Solana overtakes Ethereum in attracting new cryptocurrency developers in 2024

Solana became the leading blockchain for new cryptocurrency developers in 2024, with an increase of 83%, surpassing ethereum, according to Electric Capital's annual report.

The report, reviewed by <a target="_blank" target="_blank" href="https://www.coindesk.com/tech/2024/12/12/solana-was-the-biggest-draw-for-new-crypto-developers-in-2024-electric-capital” rel=”noopener nofollow noreferrer”>coin desk, revealed that Solana onboarded 7,625 new developers, 1,000 more than ethereum during the same period.

While ethereum maintained its position as the largest developer network overall, its monthly active developer count decreased by 17%, totaling 6,244 developers.

Despite this decline, ethereum's layer 2 ecosystem, which includes projects such as Optimism, Arbitrum, and Base, remains a major driver of activity and represents more than half of active blockchain developers.

Maria Shen, general partner at Electric Capital, said ethereum remains the world leader in terms of total developers, benefiting from its extensive network effects, which are evident in the data.

However, he acknowledged Solana's significant momentum, noting that it became the first blockchain since 2016 to surpass ethereum in attracting new developers.

The report also noted a geographic shift in developer demographics.

Asia has overtaken North America as the leading continent for blockchain developers, and India will contribute 17% of all new cryptocurrency developers in 2024.

Despite this, the United States remains the country with the largest overall developer base, with a 19% share of the global total.

Commenting on this change, Shen explained that the continued dominance of the United States and North America in the crypto space is unlikely and undesirable.

He emphasized that cryptocurrencies are designed to be borderless and highlighted the large pool of engineering talent outside the US.

“Cryptocurrencies are meant to be borderless,” he said, highlighting the importance of global diversity in developer contributions.

At press time, Solana was trading at $233, up nearly 2% over the past 24 hours, while ethereum was trading at $3,945, up 4.2% over the same period.