Ultimate Top 10 Blockchain for Your Smart Contracts

Smart contracts use blockchain technology or distributed ledger to interact and conduct transactions with each other. The contracts are digital and are stored on the blockchain. It follows an “if, when, then” statement and is written in the form of code.

There are networks of blockchain nodes that update when predetermined conditions on the contract are met.

Before understanding the best blockchain for smart contracts, let’s briefly understand smart contracts.

Suppose someone is willing to buy 1 BTC from you in the exchange of fiat money to your bank account. Of course, your belief in another person will follow with the transaction.

No 3rd-party can verify that the person will wire the money once you make the transfer of 1 BTC.

Smart contracts are vital because they give the aspect of trustlessness that blockchains genuinely need. In the world of blockchain, trustlessness means you don’t need to put your sole trust in anyone.

But apart from this, they are also capable of automating tasks and anchoring decentralized applications (dApps). For example, DeFi developers use smart contracts to automatize standard loans, flash loans, staking, etc.

Ethereum is one of the best blockchains for smart contracts, with a market cap of almost $321 billion in 2022. 

Benefits of Smart Contracts

• Speed – Smart Contracts automate the task as they are digital and do not require any paperwork.
• Accuracy – The contracts are executed online and hence are more accurate. The documentation isn’t done manually, which decreases the room for errors.
• Security – Due to the exclusion of third parties and the codes being encrypted, the security in smart contracts is enhanced.
• Savings – There is no risk of manipulation by intermediaries due to the absence of third parties; there is a cost-saving.

Smart Contracts Transforming the Industries

Smart contracts work in a way that can improve the way agreements between businesses are documented and executed. Paper contracts can get bogged down by fraudulent or third parties, but smart contracts can bring the change. Smart contracts have the power to revolutionize banking, healthcare, government, insurance, and much more.

Smart contracts will increase transparency in sectors like banking, finance, government, insurance, healthcare, etc. 

It can be used in insurance industries for processing claims. The banking industry can use it to pay loans or to track EMIs. 

Pharma industries can apply it to test the authenticity of medicines and track inventory. The use of smart contracts is vast, and its implementation will improve the working of industries. 

10 Best Blockchain for Smart Contracts

Let’s know more about the best blockchain for smart contracts and understand how they work. The ten types discussed here are essential to understand before selecting the best smart contract platform. 

1. Ethereum  

Ethereum is a public, open-source blockchain platform with the facility of smart contracts. It has its cryptocurrency called ether (ETH). To create smart contracts on Ethereum, one needs to know the object-oriented programming language “Solidity.”

To generate a smart contract install MetaMask and create a wallet in it. Select any network. Add an ETH to your wallet. Write a smart contract in Solidity. Develop a .sol extension file and deploy the contract.

The smart contact ecosystem was created in the year 2013, and it is a Proof-of-Work blockchain network. Ethereum was the one that started the smart contract ecosystem. Also, the blockchain is hosting Ethereum Virtual Machine(EVM).

EVM is used for creating decentralized applications (DApps) on Ethereum. One can consider it as a place where all the smart contracts remain.

Pros of Ethereum

1. Ethereum, an all-time favorite blockchain, is easy to understand for developers and offers excellent privacy and security.
2. Ethereum has more liquidity compared to any other blockchain.

Cons of Ethereum

1. Ethereum suffers a lot of network congestion issues. Due to the congestion, it increased the transaction fee too high.

2. Polygon 

Polygon is an Ethereum side chain with a lesser gas fee and similar security to Ethereum. It was formerly known as the Matic network used for developing Ethereum compatibility. 

Unite your MetaMask wallet to Polygon. Add polygon tokens. Create a polygon app/node and revise the hard hat configuration to run the commands.

It has a Proof-of-stake security layer that offers unparalleled scalability. In addition, it has combined the best of Ethereum and other blockchains to bring a multi-chain system. 

The smart contracts handle the transaction, staking, and communication between various polygon chains and Ethereum. 

Pros of Polygon

1. Polygon provides interoperability and is developer-friendly.
2. The transaction fee is low and is considered great for decentralized finance apps.

Cons of Polygon

1. The move of Ethereum to the PoS network can be challenging for Polygon which will surpass the current transaction per second of Polygon.

3. Binance

Changpeng Zhao is the founder of Binance Smart Chain (BSC) — the aim was to create an alternative to Ethereum. Often people get confused between Binance Smart Chain and Binance Chain. 

BSC runs along with the Binance Chain blockchain and offers smart contracts compatible with Ethereum Virtual Machine. Binance is the largest retail crypto exchange; this makes BSC one of the best smart contracts.  

Pros of Binance

1. The blockchain network operates on Proof of Staked Authority, due to which block time is shorter. As a result, it offers lower transaction costs.
2. It offers interoperability and transaction throughout.

Cons of Binance 

1. Because of the high number of BNB whales and a low number of validators, it is one of the smart contracts which is not decentralized.

4. Lisk

Lisk was developed from the fork of a Cryptic blockchain, and it has its cryptocurrency called LSK. In addition, it has an optional service for smart contracts. 

Lisk runs on Javascript programming language — one of the most used programming languages making it easier for anyone to participate in development. In addition, it has made it easy for developers to build blockchain with high speed. 

Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) smart contracts are created as a sidechain or blockchain service. The entire network would then be able to operate that library in Lisk.

Pros of Lisk

1. Lisk uses the Proof-of-Stake consensus algorithm and works on side chains that offer more security. 
2. It has a user-friendly interface for developers.

Cons of Lisk

1. However, many challenges are there in Lisk — preventing infinite loops and measuring total computation.
2. Lisk has an extended transaction time relatively.

5. Polkadot 

Polkadot is one of the most innovative chains founded by Ethereum co-founder Gavin Woods. It is a system of interconnected blockchains. Earlier it was only a general-purpose contract creator and a virtual agreement broker. 

Later on, the feature of smart contracts was added. Polkadot gives the user the independence of running multiple contracts. It works on a substrate framework to build the contracts.

The relay chain of Polkadot doesn’t favor smart contracts, but its parachains assist arbitrary transitions to support smart contracts.

Similar to other blockchains, Polkadot provides interoperability. 

Pros of Polkadot

1. It has a fast and scalable transaction speed due to parachains data structure. 
2. Polkadot has high energy efficiency and the lowest carbon footprint compared to other conventional blockchains.

Cons of Polkadot

1. Polkadot has intense public competition, and it also cannibalizes the growth of other platforms. 
2. Moreover, being new in the market it lacks infrastructure and cannot handle more liquidity. 

6. Solana 

Solana is one of the fastest-growing blockchain ecosystems aligned with De-Fi, Ce-Fi, Web3, and many more. It was founded in 2017 to improve scalability issues. It is a crypto with record-high 65,000 transactions per second. 

Developers can use Rust, C, or C++ to build the blockchain. The contract is in read-only mode containing program logic only.

Its smart contract differs from traditional EVM blockchains. It has a Proof of History consensus algorithm – which means output can’t be judged by input. The SOL knows its cryptocurrency.

Pros of Solana

1. Solana offers high security, has no gas pricing, and can be customized as per the requirements here, and the transactions remain less than $0.01.
2. The scalability offered by Solana is incredible as it uses the Proof of History algorithm.

Cons of Solana

1. However, it suffered a 17-hour outage in September 2021. The blockchain is still in its initial phases, and it’s crucial to research and then invest. 
2. The hardware setup for Solana is more expensive than other types.

7. Avalanche

Avalanche combines three different blockchains called — exchange, platform, and contract chain. The contract chain or the C-chain is the copy of EVM and is based on the PoS network.

It is an open-source platform for introducing De-Fi. Like other blockchains, it offers high throughput, lower transaction fees, and is eco-friendly.

Pros of Avalanche 

1. In a belief to digitize the world assets Avalanche is blazingly fast when considered according to time-to-time finality. 
2. The blockchain runs on EVM so that Ethereum developer tools can be used.

Cons of Avalanche

1. One major issue with Avalanche is that it does not punish any fraudulent behavior.
2. It is also considered expensive for small investors.

8. TRON

TRON is a highly effective smart contract with a dev stack similar to Ethereum, so one doesn’t require a new language to learn. The main plan of the developers was to make it agreeable with Ethereum Virtual Machine.

The smart contract is divided into core, storage, and application layers. Solidity, the language of Ethereum, is used for building on contracts. 

It provides real-time communication between the parties included in an agreement. In addition, Tron has an improved rewards distribution mechanism that provides high availability.

Pros of TRON

1. All the transactions are secure and use automated smart contracts for time-saving.
2. It also supports an enormous number of users and provides multiple layers of referral rewards to those who have — TRON compatible wallet. 

Cons of TRON

1. TRON plunged to the bottom in the Top 20 digital assets, which have affected the overall market cap of TRON. 
2. It is often accused of centralization; the blockchain still needs to go 100% decentralized.

9. EOS

EOS is an open-source blockchain platform that supports digital infrastructures. It has end-to-end authentication that supports data integrity. 

EOS works on Delegated-Proof-of-Stake, and it has its WebAssembly machine virtual machine to execute the contract. C++ is the language to compose smart contracts. 

EOS has a contract development toolkit that consists of a toolchain and libraries. Other than C++, one needs to know a code editor or IDE. 

Pros of EOS

1. It provides the best transaction speed and a sub-second block time latency rate.
2. Other than dApps service charges, EOS offers free transactions on other services.

Cons of EOS

1. The issue with EOS is that it works on a centralized structure.
2. A portion of its community called the EOS tribe left the block due to the fear of Chinese whales control.

10. R3 Corda 

R3 Corda has its own patented technology, which improves the efficiency of financial transactions. 

The Corda has three elements as executable code, state objects, and commands. Here the state objects represent the data stored on the ledger. The commands are extra data used to authorize the executable code for verifying the transaction. 

It strives to use blockchains for numerous business models, including corporate payments and supply chain, and many more.

There is a doubt that the R3 Corda website describes it as “a blockchain and not a blockchain.” This is because it uses a unique consensus mechanism in which pacts are cryptographically related. In this approach, all transactions happen in real-time.

Pros of R3 Corda

1. Corda offers flexible performance and interoperability.
2. Corda uses a technology called HSM integration in which to ensure the signing of keys is safeguarded.

Cons of R3 Corda

1. The customer support team of Corda isn’t very significant as compared to other blockchains.
2. The blockchain also has high licensing fees, due to which it is not easy for customers to make a profit.

Presently, R3 Corda overlooks competition from other federated blockchain networks that can process transactions rapidly and are economical.  

*Note- Ethereum will become PoS in 2022

Which Blockchain to select for your Smart Contract

There was a time when Ethereum was the only one that provided smart contracts. However, with time, the ability to program other applications kept increasing, and new blockchain technology equipped with smart contracts is entering the market every day.

Smart contracts are essential to streamline the supply chain and to improve trade. It has also reduced the paperwork and speeded the transaction process. 

However, every blockchain has pros and cons. We at 0defect can help you select the best blockchain for smart contracts.

With over five years of expertise in blockchain security and smart contracts audits, our team of expert auditors checks more than 150+ vulnerabilities to present you with a comprehensive audit report.

Schedule a free demo with 0defect to understand the best blockchain for smart contracts. We will provide the best advice along with smart contract auditing.