Solana Vs Ethereum debate has been going on in the crypto world, especially among the crypto newbies who have jumped the trend following the hype created by NFTs. But that’s not all, cautious investors are also looking for a better comparison between the two to arrive at a conclusion over which one they should invest in. If you’re one such investor, then join us as we break down Solana and Ethereum and analyze which one’s better.
2021 was the world of Cryptocurrencies. The buzz created by Metaverse and NFTs proved to be highly beneficial for decentralized protocols like Ethereum and Solana. While the former stands to be an old player in the market, the latter didn’t surprise us with what it brought to the table.
So without further ado, let’s dive in deeper and sketch out a rough draft of Solana Vs Ethereum and find which one’s the best and which one you should choose.
Solana Vs Ethereum: Comparison
Before we explore which one’s best among Ethereum and Solana, let’s first get you acquainted with the world of Blockchain technologies and what it means. If you’re new to such a concept, then you might be confused about what Blockchain technologies are and what they pertain to. In layman’s words, a Blockchain is a place where the evidence of all the transactions is recorded. All the history of your transactions is recorded and validated on a blockchain that acts as a database.
Blockchain technology is a perfect example of a decentralized structure as it is available for everyone to check. The decentralized structure reduces the risk of fraud or manipulation and that’s why blockchains are preferred over centralized mechanisms which are full of loopholes.
Furthermore, the creation of Blockchain technology is attributed to Bitcoin which is the first decentralized currency of this digital world. Before Ethereum was developed, the infrastructure for blockchain was already in place. However, there was one thing that Bitcoin lacked and that was the creation of multiple smart contracts that are executed on blockchain technology.
As Bitcoin used Turing-incomplete language, the creation of multiple smart contacts wasn’t feasible and that’s the problem that Ethereum (and other blockchains that developed later) tried to solve.
Today, Ethereum stands to be the second-largest cryptocurrency just behind Bitcoin and it is projected that Ethereum will continue to grow in the following years. 2021 proved to be a lucky year for Ethereum due to the buzz of NFTs and this trend will continue as a profound shift towards digitization is clearly visible.
Coming back to Solana and Ethereum now! Solana and Ethereum are decentralized blockchain technologies on which various decentralized applications (DApps) are created. They are platforms on which decentralized programs are built by individual programmers and implemented on a peer-to-peer system of network.
These Blockchain technologies form the basis of Defi (Decentralized Finance) which is essential if you’re moving out of the shortcomings offered by a centralized structure.
Now, if you’re shifting your operations to blockchain technology or thinking about minting NFTs on a blockchain, then choosing the right one is essential. And that’s where the choice between Solana and Ethereum arrives. As the native currency of Ethereum stands to be the second-largest crypto and with Solana just behind it, the choice between the two becomes tricky.
Thus, to solve your dilemma, we have made a comparison table of Solana and Ethereum to point out which one’s best and which one you should choose.
| Solana | Ethereum | |
| Founder | Raj Gokal, Anatoly Yakovenko | Vitalik Buterin, Gavin Wood |
| Launched in | March 2020 | July 2015 |
| Type | Decentralized Public Blockchain | Decentralized Public Blockchain |
| Consensus Mechanism | Proof of Stake and Proof of History | Ethereum 1.0 – Proof of WorkEthereum 2.0 – Proof of Stake |
| Programming Language | Rust | Solidity |
| Transaction per Second | 65,000 transactions per second | 30 transactions per second |
| Cost per Transaction | Currently, $0.00025 per transaction | Varies. As of Jan 13, the average transaction fee charged by Ethereum is USD 3.87. |
| Memory Pool | Mempool-less. With high speed, transactions are efficiently added to a block. | Mempool problem with numerous unconfirmed transactions. |
| Unstaking | Staked SOL can be unstaked on will. | Staked ETH can not be unstaked until upgrades are available. |
| Defi Capabilities | The Defi ecosystem isn’t as robust as Ethereum. | Mature and developed Defi ecosystem |
| Efficiency | Solana is highly efficient due to more TPS and less CPS. | Ethereum is less efficient than Solana in terms of speed and cost. |
| Eco-friendly | Solana is energy efficient, unlike Ethereum. | Ethereum takes up a lot of computational energy which isn’t good for the environment. |
Solana Vs Ethereum: Which One Is The Best?
The most impending question burning around the minds of Crypto enthusiasts is – which one’s better, Solana or Ethereum? If you’re one such person, then the above-listed table might have made you arrive at a certain conclusion. But hey! Don’t mark the full stop yet!
In the Solana Vs Ethereum date, you should take a look at a wider, long-term picture if you want positive returns in the long run as Solana and Ethereum, both are the fastest-growing blockchain technologies.
Although Solana came much later compared to Ethereum, the protocol is surely doing a good job. People are heavily investing in SOL (native currency if Solana) and it isn’t bad to do so. Solana stands to be the fastest blockchain technology and it has stats backing up this argument, unlike Ethereum which is pretty slow and energy-consuming.
However, should you be choosing Solana over Ethereum due to its favorable TPS and CPT? Yes and no! Minting NFTs on Solana is obviously cheaper than Ethereum where you need to pay lots of Gas fees. However, you should note that it is all due to the Ethereum consensus algorithm which utilizes the framework of proof of work unlike Solana’s proof of stake.
However, this won’t be for much longer. With the docking of Ethereum 1.0 and Ethereum 2.0, Ethereum will solely operate on proof of stake and make use of other processes like sharding to increase the transaction processing time. This will also reduce the Ethereum Mempool problem and thus, will remove the most critical problems on the protocol.
The docking will happen sometime in 2022 and that’s why when it comes to Ethereum or Solana, you should never make the hasty decision of choosing Solana over Ethereum (or even Vice-versa). Ethereum is a stable protocol that has lots of Dapps running on it and is a mature platform as compared to Solana.
Moreover, the Total Market Cap. of Ethereum is USD 387.1B whereas Solana has a Total Market Cap. of $46.3B. These numbers are obviously self-explanatory. However, you should still not choose one over the other. The reason? Solana is green, fast, cost-efficient, and has a favorable chart of growth. Where one is mature and stable, the other carries the same potential.
Both Ethereum and Solana should be taken as two different entities and a smart investor should invest in both looking at their long-term potential for growth. Thus, when it comes to deciding which one’s best between Solana and Ethereum, we say they are both relatively good while keeping in mind that Solana is a new entry in the crypto world.
Wrapping Up
With the increasing buzz of NFTs and newbies joining the crypto market, lots of confusion has been circulating in the digital arena. People have been asking questions like Solana Vs Ethereum and trust us, a year before, none would have asked the question.
Nevertheless, we hope that we were able to satisfy you with our answers. When it comes to forming a decision between Solana and Ethereum, you shouldn’t forego one over another. Both these platforms have their own pros and cons and that’s why coming to a conclusion of “The Best” among them would be a novice’s job and not for the one looking at long-term benefits.
