Ethereum Gas Fee Calculator
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💡 Tip: During peak times, base fees can reach 100-300+ gwei. For simple transfers, use 21,000 gas limit.
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Total Fee (ETH)
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Every time you send ETH, swap tokens, or interact with a DeFi app, you pay a fee. Not to a company. Not to a bank. But to the people who keep the Ethereum network running. These are Ethereum gas fees-and they’re not optional. They’re the price of using the blockchain.
What Exactly Are Gas Fees?
Gas fees are payments made in ETH to validators who process and confirm your transactions on Ethereum. Think of them like fuel for your transaction. The more complex the action-sending ETH, minting an NFT, or swapping tokens-the more gas it needs. A simple ETH transfer uses 21,000 gas. A DeFi swap might use 100,000 or more. If you run out of gas before the transaction finishes, it fails. But you still pay the fee. That’s by design. It stops people from spamming the network with endless failed tries.Gas is measured in gwei. One gwei equals 0.000000001 ETH. So when you see a fee of 50 gwei, you’re paying 0.00000005 ETH. At $2,000 per ETH, that’s just $0.01. But when network traffic spikes, those gwei numbers climb fast-and so do your costs.
How Gas Fees Are Calculated
Your total fee isn’t random. It’s built from two parts: the base fee and the priority fee (also called a tip).
- Base fee: This is the minimum amount needed to include your transaction in the next block. It’s set automatically by the network based on demand. If blocks are full, the base fee goes up. If they’re empty, it drops. Since August 2021, this fee is burned-destroyed-instead of going to validators. That’s part of why Ethereum has burned over 2.7 million ETH since EIP-1559 launched.
- Priority fee: This is optional. You add it to convince validators to put your transaction ahead of others. During normal times, 1-5 gwei is enough. During an NFT mint or a big DeFi launch, you might need 150 gwei or more. It’s like tipping a delivery driver to get your pizza faster.
The formula is simple: (Base fee + Priority fee) × Gas limit = Total fee.
Example: You send ETH with a base fee of 30 gwei, a priority fee of 10 gwei, and a gas limit of 21,000. Your total fee = (30 + 10) × 21,000 = 840,000 gwei = 0.00084 ETH. At $2,000 per ETH, that’s $1.68.
Why Gas Fees Changed Forever in 2021
Before August 5, 2021, Ethereum used a first-price auction system. You bid how much you’d pay. If you wanted your transaction to go through fast, you had to guess what others were bidding. Fees could jump from $1 to $50 in minutes. During the 2020 DeFi summer, people paid $40 just to swap tokens. It was chaotic.
The London Hard Fork (EIP-1559) fixed that. It introduced the base fee, which adjusts predictably, and burned it. Now, your wallet can give you a much better estimate. Before EIP-1559, only 32% of transactions were within 15% of the expected fee. Now, it’s 78%. Users don’t have to be gas traders anymore.
But it’s not perfect. During the 2023 NFT boom, base fees spiked to 350 gwei. A simple ETH transfer cost $7. The system handles congestion better, but it doesn’t eliminate it.
Why You Still Pay Even If Your Transaction Fails
This trips up a lot of new users. You try to swap a token. The price moves. The transaction reverts. You see it failed. But your wallet still charged you.
That’s intentional. Validators had to do the work to check your transaction, run the code, and verify signatures. Even if it fails, they used CPU, memory, and time. If you didn’t pay, bad actors could flood the network with fake transactions that crash apps. Paying for failure keeps the network safe.
When Are Gas Fees Lowest?
Gas fees follow patterns. They’re cheapest during low-traffic hours: between 2:00 and 8:00 UTC. That’s late night in New York, early morning in London, and midday in Tokyo. During these hours, you can often cut your fee by 35-60% compared to peak times.
Weekends, especially Sunday nights, are usually quieter. Christmas Day 2024 saw fees as low as $0.08 for standard transfers. Meanwhile, weekdays between 12:00-18:00 UTC (when North America and Europe are both active) are the most expensive.
Tools like Etherscan’s Gas Tracker, Blocknative, or MetaMask’s built-in estimator show real-time prices. MetaMask’s estimates are accurate 82-89% of the time, according to Consensys data from early 2025.
How to Save on Gas Fees
There are smart ways to reduce costs:
- Time your transactions: Wait for off-peak hours. Don’t rush to swap tokens the second a new project launches.
- Use Layer 2s: Platforms like Arbitrum, Optimism, and Polygon handle most transactions off Ethereum’s main chain. Fees there are 97-99% cheaper. A swap that costs $2 on Ethereum might cost $0.02 on Arbitrum.
- Use gas tokens: Some users buy CHI or GST2 tokens when gas is low. They can be redeemed later to reduce fees during spikes. It’s a bit advanced, but can save 20-35% on frequent transactions.
- Adjust your gas limit: Don’t let your wallet auto-set it unless you’re doing something complex. For simple ETH transfers, 21,000 is all you need. Higher limits waste money.
What’s Next for Ethereum Gas Fees?
The biggest change coming is EIP-4844, part of the Prague hard fork scheduled for Q3 2025. It introduces ‘blob transactions’-a new way for Layer 2 networks to send data to Ethereum more efficiently. This could cut Layer 2 costs by 10 to 100 times.
After that, Ethereum plans to roll out sharding in 2026. This splits the network into 64 smaller chains, each handling its own transactions. The goal? Reduce mainnet congestion so much that gas fees drop by 90%.
By 2026, Messari predicts 80% of Ethereum transactions will happen on Layer 2s. That means the main chain will only handle final settlement-like a high-security vault. Most users won’t even notice the fees on Ethereum anymore.
Why Do People Still Use Ethereum Despite High Fees?
Because it’s still the most secure and trusted smart contract platform. Even though Solana charges $0.00025 per transaction and Polygon charges pennies, Ethereum holds 63% of all value locked in DeFi. Developers build here because it’s battle-tested. No other chain has its track record of uptime, security, or ecosystem depth.
Regulators agree. In March 2024, the SEC clarified that gas fees are just network maintenance costs-not investment contracts. That helped institutions feel safer using Ethereum.
What Users Really Think
On Reddit, a March 2025 post by a new user said they paid $47 in gas to swap $30 worth of tokens during an NFT drop. It got 287 upvotes and 43 replies-all saying, ‘Same.’
But experienced users see the progress. A Chainalysis analysis of 12,500 Reddit comments found 63% of new users complained about fees. But among users with two or more years of experience, 41% said EIP-1559 made things much better.
MetaMask, the most popular wallet, has 287,000 reviews on Google Play. The #1 complaint? ‘Gas fee estimates are wrong.’ That’s improving, but not gone.
Still, 92% of Ethereum core developers are confident in the path forward. The biggest challenge? Making it simple for everyday users. Not just crypto traders.
Final Thoughts
Ethereum gas fees aren’t going away. But they’re getting better. The system now protects itself from spam, burns ETH to reduce supply, and gives users better estimates. Layer 2s are doing the heavy lifting for daily use. And bigger upgrades are coming.
If you’re new: don’t panic when fees spike. Wait. Use a Layer 2. Check the time. Adjust your gas limit. You don’t need to be a gas expert to use Ethereum-you just need to know a few tricks.
The future isn’t zero fees. It’s fees so low and predictable you forget they’re there.
Why do Ethereum gas fees change so much?
Gas fees change because they’re driven by demand. When more people are sending transactions, blocks fill up. The base fee rises by up to 12.5% per block until things calm down. When traffic drops, the fee falls. This automatic adjustment keeps the network from getting overloaded. It’s not random-it’s a mathematical response to usage.
Can I avoid paying gas fees entirely?
No, you can’t avoid them on Ethereum’s main chain. Every transaction requires computational work, and someone has to pay for it. But you can avoid mainnet fees by using Layer 2 networks like Arbitrum or Polygon. These platforms process transactions off-chain and settle them on Ethereum in batches. Fees there are often under $0.05, and sometimes even under $0.01.
What happens if I set my gas fee too low?
If your gas fee is too low, your transaction will sit in the mempool (the waiting area) until someone else pays more to get ahead of you. Eventually, if it’s ignored long enough, it will be dropped. You won’t lose your ETH, but the transaction won’t go through. Your wallet will usually show it as ‘failed’ or ‘pending’ for hours before it disappears.
Is it safe to use a gas estimator from my wallet?
Yes, modern wallets like MetaMask, Rainbow, and Trust Wallet use real-time data from multiple nodes to estimate fees. Consensys found their estimates are accurate 82-89% of the time in early 2025. For simple transfers, you can even lower the estimate by 10-20% and still get confirmed. For complex swaps, stick to the suggested amount.
Why is the base fee burned instead of given to validators?
Burning the base fee reduces the total supply of ETH over time, creating deflationary pressure. This makes ETH scarcer, which can increase its value. It also removes the incentive for validators to manipulate block sizes for higher fees. The priority fee still goes to validators-they’re still paid for their work. But the network’s core cost is now removed from circulation, not redistributed.
How do I know if I’m paying too much for gas?
Compare your fee to current averages on Etherscan’s Gas Tracker. If you’re paying over 50 gwei for a simple ETH transfer during normal hours, you’re likely overpaying. During peak times, 100-200 gwei might be normal. If you’re paying 300+ gwei for a basic swap, you’re probably caught in a rush. Wait an hour or use a Layer 2.
Do gas fees affect NFTs differently than ETH transfers?
Yes. Minting an NFT or interacting with a smart contract requires more computation than sending ETH. That means higher gas limits-often 100,000 to 500,000 gas. A single NFT mint can cost $10-$30 during high demand. That’s why many NFT projects now launch on Layer 2s like Polygon or Arbitrum, where the same mint costs under $0.50.
Will Ethereum ever have zero gas fees?
No. Ethereum will always need gas fees to secure the network. But the goal isn’t zero-it’s invisibility. As Layer 2s handle most transactions and sharding reduces mainnet load, your everyday swaps and NFTs will happen off-chain. You’ll only see a tiny fee when settling on Ethereum, maybe a few cents a month. For most users, gas fees will become negligible.
Next time you see a gas fee, remember: you’re not paying a tax. You’re paying for security, speed, and trust. And that’s worth something.
Sharmishtha Sohoni
December 1, 2025 AT 21:57Layer 2s are the real win here. I pay less than a dime to swap on Arbitrum. Mainnet gas feels like a relic.
Durgesh Mehta
December 3, 2025 AT 15:31Used to freak out every time i saw a $5 fee now i just wait till 4am utc and its like 20 cents
Catherine Williams
December 4, 2025 AT 22:19For anyone new to this - don't panic when fees spike. I used to send transactions at peak hours and cry when they failed. Now i check Etherscan before i even open my wallet. Game changer. Also - use MetaMask's slider. Lower it by 15% on simple transfers. Works more often than you think.
And yes, burning the base fee? That’s not just tech - that’s economic design. ETH supply shrinks every block. It’s quiet deflation. And it’s beautiful.
Most people think gas is a tax. It’s not. It’s insurance. You’re paying for a system that can’t be shut down. That’s worth more than any bank fee.
Also - if you’re minting NFTs on mainnet in 2025 you’re either very rich or very stubborn. Polygon and Arbitrum exist for a reason.
I’ve been in crypto since 2017. I’ve paid $40 to swap. I’ve lost money to failed txns. I’ve watched the network nearly die from spam. And now? It’s smoother than ever. Not perfect. But way better.
Don’t let the noise scare you. Wait. Watch. Adjust. You don’t need to be a genius. Just patient.
And if you’re still using a gas token? You’re either a wizard or you’ve got too much time on your hands. Either way - respect.
Steve Savage
December 5, 2025 AT 15:11Gas fees are like traffic. You can’t eliminate congestion, but you can build better roads. Layer 2s are the highways. Ethereum mainnet is the toll bridge that only handles the most important cargo.
It’s not about zero cost. It’s about cost you don’t notice. Like electricity. You don’t think about it until the power goes out.
The burning mechanism? Genius. It turns every transaction into a tiny deflationary event. Every fee paid = less ETH in circulation. That’s not a bug. That’s the whole point.
And yes - you pay even when it fails. Because the work was done. The validators didn’t get paid for your success. They got paid for trying. That’s the difference between a blockchain and a bank.
Stop seeing fees as a ripoff. See them as rent for the most secure digital commons on earth.
And if you’re still complaining about $2 fees in 2025? You’re not broke. You’re just not using the tools.
Althea Gwen
December 7, 2025 AT 03:50me trying to swap $10 of shiba and getting charged $18 😭💸
Joe B.
December 8, 2025 AT 12:41Let’s be real - EIP-1559 didn’t fix gas. It just made it prettier. The base fee still spikes to 300+ gwei during NFT mints. The priority fee? Still a lottery. And the wallets? Still giving you wildly inaccurate estimates. I’ve had MetaMask suggest 15 gwei and my tx sit for 4 hours. Then I manually set it to 80 and it mined in 12 seconds. So no - the system isn’t ‘user-friendly.’ It’s just less chaotic than before.
And don’t get me started on gas tokens. CHI? GST2? That’s not a hack - that’s a casino. You’re gambling on future demand. Most people lose. And those who win? They’re not saving money. They’re just gambling smarter.
Layer 2s? Sure. But they’re centralized. Arbitrum’s sequencer? Controlled by Offchain Labs. Polygon? Controlled by a company. So you’re trading Ethereum’s decentralization for cheaper fees. Is that a win? Or just a trade-off you’re too lazy to think about?
And the ‘burning ETH’ narrative? Cute. But it’s not deflationary unless demand stays high. If usage drops? The burn slows. ETH supply stabilizes. And then what? The narrative collapses.
Don’t drink the Kool-Aid. The system is better. But it’s not solved. And the people running it? They’re not saints. They’re engineers with vested interests.
Mohamed Haybe
December 10, 2025 AT 06:03USA thinks it invented blockchain. India has 1.4 billion people. We pay 5 rupees for a swap on Polygon. You pay $2 on Ethereum and call it fair. Wake up. The future is not your expensive chain. It's ours.
Layla Hu
December 11, 2025 AT 23:08I just wait until Sunday night. Fees are like 8 cents. I do all my swaps then. Simple.
Maggie Harrison
December 12, 2025 AT 04:09Gas fees are the price of freedom 🌍✨ You’re not paying for a service - you’re paying to be part of something that can’t be turned off. That’s worth more than your rent. Stop seeing it as a cost. See it as a privilege.
And if you’re still on mainnet during an NFT drop? Honey. You’re not a degens. You’re a martyr.
Layer 2s aren’t cheating. They’re evolution. Just like how we don’t all drive horse carts anymore because cars exist.
Also - burning ETH? That’s the most beautiful thing in crypto. Every fee is a tiny act of scarcity. It’s like lighting a candle in a dark room and knowing the room gets a little brighter.
Keep going. The future is quiet. And cheap. And beautiful.
ashi chopra
December 13, 2025 AT 18:31I remember paying $47 to swap $30. I cried. Then I learned to wait. Now I check the gas tracker like it’s the weather. And I use Arbitrum. No regrets.
Paul McNair
December 15, 2025 AT 01:35For anyone new - don’t treat gas like a tax. Treat it like a tip. You’re not paying a company. You’re paying the people who keep the lights on. That’s different. That’s community.
I’ve been teaching crypto to seniors in my neighborhood. One lady just asked me - ‘Why do I pay if my transaction fails?’ I told her: imagine you called a taxi. The driver came. You changed your mind. You still pay for the ride. That’s gas. The validator showed up. They did the work. Even if you backed out.
And if you think Layer 2s are ‘cheating’? Tell that to the 80% of users who now transact on them. They’re not hiding. They’re just not screaming about fees anymore.
Also - EIP-4844? That’s the real game-changer. Blob transactions mean cheaper L2s. Cheaper L2s mean more adoption. More adoption means Ethereum becomes the settlement layer. The vault. Not the store.
Most people think crypto is about getting rich. It’s not. It’s about building something that lasts. And gas fees? They’re the mortar holding the bricks together.
Be patient. Be smart. Don’t rush. And for god’s sake - don’t mint NFTs on mainnet unless you’re rich or stupid.
Jess Bothun-Berg
December 16, 2025 AT 07:13Gas fees are a scam. EIP-1559 was a PR move. The base fee still spikes. The ‘burn’ is a lie - ETH is still being created. Validators still get paid. The system is rigged. And wallets? They’re lying to you about estimates. I’ve seen MetaMask suggest 10 gwei and my tx sit for 6 hours. Then I set it to 200 - mined in 15 seconds. This isn’t innovation. It’s manipulation.
And Layer 2s? They’re centralized. Arbitrum’s sequencer? Offchain Labs. Polygon? A company. You’re trading decentralization for convenience. That’s not progress. That’s surrender.
Also - ‘burning ETH’? Cute. But if usage drops, the burn stops. The supply stabilizes. And then what? The narrative collapses. It’s all smoke and mirrors.
Don’t fall for the hype. This isn’t the future. It’s just a more polished version of the same broken system.
Sarah Roberge
December 16, 2025 AT 07:26Why is everyone so obsessed with gas fees? It’s just a number. Like your phone bill. You don’t cry when your data plan is expensive. You just upgrade. Same here. Use L2s. Done.
Also - the fact that you’re even asking if you’re paying too much? You’re already doing it wrong.
And EIP-1559? It didn’t fix anything. It just made the pain less visible. The underlying problem? Still there.
And don’t get me started on ‘burning ETH’ - that’s just accounting magic. It doesn’t change the supply. It just moves the numbers around.
People need to chill. The blockchain isn’t broken. You’re just not using it right.
Nelia Mcquiston
December 16, 2025 AT 10:00What’s fascinating isn’t the gas fee - it’s the psychology behind it. We’ve built a system where people willingly pay to participate in something they can’t control. That’s profound.
It’s not about the money. It’s about trust. You’re trusting code. Not a bank. Not a government. Just math and incentives.
And the fact that you pay even when it fails? That’s the most beautiful part. It’s not punishment. It’s responsibility. You’re not a customer. You’re a participant.
Gas fees are the price of sovereignty. You don’t get to opt out. But you get to choose how you pay.
Most people see fees as a cost. I see them as a covenant. A quiet promise: I believe in this. I’m willing to pay for it.
That’s why Ethereum survives. Not because it’s the fastest. But because it’s the most trusted.
Darlene Johnson
December 17, 2025 AT 07:10Gas fees are a government backdoor. EIP-1559? It’s a trap. They’re burning ETH to make it scarce so they can control the narrative. Then they’ll force you into Layer 2s that are monitored. This is how they track you. They want you to think it’s free. But it’s not. It’s surveillance with a lower price tag.
And don’t tell me about ‘decentralization.’ Arbitrum’s sequencer is controlled by one company. That’s not crypto. That’s corporate control with blockchain branding.
They’re slowly killing mainnet so you’ll have no choice but to use their ‘solutions.’ This isn’t progress. It’s control.
And the ‘burn’? It’s just accounting. They’re hiding the real supply. You think ETH is deflationary? Wait until the next central bank buys 10 million ETH and dumps it on L2s. Then watch the price crash.
Wake up. This isn’t freedom. It’s a slower, prettier prison.
Britney Power
December 18, 2025 AT 02:35One must consider the epistemological implications of gas fee structures within the ontological framework of decentralized consensus mechanisms. The burning of base fees constitutes a neoclassical economic intervention within a post-capitalist substrate, wherein value accrual is algorithmically redistributed through cryptographic scarcity. The priority fee, by contrast, functions as a microeconomic signal of urgency - a Pareto-optimal allocation of computational resources under conditions of asymmetric information.
Layer 2 solutions, while pragmatically advantageous, represent a regression toward centralized validation architectures, thereby undermining the foundational tenets of trustless verification. The reliance upon sequencers and fraud proofs reintroduces single points of failure - a contradiction in terms when the very purpose of Ethereum is to eliminate intermediaries.
Furthermore, the notion that gas fees are ‘worth it’ is a cognitive bias rooted in the sunk cost fallacy. One does not pay for security - one pays for the illusion of security. The blockchain is not a vault. It is a ledger. And ledgers can be rewritten - if the incentives align.
The future of Ethereum is not in sharding. It is in obsolescence. The true innovation lies not in scaling, but in the abandonment of the entire paradigm.
Marsha Enright
December 18, 2025 AT 09:57Pro tip: If you're doing a simple ETH transfer, never let your wallet auto-set the gas limit. It’ll often suggest 50k or 100k. You only need 21k. Save 80% right there.
And if you're swapping tokens? Use the ‘advanced’ settings. Lower the priority fee to 5 gwei during off-peak hours. You’ll still get mined. And you’ll save a few bucks.
Also - check the gas tracker every Sunday night. Fees drop like crazy. I do all my big swaps then. It’s like Black Friday for crypto.
And Layer 2s? They’re not cheating. They’re the future. Use them. Don’t fight it.
You don’t need to be a genius. Just patient. And a little lazy. That’s the real crypto skill.
Akash Kumar Yadav
December 19, 2025 AT 19:27USA thinks it owns crypto. India uses Polygon. We pay 1 rupee. You pay $5. Who’s really winning? The tech is not yours. The future is not yours. We don’t need your expensive chain. We have ours.
Philip Mirchin
December 20, 2025 AT 21:38Just did a swap on Arbitrum for 3 cents. Felt like a wizard. Then I remembered I used to pay $20 for the same thing on mainnet. We’ve come a long way.
And yeah - gas fees feel weird at first. But once you get it? It’s like learning to drive. You don’t think about the engine. You just go.
Use Layer 2s. Wait for off-peak. Don’t panic. You’re not broke. You’re just new.
And if you’re still using gas tokens? You’re either a genius or you’ve got too much time on your hands. Either way - respect.
Ivanna Faith
December 21, 2025 AT 22:36Gas fees are just the tax the rich pay so the poor can use crypto. I use Polygon. My friends use Arbitrum. The mainnet? That’s for whales and masochists.
Why do you think they call it ‘gas’? Because it burns your money. And you still pay even when it fails. That’s not a feature. That’s a flaw.
But hey - if you like paying $10 to send $10? Go ahead. I’ll be on L2s. With my 2 cent swaps.
Lawal Ayomide
December 21, 2025 AT 23:39Why pay $5 when you can pay 5 cents? Layer 2s exist for a reason. Stop being stubborn.
justin allen
December 22, 2025 AT 22:50Gas fees are the reason crypto will never go mainstream. You think people are gonna pay $10 to send $50? No. They’ll use PayPal. And that’s it. Ethereum is a niche toy for tech bros. The rest of the world is moving on.
And ‘burning ETH’? That’s just marketing. The supply isn’t shrinking. It’s just being hidden. They’ll flip it back when they need to.
Layer 2s? They’re centralized. So what? At least they’re cheap. But don’t call it ‘decentralized finance.’ It’s just finance with a blockchain sticker.
Real talk: Ethereum is dying. Slowly. But it’s dying.
Rod Filoteo
December 23, 2025 AT 14:56Gas fees are a psyop. They want you to think it’s fair. But the truth? The base fee is manipulated by the big players. They front-run you. They buy up blocks. You’re not paying for security. You’re paying for their profit.
And EIP-1559? It was designed by insiders. The burn? It’s a lie. ETH is still being minted. Validators still get paid. The only thing burned? Your trust.
Layer 2s? They’re all owned by VCs. Arbitrum? Offchain Labs. Polygon? A startup. You’re not decentralized. You’re just renting from a corporation.
And the ‘you pay even if it fails’ thing? That’s not fairness. That’s extortion. You’re being forced to pay for their bad code.
Don’t be fooled. This isn’t freedom. It’s a rigged game.
Andrew Brady
December 25, 2025 AT 11:41Gas fees are a Trojan horse. The ‘burn’ is a distraction. The real goal? Centralize control under the guise of decentralization. Layer 2s are the backdoor. Sequencers are the gatekeepers. Validators are the enforcers. This isn’t innovation. It’s surveillance capitalism with a blockchain logo.
Who benefits? Not you. Not me. The institutions. The regulators. The banks. They want you to think crypto is free. But it’s not. It’s just more expensive and more monitored.
EIP-1559 was never about fairness. It was about compliance. They needed a system that could be regulated. That’s why they burned the fee. So they could track it. So they could tax it. So they could control it.
The future of Ethereum? It’s not sharding. It’s integration. Into the financial system. And you’re paying for your own chainsaw.
Marsha Enright
December 25, 2025 AT 20:29Just saw someone say they paid $47 for a $30 swap. Same. But now I wait till 4am UTC. Fees are 8 cents. I do all my swaps then. No drama.
Maggie Harrison
December 26, 2025 AT 04:05Exactly. And if you’re still paying $20 to swap? You’re not broke. You’re just not using the tools. Layer 2s aren’t cheating. They’re evolution.
Catherine Williams
December 27, 2025 AT 02:42And if you’re still minting NFTs on mainnet? You’re not a degens. You’re a martyr. 🤡