Solana Playground vs Orb

Overview

Solana Playground Solana Playground (SolPG) is a browser-based integrated development environment (IDE) for writing, testing, and deploying Solana programs without any local setup required. It has become the go-to tool... Orb Orb is a free, open-source Solana block explorer built by Helius that emphasizes speed and readability. It uses the Enhanced Transactions API to parse Solana transaction details into human-readable fo...

Community Ratings

Both Solana Playground and Orb hold similar community ratings, suggesting users find comparable value in each. Your choice should come down to specific features, pricing, and ecosystem fit rather than overall score.

Pricing & Value

Solana Playground uses a free model — Completely free and open-source., while Orb is free. Both tools are free, so cost isn't a deciding factor — focus on features and reliability instead.

Key Features

Solana Playground offers 8 features including Browser-based Solana IDE with zero local setup required, Anchor framework and native Rust program support, One-click compile and deploy to devnet/testnet, and 5 more. Orb counters with 7 features including AI-powered transaction summaries, Human-readable transaction parsing, Time machine for historical transaction search, and 4 more. The right choice depends on which specific features matter for your use case — check the individual review pages for full breakdowns.

Reliability & Health

We monitor both tools around the clock for uptime, SSL validity, and response times. Solana Playground currently has a healthy health status with 100.0% uptime over the last 30 days. Orb is rated healthy with 100.0% uptime. For any tool you trust with your funds, trades, or yield, uptime and speed are non-negotiable.

Strengths

Solana Playground's key strengths include zero setup — start writing solana programs immediately in any browser, perfect for learning, tutorials, and workshops with no installation friction, built-in wallet and devnet sol removes test token management hassle. Orb stands out for completely free with no rate limits for basic use, ai explanations make complex transactions understandable, fastest archival data access on solana.