Did you know Ethereum was only founded about a decade ago? It popped up on the scene in 2013 just a few short years after Bitcoin made its initial appearance.
Computer programmer Vitalik Buterin, who also played a key part in the development of Bitcoin, conceived of Ethereum. His goal was to let people use Ethereum to create decentralized applications.
Since that time, Ethereum has grown by leaps and bounds. It’s now one of the biggest names in the cryptocurrency industry.
The Ethereum blockchain size has also grown a lot. Based strictly on a blockchain size comparison, the size of the Ethereum block is now bigger than the Bitcoin blockchain size.
So, just how big is the Ethereum blockchain? We’re going to aim to answer this question in this article along with other common questions about the Ethereum blockchain size growth that has taken place.
Keep reading to learn more.
What Is Ethereum?
Before we get into talking about the Ethereum blockchain size, let’s take a quick step back and make sure you understand what Ethereum is. There are some common misconceptions about Ethereum that we’d like to address.
First and foremost, it’s worth pointing out that Ethereum isn’t a cryptocurrency like so many people assume. Even though it’s always compared to other types of crypto like Bitcoin, Ethereum is a blockchain and not crypto.
Ether is a type of crypto that’s used within the Ethereum world. So if you’re investing in crypto, you’ll want to monitor the price of Ether CAD as opposed to Ethereum CAD.
What Is a Blockchain?
Now that you know that Ethereum is a blockchain rather than a type of crypto, you might be wondering, “Wait, what is a blockchain?” This is another frequently asked question when it comes to Ethereum.
To try to put it into the simplest terms possible, a blockchain is a decentralized database featuring a list of transactions that have been made by those buying and selling Ether. Each set of transactions is packaged together to form a “block.” All these blocks are then put together to create a blockchain.
Blockchains are typically public and can be seen by anyone who wants to look at them. But it’s almost impossible to remove data from these blockchains. Data can only be added to them, which is why they’re considered to be secure within the crypto community.
What Is the Ethereum Blockchain Size?
After hearing about what Ethereum is and how blockchains work, you should be able to guess what the Ethereum blockchain size refers to. But just in case you’re still scratching your head, the Ethereum blockchain size shows how big of a deal this particular blockchain has become.
The Ethereum blockchain size has grown fast as both Ethereum and Ether have increased in popularity. The Ethereum blockchain size is always changing, but as of right now, it’s just under 960 GBs. It’s up quite a bit from 5 years ago when it was still under 200 GBs.
What Has Helped With the Ethereum Blockchain Size Growth?
Ethereum blockchain size growth has increased for any number of reasons. You’ll need to know about some of these reasons to get a better feel for why the Ethereum blockchain size has gone up as much as it has.
The simple fact that more people know about Ethereum and Ether now than ever before has no doubt helped. It’s put them on the map and gotten more people interested in using them when investing in crypto.
The Ethereum blockchain has also grown so much because of the connection between Ethereum and NFTs. Almost all NFTs have a close connection to the Ethereum blockchain because that’s where they tend to originate from.
NFTs still make up a pretty small percentage of crypto investing. But as more people familiarize themselves with NFTs and begin buying them, it’s only going to send the Ethereum blockchain size growth skyrocketing more than it already has.
How Big Could the Ethereum Blockchain Become?
There is no telling just how big the Ethereum blockchain could get to be. As of right now, Ethereum hasn’t suffered many of the same setbacks that have plagued other crypto entities like Bitcoin.
If the Ethereum blockchain does experience a blockchain size problem at some point, it could slow its growth down. It could halt the progress Ethereum has made over the years.
But even if that were to occur, the Ethereum blockchain size is already so massive. And it isn’t just going to disappear overnight. It’ll keep on growing at least a little each day and claim a bigger piece of the crypto pie.
It’ll be interesting to see if the Ethereum blockchain continues to reign supreme when people do blockchain size comparisons. It’ll also be fun to see how Ethereum continues to stack up against Bitcoin as the two jostle for position within the industry.
Keep an Eye on the Size of the Ethereum Blockchain
Keeping up with the Ethereum blockchain size is easier said than done. It’s always increasing at least a little each day and keeping investors on their toes.
If you’re going to be a serious investor in Ethereum and other types of crypto, you’ll need to monitor things like the Ethereum blockchain size. It’ll keep you abreast of what’s going on with the world of crypto. It’ll also help influence many of the crypto investment decisions you’ll need to make.
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