Transaction speed is one of the most talked about features in the world of cryptocurrency.
The faster a blockchain, or any digital ledger technology, can process a large number of transactions, the more likely it is to become a go-to platform. For example, a platform with a fast transaction speed could challenge traditional payment companies like Visa.
So Which Cryptocurrency has the Fastest Transaction Speed?
In this review, we’ll be going over the following:
• Transaction speeds of the Top Coins
• A Look at Visa’s True Transaction Speed
• The Future of Cryptocurrency Transaction Speed
Crypto Transaction Speeds Key Information
Tracking down the true transaction speed of a given cryptocurrency is tricky and often opens a portal leading to a parallel dimension of conjecture and embellishment.
Lots of coins are promising massive transaction speeds in the future, but these numbers are largely unproven and require more trials and testing to affirm. So it’s always important to take proclamations on transaction speed with a hefty grain of salt.
Each transaction speed listed below has a direct link to the source for your verification.
Transaction Speeds Complete Overview
Bitcoin
According to Blockchain.info, Bitcoin currently processes about 3 transactions per second. Estimates show that number can go as high as 7.
Transaction confirmation time is currently clocked at about 25 minutes.
Ethereum
The coin that invented the smart contract can handle about 15-20 transactions per second.
You can track confirmation times at ETH Gas Station, which currently estimates a 2-minute processing time.
Ripple
The team at Ripple says XRP can outperform Visa, noting that XRP “consistently handles” 1,500 transactions per second.
Transaction settlement time is estimated at about 4 seconds.
In July of 2017, developers announced Ripple is capable of handling a maximum of 50,000 transactions per second, when necessary. It appears that number has not yet been tested in a real-world use case of XRP (or results have not been made public).
Bitcoin Cash
BCH uses a larger blocksize than Bitcoin in order to achieve faster and cheaper transactions. Bitcoin Cash can currently handle about 61 transactions per second, according to coinanalysis.io.
Transaction settlement time is estimated at about 60 minutes, according to the cryptocurrency exchange Kraken.
EOS
EOS is an ERC20 token that plans to launch its own blockchain at the beginning of June. While EOS remains an Ethereum-based token, it must be confirmed by the Ethereum network, referenced above.
Transaction confirmation time typically takes about 6 minutes, according to the cryptocurrency exchange Kraken.
Litecoin
LTC can handle about 26 transactions per second. Here’s a look at the math on that from All Things Crypto. With Segwit, that number clocks in at about 56 transactions per second.
Transaction settlement time takes about 30 minutes on average, according to the cryptocurrency exchange Kraken.
Cardano
It is widely confirmed that Cardano (ADA) currently handles about 5-7 transactions per second.
Details on transaction times are scarce, but users typically report confirmed transactions in a matter of about 3-5 minutes.
Stellar
Stellar was forked off of the Ripple protocol in 2014, although the team says it’s made many proprietary changes to the platform since then.
The crew at Stellar says the network can easily handle 1,000 transactions per second today.
Transaction settlement time is estimated at 2-5 seconds.
IOTA
Real-time IOTA ledger stress tests show the platform is currently processing about 3 transactions per second.
Transaction confirmation time typically takes takes about 2 minutes, according to the same stress tests.
NEO
The development team behind NEO says it can process 1,000 transactions per second.
Everything beyond that is theoretical at this point, and claims that the technology can currently reach 10,000 transactions per second are currently unfounded.
Transaction settlement time is widely considered to take about 15-20 seconds.
Monero
Monero is built to scale with more volume, so exact numbers on transactions per second are tough to find. About 4 transactions per second is often cited.
Monero’s transaction confirmation time takes about 30 minutes on average, according to the cryptocurrency exchange Kraken.
Dash
According to its developers, a recent upgrade allowed Dash to process about 48 transactions per second.
The average real-world confirmation time for Dash is about 2-10 minutes.
Tron
Similar to EOS, Tron is currently an ERC20 token, which means confirmation depends on the Ethereum network. Tron plans to launch its own blockchain on June 21st when it will attempt to reach dramatically faster speeds.
When Ethereum’s network is running smoothly, transaction confirmation time should take about 6 minutes.
NEM
The creators of NEM say the coin can currently handle “hundreds” of transactions per second.
Confirmation times typically take about 1-2 minutes.
Qtum
It’s widely reported that Qtum can typically process about 60-70 transactions per second.
The average confirmation time takes about 4-5 minutes on average.
The Competition: Visa’s On-the-Record Transaction Speed
Visa’s own numbers on transaction speed are truly tough to define as well.
Visa says it can handle more than 24,000 transactions per second, based on testing done with IBM back in 2010. But that mark has never been reached in real time, and the number of transactions Visa is truly processing each year is shrouded in mystery.
The most recent data we could dig up – also from 2010 – shows Visa hitting a peak of 10,547 transactions per second.
The Future of Cryptocurrency Transaction Speed
Looking toward the future, solutions like the Lightning Network promise to scale transaction speeds for Bitcoin, Litecoin, Vertcoin and others into huge, breakthrough numbers. Many of the coins listed above are also developing solutions that promise to scale transactions per second exponentially.
However, these technologies are still being rolled out and tested. In addition, many scaling solutions are second layer and often use fewer validator nodes to get the job done, which arguably pushes cryptocurrency closer to centralization.
New coins like Zilliqa and Nano along with off-chain scaling solutions like the Raiden Network say they will completely change the game as well. We’ll keep track of their progress.
So which crypto will win the battle for fastest transaction speed? Is there a cryptocurrency you’d like us to add to the list above?
Let us know in the comments!
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