Who is the cheapest cross-chain bridge?
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Who is the cheapest cross-chain bridge?
In any case, users are the ultimate winners in these "bridge wars."
Navigating Web3 tides with focused insightsAuthor: Hart Lambur
Compiled by: TechFlow
Conclusion
For typical L2-to-L2 transfers, @AcrossProtocol is clearly the fastest and cheapest bridge. For standard ETH-to-L2 transfers, Across is significantly faster and cheaper than Stargate’s fast bridge; it also matches Stargate’s slow bridge in cost while being 20 times faster. For common L2-to-ETH transfers, Across is much faster and cheaper than Stargate’s fast option, and although slightly more expensive than Stargate’s slow option, it is a full 100 times faster.
Analysis
Over the past few days, @PrimordialAA accused me of cherry-picking data when comparing our bridges. I believe the best response is to define what “cheaper” actually means for an average bridging transaction, then see who wins.
My approach: For a typical bridging transaction, which bridge is cheaper? Since transaction sizes and fees vary greatly between L2-to-L2, ETH-to-L2, and L2-to-ETH, I’ll examine each case separately. As for which L2s to consider, I suggest focusing on the three largest: Arbitrum (Arb), Base, and Optimism (OP).
Below are the 30-day rolling average transaction sizes for L2-to-L2 bridging, measured using data from Across and Stargate:
The average transaction size for both bridge types across L2s is about $55, or approximately 0.015 ETH. (Note the downward trend in average size—more on that later.)
Great. So which bridge is cheaper when moving 0.015 ETH between L2s? This should answer the question: “Which bridge is cheaper for typical L2-to-L2 transactions?”
The answer: Across is cheaper and faster than Stargate regardless of which L2 pair you use.
I just bridged 0.015 ETH from Base to OP. Here's what happened:
Across took 4 seconds, costing 1.1 cents.
Stargate "fast" took 50 seconds, costing 5.6 cents.
Stargate "cheap" took 1 minute 2 seconds, costing 3.0 cents.
I’m sure I’ll be accused of cherry-picking Base-to-OP, but honestly, check any 0.015 ETH route—Across is clearly cheaper and definitely faster across all L2-to-L2 scenarios! There’s no doubt about it.
Conclusion: Across is clearly the fastest and cheapest cross-chain bridge for typical L2-to-L2 transactions.
Next, let’s look at ETH-to-L2 data.
Below are the 30-day rolling average transaction sizes for ETH-to-L2 transfers across the three largest L2s, measured using data from Across and Stargate:
The average ETH-to-[Arb, Base, OP] transaction size is ~$100 for Across and ~$400 for Stargate. Let’s take the average as $250, or ~0.06 ETH.
Now let’s bridge 0.06 ETH from Ethereum to OP.
Results:
Across took 28 seconds, costing 2.6 cents.
Stargate "fast" took 4 minutes, costing 5.5 cents.
Stargate "cheap" took 9 minutes 40 seconds, costing 2.2 cents.
Across is far cheaper and significantly faster than Stargate’s fast option.
Compared to Stargate’s cheap option (2.2 cents vs. Across’s 2.6 cents), Across still wins dramatically in speed—28 seconds versus 9 minutes 40 seconds.
Whether this small cost difference justifies such a massive time trade-off is up to the market to decide. Again, feel free to try it yourself.
Finally, let’s examine L2-to-ETH data.
Below are the 30-day rolling average transaction sizes for L2-to-ETH transfers across the three largest L2s, measured using data from Across and Stargate:
The average [Arb, Base, OP]-to-ETH transaction size is ~$700 for Across and ~$200 for Stargate. Let’s take the average as $450, or ~0.06 ETH.
Now let’s bridge 0.06 ETH from OP to ETH. Results:
Across took 4 seconds, costing $5.41.
Stargate "fast" took 2 minutes 12 seconds, costing $16.80.
Stargate "cheap" took 6 minutes 34 seconds, costing $4.41.
Again, Across dominates Stargate’s fast option in both speed and cost.
Stargate’s slow option is slightly cheaper, but takes 6 minutes 34 seconds compared to Across’s 4 seconds.
Where is the bridge war headed?
Personally, as the next billion people enter crypto, they will (1) almost exclusively use L2s (or alt-L1s), and (2) transact in smaller amounts. Across is already the cheapest and fastest bridge for L2 transfers, and its intent-based architecture will continue to dominate as transaction sizes shrink.
Stargate’s “slow” option can save some costs when interacting with Ethereum mainnet, but the speed compromise is stark. I believe whether the marginal cost savings justify the speed sacrifice should be decided by the market.
Either way, users are the ultimate winners in these “bridge wars,” and I believe crypto Twitter at least finds my debates with my brother Bryan somewhat entertaining.
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