Glow

Glow is a self-custody crypto wallet that works only on Solana, made by Luma Labs, Inc. It is a different project from Glow Finance, and from the Bitcoin app of the same name made by Breez.

Glow runs as a browser extension for Chrome, Edge, Firefox and Brave, and as an app for iOS and Android. You hold your own keys. The wallet adds token swaps with no Glow fee, SOL staking, an NFT viewer and a tool that burns spam tokens. Glow launched in late 2021 and still works. Updates are rare, but the iOS app got a new release in October 2026.

How Glow wallet works: self-custody keys and transaction simulation

Glow is a non-custodial wallet, which means your keys stay on your device and Luma Labs cannot move your funds. Glow's own developer docs describe it as "a non-custodial crypto wallet for the Solana blockchain". You set it up with a recovery phrase, and that phrase is the only way back in if you lose the device.

On iPhone, the App Store listing says keys are stored in the Apple Keychain and can be backed up to iCloud. You can lock the app with Face ID or Touch ID.

Glow also tests each transaction before you approve it. The wallet runs a simulation, shows what would change, and blocks requests that look malicious, according to its Google Play listing. That helps against the common scam where a fake site asks you to sign away your tokens. It will not catch everything, so read each prompt before you approve.

How to download, set up and import a Glow wallet

To start with Glow, download the app or extension from Glow's own download page, create a new wallet or import one, and write down the recovery phrase. That takes three steps and a few minutes. You need a phone or a desktop browser, and nothing else.

When you set up, you can:

• create a new wallet and save its recovery phrase somewhere offline;
• import an existing wallet with its recovery phrase or a private key. The Google Play listing says you can import several of each and switch between accounts;
• sync your wallets between the phone app and the desktop extension, so the same accounts show up on both.

Glow's download page links to the official app stores and browser add-on stores. Searches for a "Glow wallet APK" turn up copies on other sites. A wallet app from an unofficial source is a common way to lose funds, so install only through the store links Glow gives.

If something goes wrong, Glow's support page says to email [email protected] with your public wallet address. Replies usually come within 15 minutes between 9am and 9pm Pacific time, seven days a week, and always within a day.

Glow wallet extension, iOS app, Android app and Safari support

Glow runs on four desktop browsers and on both main phone systems. The Glow website lists add-ons for Chrome, Edge, Firefox and Brave, plus apps for iOS and Android.

The iPhone app comes with a Safari add-on. It lets you use Solana apps such as Magic Eden, Jupiter and Raydium inside Safari. You do not need a browser built into the wallet. The Android app has its own browser for the same job, per Glow's docs. The App Store page also lists iPad, Mac and Apple Vision.

The app stores give a rough idea of how many people use Glow. On 1 November 2026, Google Play showed more than 100,000 Android downloads. The Chrome listing showed about 10,000 users. These counts change, so check the store pages for current figures.

The Google Play listing adds two smaller features: you can send tokens to a friend with a note attached, and you get a push notification when someone sends you something.

Is Glow wallet still updated? The beta label and 2026 releases

Glow is still updated, but rarely. The iOS app got a new version on 13 October 2026, its first release in more than two years. The release notes say only "Bug fixes".

The App Store history shows how much the pace has slowed. Glow shipped iOS updates every few weeks for about a year, until May 2023. After that came a single release for iOS 18. The App Store listing now calls the app "Glow Crypto Wallet", but its description still covers Solana only.

The Chrome extension is still named "Glow - Solana Wallet BETA", nearly five years after launch.

Developer work picked up in October as well. Glow's glow-js code got a batch of changes that month. They fix sign-in expiry, failed confirmations, signing and transaction checks. They also add support for Solana's newer "v1" transaction format.

Zero-fee swaps, SOL staking and the spam token burner

Glow's main features are swaps, staking, an NFT viewer and a spam burner, all inside the wallet.

Glow advertises token swaps "with zero fees". That means Glow does not add its own charge to a swap. You still pay Solana's network fee, and the price you get depends on the route the swap takes.

You can stake SOL from inside the app and earn staking rewards. Glow's site does not say which validators it uses, so check where your stake is going before you confirm. Since June 2026 the network has required at least 1 SOL for each new stake account (SIMD-0490). You can check a validator's commission and uptime on Solana Compass, and our guide to how staking rewards work covers the basics. Our step-by-step staking walkthrough shows the same process in other wallets.

The spam burner removes unwanted tokens that strangers have sent to your wallet. Each token sits in a small account that holds a deposit of SOL, known as rent. When Glow burns the token and closes the account, that deposit comes back to you.

For collectors, Glow shows NFTs in a gallery, with prices and recent sales. App Store release notes show that NFT minting arrived in November 2022, and minting from Stable Diffusion AI images followed in January 2023. Support for Ledger hardware wallets was added to the iOS app in September 2022.

Who should use Glow: Solana-only phone users

Glow suits people who only use Solana, mostly on a phone, and want a simple wallet for small day-to-day sums. iPhone users who open Solana apps in Safari get the most from it. CoinLedger's Solana wallet guide, reviewed on 22 September 2026, names Glow its pick for iPhone and Android users. It also points NFT fans to Glow for its gallery.

Glow is a poor fit if you hold coins on Ethereum, Bitcoin or another chain, since it cannot show them. Look elsewhere too if you want frequent new features or plan to keep a large sum for years. The same CoinLedger guide says to treat Glow as a wallet for everyday balances rather than long-term storage, because its Chrome listing is still marked beta.

Is Glow wallet safe? Security, bug bounty and risks

Glow has no reported hack on its record, and it has real safety tools, but it also has gaps you should weigh. Our searches of news coverage in November 2026 found no breach tied to Glow.

On the plus side, you hold your own keys. Glow tests each transaction before you sign, and you can lock the app with your face or fingerprint. You can also sign with a Ledger. Glow runs a bug bounty that pays up to $250,000. It covers the phone apps, the Safari add-on and the browser add-on. It pays for bugs that leak a recovery phrase or secret key, or that lock a wallet for good. Both app store listings say the app collects no user data.

The risks are these:

• Slow maintenance. A wallet that rarely ships updates can fall behind new Solana features and new scam techniques. The October 2026 releases help, but Glow went more than two years without an iOS update before them.
• No published audit. Glow's website and docs do not link to a third-party security audit of the wallet apps, the extension or its on-chain programs. Glow's public GitHub holds the developer kit, and the source code for the wallet apps is not there.
• Upgradeable programs. Solscan shows both of Glow's on-chain programs, Glow Note and Glow ID, as upgradeable, each controlled by one upgrade-authority address, with no verified build. Your wallet funds do not depend on these programs, but features that use them do.
• Hot wallet exposure. Without a Ledger, your keys live on a phone or computer that is connected to the internet.
• You are the backup. Glow's support page says staff will never ask for your recovery phrase. Anyone who does is trying to steal your funds, and a lost phrase cannot be reset.
• Fake copies. A wallet installed from an unofficial APK or add-on site can steal your keys, so use only the store links on Glow's own site.

Glow's terms of use, dated 23 December 2021, provide the service "as is" and cap Luma Labs' liability at what you have paid it.

Glow vs Phantom, Solflare and Backpack

The main alternatives to Glow are Phantom CASH$1.0000.0%, Solflare and Backpack. CoinLedger's September 2026 guide ranks Phantom as the best Solana wallet overall. It names Solflare the best Solana-only wallet. Glow comes fifth as its mobile pick, one place ahead of Backpack, which the guide rates best for DeFi on Solana.

Glow makes sense if you like its design and only need the basics on Solana. Solflare is the closest match if you want to stay Solana-only. Phantom also supports other chains, which Glow does not. For bigger sums, a hardware wallet keeps your keys offline, whichever app you use.

If you only want Glow for its spam burner, any tool that closes empty token accounts does the same job. Solana Compass runs one: our empty-account cleanup tool works with whichever wallet you connect. We take a fee from it, so weigh that when comparing.

Glow wallet GitHub: the glow-js SDK, Glow ID and on-chain programs

Developers can add Glow to an app with two code packages. One is @glow-xyz/glow-client. The other, @glow-xyz/glow-react, wraps it for React apps. The app checks that Glow is installed, asks the user to sign in, then asks the wallet to sign. The glow-js packages got new releases on 24 October 2026, including glow-client 1.5.2.

Other Glow side projects have stopped. NFToken, which Glow called "a new, simple NFT standard for Solana", is archived on GitHub, with its last update in April 2024. The glow-id-utils code for Glow ID, an on-chain identity tool, is also archived, last updated in December 2023.

Solana Compass lists two Solana programs under Glow's name:

• Glow Note: noteD9tEFTDH1Jn9B1HbpoC7Zu8L9QXRo7FjZj3PT93
• Glow ID Program, marked as open beta: GLoW6kDXmQHFjtQQ44ccmXjosqrKkE54bVbUTA4bA3zs

Glow is a self-custody wallet, so your tokens sit in Solana accounts that your own keys control, whatever happens to these programs.

Who makes Glow: Luma Labs, team and token

Glow is made by Luma Labs, Inc. That is the firm named as seller on the App Store and Google Play, and in Glow's terms of use. The Chrome store entry gives a [email protected] contact and a San Francisco address. Glow's home page shows a quote from Raj Gokal, who co-founded Solana: "Great designers are finally coming to crypto."

Glow wallet has no token. Its website and docs mention no token and no governance system. Tokens on Solana with "Glow" in their names have nothing to do with the wallet.

The name causes mix-ups. Breez, a Bitcoin payments company, announced its own app called Glow in August 2026, a Bitcoin and stablecoin wallet that runs on Lightning. It has no link to Luma Labs or to Solana.