Is ETH or SOL a better investment in 2025
If you could have invested in Apple in 2008 when it launched the App Store, would you?
That’s what owning ETH or SOL in 2025 feels like.
You see, they’re not just cryptocurrencies. They’re platforms where developers are building the next generation of disruptive businesses.
Think banking, gaming, even social networks… all rebuilt from the ground up on blockchain. Same as how developers were building Facebooks and Ubers on the App Store back in the day.
Today, over 3,500 decentralized apps (or “dapps”) are running on Ethereum and Solana. And that number’s growing fast.
It’s the biggest reason why I prefer buying ETH or SOL over BTC. There’s one use case for bitcoin. With Ethereum and Solana, the sky’s the limit.
But which is a better buy in 2025, Solana or Ethereum?
Bull case for Ethereum (ETH)
ETH remains the second biggest crypto behind BTC.
It’s the first choice for developers looking to build blockchain apps.
Over 3,000 projects run on Ethereum, about six times more than on Solana.
Even better, Ethereum has a much smaller proportion of memecoins. Most of them launched on Solana since it was way cheaper.
Ethereum has been a major laggard this cycle.
While BTC trades 49% above its previous 2021 peak, ETH never reclaimed its all-time high.
Our research suggests this sleeping giant is finally waking up.
After years of focusing on abstract technical challenges, Ethereum appears to be having a crucial realization: Technology without adoption is just an academic exercise.
Vitalik Buterin and core developers are pivoting back to scaling the base layer itself, not just relying on Layer 2 solutions to do the heavy lifting. Several big upgrades (including the Pectra hard fork, which launched last week) are scheduled over the next 18 months.
I sense a fundamental cultural shift.
Ethereum increasingly views itself as a product that must sell itself to the world. This means renewed focus on improving user experience and emphasizing Ethereum’s unique selling proposition: decentralization.
This pivot couldn’t come at a more critical moment. Regulation has finally given Wall Street the green light to embrace crypto.
This exact conversation is happening right now in corporate America…
Years ago, your most forward-thinking employees advocated getting on-chain. But with hostile regulators threatening enforcement, the risk was simply too great.
Now, the cloud has lifted. Suddenly, those dusty blockchain proposals are being resurrected from the bottom drawer.
Ethereum is the blockchain most big players will flock to.
Don’t take my word for it. Listen to the world’s largest asset manager.
BlackRock’s tokenized Treasury fund — the BlackRock USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund (BUIDL) — has already accumulated $2 billion in assets. BlackRock wasn’t willing to risk that capital on any blockchain but Ethereum.
As Robbie Mitchnick, BlackRock’s Head of Digital Assets, explained:
“There was no question that the blockchain we would start our tokenization on would be Ethereum, and that’s not just a BlackRock thing. That’s the natural default answer.”
Clients have clearly made the choice that they really do value decentralization, credibility, and security. And that is a great advantage that Ethereum continues to have.
Ethereum already dominates the tokenized real-world asset space:
Source: Allium
This is Ethereum’s opportunity to become the settlement layer for global finance.
If it plays its cards right, we could witness a revaluation of ETH. I believe a massive price jump is ahead that will make look the previous bull market look like a blip.
Bull case for Solana (SOL)
Solana is the speed and cost king.
Investors who think Solana is just a platform to launch meme coins are missing the big opportunity.
Like with Ethereum, thousands of blockchain apps are being built on the Solana infrastructure.
Today, there are over 500 apps running on Solana’s blockchain. It’s the home to many of the world’s top and DePin projects.
And each app pays millions of tiny fees to Solana for each transaction. Solana made over $52 million in fees in the last 30 days.
Developers love Solana because it’s the fastest of all the major blockchains.
Solana currently processes 65,000 transactions per second — just as fast as Visa. That’s 10,000X faster than bitcoin and 2,000X better than Ethereum.
Solana is also far cheaper to use than most other blockchains. It costs about three bucks to do a transaction on bitcoin. And between $8 and $40 on Ethereum. A transaction on Solana will set you back $0.00025 — a fraction of a penny.
SOL is now outpacing Ethereum across several key metrics.
It boasts over 3 million daily active users, more than Ethereum and all its Layer 2s combined:
Source: Token Terminal
In April, Solana briefly overtook Ethereum in total staked value, with over $53.9 billion locked and 65% of its supply earning an attractive 8% yield.
On the stablecoin front, Solana has become the dominant chain for USD Coin (USDC) issuance, minting billions in fresh supply and positioning itself as the settlement layer for tokenized dollars.
It’s hard to overstate what’s coming next.
The Solana ETF is likely landing this year, with approval odds above 90%.
If Wall Street wants exposure and 57% of supply is staked and illiquid, we’re staring down the barrel of an epic supply shock.
Once billions of institutional and retirement funds start flowing into SOL, exepct the price to shoot up.
At the same time, CME — the world’s leading derivatives marketplace — recently launched SOL futures, a clear signal that confirms institutional demand is not only here but also accelerating.
Solana vs Ethereum: Verdict
Yes, Solana is faster. Yes, it’s onboarding users at breakneck speed. But Ethereum still sits at the heart of institutional tokenization and DeFi infrastructure. It’s where the serious money showed up first. It’s still the most credible settlement layer in existence.
BlackRock’s BUIDL fund launched on Ethereum, and while it’s since expanded to Solana and others, Ethereum remains the default base layer. Franklin Templeton’s BENJI, along with dozens of other tokenized funds, also chose Ethereum first. When Wall Street tokenizes, it still starts on Ethereum.
Fortunately, this isn’t a winner-take-all market. It’s a multi-chain world. Both will succeed. Some developers will chose Solana for its low fees and fast speed. Others will flock to Ethereum for its reputation and unmatched security.
This is the crypto investment strategy we use at RiskHedge.
We call it the lopsided barbell strategy.
In our Venture portfolio, we allocate 75% to both Ethereum and Solana.
They are the only two blockchains with institutional legitimacy, scalable infrastructure, and economic activity to back up their valuations.
We don’t choose between them. We own both, because together, they represent the strongest foundation in crypto.
Bottom line: In a market where flows and fundamentals drive everything, owning both ETH and SOL is the single best way to stay exposed to crypto’s new financial era.
We put the other 25% of our portfolio into smaller tokens with higher upside. We wrote about 3 such small cryptos here.
— Stephen McBride, Chief Analyst at RiskHedge
Better buy: Solana vs Ethereum was originally published in Coinmonks on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.