Which blockchain is more favorable for NFTs – Solana or Polygon?

We have been busy determining the most sustainable blockchain technology that aligns with our mission and vision to make e-commerce more sustainable in the long run. Only the most efficient blockchain technology, that effectively contributes to lowering transaction costs, is viable. 

Earlier, we completed a proof of concept (POC) for NFTs (non-fungible tokens) using the Polygon blockchain. I am happy that we have recently completed another successful POC for NFTs using the Solana blockchain. In this post, I will shed light on the following topics:

• What made us select the Solana blockchain as an alternative choice?
• What are the characteristics of the POC?
• View NFTs via Eden Magic & OpenSea marketplaces
• View NFTs via Solscan
• Validating the cost-effectiveness of Polygon and Solana with a business case
• Conclusion

What made us select Solana blockchain as an alternative?

In general, Solana is seen as a sustainable blockchain option given its:

• Gas fee – close to zero – average $0.00025 per transaction.
• Throughput – can handle up to 50K TPS (1000 Transactions Per Second).
• Speed – much less Block Time – average 0.610 seconds.
• Sustainability – Eco-friendly – relatively low CO2 emission.

What are the characteristics of our POC?

Our POC included the following test tasks:

• Mint 10 NFTs for ten historical Icecat products.
• Attach a QR code as art to each NFT. The QR code contains a product datasheet permalink.
• Attach additional metadata: IcecatID, Brand, ProductCode, Category & TimeStamp.
• List the NFTs in the Edenmagic & Opensea marketplaces.

View NFTs via Eden Magic

Following are the easy steps to check 10 NFTs:

1. Search ‘icury’ shows the collection of 10 NFTs.

2. NFT with Token ID 5 shows – QR code and Properties

3. QR code scanner shows icecat permalink

View NFTs via OpenSea

Following are the easy steps to check  NFTs on Polygon and Solana blockchains:

1. Search ‘icury’ shows two collections.

2. NFTs on Solana blockchain

3. More details about Open Sea are available here.

View NFTs via Solscan

Following are the easy steps to check NFTs:

1. Go to solscan.io and search for the NFT token address. Sample for NFT ID 5.

Validating the cost-effectiveness of Polygon and Solana

If we would like to mint NFTs in real-time for every new product in the Icecat database, consider below new products and blockchain pricing details. 

Due to the high storage cost of Solana, it is evident from the below chart that with increasing new products per year, Solana becomes less and less cost-effective. Therefore, Polygon has become more cost-effective despite high gas fees. 

Conclusion: Polygon more mature, Solana more sustainable

After successfully completing POCs on Polygon and Solana blockchains and since Solana is still in the beta phase and constantly changing, for now, we could safely conclude at least the below:  

To conclude, out of Polygon and Solana blockchains, choosing one ultimately depends on the use case. For example – if we want to mint NFT in the context of B2B and do not do much trading on a marketplace, then Polygon becomes a favorable option due to its low storage cost per year.

On the other hand, if we want to trade frequently in the Marketplace, Solana becomes a more favorable option due to the very low gas fee.

As a next step, we would like first to demo the outcome of both the POCs to our business users and take their needs into account. At the same time, we continue our investigation for the most sustainable and efficient blockchain on cost, stability, security, and eco-friendliness parameters. If you have any questions, please let me know. 

Prakash Dagwal