Solana vs Polygon: Which Should You Choose?
We build on Solana—but we'll honestly tell you when Polygon is the better choice. Here's the real comparison from developers who've evaluated both.
TL;DR: Choose Solana for maximum speed and ultra-low costs. Choose Polygon if you have existing Solidity code or need multi-chain EVM compatibility. Need help deciding? We'll evaluate honestly.
Quick Decision Guide
Here's the honest answer based on your situation
Choose Solana
- Need 1,500-4,000 real-world TPS
- Ultra-low fees critical ($0.00025/tx)
- Sub-second finality required
- High transaction volume (gaming, DeFi, NFTs)
- Mature DeFi ecosystem needed
- Starting from scratch
Choose Polygon
- Have existing Solidity smart contracts
- Team only knows Solidity (not Rust)
- Need multi-chain EVM presence
- Ethereum ecosystem integration
- Enterprise prefers longer track record
- Gas costs acceptable at your volume
Technical Comparison
Side-by-side comparison of real-world performance
| Criteria | Solana | Polygon | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Transaction Speed (Real-World) | 1,500-4,000 TPS | ~200-300 TPS | Solana Solana is 5-20x faster in practice |
| Transaction Cost | $0.00025 - $0.001 | $0.01 - $0.50 | Solana Solana is 10-2,000x cheaper per transaction |
| Finality Time | <1 second | 2-3 seconds | Solana Solana confirms transactions 2-3x faster |
| Smart Contract Language | Rust/Anchor | Solidity (EVM) | Depends Polygon wins if you have existing Solidity code |
| Developer Ecosystem | Growing (Rust) | Large (Solidity) | Polygon More Solidity developers available globally |
| Network Type | Layer 1 | Layer 2/Sidechain | Depends Solana is independent; Polygon uses Ethereum security |
| Total Value Locked (TVL) | $8B+ | $1.2B+ | Solana Solana has 6x more TVL (as of Jan 2025) |
| Time in Market | Since 2020 | Since 2017 | Polygon Polygon has longer track record |
Real Cost Comparison
Transaction costs in real-world scenarios (as of Jan 2025)
1 Million Transactions
💰 99.5% cheaper on Solana
NFT Mint (10,000 items)
💰 99.5% cheaper on Solana
DeFi Swap
💰 99.95% cheaper on Solana
Token Transfer
💰 99.88% cheaper on Solana
Important: If you're doing 100k+ transactions daily, Solana saves $10k-100k+ monthly vs Polygon. The cost difference is massive at scale.
Detailed Use Case Analysis
When each blockchain truly shines
Choose Solana For:
Maximum Performance Required
High-frequency DEX, gaming, real-time apps needing 1,000+ TPS
✓ 5-20x faster real-world throughput
Ultra-Low Transaction Costs
Mass consumer apps, NFT minting, micro-transactions
✓ 10-2,000x cheaper per transaction
Sub-Second Finality Critical
Trading, gaming, payments where every millisecond counts
✓ <1 second finality vs 2-3 seconds
Native DeFi Ecosystem
Access to Jupiter, Orca, Raydium, Kamino without bridging
✓ $8B TVL, mature protocols
Choose Polygon For:
Existing Solidity Infrastructure
You have audited Solidity contracts or EVM tools
✓ Reuse existing code, libraries, and audits
Large Solidity Team
Your developers know Solidity but not Rust
✓ More Solidity developers available to hire
Ethereum Ecosystem Compatibility
Need seamless interoperability with Ethereum mainnet
✓ Native bridge to Ethereum, shared tooling
Longer Track Record Needed
Enterprise requirement for established infrastructure
✓ Since 2017, proven at scale
Real Project Examples
How real teams chose between Solana and Polygon
High-Volume NFT Platform
Why: 100k+ mints expected. On Polygon: $1k-50k in gas. On Solana: $25-100. Economics only work on Solana.
Result: Successful 50k mint, users paid <$0.01 each
DeFi Yield Aggregator
Why: Auto-compounding requires frequent transactions. Polygon gas would eat user profits. Solana makes it viable.
Result: $3M TVL, profitable auto-compounding
Web3 Game with In-Game Economy
Why: Players make 50-100 transactions/day. On Polygon: $0.50-50/day in gas. On Solana: $0.01-0.10/day.
Result: 20k daily players, sustainable economics
Enterprise Supply Chain Tracker
Why: Company already used Ethereum. Team knew Solidity. Low transaction volume made gas costs acceptable.
Result: Deployed in 6 weeks using existing code
Multi-Chain DeFi Protocol
Why: Needed to be on all EVM chains (Ethereum, Arbitrum, Optimism, Base). Adding Polygon was trivial.
Result: $10M TVL across 5 EVM chains
NFT Marketplace (EVM Fork)
Why: Forked OpenSea contracts. Rewriting in Rust would take 6 months. Polygon allowed quick launch.
Result: Launched in 4 weeks, 5k monthly users
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Still Not Sure Which to Choose?
We build on Solana—but we'll honestly evaluate your project and tell you if Polygon is the better fit. Your success matters more than closing a deal.
✓ No sales pressure · ✓ Honest technical advice · ✓ Free 30-minute consultation