Solana Will Surpass Ethereum in Attracting New Crypto Developers in 2024

Share this article

Solana became the main blockchain for new crypto developers in 2024, with an increase of 83%, surpassing Ethereum, according to the annual report of Electric Capital.

The report, reviewed by CoinDesk, Solana revealed that Solana onboarded 7,625 new developers – 1,000 more than Ethereum during the same period.

Although Ethereum maintained its position as the largest developer network overall, the number of monthly active developers decreased by 17%, with a total of 6,244 developers.

Despite this decline, Ethereum's layer-2 ecosystem, which includes projects like Optimism, Arbitrum, and Base, remains the main driver of activity, accounting for more than half of active developers of the blockchain.

Maria Shen, general partner at Electric Capital, said that Ethereum remains the global leader in terms of total developers, benefiting from its extensive network effects, which are evident in the data.

However, she acknowledged Solana's big move, noting that this is the first blockchain since 2016 to surpass Ethereum in attracting new developers.

The report also identified a geographic shift in developer demographics.

Asia overtook North America as the top continent for blockchain developers, with India adding 17% of new crypto developers in 2024.

Despite this, the United States remains the country with the largest total developer base, holding a 19% share of the global total.

Shen commented on this trend, explaining that the continued dominance of the US and North America in the crypto space is both unlikely and undesirable.

She emphasized that crypto is designed to be limitless and noted the wealth of engineering talent outside the US.

“Crypto is meant to be limitless,” she said, highlighting the importance of global diversity in developer contributions.

At press time, Solana was trading at $233, up nearly 2% in the past 24 hours, while Ethereum was at $3,945, up 4.2% over the same period.

Share this article