The anti-sniper fee: making sniper bots pay at launch

Sniper bots buy a new token in its first second, before people can, then sell into the buying that follows. An anti-sniper fee makes that first second expensive: the trading fee starts very high and falls to the normal fee over a short window.

How it works on Meteora

Meteora's programs have a fee scheduler: a starting fee, an ending fee, a number of steps and a length of time. The fee falls from the start to the end in those steps, either evenly or fast at first and then slower.

On T-minus it is on by default: 50% on the first trade, falling to your normal fee over the first minute in 20 steps. A bot that spends 2 SOL in the first second pays about 1 SOL of it in fees. That fee is shared out like any other: Meteora keeps 20%, and on a curve most of the rest goes to your fee wallet.

What you can change

Where it starts: up to 99%.
Where it ends: your normal fee, from 0.25% on a bonding curve.
How long it falls: the default is a minute, and it can run much longer.
How many steps it falls in, and whether it falls evenly or fast, then slower.
Or switch it off, and every trade pays the same fee.

Other ways to slow bots down

A volatility fee: a temporary extra fee while the price swings sharply, so volatile trading pays more.
A scheduled start, for plain pools: the pool exists but nobody can trade until the time you set, so everyone starts together.
A first buy: buy some of your own token inside the launch transaction, at the lowest fee, before anyone else can trade.

How launchpads compare

Checked on 18 October 2026: pump.fun, bonk.fun and Bags have no fee that falls over time. Jupiter Studio has an anti-sniper fee you switch on or off. On T-minus you set where it starts and ends, how long it falls and in how many steps. The full table is in pump.fun alternatives compared.

Questions

Does the anti-sniper fee hurt normal buyers?

Only those who buy inside the window, and they pay a falling fee. Halfway through T-minus's default minute the fee is about 25%; after it, every trade pays your normal fee.

Where does the extra fee go?

Where every trading fee goes: Meteora keeps 20%, and the rest is shared between T-minus and your fee wallet like any other fee on the curve.

Can I add an anti-sniper fee after launch?

No. The fee schedule is part of the launch and can never change afterwards.

Start an anti-sniper launch