "Pools" section
4. Click "Create Pool" or "New Position"

Step 3: Select Pool Type

Choose between Whirlpool (concentrated) or Splash Pool (full range).

For this section, we are creating a Whirlpool with concentrated liquidity.

Step 4: Select Token Pair

1. Select your token (paste the mint address if not listed)
2. Select SOL or USDC as the pair token
3. If no pool exists for this pair, you will create a new one

Step 5: Choose Fee Tier

| Fee Tier | Best For | Notes | |----------|----------|-------| | 0.01% | Stable pairs (USDC/USDT) | Extremely low fee, high volume needed | | 0.04% | Major pairs (SOL/USDC) | Standard for established tokens | | 0.16% | New tokens with moderate volume | Balanced fee/volume trade-off | | 0.64% | Volatile tokens | Higher fee compensates for IL risk | | 1% | Highly volatile meme coins | High fee, lower volume expected | | 2% | Extreme volatility | Maximum LP protection |

Recommended for new tokens: 0.64% or 1%. New tokens are volatile, and higher fees compensate liquidity providers for impermanent loss risk.

Step 6: Set Price Range

This is the most important decision for a Whirlpool:

1. Set the current price of your token (tokens per SOL)
2. Set the lower bound — how low you expect the price to go
3. Set the upper bound — how high you expect the price to go

| Range Width | Capital Efficiency | Risk | |-------------|-------------------|------| | Very narrow (2x) | Very high | High — price easily moves out of range | | Medium (5-10x) | High | Moderate — covers reasonable volatility | | Wide (50-100x) | Low | Low — similar to full-range pool | | Full range | Lowest | None — always in range |

For new token launches: Use a wide range (50-100x from initial price) or choose a Splash Pool instead. New tokens have unpredictable price action, and a narrow range will quickly become inactive.

Step 7: Deposit Liquidity

1. Enter the amount of your token to deposit
2. Orca calculates the required SOL/USDC based on your price range
3. Review the position details
4. Click "Add Liquidity"
5. Approve the transaction in your wallet

Step 8: Verify

After pool creation:

• Your token should appear on Jupiter within minutes
• Check DexScreener for the listing
• Verify on Orca's pool page that your position is active

How to Create a Splash Pool on Orca

Splash Pools are simpler — no price range to configure:

1. Go to Orca and select "Create Splash Pool"
2. Select your token pair (token + SOL or USDC)
3. Set the fee tier
4. Enter deposit amounts for both tokens
5. The ratio of tokens to SOL determines the initial price
6. Create the pool
7. Your token is immediately tradable

This is the recommended Orca option for new token launches where you want passive, low-maintenance liquidity.

Managing Your Orca Position

Whirlpool Position Management

Unlike Raydium CPMM pools (which require no management), Whirlpool positions need attention:

| Situation | Action Needed | |-----------|--------------| | Price within range | No action — earning fees normally | | Price near edge of range | Consider widening range or creating new position | | Price out of range | Not earning fees — must rebalance | | Want to add more liquidity | Create additional position at current price |

Collecting Fees

Orca Whirlpool fees are not auto-compounded. You must manually collect accrued fees:

1. Go to your position on Orca
2. Click "Collect Fees"
3. Approve the transaction
4. Fees are sent to your wallet

Closing a Position

To withdraw your liquidity:

1. Go to your position
2. Click "Withdraw" or "Close Position"
3. Select the percentage to withdraw (up to 100%)
4. Approve the transaction
5. Tokens and SOL/USDC are returned to your wallet

LP Burning on Orca

The Challenge

Orca Whirlpool positions are represented as NFTs (position tokens), not standard SPL tokens like Raydium CPMM LP tokens. This means:

• You cannot burn Orca LP the same way you burn Raydium LP
• Standard LP burn tools do not work with Orca position NFTs
• Closing an Orca position requires interacting with the Whirlpool program

Options for Locking Orca Liquidity

| Method | Permanence | Complexity | |--------|-----------|------------| | Send position NFT to burn address | Permanent | Medium | | Use a third-party locking service | Temporary (time-locked) | Low | | Multisig custody | Semi-permanent | Medium | | Community DAO ownership | Depends on governance | High |

Why Raydium CPMM Is Easier for LP Burning

If LP burning is important for your trust score (and it usually is), Raydium CPMM pools offer the simplest path:

1. Create CPMM pool at SolTokenCreator.io
2. Burn LP tokens at SolTokenCreator.io
3. Done — RugCheck and DexScreener show "LP burned"

This is why we recommend starting with a Raydium CPMM pool for your primary liquidity, then optionally adding an Orca Whirlpool for additional capital efficiency.

When to Use Orca

Choose Orca Whirlpool When:

• Your token has an established, somewhat predictable price range
• You are an experienced LP willing to actively manage positions
• You want maximum capital efficiency for a given liquidity amount
• You want access to Orca's multiple fee tiers
• You are adding secondary liquidity (Raydium CPMM is your primary pool)

Choose Orca Splash Pool When:

• You want a passive Orca pool
• You prefer Orca's ecosystem
• You want a simple full-range pool without CPMM

Choose Raydium CPMM Instead When:

• You want the simplest launch process
• LP burning is a priority (RugCheck trust score)
• You want to use SolTokenCreator's integrated tools
• You are doing a first-time token launch

The Recommended Multi-Pool Strategy

For maximum trading accessibility:

1. Primary pool: Raydium CPMM via SolTokenCreator.io — Burn LP for trust
2. Secondary pool: Orca Whirlpool with concentrated liquidity — Capital efficiency
3. Jupiter routes automatically across all pools for best execution

This gives your token:

• Burned LP on Raydium (trust score)
• Capital-efficient liquidity on Orca (better pricing)
• Full Jupiter routing coverage
• Presence on all major DEXs

Troubleshooting

Token Not Appearing on Orca

• Paste the full mint address in the token search
• Verify the token is on mainnet (not devnet)
• Check that your wallet is connected to mainnet-beta

Position Shows Zero Fees

• Fees accumulate only when the price is within your range
• If price has moved out of range, your position is not earning fees
• Check your price range bounds

Pool Not Routing on Jupiter

• Wait 5-10 minutes after pool creation for Jupiter to index
• Verify the pool has sufficient liquidity (very low TVL pools may not be routed)
• Check that at least one swap has occurred in the pool

Related Guides

• Create Liquidity Pool (Raydium CPMM) — Integrated pool creation
• Create Raydium CPMM Pool — Raydium tutorial
• How to Create Pool on Meteora — Meteora guide
• Concentrated Liquidity Pool Guide — CLMM overview
• How Much Liquidity to Add — LP sizing guide
• Burn LP Tokens — LP burning guide
• List Token on Jupiter — Jupiter listing
• PumpSwap vs Raydium — DEX comparison
• Create Your Token — Start creating now