When it comes to gas fees, Ethereum is no different than other blockchain platforms. Like Bitcoin, Ethereum has a block size limit that creates a fee market.
And like Bitcoin, Ethereum’s gas fees have been on the rise in recent months as usage has increased.
The average gas fee on the Ethereum network has risen from around $0.015 in early 2020 to over $0.
30 in late 2020. That’s a 2000% increase in just a few short months!.
So what are gas fees and why do they matter? Let’s take a closer look.
What are gas fees?
In order to understand gas fees, we need to understand a little bit about how the Ethereum network works. The Ethereum network is a decentralized platform that runs smart contracts.
These smart contracts are like small programs that can be used to create decentralized applications (dApps).
In order to run a smart contract, you need to use “gas.” Gas is basically like the fuel that powers the Ethereum network.
Every time you want to run a smart contract, you need to pay a gas fee. The amount of gas you need to pay depends on the complexity of the smart contract.
Why do gas fees matter?
Gas fees matter because they are how miners make money on the Ethereum network. Miners are the people who run the computers that power the Ethereum network.
They are rewarded with Ether (ETH) for verifying transactions and adding them to the blockchain.
The more transactions there are on the network, the more work miners have to do. This means they require more ETH to cover their costs.
As demand for ETH increases, so does the price of gas fees.
What are typical gas fees?
The average gas fee on the Ethereum network has been rising steadily since early 2020. In January 2020, the average gas fee was around $0.015.
As of November 2020, the average gas fee is over $0.30. That’s a 2000% increase in just 10 months!.
As usage of the Ethereum network increases, so does the demand for ETH. This causesgas fees to rise as well. If you’re planning on using the Ethereum network, be prepared to pay higher fees than you might be used to paying on other platforms like Bitcoin or Litecoin.