How to read Bubblemaps for a Solana token

On Bubblemaps, each bubble is one of a token's top holders, sized by how much it holds, and a line between two bubbles means those wallets have sent tokens to each other on-chain. A group of connected bubbles, called a cluster, often means one person or team spread across several wallets, so add their percentages together and treat them as one holder. A cluster is a clue, not proof: exchanges and airdrops can link wallets innocently, and wallets funded in ways the map can't trace show up as unconnected.

Before It Rugs is not affiliated with Bubblemaps. These details follow Bubblemaps' own wiki and app at the time of writing (October 2026). Labels move, so check if something looks different.

Step by step

Open the map. On a DexScreener token page, select the Maps tab next to Holders, which shows an embedded Bubblemaps view. Or open Bubblemaps itself (app.bubblemaps.io now leads to v2.bubblemaps.io) and search the contract address.
Check the token and the time. Make sure the name and address are the coin you meant. The map shows when it was last computed. Bubblemaps says maps are refreshed at least every six hours, and a new coin can change a lot in that time.
Find the biggest bubbles. Click one to see its share of supply as a percentage, the token amount and the dollar value.
Leave out pools and exchanges. Contract and exchange bubbles are hidden by default and can be shown with the eye button. Nodes are labelled as an ordinary wallet, a contract, an exchange (CEX) or a DEX, so check which you're looking at.
Look for clusters. Click a bubble that is linked to others. If it belongs to a cluster, Bubblemaps shows the combined figures for the whole group.
Check what the links are. The IN/OUT menu lists which tokens moved between two wallets and when the last transfer was. The All Tokens filter lets you show only this token, or every token.
Turn on Magic Nodes. These add wallets outside the top holders that connect them, shown with dotted borders. A cluster that only appears with Magic Nodes on is still a cluster.
Use Time Travel. Click a point on the price chart or use the date picker to see how the map looked near launch, when insiders usually take their positions.
Note any Fresh tags. Bubblemaps tags newly funded wallets as Fresh. Several fresh wallets holding large bags on a new coin is worth a closer look.
Compare with a second source. Paste the address into our rug check or RugCheck and see whether the insider and holder warnings agree with what you found.

What do the lines mean on Bubblemaps?

A line between two bubbles means there has been at least one on-chain transfer between those two wallets. In the current version a link can involve any token, not just the one you are looking at, and Bubblemaps says some links include cross-chain transfers (Bubblemaps wiki).

A line does not tell you who owns the wallets or why the transfer happened. It only shows that money or tokens moved between them. That's why the IN/OUT details matter: a single small transfer two years ago is weaker evidence than a chain of wallets all sending this token to one collector.

What does a big connected cluster usually mean?

On a new memecoin, a large cluster usually means one person or group bought through many wallets, often at launch, so their real share is the cluster's total rather than any single bubble. Ten linked wallets at 2% each is a 20% holder that can sell at once.

That matters because many checks look at the largest single wallet. Splitting a position across many wallets keeps each one under the limits. See insider wallets and bundled launches for how this is set up.

Key point: Add up the cluster's percentages and treat it as one holder. That number is the real concentration risk.

What are the innocent explanations for linked wallets?

Not every cluster is a team planning to sell. Common innocent reasons include:

Exchanges and shared services. Many people withdraw from the same exchange addresses, and some apps route funds through shared accounts. Bubblemaps labels very busy addresses as Supernodes and doesn't draw links between two of them.
Airdrops. A project that sends tokens to many wallets from one address creates links that say nothing about who controls those wallets.
Pools and lockers. If the pool or a lock contract is shown, wallets that traded through it can look connected.
Projects with stated wallets. A team may openly split a marketing or treasury allocation across several wallets and publish the addresses.

On older, widely traded coins, clusters are common for these reasons. On a coin launched today, a large cluster among the top holders is a stronger signal.

What can Bubblemaps not see?

Bubblemaps can only draw links that exist on-chain. Wallets funded from different exchange accounts, through a mixer, or through a bridge may show no connection at all. Friends who agree in a private chat to buy and sell together use separate wallets with nothing linking them.

There are limits on scope too. The standard map shows the top 250 holders, so smaller wallets in a group may not appear unless Magic Nodes picks them up. Bubblemaps also offers Time Nodes, which split an exchange into time windows so wallets active there at the same moment connect, but careful insiders can still avoid that (Time Nodes). So a map with no clusters means no links were found, not that the holders are independent.

Is Bubblemaps free to use?

The main map is free to view, and Bubblemaps' wiki says Magic Nodes and Time Travel are open to all users (Bubblemaps premium). Some advanced features, such as maps of the top 1,000 holders and AI summaries of clusters, are limited to holders of the project's own token. You don't need any of them for the checks in this guide.

How does Before It Rugs check linked wallets?

We don't use Bubblemaps for our grades. We use RugCheck's count of linked insider wallets. Twenty or more linked wallets adds 3 points and 10 to 19 adds 2, but only when linked wallets make up at least 3% of holders or the coin has fewer than 300 holders. The details are on our methodology page. Checking the map yourself is a useful second opinion, because the two tools link wallets in different ways.

For the full routine, see how to tell if a Solana token is a scam.

Not financial advice. This guide explains how things work. It is not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold anything. Memecoins are extremely high risk and most go to zero.