As transaction fees fall to 17 cents, Ethereum network activity increases
Ethereum's mainnet hit a new record this week with 2.2 million transactions in a single day, with fees dropping to an average of 17 cents.
The Layer-1 blockchain recorded its new transaction milestone on Tuesday, said explorer EtherScan. Transaction fees have also come down significantly over time.
The highest transaction fees on Ethereum were recorded in May 2022, when users had to withdraw more than $200 per transaction.
However, even as network usage continues to grow, ongoing improvements have significantly reduced fees.
Since Oct. 10, when it was around $8.48, fees have been falling due to a significant liquidity event that saw the entire market bleed.
Ethereum's higher fees have historically pushed users away from cheaper alternatives like layer 2s, but growing transactions on the mainnet indicate a return to the layer 1 blockchain and its increasing use among crypto users.
Meanwhile, developers are increasingly choosing Ethereum as a settlement layer, data from the Token Terminal shows that the number of new smart contracts created and published on Ethereum blockchain reached a high of 8.7 million in the fourth quarter.
Two major improvements for Ethereum in 2025
The Ethereum blockchain It underwent major changes in 2025, making two reforms that contributed to increased transactions and decreased fees.
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In May, Pectra focused on verifier improvements, enabling flexibility and preparing Ethereum for future tokenization features.
Fusaka has increased the gas limit from 45 million to 60 million and is also designed to increase scalability, data handling and network efficiency. In February, more than 50% of Ethereum validators voted in favor of increasing the network's gas limit, which would increase the maximum amount of gas that can be used for transactions in a single Ethereum block.
Meanwhile, Ethereum's staking queue flipped its exit line for the first time in six months on Monday, with nearly double the amount of ETH now queuing up as ETH attempts to exit the network.
Unloading is often seen as a sign that validators are looking to release Ether for sale, while staking is seen as a sign of confidence in holding it for the long term.
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