Performance is an important consideration when analyzing a blockchain, and in this guide, we will consider two popular decentralized networks – Solana and Ripple’s XRP.
Particularly, we’ll compare them to understand which is faster, and more scalable. Additionally, we’ll discuss how each of the two blockchains is applied and how you can use it to achieve various objectives.
Is Solana Faster Than XRP?
Yes, Solana is faster and more scalable than Ripple’s XRP Ledger (XRPL) blockchain. This is mainly due to the use of the novel Proof of History (PoH) technology merged with the Delegated Proof of Stake (DPoS) consensus mechanism.
PoH is a timestamping technique used to order incoming transactions before they can be verified by the validator nodes. This task is allocated to a single trusted leader node, thereby reducing confirmation times and increasing efficiency.
Solana is thus able to achieve theoretical throughput figures of over 700,000 transactions per second (TPS). In some of its pre-release tests, the network was able to achieve real-world figures of 250,000 TPS. In actuality, the network typically processes between 1,500 and 2,500 TPS.
XRP Ledger, on the other hand, is arguably slower than Solana, processing up to 1500 transactions every second on the upper band.
Still, both of these blockchains are posting impressively high-performance metrics compared to other notable networks such as Bitcoin and Ethereum that are able to process 5 and 15 TPS, respectively.
How Fast Is Solana?
According to Solana’s documentation, the blockchain was designed to handle as many as 710,000 transactions per second (TPS).
However, results from the actual testnet run produced figures of close to 200,000 TPS. Following its main net launch in March 2020, the network has been consistently processing transactions at the rate of between1,200 and 2,500 TPS.
Is Solana The Fastest Blockchain?
Solana is a high-performance blockchain, and among the leading and most notable DLT (distributed ledger tech) networks, it certainly is among the leading.
With more than 2,000 TPS real-world performance figures, it easily outperforms several of the largest blockchains, including Bitcoin and Ethereum, which can only process 5 and 15 TPS, respectively.
Other worthy comparisons to Solana are:
- Cardano – 250 TPS;
- Tron – 2,000 TPS;
- IOTA – 1500 TPS;
- Ripple – 1,500 TPS;
- EOS – 4,000 TPS;
- Avalanche – 5,000+ TPS;
- Algorand – 1,000 TPS;
- Nano – 1,000 TPS.
Solana not only offers fast transaction speeds, but it also has low transaction processing times at a sub-two-second mark.
Bitcoin’s transaction times vary between 10 minutes and 1 hour, sometimes more than that, depending on the miner fee included with each transaction.
What Are The Applications Of Solana?
Solana is one of the most promising competitors to Ethereum, the largest altcoin by market cap and the leading smart contract platform. Essentially, Solana offers the same features that you can get with Ethereum, and that includes support for decentralized applications.
Here are some of the more popular use cases for the network so far:
Non-fungible tokens (NFTs)
NFTs are tokenized unique data structures existing on a blockchain that can be used to store pieces of information such as ownership, asset properties, etc.
Solana supports minting NFTS, buying, selling, and trading them on specialized NFT marketplaces such as SolSea and Solanart;
Decentralized finance (Defi)
This is an emerging financial technology based on the blockchain in which users can access and interact with traditional financial instruments without going through an intermediary such as banks.
Solana offers a platform on top of which developers can launch Defi apps with attractive features such as low fees and latency, capital efficiency, and high throughput.
Gaming
Online gaming is an age-old industry, but now, with web3 technology based on the blockchain, gamers get more complete gaming ecosystems.
Solana can host these gaming ecosystems (also called metaverses), and some of the more popular ones so far include Star Atlas, Aurory, and Panzerdogs.
Decentralized payments
With Solana Pay, businesses are now able to set up online payments with support for digital assets such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Sols (Solana’s native asset) with low transaction costs and fast processing speeds.
Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs)
These are organizations whose governance rules are encoded onto the blockchain (in this case, Solana), and their execution is overseen by the respective organization members.
Learn more: Does Solana Pay Dividends?
What Are The Applications Of XRP?
Ripple’s XRP Ledger (XRPL) is not the typical smart contract platform that can compete directly with networks such as Solana and Ethereum, but it does support basic forms of dApps.
Its smart contract functionality is currently under development and will soon be able to support dApps such as NFT marketplaces, side chains, and fully-fledged Defi apps.
So far, the blockchain is being used for the following applications:
- Decentralized exchanges – these are platforms for buying, selling, and trading digital assets in a peer to peer manner without the help of a centralized intermediary;
- Cross-currency payments – the XRPL can be used to facilitate trading between various digital assets, including XRP and other derivative tokens on the XRPL network;
- Payment channels – developers are able to create payment apps through which users can make digital payments and transfer assets effortless, cheaply, and more conveniently.
Read more: Is XRP Eco Friendly?
Can Solana Overtake Ethereum?
Solana could overtake Ethereum, given that so far, it is an arguably better smart contract platform in so many ways. For instance, it is cheaper, faster, and more eco-friendly while doing the same things that Ethereum does.
Whether it can overtake Ethereum largely depends on how long it maintains its advantages and if Ethereum becomes less attractive to use for developers and other stakeholders.
However, it is worth noting that Ethereum is soon migrating from a mining consensus mechanism to staking, which will make it much faster, cheaper, and more eco-friendly than it currently is.
Which Crypto Has Fastest Transactions?
So far, Solana is among the fastest blockchains, with quick transaction confirmation times of about 2-second intervals.
Which Crypto Is Better Than Solana?
Whether a blockchain network is better than another depends on several factors, including adoption, popularity, ease of use, transaction cost considerations, network speeds, use cases, etc. No one network can be considered to be better than Solana in all these facets.
Final thoughts
Solana is among the leading blockchains for a reason – it is one of the most innovative decentralized networks, it’s cheaper to transact, more environmentally friendly, and offers most of the features the best platforms offer.
This is unlike Ripple’s XRP, which has so far focused on offering financial applications and solutions for cross-border payments.
