What is TPS in Blockchain?
Transaction per second (TPS) in blockchain is a metric that measures the number of transactions a blockchain can process in a second.
TPS indicates the number of transactions a network can process per second. A high TPS is often associated with increased throughput, efficiency, and enhanced capacity for handling transactions/operations, thus making it a key indicator of a blockchain’s performance.
In recent times, there has been a significant emphasis on TPS, especially by layer1 and layer2 blockchains. They often showcase their speed by boasting about impressive numbers of transactions per second (theoretical). However, these high numbers are rarely achieved after launch or are yet to be achieved.
Fastest Blockchain TPS in 2024: Which Blockchain Has the Highest Transactions Per Second?
Are you curious about which blockchain has the highest TPS? This guide breaks down the fastest TPS blockchains, compares real-world performance, and examines how blockchain TPS stacks up against VISA and Mastercard.
Dive in and let’s discover the best TPS blockchains when it comes to speed and scalability, and what that means for the future of crypto transactions…
Future of Blockchain TPS – What’s Next for High-Speed Transactions?
So, what does the future hold for blockchain transaction speeds? As we move further into 2025 and beyond, several key trends and developments are poised to reshape blockchain scalability. Here are a few predictions:
- Layer-2 Solutions Become Mainstream: We’ll see greater adoption of Layer-2 solutions like optimistic rollups, ZK-rollups, and sidechains. These solutions handle transactions off the main chain, boosting throughput significantly and reducing congestion. You can expect to see more projects building specifically on these Layer-2 platforms.
- Sharding Gains Traction: Sharding, which involves dividing a blockchain into smaller, more manageable pieces, is set to become more prevalent. This allows blockchains to process transactions in parallel, drastically increasing their TPS. While technically challenging, the potential gains in scalability are enormous.
- New Consensus Mechanisms Emerge: While Proof of Stake (PoS) is already a big improvement over Proof of Work (PoW), new consensus mechanisms are in constant development. You can expect to see innovations in Directed Acyclic Graphs (DAGs), and other novel approaches that can further enhance transaction speeds and reduce latency.
- Interoperability Solutions Improve: As the blockchain ecosystem continues to mature, interoperability will become increasingly important – and prevalent. Projects that facilitate seamless communication and transaction exchange between different blockchains will play a crucial role in enabling high-speed, cross-chain transactions. This allows networks to handle increasing volume by dispersing it through a variety of chains.
- Hardware Acceleration: As blockchains are becoming more and more complex, we may see greater use of specialised hardware to accelerate transaction processing. This could involve using GPUs or ASICs to optimise cryptographic operations and improve overall network performance.
- Increased Focus on Optimisation: Blockchain developers will place far greater emphasis on optimising existing code and protocols. Efficiency will be key, as even small improvements in transaction processing can make significant changes to the overall TPS. This optimization extends from smart contract design, to node software.
- Increased Bandwidth & Node Upgrades: Blockchain networks will focus on increasing network bandwidth and node computing power to further accelerate network speeds. It stands to reason, the bigger the pipeline, the better the flow.
Breaking Down Transaction Per Second
The term “Transactions Per Second,” or TPS, is often thrown around when discussing blockchain technology. But what does it really mean, and why is it so important?
Simply put, TPS measures the number of transactions a blockchain network can process in a single second. Think of it like the number of customers a shop can serve in an hour before becoming too congested – the higher the number, the more efficient the operation.
For blockchains, a higher TPS generally means faster transaction confirmation times and a more scalable network. Data aggregator Chainspect highlights three types of transactions per second, and it’s important for you to understand each one:
- Real-Time TPS: This shows how many transactions per second the blockchain is processing at any given moment. It’s considered the most important metric because it reveals the actual transaction rate a blockchain is currently handling. Real-Time TPS offers an accurate snapshot of the network’s current performance and cannot be easily inflated. For example, Ethereum explorer Etherscan places Ethereum’s current TPS at around 14.2 at the time of writing. This figure is updated every five minutes, providing a near real-time view of the network’s activity.
- Max Recorded TPS: This indicates the highest or peak TPS a blockchain has ever reached. It’s a useful metric for understanding the theoretical limits of the best TPS blockchains’ performance under optimal conditions. However, it’s important to remember that this is a peak value and may not be sustainable under normal operating conditions.
- Max Theoretical TPS: This is the number most blockchains/developers like to boast about. It shows how many transactions per second the blockchain is theoretically capable of handling, based on its design and specifications. While interesting, this number is often far removed from real-world performance, as it doesn’t account for influencing factors like network congestion, transaction complexity, and hardware limitations.
Why is TPS Important?
TPS is a critical factor in determining a blockchain’s scalability and usability. A blockchain with a low TPS can become congested, thus leading to slow transaction times and high fees. This can make the blockchain impractical for everyday use cases, such as payments and decentralized applications (dApps).
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Blockchain TPS Comparison – What Factors Affect TPS?
When comparing the TPS of different blockchains, it’s crucial to understand the various factors that can influence their performance. Here’s a breakdown of some of the key considerations:
Block Time, Transaction Size, and Block Size
Block time simply means how quickly it takes for a blockchain to add a new block to the network; in other words, it’s how fast the network confirms transactions.
Since the start of 2024, Ethereum’s block time has hovered slightly above 12 seconds.
Block time directly impacts how quickly transactions are confirmed on the blockchain.
A shorter block time generally leads to faster confirmation times and a higher TPS.
These blocks contain transactions of different sizes. A simple Solana token transfer, for example, is far smaller than an NFT mint, but both of these transactions have different sizes; the complexity of the transaction usually increases.
Since all of these transactions will fit in a block, the block size is simply the maximum size of transactions that can fit in a block that block can carry into the blockchain. A larger block size allows more transactions to be included in each block, which can increase TPS. However, larger block sizes can also lead to increased bandwidth requirements and potential security risks.
TPS can be calculated using the following formula:
(Block size / Transaction size) / Block time = Transactions Per Second
Let’s break that down with an example: Imagine a blockchain with a block size of 1 MB, an average transaction size of 1 KB, and a block time of 10 seconds.
- Number of Transactions per Block: 1 MB / 1 KB = 1024 Transactions
- TPS: 1024 Transactions / 10 Seconds = 102.4 TPS
So, in this simplified scenario, the blockchain could theoretically process around 102.4 transactions per second.
It’s also important to remember that smaller transactions (e.g., a simple Solana token transfer) are generally faster than complex ones (e.g., executing an Ethereum smart contract). Complex transactions require more computational resources and take longer to process, which can reduce overall TPS.
Consensus Mechanism
The transactions per second also depend on the consensus mechanism of a blockchain and how fast transactions are validated and added to the network.
Consensus mechanisms are the methods used by blockchain networks to agree on the validity of transactions and maintain the integrity of the ledger.
Different consensus mechanisms have different trade-offs in terms of speed, security, and energy consumption. Mechanisms like Proof of Work (PoW), used by Bitcoin, can be slower and more computer/resource-intensive, thereby limiting its throughput and scalability compared to Proof of Stake (PoS) consensus mechanisms.
- Proof of Work (PoW): In PoW, miners compete to solve complex mathematical problems to validate transactions and add new blocks to the blockchain. This process requires significant computational power and energy consumption. Bitcoin and, historically, Ethereum (before the Merge) used PoW. PoW’s strength lies in its security, but it’s relatively slow, typically resulting in lower TPS.
- Proof of Stake (PoS): PoS involves validators staking their cryptocurrency to have a chance of being selected to validate transactions and create new blocks. PoS is generally faster and more energy-efficient than PoW. Solana, Polygon, and Near are examples of blockchains that use PoS or variations of it. PoS allows for faster block times and higher TPS.
- Other Consensus Mechanisms: There are various other consensus mechanisms, such as Delegated Proof of Stake (DPoS), Practical Byzantine Fault Tolerance (PBFT), and more. Each of these mechanisms has its own trade-offs in terms of speed, security, and decentralization.
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The Fastest Blockchains
Here, we will take a look at the fastest blockchains by TPS from among the top 25 blockchains by TVL (Total Value Locked);
Fastest Blockchain Among the top 25 Blockchains by TVL
Using the daily average TPS data aggregator CoinGecko published a report of the blockchains with the highest TPS among the top 25 blockchains by TVL as of May 15, 2024. Here are the top 20 blockchains with the highest TPS:
- Solana – 1053.7
- Sui – 854.1
- BSC – 378.3
- Polygon – 190.4
- TON – 175.5
- Tron – 159.6
- Near – 117.8
- Avalanche – 89.2
- Cronos – 72.2
- Gnosis – 65.5
- Fantom – 59.2
- Arbitrum – 59.0
- Linea – 55.7
- Aptos – 49.5
- Base – 37.5
- Mantle – 25.5
- Ethereum – 22.7
- Skarknet – 12.3
- Optimism – 11.8
- Bitcoin – 10.73
Solana a non-EVM blockchain takes the first spot as the fastest blockchain followed by Sui another non-EVM blockchain, going by this list the fastest EVM-compatible blockchain is BNB Smart Chain (BSC).
See: What is an Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM)?
How does TPS Compare with VISA & Mastercard?
Payment processing networks VISA and Mastercard are currently capable of handling 24,000 and 5,000 transactions per second. This is a way ahead of Solana the fastest Blockchain.
Despite being the fastest blockchain by TPS Solana has been facing network congestion recently, so it is safe to say that blockchain networks still have a long way to go before catching up with VISA or Mastercard
FAQs – Common Questions About Blockchain TPS
What is the highest TPS blockchain in 2024?
As of late 2024, Solana and Sui are generally considered to be among the fastest blockchain TPS. Solana often boasts impressive numbers, regularly achieving hundreds or even thousands of transactions per second in real-world conditions. Sui, with its innovative object-centric model, is also capable of very high throughput.
However, it’s important to remember that these numbers can fluctuate depending on network conditions and the types of transactions being processed. It’s important to always check Real-Time TPS for the most accurate information.
Why is Solana’s TPS so high?
Solana is one of the blockchain with the highest TPS and this is primarily due to its unique architecture, which combines Proof of History (PoH) with Proof of Stake (PoS). Proof of History is a clock before consensus; a way to encode time into the blockchain. PoH allows nodes to agree on the order of transactions without having to communicate with each other, significantly speeding up the consensus process.
The PoS element then handles transaction validation and block creation. This combination, along with other optimisations like Turbine (a block propagation protocol) and Sealevel (parallel transaction processing), allows Solana to achieve much higher throughput compared to many other blockchains.
Can blockchain TPS ever match Visa?
This is a question on many people’s minds! Visa, a traditional payment processor, can handle thousands of transactions per second (estimates often range from 1,700 to 24,000 TPS).
While some blockchains like Solana are approaching these numbers, matching Visa’s transactions per second and peak capacity is still a challenge for most. However, it’s important to consider that blockchain technology is still relatively young. Ongoing innovations in Layer-2 solutions, sharding, and consensus mechanisms are constantly pushing the boundaries of blockchain scalability.
It is certainly possible that within the next decade, we see blockchain networks far exceed VISA’s current processing capacity.
Moreover, the nature of blockchain transactions is different from traditional payment transactions. Blockchain transactions involve cryptographic verification and distributed consensus, which add overhead. However, these features also provide enhanced security, transparency, and decentralization, which are valuable benefits that traditional systems lack.
What is TPS Vs. Latency in blockchain?
TPS and latency are two distinct but related metrics in blockchain. TPS refers to the transaction volume, or the number of transactions a blockchain can process per second. Latency, on the other hand, refers to the confirmation time, or the time it takes for a transaction to be confirmed on the blockchain.
High TPS indicates a scalable network, while low latency indicates fast transaction confirmation times. Ideally, a blockchain should have both high TPS and low latency to provide a seamless user experience. However, there is often a trade-off between these two metrics.
For example, increasing block size to improve TPS can sometimes lead to increased latency due to the time it takes to propagate larger blocks across the network.
Closing Thoughts
As the web3/ crypto space continues to grow TPS is important as it also needs to increase for faster and more efficient processing of transactions leading to improved scalability in the space.
[Author’s Note: This article does not represent financial advice, everything written here is strictly for educational and informational purposes. Please do your own research before investing.]
Author: Godwin Okhaifo
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