Best Staking ETFs in 2026: Ethereum and Solana Funds Compared

The fee comparisons leave out half the cost

A spot crypto ETF has one headline cost: the sponsor fee. A staking ETF adds a second one, and it rarely makes it into comparison tables.

When a fund stakes its tokens, the network pays rewards. Before those rewards reach the fund, a share goes to the sponsor, the custodian and the staking provider. That share is set out in the prospectus or annual report, and across the five funds we reviewed it ranges from 6 percent to 23 percent of gross staking rewards. On a staking fund, it can matter as much as the sponsor fee.

So this guide ranks staking ETFs on both costs, using only their SEC filings.

How we compared

Every fee below comes from the fund's filing with the SEC, linked from each heading and read on 15 September 2026. We report the sponsor fee, and the aggregate share of gross staking rewards that goes to staking fees and provider shares; the fund retains the rest for shareholders. We do not publish yields other than one reported directly by an issuer, because staking rewards vary with network conditions and how much of each fund is staked. Fees can change after a filing, so the filing date is stated for each. This is not investment advice.

Both costs, side by side

1. Grayscale Ethereum Staking Mini ETF (ETH) — Best for low-cost Ethereum staking

Best for: investors who want Ethereum staking exposure at the lowest combined cost among the funds we reviewed.

Grayscale's Mini fund pairs the lowest sponsor fee of the Ethereum funds here with the smallest staking share.

• Sponsor fee: 0.15 percent, following an initial fee waiver period, per its annual report for 2025.
• Staking share: the staking fee, custodian's fee and staking provider's share together comprise 6 percent of the gross staking consideration.
• Staking structure: staking runs through a provider the filing requires to be unrelated to both the trust and the sponsor.

Limitations: the figures come from the annual report filed on 25 February 2026, so check for later changes. As with every fund here, how much of the trust is staked at any time affects the rewards shareholders see.

2. Bitwise Solana Staking ETF (BSOL) — Best for low-cost Solana staking

Best for: investors who want Solana staking with a low sponsor fee and a small staking share.

Bitwise matches the Grayscale Mini fund's 6 percent staking share and adds an unusually specific description of how it stakes.

• Sponsor fee: 0.20 percent. Per its quarterly report, the sponsor fee accrued at that rate after a waiver on the first $1 billion ended on 27 January 2026.
• Staking share: staking expenses paid to its staking agents and the sponsor equal 6 percent of the additional SOL generated by staking.
• Staking structure: substantially all of the trust's SOL is staked through Bitwise Onchain Solutions, powered by Helius Blockchain Technologies.
• Scale: the trust recorded $9.29 million of staking rewards income in the three months to 30 June 2026.

Limitations: the report notes that unstaked SOL is subject to an unbonding period and cannot be immediately withdrawn. Relying on a single staking validator arrangement concentrates operational risk in that provider.

3. iShares Staked Ethereum Trust ETF (ETHB) — Best for the largest issuer, at a higher staking share

Best for: investors who prioritise BlackRock as sponsor and accept a larger share of rewards going to fees.

BlackRock's staked Ethereum fund combines a low, temporarily reduced sponsor fee with a staking share three times the lowest in this comparison.

• Sponsor fee: 0.25 percent. For twelve months from its Nasdaq listing, BlackRock waives part of the fee so it is 0.12 percent on the first $2.5 billion of assets.
• Staking share: per the prospectus, the staking fee and amounts paid to staking service providers comprise 18 percent of the gross staking consideration, with the trust retaining the remainder.
• Reported figures: on BlackRock's product page, a 30-day staking rewards rate of 1.53 percent and net assets of about $1.07 billion as of 14 September 2026.

Limitations: the prospectus itself notes that the arrangement creates a financial incentive for the sponsor to maximise the amount of ether staked. When the fee waiver ends, the sponsor fee returns to 0.25 percent.

A detail worth correcting: ETHB began trading on 12 March 2026, as CoinDesk reported, five days before the SEC issued its 17 March interpretive release on crypto assets, which addressed staking. That release is often described as having enabled staking funds; this one was already trading.

4. Grayscale Solana Staking ETF (GSOL) — Best for Grayscale investors seeking Solana exposure

Best for: investors already using Grayscale who want Solana staking in the same family.

• Sponsor fee: 0.35 percent, per its April 2026 prospectus.
• Staking share: the staking fee, custodian's fee and staking provider's share comprise 23 percent of gross staking consideration.
• Staking structure: the staking provider must be unrelated to both the trust and the sponsor.

Limitations: against Bitwise's Solana fund, GSOL charges a higher sponsor fee and gives up nearly four times the share of staking rewards. Unless you have a specific reason to prefer Grayscale, compare the two directly.

5. Grayscale Ethereum Staking ETF (ETHE) — Listed for completeness, with the highest costs

Best for: existing holders weighing whether to stay, and investors comparing it against Grayscale's own cheaper fund.

ETHE is one of the best-known Ethereum products, and on its filed fees it is the most expensive staking fund here.

• Sponsor fee: 2.5 percent, per its annual report for 2025.
• Staking share: 23 percent of gross staking consideration.

Limitations: its sponsor fee is more than sixteen times that of Grayscale's own Ethereum Staking Mini ETF, and its staking share nearly four times as large. Existing holders considering a switch should weigh the tax consequences of selling, which vary by situation.

How much does the staking share really cost you?

It depends on the gross staking rate, so the effect is easiest to see as a ratio. A fund that gives up 6 percent of gross rewards keeps 94 percent of them for shareholders. A fund that gives up 23 percent keeps 77 percent. On the same gross rewards, the higher-share fund delivers about 18 percent less staking income to the trust, before the sponsor fee is even counted.

Neither cost exists in isolation. A low sponsor fee with a high staking share can cost more than the reverse, depending on how much the fund stakes and the network's reward rate. Compare both.

What should you check before buying?

Both costs, from the filing. The sponsor fee is easy to find; the staking share is not. Look for the paragraph describing staking fees as a percentage of gross staking consideration.

Waivers and their end dates. Temporary fee waivers make new funds look cheaper. ETHB's waiver runs for twelve months from listing.

How much is staked. The share of holdings a fund stakes can vary, and it directly affects the rewards shareholders receive. Bitwise's filing says substantially all of its SOL is staked; check each fund's own disclosure.

Liquidity mechanics. Unbonding periods on proof-of-stake networks affect how funds handle redemptions.

If you would rather stake directly, our guides to staking Ethereum yourself and liquid staking cover the alternatives, and our explainer on liquid staking tokens covers the on-chain version of the same idea. For spot funds without staking, see our Bitcoin ETF guide.

Conclusion

The first generation of US staking ETFs splits into two groups that fee tables alone do not reveal. Grayscale's Ethereum Staking Mini ETF and Bitwise's Solana Staking ETF keep 94 percent of gross staking rewards with sponsor fees of 0.15 and 0.20 percent. BlackRock's ETHB gives up 18 percent with a temporarily reduced fee. Grayscale's Solana fund and its original Ethereum fund give up 23 percent, and ETHE adds a 2.5 percent sponsor fee.

Two funds from the same sponsor can differ by nearly fourfold on the staking share. Read the filing, not just the fact sheet.

This comparison is built from SEC filings on EDGAR, including prospectuses, annual reports and a quarterly report, plus BlackRock's product page and CoinDesk's launch report, all read on 15 September 2026 and linked inline. Fees reflect each filing's date and may have changed since. We did not hold or trade these funds and have no commercial relationship with any issuer. Yields are not guaranteed. This is not investment or tax advice.