Comparing Solana and Ethereum: A Look at the Key Differences
- Lucas Miller
- Jan 7, 2023
- 2 min read
Updated: Feb 19, 2023
Solana and Ethereum are both smart contract based blockchains, but they have some key differences.
What is Ethereum
Ethereum is the second largest blockchain network by market capitalisation and is considered the "world computer" due to its ability to run smart contracts, which are programmable scripts that can be used to automate a wide range of tasks. Ethereum's smart contract capabilities were revolutionary in the crypto ecosystem and led to the development of a wide range of decentralised applications (dApps) on its network, such as prediction markets, decentralised finance (DeFi) platforms, and non-fungible tokens (NFTs). Ethereum currently has a transaction speed of 10 transactions per second, but after they implement all of their planned upgrades, known as The Merge, Surge, Verge, Purge, and Splurge, it is estimated that the transaction speed will increase to 100,000 transactions per second.
What is Solana
Solana is a high-performance blockchain that aims to solve the scalability issues that have plagued Ethereum and other blockchain networks. It uses a unique consensus mechanism called "Proof of Stake History" (PoH) that allows it to process up to 65,000 transactions per second, compared to Ethereum's current capacity of 15-20 transactions per second. This makes Solana a more suitable option for applications that require fast and efficient transactions.
What are the main differences
A major difference between Solana and Ethereum is the programming languages they support. Solana uses a custom programming language called Solidity, while Ethereum supports several programming languages, including Solidity, Vyper, and Bamboo.
Ethereum has a much larger developer ecosystem compared to Solana. According to a recent report, Ethereum has around 1873 full-time developers working on the platform, while Solana has around 383 full-time developers. This disparity in developer numbers is likely due to Ethereum's longer history, larger market capitalization, and more established developer community. However, this does not necessarily mean that Solana is less capable or less promising as a blockchain platform, but it does have a smaller developer community
Solana boasts a significantly lower transaction costs compared to Ethereum. This is a significant advantage for Solana as it makes it more accessible to users and businesses, especially for those that require high-frequency transactions. Currently, the average transaction fee on Ethereum is $0.09, which can be quite high for users that need to process a large number of transactions. On the other hand, the average transaction fee on Solana is $0.0000014 which is incredibly low, and this makes it a more cost-effective option for those that require a high-throughput network.
In terms of governance, Ethereum is considered a more decentralised blockchain as it currently has around 500,000 validators. Solana, on the other hand, has a less decentralised governance structure, with a small group of validators of around 700 controlling the network.
Overview
In summary, Solana is a high-performance blockchain that is well suited for applications that require fast and efficient transactions, while Ethereum is a more versatile platform with a wide range of decentralised applications and a larger developer ecosystem. Both platforms have their own strengths and weaknesses, and the choice between them will depend on the specific use case and requirements of the application or project being built on the blockchain.