As blockchain technology continues to evolve, understanding user engagement is essential to evaluating the success of any network. A particularly interesting measure is daily active addresses. This is the number of unique blockchain addresses that participate in transactions on a given day, whether sending or receiving assets. Essentially, it provides insight into how many users are actively interacting with a blockchain at any given time, making it a reliable measure of real-world usage and popularity.
On December 27, 2024, CryptoRank released a chart ranking the top 10 blockchains of the year based on their average daily active addresses. This data, from CryptoRank and Artemis.xyz, highlights some fascinating trends in blockchain adoption and offers insight into the platforms that have led the way in user engagement. Let’s take a look at the top three blockchains dominating this metric, followed by a quick look at the remaining networks in the top 10.
1. NEAR protocol: 2.7 million daily active addresses (+766% year-on-year)
NEAR Protocol became the leader in 2024, with 2.7 million daily active addresses. This is an astonishing 766% year-over-year growth, largely due to a focus on scalability and developer-friendly tools. NEAR uses an innovative sharding technology called Nightshade, which divides the blockchain into smaller, more manageable pieces, enabling high transaction throughput at low cost. This efficiency has made NEAR a top choice for developers creating decentralized applications (dApps).
NEAR’s success has been further enhanced by the rapid adoption of blockchain-based social games and dApps on its platform. These applications attracted new users unfamiliar with blockchain technology, helping NEAR build a robust and growing ecosystem. Combined with the NEAR Foundation’s significant investments in developer grants, the protocol’s rise highlights its appeal to both users and builders.
2. Solana: 2.6 million daily active addresses (+702% year-on-year)
Solana ranked second, with 2.6 million daily active addresses and an impressive 702% year-over-year growth. The network’s popularity in 2024 has been largely fueled by its vibrant memecoin ecosystem, which has seen massive trading activity on platforms like Pump.fun. These memecoins have attracted retail and institutional investors, significantly increasing Solana’s usage metrics.
In addition to memecoins, Solana’s fast and low-cost infrastructure has made it a go-to blockchain for decentralized finance (DeFi) and non-fungible token (NFT) projects. Developers and users flocked to the network to take advantage of its efficiency, while institutional interest grew as Solana proved its scalability and reliability. This combination of factors has made Solana one of the best blockchains of the year.
3. TRON: 1.9 million daily active addresses (+20.3% year-on-year)
TRON secured third place with 1.9 million daily active addresses, representing a consistent growth of 20.3% from the previous year. TRON’s dominance in stablecoin transactions, particularly those involving Tether (USDT), has been a major driver of its user base. With low transaction fees and high-speed transfers, TRON has become a preferred platform for users looking for transparent and profitable stable trades.
Blockchain has also maintained a strong presence in the decentralized finance (DeFi) sector, partnering with various global payment systems and financial institutions. Although its growth has not been as spectacular as that of NEAR or Solana, TRON’s consistent performance and utility have ensured its place among the best blockchains of 2024.
A quick look at the rest of the Top 10
Beyond the top three, the remaining blockchains on the list presented various strengths and challenges.
BNB Chain recorded 1 million daily active addresses, a slight decrease of 4.8% from the previous year. Despite this decline, BNB Chain remains a hub for DeFi and token trading, maintaining its importance in the blockchain ecosystem.
Polygon (MATIC) recorded 855,000 daily active addresses, achieving a solid 139% year-over-year growth. As a layer 2 scaling solution for Ethereum, Polygon continues to attract gaming, NFT, and DeFi projects, solidifying its role as a vital part of the Ethereum ecosystem.
Base, Coinbase’s Layer 2 solution, reached 655,000 daily active addresses, experiencing an exceptional year-over-year growth of 2,098%. Its tight integration with Ethereum and Coinbase’s user-friendly platform have significantly boosted its adoption.
Sui has established itself as a remarkable player with 519,000 daily active addresses, experiencing an extraordinary 908% year-over-year increase. This growth is attributed to its innovative programming language and rapidly expanding ecosystem of decentralized applications (dApps).
Bitcoin (BTC), the most recognized blockchain in the world, recorded 496,000 daily active addresses, a decrease of 19% year-on-year. Although Bitcoin remains the dominant asset in terms of market capitalization, its decline in daily active addresses reflects changing user priorities.
The Open Network (TON), the blockchain associated with Telegram, saw exponential growth in 2024, with daily active addresses increasing 5,185% to 414,000. This growth was fueled by TON’s integration with Telegram, leveraging the messaging platform’s huge user base to drive adoption.
Finally, Arbitrum, a leading Ethereum Layer 2 solution, reached 413,000 daily active addresses, a 180% year-over-year increase. Arbitrum’s ability to scale Ethereum applications while maintaining low fees and high throughput has made it a key player in the Ethereum ecosystem.
Comparing Activity to Total Value Locked: A Broader Perspective
An additional lens for evaluating blockchain ecosystems is total value locked (TVL), a metric that reflects the total dollar value of assets locked in decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols on a blockchain. TVL measures the amount of capital that users have committed to DeFi applications, such as lending, staking, and liquidity provision. Unlike daily active addresses, which focus on user activity, TVL provides insight into the financial depth and maturity of a blockchain’s DeFi ecosystem.
By this measure, Ethereum is unrivaled, accounting for 56.22% of total TVL across all chains as of December 30, 2024, according to data from DeFiLlama.
Ethereum’s dominance stems from its well-established DeFi ecosystem, which hosts the most diverse and advanced set of decentralized applications, supported by its early adoption and a strong developer community. However, Ethereum’s supremacy in TVL contrasts with its position in daily active addresses, where it is not in the lead. This discrepancy highlights the different nature of these metrics: TVL captures capital locked in protocols, which requires fewer but larger transactions, while daily active addresses highlight the frequency of user interactions, often linked to smaller, retail-focused operations.
Solana and TRON, ranked second and third in daily active addresses, occupy significantly lower TVL rankings. Solana represents 6.94% of the total TVL and TRON 6.07%, placing them behind Ethereum.
The contrast between TVL and daily active addresses highlights the various strengths of blockchain networks. While Ethereum excels in financial liquidity and high-value applications, chains like Solana and TRON thrive on user engagement and transaction activity. Together, these metrics provide a more nuanced understanding of the blockchain landscape, demonstrating that no single metric can provide a complete picture of a network’s adoption and utility.
Featured image via Pixabay
