Layer 1s

The original decentralized cryptocurrency — unmatched in security and decentralization.

Battle-tested L1 with the strongest ecosystem but high fees on mainnet.

Research-first L1 with strong decentralization but slow ecosystem growth.

Subnet-powered L1 with fast finality and institutional appeal but ecosystem contraction.

Technically brilliant multi-chain protocol struggling with real-world ecosystem traction.

High-performance L1 with explosive growth but reliability and decentralization trade-offs.

App-chain pioneer with IBC interoperability but ATOM struggles for value accrual.

Finance-first Cosmos L1 with native orderbook and deflationary tokenomics — one of the stronger newer L1s.

User-friendly sharded L1 pivoting to chain abstraction but still building ecosystem momentum.

Turing Award-backed L1 with elegant consensus but fading ecosystem and market relevance.

Hyper-parallel decentralized computer on Arweave — technically ambitious with genuine innovation in parallel execution, but early-stage and architecturally complex.

Smart contracts on Bitcoin via Proof of Transfer — interesting thesis, but ecosystem is tiny vs Ethereum.

Binance's high-activity EVM chain — massive ecosystem but effectively centralized by the exchange.

Humanode is a genuinely innovative L1 using facial biometrics for Sybil resistance — technically interesting but faces massive adoption and privacy hurdles.

PoW BlockDAG aiming to be the fastest proof-of-work chain — hot narrative, very early ecosystem.

Move-based high-performance L1 with strong tech but centralization and token distribution concerns.

Telegram-integrated L1 with massive distribution potential but centralization and regulatory concerns.

Privacy-focused L1 with peer-reviewed AlephBFT consensus and ZK-SNARK-powered confidential transactions.

Parallelized EVM L1 targeting trading — strong tech thesis but needs ecosystem to match ambitions.

Bitcoin-aligned L1 enabling non-custodial BTC staking through Satoshi Plus consensus.

Sharded PoW blockchain extending Bitcoin's UTXO model with stateful smart contracts via BlockFlow.

EVM L1 with novel Proof of Liquidity consensus — validators must provide DeFi liquidity as part of block production, a genuinely innovative design with cult-like community but unproven at scale.

Energy Web targets a real-world niche in decentralized energy infrastructure with strong enterprise partnerships, but its narrow vertical focus and modest tokenomics limit broad crypto investor appeal.

Enterprise-governed hashgraph network — fast and cheap, but centralized by design.

The 22KB blockchain — groundbreaking zk cryptography, but ecosystem and throughput need to catch up.

DeFi-native L1 with asset-oriented Scrypto language designed to eliminate smart contract exploits.

Fantom reborn as Sonic — technical overhaul with new VM and consensus for better performance, Andre Cronje involvement, but rebrand complexity and L1 competition create uncertainty.

Telos combines EOSIO's high-performance architecture with an EVM layer and ESG positioning, offering unique anti-front-running features but struggling with ecosystem growth against larger competitors.

Data oracle L1 bringing BTC and XRP into DeFi through native protocol-level oracle infrastructure.

Kakao + LINE blockchain merger targeting 250M+ messaging users with Web3 mini-apps.

UTXO-based L1 pivoting to Bitcoin L2 through RGB++ protocol, extending BTC with smart contracts.

Cosmos-based L1 building a liquid staking hub through pSTAKE Finance — solid Cosmos SDK foundation but facing fierce liquid staking competition from Lido, Stride, and others across multiple chains.

Cosmos-based app-chain-as-a-service protocol — interesting modular thesis but early ecosystem, unproven demand for dedicated chainlets.

Fair-launch L1 with VerusID decentralized identity and hybrid PoW/PoS — strong community ethos and genuine innovation, but small ecosystem and low visibility.

Massa introduces autonomous smart contracts that self-execute on schedule — genuinely novel tech from a French academic team, but ecosystem growth has been slow.

Polkadot's EVM parachain enabling cross-chain connected contracts through native XCM integration.

Technically solid sharded L1 with European roots, but ecosystem remains small post-Elrond rebrand.

The real deal for quantum resistance — XMSS hash-based signatures are provably secure, but the chain has near-zero adoption and a tiny ecosystem.

Self-amending blockchain with strong governance but a shrinking ecosystem that hasn't kept pace with competitors.

Polkadot's leading smart contract hub with multi-VM support and developer-incentivized dApp staking.

China's only compliant public blockchain with tree-graph consensus and BSN integration.

EVM-compatible sharded L1 promising linear scalability — ambitious tech but pre-mainnet, unproven at production scale.

ThunderCore uses the academically-backed PaLa consensus for fast EVM-compatible transactions, but struggles with ecosystem growth and decentralization despite solid technical foundations.

VC-backed Move L1 with solid tech but weak ecosystem adoption and heavy centralization.

Revolutionary tech ambitions marred by one of crypto's worst token launches and persistent insider trust issues.

IoT-focused L1 powering decentralized machine economy through W3bstream verifiable compute.

Bitcoin's oldest smart contract sidechain — technically sound with merge-mining security, but ecosystem growth has been slow.

Substrate-based L1 using the Actor model for smart contracts — technically distinctive but niche developer appeal and small ecosystem.

Cosmos L1 that shares revenue with dApp developers — compelling incentive model but faces stiff competition from other Cosmos chains and limited ecosystem traction.

Fuse Network targets mobile-first crypto payments with a DPoS EVM-compatible L1, offering low fees but facing limited adoption and ecosystem depth compared to larger chains.

Decentralized social blockchain forked from Steem. Feeless transactions and content rewards sustain a loyal niche community, but growth has stalled.

Creative economy L1 with Universal Profile smart accounts reimagining digital identity and ownership.

IOTA's staging network with feeless DAG architecture — technically interesting but heavily dependent on IOTA's success and struggling with independent ecosystem development.

Viction (ex-TomoChain) differentiates with zero-gas-fee transactions for an accessible Web3 UX, but the ecosystem remains small and the rebrand has yet to drive meaningful adoption increases.

Hardened JavaScript L1 on Cosmos from smart contract theory pioneers — technically excellent but ecosystem adoption lags Solidity-dominated chains.

Proof of Space and Time blockchain by BitTorrent's creator — novel green consensus and strong technical pedigree but struggling with adoption and enterprise traction.

DeFi-era darling rebranding as Sonic after ecosystem decline — high-risk reinvention play.

Findora combines zero-knowledge proofs with a dual-chain (UTXO + EVM) architecture for privacy-preserving DeFi, but low adoption and ecosystem immaturity are major concerns.

DAG+chain hybrid merge-mined with Bitcoin — solid technical design but tiny ecosystem mainly in Brazil.

OG atomic swap pioneer with Bitcoin-backed security — technically underrated but perpetually overlooked in market attention.

Stablecoin transfer king with massive USDT volume but deeply centralized and controversial.

Enterprise permissioned blockchain for institutional DeFi with strong tech but limited decentralization.

Enterprise L1 with CBC Casper consensus and upgradeable contracts for institutional blockchain adoption.

Relational blockchain using SQL-like Rell language for data-rich dApps like games and social platforms.

NuLink combines multiple privacy technologies for encrypted data sharing — technically ambitious but pre-mature with limited real adoption and a crowded privacy infrastructure market.

NULS offers a genuinely innovative modular blockchain architecture with ChainBox for custom chain creation, but has failed to attract meaningful developer adoption or ecosystem growth despite years of development.

Japan's gaming blockchain with Sega and Bandai Namco as validators and game-specific L2 Verse Layers.

Identity-focused L1 with W3C DID compliance and enterprise partnerships — technically mature but ecosystem growth has stalled.

Cosmos-based L1 bridging AI and blockchain through decentralized AI oracles — ambitious vision combining two hot narratives, but execution and adoption remain early-stage with limited real-world AI oracle demand proven.

EOSIO-based NFT and gaming blockchain with gasless transactions and billions of NFT transfers processed.

Cosmos DeFi infrastructure chain with Harbor stablecoin and Commodo lending — technically competent Cosmos SDK build but struggling with extremely low adoption, thin TVL, and a stablecoin (CMST) that never achieved meaningful scale.

DAG-based Hypergraph network with US government ties — ambitious enterprise data validation play, small ecosystem.

Decentralized internet OS secured by Bitcoin merge-mining — technically expansive but struggling to translate grand vision into adoption.

Dapper Labs' NFT-focused chain that peaked with NBA Top Shot — struggling for relevance post-NFT boom.

Korea's interoperability L1 with government ties and BTP cross-chain protocol — respected locally but global ecosystem remains small.

Multi-chain PoW with a unique smart contract language — technically interesting but ecosystem is nearly empty.

Cosmos-based DeFi chain that had early traction but lost momentum as the DeFi landscape evolved.

The original green blockchain with PoC+ mining — technologically innovative but ecosystem is nearly abandoned.

Stratis uniquely targets the vast .NET developer community with C#-based blockchain tools and enterprise focus, but has failed to capture significant market share despite a differentiated technology approach.

Point-Click-Blockchain deployer letting anyone launch custom chains — technically elegant DPoS platform with a loyal community but near-zero adoption of its chain-deployment thesis, overshadowed by Cosmos SDK and Substrate.

OG Bitcoin smart contracts and birthplace of NFTs (Rare Pepes) — historically iconic, Bitcoin-secured, but limited throughput and overshadowed by Ordinals and modern L2s.

CUDOS attempted to decentralize cloud computing on a Cosmos-based L1 before merging into the ASI Alliance, making its standalone chain assessment largely historical with token migration implications.

EVM execution on Solana — clever tech bridge, but unclear why Ethereum devs would choose Solana-via-Neon over native options.

Starcoin was an early Move language L1 — technically solid but completely overshadowed by Aptos and Sui, with a near-dead ecosystem.

Oracle-native L1 embedding price feeds and VRF into consensus for sub-second finality without external dependencies.

Prediction market L1 built as a Polygon supernet — niche but functional on-chain sports betting with limited decentralization and small user base.

Hydra Chain attempts to create a self-sustaining blockchain economy through novel tokenomics combining staking inflation with fee burning, but extremely low adoption and tiny ecosystem severely limit its viability.

Kusama's DeFi hub and Acala's canary network — technically sound with integrated DeFi primitives but declining alongside Kusama's ecosystem contraction and Acala's credibility challenges.

Compliance-focused feeless blockchain tied to Metal Pay — solid identity/payment concept but struggling ecosystem and uncertain future amid Metal Blockchain pivot.

Supply chain blockchain with real enterprise clients but centralized governance and a thin DeFi ecosystem.

Abu Dhabi-backed TVM-based L1 with enterprise focus — regulatory positioning is unique but small ecosystem, centralized governance, and TVM niche limits appeal.

DAG-based L1 with zero-fee transactions and async architecture — technically innovative with genuine fee-less design, but minimal adoption, thin liquidity, and a shrinking ecosystem make it a high-risk niche bet.

Mysterious dual-ledger L1 with feeless transactions and devoted community — technically novel but very early with minimal ecosystem.

Post-quantum privacy L1 using lattice-based cryptography — technically ambitious but extremely early with minimal ecosystem and unproven real-world demand.

Parallel EVM L1 promising 10,000 TPS — technically ambitious with strong VC backing, but pre-mainnet with no token, no live ecosystem, and unproven claims. Invest in the vision, not the product.

Vietnamese exchange-backed L1 targeting Southeast Asia — benefits from ONUS exchange's 8M+ user base but faces severe centralization concerns and limited appeal outside its home market.

Identity-centric blockchain reborn from Factom — novel ADI architecture but minimal ecosystem traction and unclear path to mainstream adoption.

Cosmos-based chain powering Crypto.com's staking — functional infrastructure, not an independent ecosystem.

Theta's subchain infrastructure enables app-specific chains connected to the mainchain — technically capable but ecosystem growth has been slow beyond the video streaming niche.

Decentralized video streaming blockchain — interesting niche but limited traction and narrow use case.

Hybrid enterprise blockchain for trade finance with real partnerships but centralized operations and thin DeFi.

Malaysian government-backed enterprise L1 -- real government partnerships but highly centralized with minimal DeFi ecosystem.

DeFi L1 with a PoW-mined stablecoin and cross-chain bridge — clever economic design but ecosystem adoption remains elusive.

Monero-linked privacy-focused blockchain for confidential digital assets — technically interesting but years in development with no ecosystem, unproven market fit.

Theta Network's gas/utility token — functional for on-chain operations and edge node rewards but hampered by inflation, weak demand, and Theta's unfulfilled adoption potential.

Impact-focused blockchain for ESG and supply chain verification — noble mission but very early stage with limited adoption and unproven market demand.

Cross-chain L1 with sMPC bridges to 30+ chains — technically capable bridge infrastructure but ecosystem adoption is minimal.

Ethereum Classic fork with cold staking and security auditing focus — technically honest but effectively abandoned with near-zero ecosystem.

Bitcoin DeFi sidechain — native DeFi primitives anchored to BTC, dedicated community, but limited ecosystem growth and inflexible architecture compared to EVM chains.

Innovative time-lock and cross-chain cryptography for DeFi primitives — technically creative but marred by low adoption and founder controversies.

Holochain's hosting token — radical P2P architecture but years of delays and no mainnet make it a high-risk bet.

Once a top-20 blockchain with novel PoI consensus — now declining as the Symbol successor failed to revive momentum.

Ravencoin fork adding AI data features — GPU-mineable with a tiny community and aspirational AI integration that remains largely theoretical.

Flare's canary network — real-value testbed for data protocols, useful but inherently secondary to the mainnet.

Swiss-regulated L1 using TEEs for compliant privacy — interesting compliance angle but tiny ecosystem and TEE trust assumptions undermine the decentralization narrative.

Time capsule blockchain on Substrate — novel encrypted NFT concept for digital legacy, but minimal ecosystem traction and unproven market demand.

First sharded blockchain — historically significant but ecosystem is nearly gone; gaming pivot is a long shot.

Healthcare blockchain for patient-controlled medical data — real partnerships in South Korea but facing massive adoption barriers from healthcare industry inertia.

The 'Chinese Ethereum' that faded — once a top-10 project, now struggling with minimal ecosystem.

Entertainment-focused L1 with gasless UX — early stage with big ambitions but minimal proven traction and heavy centralization.

Real-time EVM blockchain targeting 100K+ TPS via optimized single sequencer — technically fascinating but radically centralized by design, pre-mainnet with unproven claims.

Tokenized securities platform on XRP Ledger — interesting TradFi bridge concept but limited adoption, regulatory uncertainty, and stiff competition from better-funded RWA players.

Korean gaming giant WEMADE's blockchain — real game portfolio and user base, but Korean exchange delistings over token transparency issues severely damaged credibility.

Cloud computing blockchain with multi-sidechain architecture — technically decent but has pivot-hopped through narratives without finding lasting product-market fit.

High-TPS chain from 2018 that never lived up to 100K TPS claims — now pivoting to AI narratives to stay relevant.

Vietnamese L1 with dual-node interoperability — interesting tech targeting Southeast Asian enterprise adoption but limited global relevance.

Quantum-resistant chain with satellite mesh networking ambitions — visionary but near-zero adoption after 8+ years.

Zero-fee blockchain built from scratch with proof-of-diversity consensus — technically original and fair-launched, but struggling to build any meaningful ecosystem.

NFT-focused smart chain with on-chain storage — interesting tech buried under near-zero adoption.

Constitutional governance blockchain with enforceable rules and dispute resolution — novel governance model but niche appeal and limited adoption beyond governance enthusiasts.

AI-focused blockchain with quorum-based execution — innovative concept but extremely early and unproven.

Novel L1 using Proof of Routing to incentivize network infrastructure — academically interesting consensus innovation with near-zero ecosystem.

Masternode PoS chain with one-click node setup and mobile-first design. Niche community, limited adoption and ecosystem.

DAG blockchain for big data using Proof of Contribution — technically interesting concept but struggling with adoption and ecosystem development.

EOSIO-based Bitcoin sidechain targeting institutional DeFi — ambitious thesis but extremely early with minimal adoption.

DAG-based ledger with unique conditional payments — technically novel but ecosystem is effectively dead.

Solana fork with EVM compatibility and AI marketing — technically functional but with negligible ecosystem and unclear direction.

Russian L1 damaged by the NSBT/USDN stablecoin depeg — trust eroded and ecosystem shrinking.

State channel pioneer with integrated oracles — technically impressive but zero adoption. An Erlang-built ghost chain slowly dying from irrelevance despite legitimate engineering.

Low-fee EVM chain with 10-second blocks — functional but undifferentiated, competing against dozens of similar L1s with minimal unique value proposition.

The $4B ICO that became crypto's cautionary tale — abandoned by its creator, ecosystem in freefall.

Quantum-resistant L1 using lattice cryptography — addresses a real future threat but the quantum timeline makes current adoption challenging.

Web3 browser with token rewards for browsing. Competes with Brave but with far less market share and a less proven token model.

Cosmos-based L1 tackling chain abstraction at the protocol level — ambitious tech thesis but ultra-low adoption and unproven in production at scale.

Quantum-resistant hybrid chain that raised $51M in 2017 and delivered almost nothing — effectively dead.

Sharded L1 that was technically ahead of its time — now mostly dormant with negligible ecosystem activity.

PoW mining that finds prime number constellations for mathematical research — a noble experiment with near-zero real-world adoption.

Privacy L1 with ZK-SNARK smart contracts — technically capable but ecosystem is nearly empty.

Post-quantum L1 with service-oriented architecture — technically ambitious but minimal ecosystem, low adoption, and competing against better-funded quantum-resistant chains.

China-based data exchange blockchain that once had enterprise partnerships — severely impacted by China's crypto crackdowns, with development stalled and the ecosystem effectively dormant. High risk of permanent decline.

DPoS pioneer and first DEX by Dan Larimer — historically significant but now a near-dead project with minimal development, negligible volume, and no competitive relevance.

Polkadot parachain with EVM compatibility and cross-chain ambitions — technically sound but lost in a sea of competing parachains with declining activity.

The original Ethereum chain post-DAO fork — historically significant, practically irrelevant.

Gate.io's L1 blockchain with novel vault/recovery features — interesting safety innovations but heavily centralized around the exchange with limited independent ecosystem growth.

Devastated by a $100M bridge hack and botched recovery — a cautionary tale of security failure and broken trust.

Korean identity-focused L1 with DID infrastructure — technically reasonable but outcompeted by larger identity solutions and struggling with adoption.

Self-described quantum-resistant L1 — bold claims with almost no verifiable adoption, ecosystem, or technical validation.

Multi-threaded L1 using merged mining across a hierarchy of chains — technically ambitious with real innovation but early-stage, unproven, and ecosystem-less.

Bitcoin Cash's EVM sidechain — technically competent but devastated by CoinFlex bridge insolvency that trapped user funds and destroyed trust.

L1 claiming novel 'Proof of Area' consensus — marketing outpaces verifiable technology by a wide margin.

Sports/esports-focused L1 from Turkey with fan token partnerships — thin tech, limited adoption.

Ultra-low-gas EVM chain with exaggerated marketing claims — functional but undifferentiated with a low-quality ecosystem.

EVM-compatible L1 targeting Islamic finance — interesting niche thesis but negligible DeFi activity and unclear how Shariah compliance translates to protocol-level differentiation.

Community-run Ethereum fork with masternodes — technically obsolete and nearly dead, kept alive by a handful of loyalists.

Substrate-based DeFi L1 — ambitious initial vision but severely criticized for broken promises, questionable token management, and an effectively dead ecosystem.

KuCoin's exchange-backed EVM chain — a BSC clone that never gained traction. Minimal ecosystem, negligible TVL, and no compelling reason to use it over any major EVM chain.

Pioneering 2013 PoS blockchain that introduced many industry firsts — historically important but functionally dormant, living on as a legacy chain maintained by loyal community.

Massively popular mobile mining app with major centralization and transparency concerns.

Purpose-built social media L1 with on-chain posts and profiles — technically novel but usage has collapsed and Farcaster/Lens have captured the decentralized social narrative.

Hardware hub-based blockchain sold via network marketing — unconventional distribution model with limited technical differentiation and MLM-adjacent concerns.

Originally an ambitious cross-chain interoperability L1, Aion rebranded to The OAN before effectively dying — development stopped, team dissolved, network abandoned. A cautionary tale of 2017-era blockchain ambition meeting execution reality.

Social token creation platform where anyone can mint and sell their own token — working product but micro-cap ecosystem with minimal adoption and questionable token value dynamics.

The 'Google for blockchains' that never indexed anything. Ambitious search and ranking protocol from a NEO co-founder — now effectively dead with zero ecosystem and 99%+ value loss.

Fitness-focused L1 riding the move-to-earn trend — the dedicated chain thesis for step- counting apps is extremely thin, and activity has evaporated with the broader M2E collapse.

Dead Ethereum PoW fork with no ecosystem, no developers, and no reason to exist — the less successful sibling of the already-unsuccessful EthereumPoW.

Nigerian payment blockchain with a financial inclusion mission — noble goal but negligible traction against dominant competitors in African fintech and established crypto payment chains.

Python smart contract chain — once promising for developer accessibility, now effectively dead.

Dead L1 that claimed million TPS — team gone, development stopped, avoid entirely.

Mobile crypto mining app with vague technical claims — classic phone-mining project capitalizing on the 'mine from your phone' trend with no real substance.