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Polygon vs Ethereum

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  • 4 min read

NFTs are the latest blockchain buzz that has taken the world by storm. New blockchains and delivery vectors pop up left and right as the creative industry is jumping on the crypto train and making money by selling NFTs.

However, with all this activity, numerous new developments might confuse anyone who isn’t into cryptocurrency. In this article, we’re bringing you the differences between Polygon and Ethereum, so you better understand what you’re getting yourself into. 

Also read: Top 7 secure cryptocurrency wallets


Polygon and Ethereum

When you’re selling an NFT on Opensea, you get the choice of selling it in either Ethereum or Polygon; This is an essential decision as it’ll impact your future sales as well. 

Here are some of the fundamental differences between the two.

The technology behind

Ethereum is one of the most popular blockchains, which includes its cryptocurrency and, of course, NFTs. On the other hand, Polygon is simply a protocol and framework for building and connecting Ethereum-compatible blockchain networks. 


Gas Fees

When minting an NFT on Ethereum, you’re going to have to pay a gas fee of anywhere between $50 t0 $200. This is to compensate miners for the energy needed to verify transactions. The gas fee keeps fluctuating based on how crowded a particular network might be at a given point in time.

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Polygon doesn’t have any gas fee whatsoever. However, keep in mind that you’ll still have to pay a gas fee, albeit a smaller amount, when converting Ethereum to Polygon on OpenSea. 


Auctions

When selling your NFT on Ethereum, you have to either list it for a fixed price or have an auction where the highest bidder wins. The option to auction off NFTs is important to NFT creators as it can get them significantly higher prices per piece based on the popularity of a particular NFT or NFT collection.

Auctions are currently not supported on Polygon, meaning you can only sell your NFTs at a flat price, which means lower returns for creators or sellers. 


Popularity and Security

Ethereum is both more popular and more secure when compared to Polygon. Both these factors go hand in hand as investors are more prone to spend their money on something safer, making Ethereum more popular. If you’re selling your NFTs on Polygon, chances are you’ll see less buyer interest due to the low popularity and security issues.


Pricing

Polygon (MATIC) is much cheaper than Ethereum (ETH). At the time of writing, one MATIC is worth $1.43 while one ETH is worth $2596.45. This means that minting on Polygon will be significantly cheaper than Ethereum.


Conclusion

If you’re looking to make more significant returns on your NFT collection and are targetting a wider audience, ETH is the way to go. Yes, you’ll be paying a higher gas fee, but the option to have your NFTs being auctioned off can get you much higher returns. Additionally, the popularity of ETH means you’ll be reaching a wider audience.

On the other hand, Polygon is a new up and coming technology. So if you’re looking to list NFTs without much of an investment and start your journey as an NFT creator there, Polygon is a viable choice. 

EthereumPolygon
Native TokenETHMATIC
TechnologyPopular BlockchainProtocol and framework for building and connecting Ethereum compatible blockchains
Gas FeesUsually between $50-$200Relatively lower or no gas fee
SecurityMore Secure than PolygonLacks usual security features.
Pricing
(at the time of writing)
1 ETH = $2596.451 MATIC = $1.43

Also read: Top 7 Telegram channels for cryptocurrency

Yadullah Abidi

Yadullah Abidi

Yadullah is a Computer Science graduate who writes/edits/shoots/codes all things cybersecurity, gaming, and tech hardware. When he's not, he streams himself racing virtual cars. He's been writing and reporting on tech and cybersecurity with websites like Candid.Technology and MakeUseOf since 2018. You can contact him here: yadullahabidi@pm.me.

  • In terms of market capitalization and popularity, Ether, or ETH (the electronic coin of the Ethereum platform), is second only to Bitcoin. Ethereum is a blockchain-based digital platform used for smart contract-enabled transactions, including cryptocurrency trading. Conceived in 2013 by Vitalik Buterin, ETH allows for the creation of two kinds of accounts: Externally Owned Accounts (EOA) and contract accounts. An externally owned account is controlled by a private key and influenced by human users.

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