Top Blockchains
Profiles of the chains that matter in 2026 — what they’re best for, how they work, and how to build your own chain with them.
Ethereum
Layer 1Settlement, DeFi, NFTs, and anchoring your own rollup
Bitcoin
Layer 1Store of value, payments, the most battle-tested security
Solana
Layer 1High-throughput consumer apps, payments, trading
BNB Chain
Layer 1Low-cost EVM apps with a large retail user base
Avalanche
Layer 1 network of L1sLaunching your own sovereign, customizable L1 (formerly 'Subnets')
Polygon
PoS chain + chain development kitPayments and EVM apps; launching CDK chains connected via AggLayer
Arbitrum One
Layer 2 (optimistic rollup)DeFi and general-purpose apps with deep liquidity
OP Mainnet
Layer 2 (optimistic rollup)EVM apps and joining the Superchain
Base
Layer 2 (OP Stack rollup)Consumer apps with easy onboarding from a major exchange
ZKsync
Layer 2 (ZK rollup)ZK-powered apps and custom ZK chains
Starknet
Layer 2 (validity rollup)Provable computation, gaming and native account abstraction
Cosmos Hub
Layer 1 (interchain)Fully sovereign appchains connected by IBC
Polkadot
Layer 0 (relay chain)Custom runtimes with shared security
NEAR
Layer 1 (sharded)User-friendly apps, chain abstraction, AI agents
Sui
Layer 1Gaming, digital assets and parallel execution
Aptos
Layer 1Fast, safe smart contracts in Move
TON
Layer 1 (multi-chain)Mini-apps and payments with Telegram distribution
Cardano
Layer 1Research-driven, formally verified development
TRON
Layer 1Stablecoin transfers and low-cost payments
Celestia
Modular data availability layerCheap, scalable data availability for your rollup
Side-by-side
Type, consensus and execution environment at a glance.
| Chain | Type | Consensus | VM | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EEthereum | Layer 1 | Proof of Stake | EVM (Solidity, Vyper) | — |
| BBitcoin | Layer 1 | Proof of Work | Bitcoin Script (UTXO) | — |
| SSolana | Layer 1 | Proof of Stake + Proof of History | SVM (Rust, Anchor) | — |
| BCBNB Chain | Layer 1 | Proof of Staked Authority | EVM | — |
| AAvalanche | Layer 1 network of L1s | Avalanche consensus (PoS) | EVM (C-Chain) + custom VMs | — |
| PPolygon | PoS chain + chain development kit | Proof of Stake | EVM | — |
| AOArbitrum One | Layer 2 (optimistic rollup) | Inherits Ethereum security | EVM + Stylus (Rust, C, C++) | — |
| OMOP Mainnet | Layer 2 (optimistic rollup) | Inherits Ethereum security | EVM | — |
| BBase | Layer 2 (OP Stack rollup) | Inherits Ethereum security | EVM | — |
| ZZKsync | Layer 2 (ZK rollup) | Validity proofs on Ethereum | EVM-compatible (EraVM) | — |
| SStarknet | Layer 2 (validity rollup) | STARK proofs on Ethereum | Cairo VM | — |
| CHCosmos Hub | Layer 1 (interchain) | CometBFT Proof of Stake | Cosmos SDK (Go) + optional CosmWasm/EVM | — |
| PPolkadot | Layer 0 (relay chain) | Nominated Proof of Stake | Wasm runtimes (Polkadot SDK) | — |
| NNEAR | Layer 1 (sharded) | Proof of Stake (Nightshade sharding) | Wasm (Rust, JavaScript) | — |
| SSui | Layer 1 | Delegated Proof of Stake | Move (object-centric) | — |
| AAptos | Layer 1 | Proof of Stake (AptosBFT) | Move | — |
| TTON | Layer 1 (multi-chain) | Proof of Stake | TVM (Tact, FunC, Tolk) | — |
| CCardano | Layer 1 | Ouroboros Proof of Stake | Plutus (eUTXO) | — |
| TTRON | Layer 1 | Delegated Proof of Stake | TVM (EVM-compatible) | — |
| CCelestia | Modular data availability layer | CometBFT Proof of Stake | None (DA only) | — |
Live prices via CoinGecko; for information only.
Chain frameworks at a glance
The main ways to launch your own chain today.
| Framework | Type | Settles to | Execution | Stand-out feature |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OP Stack | Optimistic rollup | Ethereum (L2) or an L2 (L3) | EVM | Superchain interop; most widely used rollup stack |
| Arbitrum Orbit | Optimistic rollup | Ethereum or Arbitrum | EVM + Stylus | Rust/C++ contracts via Stylus; AnyTrust option |
| ZK Stack | ZK (validity) rollup | Ethereum | EVM-compatible | Fast finality; private & permissioned chain options |
| Polygon CDK | ZK / validium | Ethereum via AggLayer | EVM | Shared liquidity across AggLayer chains |
| Cosmos SDK | Sovereign L1 | Itself | Go modules, CosmWasm, EVM | Full sovereignty; IBC interop; own validators |
| Avalanche L1 | Sovereign L1 | Itself | EVM or custom VM | Custom validator sets, gas tokens and permissions |
| Polkadot SDK | Custom runtime | Polkadot (shared security) | Wasm runtimes | Fork-less upgrades; shared security |
| Hyperledger Besu / Fabric | Permissioned network | Itself | EVM (Besu) / chaincode (Fabric) | Enterprise privacy & access control |
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