The non-fungible tokens are now more popular than ever before. The non-interchangeable units are given the fine way of selling their artwork, videos, audio scripts, 3D models, and any kind of digital items. NFT marketplaces such as OpenSea, Axie, and Rarible are great to go for, whereas for IT companies plunging into the Blockchain Ocean, providing an NFT marketplace development service is a rewarding choice.
Here in this article, we will review three popular blockchains from a development perspective. Investors who are betting money on Ether, are facing a constant slow down after the rough month of September. The crypto touched its highest $4818.97 in the first week of November 2021, whereafter, there has been a continuous disappointment in comparison to the competitive polygon.
Till 30th December 2021, the crypto estimates at $3717.xx quite lower than its rise. The pioneering crypto Bitcoin lost 7 percent during September 2021. On November 2021 first week, we noticed the speed of Bitcoin, where it rises to $67582.60, but came down to $47xxx.xx by end of the somewhat gloomy 2021.
The roller coaster price chart of the digital currency shows the troublesome time for ether, which also raised concern for investors. Expert says that Ethereum is probably losing from rival blockchains such as Solana and Polygon. But can the exchange be only the criteria for comparison?
Ethereum is the building block for the NFTs, Decentralized finance, and smart contracts. But despite its popularity, the platform is facing challenges in fending off the competition. Since the hustle around various DApps and NFTs, there has been intense competition between layers one protocol.
Read More: How to Create Your Own NFT
NFT marketplace development companies rely on the long-runner ETH, whereas the year 2021 witnessed the rise of another layer one protocol like Polygon and Solana, which promised a higher transaction speed and lower cost. Ethereum comparatively offers both features in Ethereum 2.0 upgrade, hopefully, to beat others.
While all three blockchains Ethereum, Polygon, and Solana have their share of supporters, the most popular Ethereum reigns the list by offering the most transparent ecosystem of DApps. There are some significant differences between these rivals, which cannot be ignored. Whether you are new to NFT or the owner of an NFT marketplace development company, the article will give you a hawk-eye review of the differences between the three blockchains.
Here is a quick overview of all three major Blockchain platforms including Ethereum, Solana, and Polygon. Keep reading-
Table of Contents
1. What is Ethereum?
Ethereum is the community-built blockchain technology that abodes digital money, apps, and global digital payments. The blockchain has established a profitable economy which is open for everyone. The platform has data-friendly services and thousands of apps which we use today, available for everyone, regardless of the location and background. All the programs which are linked to the ethereum platform need computing power. Ethereum supports Ether, a cryptocurrency that is a scarce digital currency similar to Bitcoin.
Read More: How to Develop NFT Marketplace on Ethereum?
With Ether, you can perform your request operations like payment to someone on the network, etc. Worth mentioning, Ethereum has been a strong wire puller for the boom of digital collectibles in 2021, therefore a primary choice of NFT marketplace development service providers, who wish to play safe.
Features of Ethereum:
- ETH is helpful in the development of NFTs and smart contract along with the deployment
- ETH hosts different crypto tokens with the help of the ERC-20 standard. Different variants of ETH include ERC-1155, ERC-721, and ERC-1238
- ETH uses EVM (Ethereum Virtual Machine) that allows users to get knowledge of contracts and interact with them
- With ETH, it is easy for users to develop decentralized apps
- Users can earn rewards in the form of Ether (known as the digital token of Ethereum)
- ETH helps users with independent decision-making including full transparency, also identified as DAOs (Decentralized Autonomous Organizations) that have no single leader controlling every aspect
2. What is Polygon?
Polygon, also known as the Matic network, is also referred to as the Internet of Blockchain for Ethereum. One of the major goals of Polygon is to facilitate the multichain Ethereum ecosystem.
Read More: How to Create NFT Marketplace on Polygon?
The network is made interoperable with all existing and future infrastructure of Ethereum. Also, Polygon is aligned for giving interoperability with the layer-2 solutions. Polygon is also known for being the fastest in transactions.
Features of Polygon:
- Polygon (Matic) is fully compatible with Ethereum and helpful for its growth and infrastructure development
- It provides support for two different chains that are secure and standalone
- It provides assistance for Ethereum Virtual Machine
- Matic has the multi-chain architecture to deliver improved scalability
- Polygon comes with a high transaction speed of equal to 65,000 transactions per second
3. What is Solana?
Solana is the decentralized Blockchain. Solana is used to create powerful, scalable and user-friendly applications. It is the fastest Blockchain including efficient & fastest ecosystem with more than 400 Defi, Web3, and NFTs. The happy faces of blockchain development service providers are the actual feedback for Solana. The core reason behind its success is efficiency and speed.
The Solana Blockchain conducts 3000 transactions per second, where it has the superb capability to handle between 50k to 65k transactions per second. The difference between Solana and Polygon (Matic) are giving a rivalry to Ethereum whereas each of them possesses some serious qualities. Let’s dive into the difference between each of them from the perspective of the NFT development service.
Features of Solana:
- Solana includes a consensus mechanism called Proof of History (PoH) that allows and impedes database entries.
- This Blockchain provides a Gulfstream system for transactions so that they can wait in a memory pool until their turn comes up. It has the capability to hold 1,00,00 transactions at a single time.
- It saves both cost and time by supporting several smart contracts together.
- The use of multiple hardware linked via networks makes data processing faster than ever.
- This Blockchain model has numerous Blockchain nodes presented in smaller packets to make the transactions quicker.
What are the various Advantages and Disadvantages Associated with Ethereum vs Solana vs Polygon?
There have been many misunderstandings about Blockchain platforms, but the only truth is every one of them is different from another. To make things clear and understandable, we have here provided their pros and cons that will help you to know how these three Blockchain platforms Ethereum vs Matic vs Solana are different from each other. Look at the following tables:
Advantages of Ethereum vs Solana vs Polygon
Have a look at the different advantages to get a better knowledge of Blockchain platforms including Ethereum, Polygon, and Solana-
| Ethereum | Polygon (Matic) | Solana | |
| 1. | It gives more importance to features and upgrades to provide a better user experience. | It is the most secure Blockchain model due to the validation system. | Developers can use this blockchain more flexibly and according to their requirements due to its stateful architecture. |
| 2. | It has a stateful architecture useful for developing DApps. | The MATIC Blockchain provides an experience similar to Ethereum that makes it more reliable. | It has a faster transactional speed and processes up to 65,000 transactions per second. |
| 3. | It is counted as one of the most efficient and stable Blockchain platforms and hardly goes through any issues. | It is used to enhance scalability and is able to process equal to 72,000 transactions per second. | It comprises a high-performing protocol for better scalability. |
Dis-advantages of Ethereum vs Solana vs Polygon
Check out the cons included in Ethereum, Polygon, and Solana that you must be prepared for-
| Ethereum | Polygon (Matic) | Solana | |
| 1. | It requires a lot of processing power, hence alleviating the scope of miners. | With the upcoming improvement in Ethereum 2.0, it is said that Polygon might not be required for longer to resolve the issues. | It is not decentralized enough. |
| 2. | Performance gets impeded because of the high requirement of resources. | There is included higher cost for hardware that supports Solana. | |
| 3. | It has less speed for transaction processing. |
Ethereum vs Solana vs Polygon: Complete Comparison based on Different Aspects
You must be curious to get a comparative analysis of Polygon vs Solana vs Ethereum. Below, we have provided you with a detailed evaluation of these three Blockchain platforms that will give you in-depth knowledge about them. Have a look-
1. Consensus Mechanism
Consensus mechanism is the common agreement procedure which all blockchain peers agree upon for present state. Let’s understand how three platform differs:
Ethereum
Ethereum 1.0 is currently used for different applications. The Blockchain uses the Proof-of-Work, which is also the same mechanism, confidently used by Bitcoin. The platform is secured by the hundreds of miners, who actively participate in the process of consensus. The process takes the computing power and makes it tough to participate in the network. Thus the network is always decentralized and secure while giving a reduced performance, the issue which is being solved with Ether 2.0.
Solana
This Blockchain uses the sequence of computations for providing a way for verifying the time between two events. It uses a cryptographic secure function for predicting the output. Solana does not rely on Proof of Work, instead, it relies on the hybrid consensus of Proof of Stake and Proof of History. Primarily, Solana can carry out 50k transactions per second.
Polygon
Polygon uses a mix of technologies for creating the speedy Blockchain and link to the main Ethereum. Polygon uses the different consensus mechanism known as PoS(Proof of Stake) to create a new Matic and secure the network. It means the way you gain money on MATIC is by staking.
Validators do the job of verifying the transactions and adding them to the Blockchain. In exchange, validators receive the cut and new MATIC. Becoming the validator needs you to run a full-time node, where if any error occurs, you may lose Matic. Via validators, Delegators stake the Matic using the full-time validators. If you make an error, you could lose some of your staked MATIC.
2. Stateful Architecture
Some Blockchains maintains state, whereas some do not. A contract is considered stateless, when it does not do any state change aka do not change the storage variable values.
Ethereum
Ethereum has a Stateful nature, which means that all the transactions are recorded in the state. Whenever any new transaction occurs, the entire network needs to update the copy for reflecting the new transaction.
For example, if Alice is sending $10 to Bob using Ether, then the network of miners has to update the records for reflecting the architecture. This process costs high and this is why ethereum 1.0 is considered slower than the stateless blockchains.
Solana
At the core of architecture lies the Solana cluster. Solana cluster is the set of validators, who work together for serving the client transactions and maintain the ledger. A cluster has a leader, where the role keeps on rotating among all validators. The cluster leader bundles and timestamps the incoming transaction using the Proof of History algorithm. Solana is stateless, where the entire state need not be updated upon every transaction. The stateless architecture makes Solana highly scalable.
Polygon
Polygon offers the core tool and component for joining the new, borderless society and economy. The sidechain functions like other POS blockchains. The only difference is that the exchanges are clustered and at the ethereum mainchain. Matic is the resource of Polygon Blockchain, used for exchange.
3. Fast Transactions
Speed of the Blockchains are a big factor while transaction. Speed is the crucial factor while comparing the platforms.
Ethereum
Ethereum works on the distributed network, where every participant in the network holds an identical copy of the ledger. The network is operated and managed by the distributed ledger holders. Ether can process limited transactions per second. Moreover, it is highly crowded, where either you pay a high fee or wait in line (reason for disgruntled small NFT development services), creating a good chance for other blockchains to grow.
Solana
Solana uses tBFT(Tower Byzantine fault tolerance), which is an improved version of pBFT(Practical Byzantine fault tolerance). It eliminates the need for real-time communication between nodes, improving overall efficiency. Also, Solana uses the GulfStream (mempool less forwarding standard), which pushes the transaction to the edge. Network validators can carry out transaction faster, which enable the network to process more than 65,000 transactions per second.
Polygon
Polygon is unbeatable today in terms of scalability and speed. It can process 72,000 transactions per second. Whether you are a developer or a user, Polygon Matic is great to use. It is cheap to build the Ethereum decentralized apps on Polygon.
4. Scalability
A Blockchain needs to be scalable for facilitating transactions. Let’s compare these three blockchains based on scalability:
Ethereum
Ethereum facilitates 13 to 15 transactions per second which are very less in comparison to its competitors. But with the layer-2 scaling solutions having multichain network support, there are chances to resolve this issue.
Solana
With Solana, there can be processed up to 65,000 TPS which automatically proves there is no scalability issue in this Blockchain platform. It facilitates users with faster transaction speed, effective architecture, and an improved consensus model.
Polygon
Polygon processes a similar number of transactions per second as Solana and provides the same level of scalability with a better transaction speed. But it is said that ETH2.0 will be able to handle the scalability issues that are currently taken care of by MATIC.
How ETH2 Makes Ethereum Scalable?
ETH2 collectively is a set of interconnected upgrades which make Ethereum more scalable, sustainable, and secure comparatively when it comes to Polygon vs Ethereum. The upgrades are built by multiple teams across the ecosystem.
Scalable: ETH2 makes the ether more scalable. It needs the validation of 1000s of transactions for faster and cheaper applications.
Secure: The blockchain needs to maintain more security. As the adoption grows, the protocol needs to become secure against all kinds of attacks.
Sustainable: Ethereum needs to be harmless to the environment. The existing ecosystem requires too much energy and computing power. New ETH2 can signal the end of energy-intensive mining.
Solana vs Ethereum vs Polygon: Detailed Analysis
Get to know about the raw differences between Ethereum vs Solana vs polygon in the below table.
| Ethereum | Solana | Polygon | |
| Founder’s Name | Vitalik Buterin and Gavin Wood | Greg Fitzgerald and Anatoly Yakovenko | Sandeep Nailwal, Jaynti Kanani, and Anurag Arjun |
| Release Date | 2013 | 2017 | 2017 |
| Native Token | ETH | SOL | MATIC |
| Token Type | Native | Altcoin | ERC-20 |
| Number of Transactions per second | 13-15 TPS | 65,000 TPS | Up to 72,000 TPS |
| Programming Languages | Solidity | Rust, C, and C++ | Golang, solidity, and Vyper |
| Consensus mechanism | Current POW, but will move to PoS | PoH (Proof of History) and PoS (Proof of Stake) | Plasma-Enabled Sidechain, PoS |
| Famous Projects | Cryptokitty, cryptopunks, OpenSea, Rarible, Nifty Gateway, Decentraland | Degenerate App AcademySolPunks, Sollamas, Solsea | SportX, ZED RUN, Easy Fi, QuickSwap |
| Architecture | stateful | Stateless | Multichain |
| Scalability | Limited scalability | High-performance protocol used for scalability | Multichain solutions to improve scalability |
Outcome
NFTs are high in demand. Coming years may see a great growth of digital collectables. Different industries are taking part while creating their focus on NFT. Hiring blockchain developer for NFT projects needs a set of skills that is hard to decide for your non-tech HR team. Ensure it be the vision instead of just a job role.
Ethereum and other blockchains are evolving and managing to provide the most feasible solution. Ethereum provided the most pivotal role in building the backbone of Decentralised Finance, therefore it has a strong footing in the industry. In Solana vs Matic, these both are newbies comparatively and striving to give a strong reason for hiring NFT developers with the same skill, regardless of their hockey-stick growth. Who wins in the long term is hard to say, but given that ETH has been there for so long.
FAQs
It is common to occur several queries while discussing which one is better among Ethereum, Solana, and Polygon. Have a look at the below FAQs to solve all of them-
What is the Difference Between Ethereum, Polygon, and Solana?
Among all three Blockchain platforms- Ethereum, Solana, and Polygon, if we talk about Ethereum, it is the most stable and efficient platform with a stateful architecture that focuses on features and betterment. Its native token is ETH.
Polygon has a faster transaction speed and uses a validation system to provide more security. It is also known as MATIC. If there comes ETH 2.0 in the future, there are chances that Polygon might not be used to resolve issues, it is currently taking care of.
Whereas Solana has a stateless architecture due to which it is flexibly used by the developers. It has high transactional speed than Ethereum but less than Polygon. Its native token is SOL, and it is costlier than ETH and MATIC due to the required hardware support.Which One is Faster In Ethereum, Polygon, and Solana?
When it is about Solana vs Ethereum or Solana vs Polygon, Solana has a much higher transaction speed at a lesser cost as it has up to 65,000 TPS at a time. While coming to Polygon vs Ethereum, Polygon has a high transaction speed as it processes 72,000 TPS at a time.
Is Solana better than ETH?
Undoubtedly, the scope for Solana is massive but the Ethereum team has been working for a long period to make it big in the market. Enhancement in the ETH mainnet (The Bitcoin network) is also being a helping hand to beat Solana already. ETH owns a much higher trading volume, and it has been in the crypto market for a long time.
Is Polygon better than Solana?
Solana is able to process up to 65,000 TPS at a reduced cost, whereas Polygon is able to process up to 72,000 TPS at a time but at a higher cost than Solana. Also, Solana has no scalability issues, hence we can say that Solana is better than Polygon.
Which is better Between Polygon and Ethereum?
While discussing transactions per second, it always goes in the favor of Polygon as it performs 72,000 TPS while ETH performs 13 to 15 TPS. While ETH is all about providing higher security and focuses more on features, Polygon concentrates on faster speed, in-expensive rates, and high scalability.
Can Solana overtake Ethereum?
There are chances of Solana overtaking Ethereum, but it can be possible only if developers will be able to make the Solana network more secure. Solana already has an incredible transaction speed at a very low cost that makes it worth using and promising crypto as well. These are the reason why Solana’s value can overtake ETH in the coming time.
