Blockchain Networks Overstate Speed by 20x on Average — Solana and Cardano Among Worst Offenders

Key Takeaways

• Blockchain developers often boast of huge throughput measured in thousands of transactions per second.
• But most platforms don’t even come close to their theoretical maximums.
• On average, blockchains process less than one-twentieth of their stated maximum throughput.

Transactions per second (TPS) is a popular metric used to assess blockchain throughput. But in reality, most major blockchains don’t even come close to their theoretical maximum TPS.

For example, Solana boasts a theoretical maximum throughput of 65,000 TPS. Yet research suggests its maximum observed throughput is less than 4,000 TPS.

Theoretical vs. Realized Transactions per Second

A recent study by Taraxa co-founder Steven Pu investigated the discrepancy between blockchains’ theoretical and observed throughput.

In the most extreme case, Sonic’s theoretical maximum TPS was found to be more than 100 times its maximum observed throughput of 471 TPS.

On average, the report found that theoretical maximums overstate throughput by over 2,000%.

While the difference between real and theoretical transaction rates is stark, it is to be expected for young chains that have significantly more capacity than their current usage demands.

But even ignoring theoretical maximums, there are still many different ways to calculate observable blockchain throughput.

Discrepancies in Blockchain Speed Metrics

At the same time, on Feb. 24, Solana FM recorded Solana’s TPS as less than 900. Meanwhile, Solana Explorer placed it at 4,200 and SolanaBeach at 4,400 .

The larger figures can be explained by the inclusion of vote transactions. These are transactions in the technical sense of Solana’s design but don’t represent the movement of tokens or user data from A to B.

According to Taraxa’s study, excluding vote transactions, Solana’s highest-ever TPS over a ten-block span was 2,909. Meanwhile, the highest observed throughput was Aptos’ 11,936 TPS.

Can Theoretical Maximums Be Trusted?

Blockchain developers tend to boast about high maximum TPS rates to demonstrate their platforms’ capacity to scale.

For example, Solana has never needed to process 65,000 transactions per second, but its developers claim that it could, if network activity ever got that high.

Yet, even that claim has come under scrutiny.

Cyber Capital founder Justin Bons has argued that Solana’s maximum theoretical TPS is just 10,000—less than one-sixth of the figure claimed by the blockchain’s creators.

Cardano’s misrepresentation of its maximum throughput is even more egregious, he argued.

With a maximum theoretical TPS of just 18, Bons claimed Cardano “misled investors 26.5 times.”

Demand and Hardware Considerations

Another factor that must be taken into consideration when comparing blockchain speed is hardware efficiency.

Theoretical maximums touted by developers often assume unrealistic hardware setups that wouldn’t be efficient to run in reality.

Taking the cost of running a blockchain node into account, Pu proposed an alternative metric: realized TPS per dollar spent on validator nodes.

Measured by bang per buck, Taraxa, Algorand and Near top the table. In comparison, some of the fastest blockchains, including Solana and Sei, are seriously inefficient.

Given the realities of Web3 adoption today, this focus on efficiency has its merits.

Even major payment networks like Visa rarely process more than a few thousand transactions per second. Hitting the tens or even hundreds of thousands promised by some blockchains would require unprecedented demand. It is arguably more important to meet realistic TPS demand affordably.