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Crypto · 24/7 market

Solana (SOL)

High-throughput alt-L1 with DeFi and consumer app concentration.

Gale Finance Team
Written by Gale Finance Team
Sid Kalla
Reviewed by Sid Kalla CFA Charterholder
Quick Answer

What is Solana's risk, return, and volatility like?

Solana returned -42.3% over the 1Y window. On the 5Y lens, Sharpe ratio is 0.65, annualized volatility is 105.3%, and max drawdown is -96.3%.

Total Return
1Y -42.3%
5Y +132.2%
Sharpe Ratio
1Y -0.43
5Y 0.65
Annualized Volatility
1Y 73.7%
5Y 105.3%
Max Drawdown
1Y -68.6%
5Y -96.3%

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Price history

Solana price over the past 5Y

Track Solana's standalone price path with macro and asset-specific events enabled by default.

Solana price over the past 5Y

SOL
Latest close $85.86 Data through 2026-04-22
5Y low $9.65 Window low
5Y high $262.56 Window high

Key takeaways

  • Total Return: SOL returned -42.3% over the 1Y window and +132.2% over the 5Y window ; annualized return over 5Y was +18.4%.
  • Risk-adjusted return: Sharpe was 0.65 and Sortino was 0.98 over 5Y. Sharpe counts total volatility; Sortino focuses on downside volatility.
  • Volatility & drawdown: Annualized volatility was 73.7% over 1Y and 105.3% over 5Y ; max drawdown was -68.6% over 1Y and -96.3% over 5Y .
  • Tail risk (Expected Shortfall): Over 5Y, daily VaR (5%) was -8.1% and Expected Shortfall was -12.4%. VaR is the cutoff; Expected Shortfall is the average move inside the worst 5% of daily returns.
  • Skew & kurtosis: Over 5Y, skew was -0.68 and excess kurtosis was 10.02. Skew shows return asymmetry; excess kurtosis shows how fat the tails were versus a Normal distribution.
  • Risk ratios: Sortino Ratio: 0.98 , Calmar Ratio: 0.19 , Sterling Ratio: 0.36 , Treynor Ratio: 0.53 , Ulcer Index: 61.91% .

Solana Drawdown

SOL 1Y Max Drawdown
-68.6%
2025-09-18 to 2026-02-11
SOL 5Y Max Drawdown
-96.3%
2021-11-06 to 2022-12-29

Max drawdown shows the deepest peak-to-trough decline Solana suffered in each research window. 1Y: -68.6%; 5Y: -96.3%.

Solana is currently -67.3% below its prior peak, with the high-water mark at $262.56. 5Y low is $9.65.

SOL underwater plot (5Y). Zero means at a prior peak; dips show how far below peak the close was on each day. Deepest trough: -96.3% on Dec 29, 2022.
-96.3% 2021-04-23 2026-04-22 0% -96%

5Y drawdown episodes

#1
-96.3% Nov 6, 2021 to Dec 29, 2022
Recovered Jan 18, 2025 1169 total days
#2
-70.4% Jan 18, 2025 to Feb 11, 2026
Not yet recovered 459 total days
#3
-58.0% May 18, 2021 to Jul 20, 2021
Recovered Aug 16, 2021 90 total days

Solana Volatility

SOL 1Y Volatility
73.7%
Annualized daily closes
SOL 5Y Volatility
105.3%
Annualized daily closes

Volatility Solana's annualized volatility shows how widely daily closes moved over 1Y and 5Y. Higher values mean a noisier path, not automatically a better or worse investment. 1Y: 73.7%; 5Y: 105.3%.

Benchmark context

Where SOL fits relative to other lenses

Benchmark links are secondary on this page. Use them when you want to place the asset against a specific market, factor, or historical counterpart.

Default benchmark

Bitcoin

BTC

Cross-asset crypto benchmark

1Y return
-16.6%
SOL minus BTC
-26.5%
Correlation
0.83
1Y
SOL vs BTC average correlation
Tightly linked
0.83
ETH

Ethereum

Corr 0.88

Cross-asset crypto benchmark

1Y return +31.0%
SOL minus ETH -74.1%
QQQ

Nasdaq 100

Corr 0.42

Growth and tech benchmark

1Y return +44.6%
SOL minus QQQ -87.8%

Risk-adjusted ratios

These ratios compare return against different definitions of risk: total volatility, downside volatility, drawdowns, benchmark beta, and time spent underwater.

Solana Sharpe Ratio

SOL 1Y Sharpe ratio
-0.43
Recent window
SOL 5Y Sharpe ratio
0.65
Deeper research window

SOL Sharpe Ratio (5Y)

Return per total volatility

The dot sits at (Solana's annualized volatility, its excess annualized return). The slope from the origin to the dot is the Sharpe ratio — steeper means the asset converted risk into return more efficiently.

Higher is better
Excess return Annualized volatility 0 125% vol 105.3% · excess +68.5%
excess annualized return / total volatility
Formula Sharpe=E[R]RfσR\displaystyle \mathrm{Sharpe} = \frac{\mathbb{E}[R] - R_f}{\sigma_R}

Sharpe ratio Solana's Sharpe ratio measures excess return per unit of total volatility. Higher readings mean the asset converted risk into return more efficiently over the same window. 1Y: -0.43; 5Y: 0.65.

A Sharpe above 1.0 is generally considered good, above 2.0 is excellent. Negative Sharpe means the asset underperformed the risk-free rate. Calculated on each asset's full 365-day lookback of available prices and annualized using the asset calendar (365 for crypto, 252 trading days for equities/ETFs/metals).

Solana Sortino Ratio

SOL 1Y Sortino ratio
-0.62
Recent window
SOL 5Y Sortino ratio
0.98
Deeper research window

SOL Sortino Ratio (5Y)

Return per downside volatility

Solana's daily-return distribution over the long window. Days left of the target line are the only ones Sortino penalizes in the denominator — so a distribution with a fat left tail produces a smaller Sortino even at the same mean return.

Higher is better
Frequency (days) Daily return (%) target -45.3% +35.6% 374 0
excess annualized return / downside volatility
Formula Sortino=E[R]Rfσdown\displaystyle \mathrm{Sortino} = \frac{\mathbb{E}[R] - R_f}{\sigma_{\mathrm{down}}}

Sortino ratio Solana's Sortino ratio isolates downside volatility instead of all volatility. It is the cleaner lens when you care more about bad downside moves than upside noise. 1Y: -0.62; 5Y: 0.98.

A higher Sortino is better. It's useful when upside volatility is common (crypto is the obvious example). Calculated on each asset's full 365-day lookback of available prices, using the daily risk-free rate as the target return, and annualized using the asset calendar (365 for crypto, 252 trading days for equities/ETFs/metals).

Solana Calmar Ratio

SOL 1Y Calmar ratio
-0.62
Recent window
SOL 5Y Calmar ratio
0.19
Deeper research window

SOL Calmar Ratio (5Y)

CAGR per worst drawdown

Solana's CAGR bar sits above zero, the max drawdown bar sits below. Calmar is the ratio of those two magnitudes — a shallow drawdown bar with a tall CAGR bar produces a strong Calmar.

Higher is better
0% SOL 5Y +18.4% -96.3%
CAGR / max drawdown
Formula Calmar=CAGRMaxDD\displaystyle \mathrm{Calmar} = \frac{\mathrm{CAGR}}{|\mathrm{MaxDD}|}

Calmar ratio Solana's Calmar ratio measures return per unit of max drawdown. It is useful when the path of losses matters as much as the final return. 1Y: -0.62; 5Y: 0.19.

Calmar is computed on each asset's full 365-day lookback and uses the max drawdown over that same window.

Solana Sterling Ratio

SOL 1Y Sterling ratio
-1.17
Recent window
SOL 5Y Sterling ratio
0.36
Deeper research window

SOL Sterling Ratio (5Y)

Return per average drawdown

The underwater curve shows Solana's drawdowns over the long window. Sterling averages every event deeper than the 10% threshold instead of taking only the worst one — so an asset with many mid-size drawdowns scores worse here than on Calmar.

Higher is better
0% -25% -51% -76% -101% 10% drawdown threshold
excess CAGR / average deep drawdown
Formula Sterling=CAGRRfD>10%\displaystyle \mathrm{Sterling} = \frac{\mathrm{CAGR} - R_f}{\overline{D}_{>10\%}}

Sterling ratio Solana's Sterling ratio compares return against deep drawdown pressure. It gives a harsher read on assets that compound well but suffer ugly declines along the way. 1Y: -1.17; 5Y: 0.36.

Sterling uses average drawdown events deeper than 10% and subtracts the risk-free rate to report excess return.

Solana Ulcer Index

SOL 1Y Ulcer Index
39.57
Recent window
SOL 5Y Ulcer Index
61.91
Deeper research window

SOL Ulcer Index (5Y)

Drawdown pain

The underwater curve shows how deep and how long Solana's drawdowns were. Ulcer is the root-mean-square of that curve — both depth and persistence count, so lower is better.

Lower is better
0% -25% -51% -76% -101%
root-mean-square drawdown
Formula UI=E[Dt2]\displaystyle \mathrm{UI} = \sqrt{\mathbb{E}[D_t^2]}

Ulcer Index Solana's Ulcer Index measures both the depth and persistence of drawdowns. Lower is better because it means fewer and shallower underwater periods. 1Y: 39.57; 5Y: 61.91.

Ulcer Index is computed from each asset's drawdown series over the full lookback window.

Solana Treynor Ratio

SOL 1Y Treynor
-0.22
Beta 1.43 vs BTC
SOL 5Y Treynor
0.53
Beta 1.29 vs BTC

SOL Treynor Ratio (5Y)

Excess return per beta vs BTC

The line's slope is Solana's beta to BTC — steeper means more market-sensitive. Treynor divides excess return by that slope, so an asset can look efficient with a shallow beta and a small return, or inefficient with a steep beta and a big return.

Higher is better
Asset return Market return 0 0 β 1.29
excess return / market beta
Formula Treynor=E[R]Rfβ\displaystyle \mathrm{Treynor} = \frac{\mathbb{E}[R] - R_f}{\beta}

Treynor ratio measures excess return per unit of market beta versus BTC. A high Treynor means the asset compensated its market exposure well over this window. A low or negative Treynor means the asset's market risk wasn't rewarded.

Treynor uses beta vs the S&P 500 (SPY) on shared dates and the average 3-month Treasury rate as the risk-free rate.

Solana Tail Risk

Tail-risk stats use daily return distributions rather than simple end-point returns. They show how ugly the left tail has been, how severe the worst 5% of days were, and whether returns were skewed toward outsized upside or downside shocks.

The histogram shows the shape of Solana's daily log returns over the 5Y window. Bars left of the 5% VaR marker are the worst 5% of days; the ES marker is the average loss inside that tail. Skew and excess kurtosis describe whether the distribution is symmetric around zero and whether extreme days are more common than a Normal distribution predicts.

SOL daily return distribution (5Y)

SOL daily return distribution (5Y)

Log-return histogram with Value-at-Risk and Expected Shortfall markers at the 5% left tail.

Days
SOL 5Y VaR 5% ES 5% -62.9% 0% +62.9% Daily log return
worst-5% daily return and the average loss inside it
Formula VaR5%=Q0.05(R),ES5%=E[RRVaR5%]\displaystyle \mathrm{VaR}_{5\%} = Q_{0.05}(R),\quad \mathrm{ES}_{5\%} = \mathbb{E}[R \mid R \le \mathrm{VaR}_{5\%}]
Metric 1Y5Y
VaR (5%) -6.0% Historical daily threshold -8.1% Historical daily threshold
Expected shortfall (5%) -8.5% Beyond the VaR threshold -12.4% Beyond the VaR threshold
Skew -0.06 -0.68
Excess kurtosis 1.13 10.02

Less negative daily VaR and Expected Shortfall values mean the left tail was less violent. Skew and excess kurtosis help distinguish between steady compounding and a path dominated by occasional extreme moves.

Full stats table

Every window-consistent research metric

Each column keeps the same horizon across returns, ratios, drawdowns, and tail-risk metrics.

Metric
1Y Recent window
5Y Deeper research window
Total return
-42.3%
+132.2%
Annualized return
-42.3%
+18.4%
Volatility
73.7% Annualized daily closes
105.3% Annualized daily closes
Sharpe ratio
-0.43
0.65
Sortino ratio
-0.62
0.98
Calmar ratio
-0.62
0.19
Sterling ratio
-1.17
0.36
Ulcer Index
39.57
61.91
Max drawdown
-68.6% 2025-09-18 to 2026-02-11
-96.3% 2021-11-06 to 2022-12-29
VaR (5%)
-6.0% Historical daily threshold
-8.1% Historical daily threshold
Expected shortfall (5%)
-8.5% Beyond the VaR threshold
-12.4% Beyond the VaR threshold
Skew
-0.06
-0.68
Excess kurtosis
1.13
10.02

What viewers usually ask next

What is Solana's 5Y CAGR?

Solana's 5y cagr is +18.4% on Gale using the past 5 years.

What is Solana's 1-year volatility?

Annualized volatility is 73.7% over the past year.

What is Solana's 5-year Sharpe ratio?

Solana's Sharpe ratio is 0.65 using the past 5 years.

What is Solana's 5-year Sortino ratio?

Solana's Sortino ratio is 0.98 using the past 5 years.

What is Solana's 5-year Calmar ratio?

Solana's Calmar ratio is 0.19 using the past 5 years.

What is Solana's 5-year Sterling ratio?

Solana's Sterling ratio is 0.36 using the past 5 years.

What is Solana's 5-year Ulcer Index?

Solana's Ulcer Index is 61.91 using the past 5 years. Lower is better because it means shallower and less persistent drawdowns.

What is Solana's 5-year max drawdown?

Max drawdown is -96.3% over the past 5 years from 2021-11-06 to 2022-12-29.

What is Solana's 5-year daily Value at Risk?

Using historical daily returns, Gale estimates a 5% Value at Risk of -8.12% over the past 5 years.

What is Solana's 5-year Expected Shortfall?

Expected Shortfall is -12.37% over the past 5 years, which captures the average outcome inside the worst 5% of daily returns.

Is Solana still below its all-time high?

Current drawdown is -67.3% versus the all-time high of $262.56 reached on 2025-01-18.

Which benchmark should viewers open first for Solana?

Bitcoin is the default benchmark lens on Gale because it gives the cleanest context for Solana's recent behavior.