Introduction

So you want to get started with Solana NFTs, huh? While Ethereum NFTs were all the rage in years’ past, Solana NFTs have gained quite a bit of traction. In fact, they are now rivaling them in daily transaction volume.

It might be time to get that ETH off of Metamask and onto Phantom wallet, so you can start buying and selling Solana NFTs instead of Ethereum ones!

In this quick guide, I will teach you how to do exactly that. I’ll walk you through the process of transferring assets from a MetaMask wallet to a Phantom wallet.

Understanding MetaMask and Phantom Wallet

First off, it’s important to understand that MetaMask and Phantom Wallet operate on different blockchains – MetaMask on Ethereum and Phantom on Solana respectively. For that reason, don’t try to transfer your Ethereum straight into your Solana wallet, you’ll lose it forever! I repeat DO NOT transfer from Metamask and try to send to your Phantom wallet.

This guide will show you how to transition between these two wallets to make sure you convert the crypto over, without losing any other assets.

Step 1: Setting Up Your MetaMask Wallet

If you’re like me and are already into NFTs, then odds are you are setup with an Ethereum wallet, probably Metamask. If you don't already have a MetaMask wallet, follow this tutorial to create one. Once set up, ensure you have Ethereum assets ready for transfer.

Step 2: Sending Ethereum from MetaMask to Coinbase

In order to start with Solana NFTs, you must take your Ethereum and convert it into Solana. Makes sense, right?

To do this, you have to use an exchange. I use Coinbase, so I will teach how you would do it through that.

Simply navigate to your MetaMask wallet and initiate a transaction to send Ethereum to your Coinbase wallet. Copy your Coinbase Ethereum wallet address and paste it into the MetaMask send field. Double-check the address before confirming the transaction. Make especially sure you are copying the Ethereum address ONLY. You don’t want to accidentally be sending to any other wallet in Coinbase. As mentioned before, this will result in you losing all your Ethereum which we definitely don’t want!

Step 3: Converting Ethereum to Solana on Coinbase

It can take a few minutes for your Ethereum to show up on Coinbase. I can confirm that these are the longest few minutes of your life. Trust me, if you copied the address probably, it’ll show up there eventually.

Once the Ethereum transfer is complete, log in to Coinbase and convert your Ethereum to Solana in their exchange. To do this , navigate to the Ethereum wallet, select "convert," and flip it to Solana. Specify the amount you wish to convert and proceed with the transaction. Again, it will take a few minutes for it to properly update and be ready for the next transaction.

Step 4: Creating Your Solana Phantom Wallet

You are in the home stretch. Now you’ll want to create a Solana wallet. I prefer to use Phantom wallet, which is why I’ve used them as the example here. You can download one and create it here.

For more details, here is the tutorial on Phantom wallet.

Step 5: Transferring Solana from Coinbase to Phantom Wallet

You now have your Solana ready in an exchange, and your Solana wallet setup. It’s now for the final step!

Copy your Phantom wallet address and paste it into the recipient field on Coinbase. Initiate the transfer of Solana assets from Coinbase to your Phantom wallet. Again, just like you did with Ethereum, verify the address you’ve copied is the Solana address ONLY. When you’ve verified you’re sending your Solana tokens to your Solana wallet, click to complete the transaction.

Boom. You’re now ready to start trading Solana NFTs! Congratulations!

FAQs

Are Metamask and Phantom safe to use for transferring NFTs?

Metamask and Phantom are both good wallets that focus on keeping your digital assets safe. But remember, it's very important to use strong passwords and write down your seed phrase to protect your NFTs. For more tips on wallet security, see my guide here.

How long does it take to transfer NFTs with Metamask and Phantom?

It shouldn't take more than a few minutes for each transaction (depending on the network). In general, transactions on the Ethereum blockchain with Metamask can take several minutes to be confirmed, while transactions on the Solana blockchain with Phantom wallet are typically faster and can be confirmed in seconds.

That is, if Solana is up when you try to do all this! 😜

Understanding Arbitrum NFTs

Truthfully, I first bought NFTs on Arbitrum on a whim. I thought I had an interview for a marketing position there and I wanted to get familiar with their ecosystem before I chatted with them.

Spoiler: I didn’t get the job or even interview for the correct position

However, the experience of buying NFTs on a L2 was good experience for me, especially with the emergence of Base recently.

Arbitrum is a popular L2 that uses “roll-ups” to reduce gas costs and congestion on mainnet ETH…and for that reason, your eyes may have already glazed over.

But hear me out. the effectiveness of roll-ups *could* be the future of NFTs. That’s because no one wants to spend ten dollars…let alone hundreds or thousands…on gas fees. That’s what has made Solana NFTs so popular despite the network intermittently just going down…it’s quick and cheap.

As NFTs scale, this has become an important topic, and Arbitrum NFTs, much like other L2s have the advantage of having quick transactions and cheap ones too.

However, does that make them work in the long-term? I’ll dive in.

Getting Started: Buying Arbitrum NFTs

To begin, you will need an Ethereum wallet. If you do not have one, I would suggest MetaMask or Rainbow wallet.

In order to purchase an Arbitrum NFT, you'll first need to undergo a swapping process. That’s because you’ll need the Arbitrum token in order to purchase in the native currency. To do this, you’ll need to use the Arbitrum Bridge. Previously, you often had to convert to a coin like $MAGIC on Uniswap or Sushiswap if you wanted to buy a SmolBrains, for example. However, Arbitrum NFTs are now available on OpenSea and other marketplaces. This means you can keep everything in ETH after it's converted on the bridge.

Next, you'll simply need to add Arbitrum to your Metamask wallet. To do so, just click on 'add network' and input the following criteria (or OpenSea can even handle this for you):

• Network Name: Arbitrum
• New RPC URL: https://arb1.arbitrum.io/rpc
• Chain ID: 42161
• Currency Symbol: ETH
• Block Explorer URL: https://arbiscan.io/

Once that's done, return to your Ethereum Mainnet wallet and open up the bridge. Convert the total ETH you desire into Arbitrum. The bridge transaction requires 2 signatures and took me about 10 minutes in total.

It's not exactly lightning fast (it took me about 10 minutes to bridge my Ethereum), but once it's done, you just need to switch back to the Arbitrum network in Metamask... and you're all set to explore the world of Arbitrum NFTs.

I went on OpenSea and bought some ‘Government Toucans’ (see above) mostly because they were cheap and your boy loves toucans.

The most popular and historic project on Arbitrum is SmolBrains which is on a token called $MAGIC. You can swap $ARB for  $MAGIC on Uniswap or you can buy them with your bridged $ARB on OpenSea.

Smol Brains are one of the first dynamic NFTs and you’ll find that it’s revolutionary irregardless of the chain that it’s on. That means it’s certainly worth a look!

It’s up to you though now. What you buy on Arbitrum is your choice, but you’ll see that there is a thriving and cool ecosystem of NFTs already on there.

Give it a try and let me know what you think!