Ethereum vs Solana 2026: Which Layer-1 Wins the Next Cycle?

## ETH vs SOL: The Real Numbers The ETH-vs-SOL debate has matured from tribal flame wars to a real institutional allocation question. Here is what actually matters in 2026. ### Real revenue (last 30 days) - **Ethereum**: $42M in network fees, 60% burned - **Solana**: $18M in network fees, plus $9M in priority fees to validators ### Where the builders are Ethereum still leads in TVL ($102B vs $14B), but Solana has overtaken it in monthly active developers for the first time since launch. New L2s like Base and Arbitrum are doing the heavy lifting for ETH. ### Institutional flows The SOL spot ETF approved in March 2026 has already pulled in $1.2B AUM, the second-largest crypto ETF launch ever after Bitcoin. ### Our take We are running a 65/35 ETH/SOL split in our crypto investment basket, with rebalancing on the 21-week EMA cross. Both win in the long run, but the asymmetry currently favors SOL on a 12-month horizon. Follow our [Crypto Signals plan](/#investment-plans) for live SOL and ETH trade alerts.