Base emerged as the clear leader among Ethereum Layer-2 networks on January 14, generating approximately $147,000 in daily transaction fees, according to data published by CryptoRank.io. This figure places Base far ahead of other major L2s, with Arbitrum recording around $39,000, while Starknet trailed significantly at roughly $9,000 over the same 24-hour period.
The data highlights a growing concentration of user activity on a single Layer-2 network. Most other Ethereum scaling solutions failed to surpass even $5,000 in daily fees, underscoring the uneven distribution of real economic usage across the L2 landscape.
CryptoRank’s breakdown suggests that Base accounted for nearly 70% of total Ethereum L2 fee revenue on that day. In contrast, all remaining L2s combined generated just over $15,000. Specifically, Linea recorded about $4,500, Optimism $2,400, Unichain $2,000, Ink $1,500, zkSync $900, and Scroll roughly $600. These figures reinforce the view that fee generation outside the leading networks remains limited.
Polygon Comparison Sparks Classification Debate
The data quickly fueled discussion on social media after comparisons emerged with Polygon, which reportedly generated around $155,000 in fees during the same period. Crypto analyst Vadim and X user New York Pascal cited DefiLlama data showing Polygon slightly outperforming Base in total daily fees.
This comparison revived a long-standing debate around how Polygon should be classified. Some community members, including X user Thorex, questioned whether Polygon should be considered a true Ethereum Layer-2, given its broader ecosystem that includes a proof-of-stake chain alongside newer zero-knowledge solutions.
The distinction matters because CryptoRank focuses strictly on Ethereum L2s, while Polygon’s reported revenue typically aggregates activity across its entire, more diverse network stack.
Base Still Ranks Among Top Ethereum-Aligned Networks
According to DefiLlama’s broader blockchain fee rankings, Tron currently leads all blockchains with over $1 million in daily fees, followed by Polygon, Base, Ethereum, BNB Chain, Solana, and Arbitrum. While Base is not the highest-fee blockchain overall, it remains firmly positioned among the top Ethereum-aligned networks by economic activity.
Base’s recent fee growth coincides with Coinbase’s continued expansion of products built directly on the network. Late last year, the exchange introduced its tokenized “Everything app,” a rebranded version of Coinbase Wallet that integrates social content, trading, and payments into a single interface.
According to Coinbase, the application is now available in over 140 countries and allows users to trade tokenized assets and interact on-chain directly within a social-style feed. New interaction models — such as earning rewards from content engagement and near-instant on-chain payouts — may be contributing to increased activity on Base.
While Coinbase has not explicitly linked the app to Base’s daily fee surge, the timing offers a potential explanation for why Base continues to attract more usage than many competing L2s that lack comparable consumer-facing distribution.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice. Readers should conduct their own research before making financial decisions.
👉 Follow for more crypto ecosystem updates, on-chain data insights, and market structure analysis.
