These Were The Top Layer-1 Ecosystems in 2024

Solana experienced significant growth in 2024, marked by increased network activity and rising revenues, reinforcing its spot as one of the largest layer-1 ecosystems. By the fourth quarter, the blockchain recorded daily revenues exceeding $6.7 million, with its highest single-day revenue reaching $13.8 million.

This surge in activity coincided with an appreciation in the value of SOL, driven largely by the growth of Solana’s memecoin ecosystem. Platforms like Pump.fun played a key role in enabling the launch of these tokens, further fueling network usage.

Read more: Solana and Base See Massive Stablecoin Inflows Amid Market Slowdown

Beyond memecoins, Solana’s high speed and scalability have solidified its position as a preferred platform for decentralized exchanges (DEXs). The blockchain captured over 80% of all DEX transactions and hosted the highest number of unique trading wallets in 2024.

The number of active addresses on the Solana network also demonstrated its growing adoption, peaking at over 130 million on a monthly basis in November 2024. Despite this exponential growth, Solana remains the second-largest blockchain ecosystem overall, trailing only Ethereum.

Sui Network and Aptos Creating Fierce Competition in the Layer-1 Sector

Sui Network (SUI) has positioned itself as one of the fastest-growing crypto ecosystems, with a significant rise in developer activity and network adoption. By Q4 2024, the ecosystem registered over 150 core developers, marking a 24% increase in overall developer growth. Monthly active developers surged by 219% in early 2024, reaching nearly 1,400 by mid-year, while code commits and total repositories grew by 125% and 84%, respectively

Sui’s adoption also extended to user activity, with monthly active addresses peaking at 9.6 million in December, more than double its all-time high in June. The layer-1 reached a total value locked (TVL) of $1.8 billion in 2024, reflecting a 731.4% increase year-to-date, while its native token, SUI, rose 398% over the same period.

Aptos (APT), another leading layer-1, also experienced a dramatic rise in TVL, growing from $116 million at the start of the year to $1.3 billion by year-end, representing a 1,021% increase. Its throughput of over 160,000 TPS with sub-second finality has drawn traders and DeFi users, while its Move programming language has attracted developers interested in its modular architecture, which is also used by the Sui Network.

Both Sui and Aptos have established themselves as strong layer-1 competitors to Solana, gaining traction in the blockchain space with their high-speed capabilities, developer-friendly environments, and significant network activity in 2024.