Why Developers Build on Ethereum
Although it’s been over a decade since the advent of Ethereum (and many other similar projects have come to be), developers still choose it over almost every other platform for building on…why? We just might have the answer for you.
Turns out it’s not just one reason that developers choose Ethereum, but many. Ethereum is still the largest platform with the most robust infrastructure; it offers scalability, and some are still here out of solidarity. Read on to learn more about why developers choose to build on Ethereum.
1. It Is Still the Largest
It isn’t always true, but many of the first projects in the space, because they started earlier than the rest, continue to be the largest. This is true with Ethereum, which is still the most widely recognized cryptocurrency other than Bitcoin.
It’s important to note that when Ethereum came to be, it was an all-new, never-heard-of idea (other than the blockchain aspect), and although it would jump-start many others creating their own projects, the truth is, they had a massive head start, which allowed them to grow before the space became saturated.
2. It Offers Scalability
Beyond just being the largest, many platforms have built off Ethereum, or at least built their projects to be compatible. While they initially did this for selfish reasons (so people could transfer their tokens with ease), this served to only make Ethereum more attractive to corporate users’ long term.
For example, if you are a developer, it’s easy to choose Ethereum, knowing you can switch to almost any other platform if it goes sideways. But the same can’t be said for some of the newer blockchains as a service, which can be difficult to leave if the platform is unsuccessful.
Plus, unlike many other projects in the blockchain space, Ethereum still has a large team of developers behind it and a creator who is still actively involved in the platform. This means that problems that arise are addressed and innovation continues to occur.
3. Solidarity
Vitalik Buterin (the creator of Ethereum) has many die-hard supporters. And when you consider that most of the viable comparable products (Cardano and Polkadot, for example) were created by men who used to work with him and left to pursue their own vision, you can understand that people who are fans of Buterin won’t be leaving his platform for one owned by someone who didn’t get along with Buterin. And before you assume that people wouldn’t be so petty as to let something like that come between them and a development platform—think again.
4. The Programming Language
Ethereum is programmed in Solidity, which, while it was a relatively unknown programming language before the advent of Ethereum, is well known now and easy to learn for beginning developers.
5. Continuing Innovation
We touched on it above, but one of the major reasons developers choose Ethereum is that they continue to innovate. It may sound crazy if you aren’t used to the blockchain world, but there are so many projects that go defunct before they even have a chance to shine. And if you start a massive development project, there is no guarantee the platform will still be there when you finally finish.
In fact, the safest way is to actually build your own blockchain, but of course, that is very expensive and requires a lot of technological know-how. So, in our opinion, the next best option is to choose a platform like Ethereum, which is large, still active, and always making improvements.
6. Ethereum Offers Tools for Developers
In addition to being written in a fairly simple coding language, Ethereum also offers many development tools that developers can use to aid and speed up their development. While the list is quite long, below are the most common tools developers cite when asked why they chose Ethereum:
· Truffle
· Hardhat
· Brownie
· OpenZeppelin SDK
· Alchemy’s Create-Web3-Dapp
· Alchemy’s SDK-js
· Foundry
And this is just the tip of the iceberg for tools developers can use when they build on Ethereum.
7. Robust Security
It seems like every other week there is another hack, another crash, another platform losing everything. While Ethereum isn’t perfect, because it is constantly developing, its platform is also the most secure of all the platforms.
Look at it this way: the most common reason security flaws are exploited is the length of time they go unchecked. So, any platform that stops or slows development becomes vulnerable to its security flaws more quickly than one that is still developing.
Of course, this doesn’t mean Ethereum is perfect; it just means it is safer than most comparable blockchains.
8. Censorship Resistance
While blockchain began as a wholly censorship-resistant project, like any other industry, as it grew and expanded, many projects that aren’t resistant to censorship popped up. And while some are open about it, many projects are not honest about how and who manages their oversight.
Ethereum is regularly audited, and as mentioned before, has a huge team working for it to ensure the product continues as intended. In fact, Vitalik’s censorship-resistance stance is one of the reasons many of the initial creators left to form their own projects—they wanted to increase censorship.
One of the largest competitors to Ethereum, Solana, is centralized and somewhat censored, which is one of the main reasons it still hasn’t surpassed Ethereum in terms of market capitalization.
9. Strong Community Support
One of the final reasons that individuals choose Ethereum above all else is that there is a large community behind it that can help when you get stuck. Not only that, but if you are looking to hire help, it is very likely you will come across someone who knows how to code and build on Ethereum. In short, you will have no problem successfully developing on the Ethereum platform, and if you do get stuck, there are plenty of forums where you can post for help.
