What is Layer 2: Ethereum Scaling Explained
Layer2 is a scaling solution built on Ethereum that processes transactions off-chain and submits compressed results to mainnet — faster and 90%+ cheaper.
TL;DR
Layer2 is a scaling solution built on Ethereum that processes transactions off-chain and submits compressed results to mainnet — faster and 90%+ cheaper.
Why Layer2 is Needed
Ethereum mainnet (Layer1) limitations: ~15-30 TPS; peak gas fees $50-200/tx; slow (12-15s block confirmation). Layer2 solution: build a high-speed transaction layer on top of Ethereum — batch process transactions then submit compressed data to Layer1 for validation. Results: 1,000-10,000+ TPS; $0.01-0.1 gas fees; security inherited from Ethereum. Main Layer2s: Arbitrum (Optimistic Rollup, largest TVL), Optimism (OP Stack, base of Base), zkSync Era (ZK Rollup, math proof verification), Polygon (Sidechain+ZK), Starknet (StarkEx ZK).