Ethereum network fees have plunged to some of their lowest levels in years, with gas prices dropping to 0.067 Gwei on Sunday as onchain activity slowed following October’s market-wide crash.
Key Takeaways:
- Ethereum gas fees have fallen to 0.067 Gwei, making transactions as cheap as $0.04 after October’s market crash.
- The Dencun upgrade in 2024 cut fees for layer-2s but also slashed Ethereum’s base-layer revenue by 99%, raising sustainability concerns.
- Analysts warn that prolonged low fees could weaken validator incentives and pressure Ethereum’s long-term financial security.
The decline marks a dramatic cooldown for the world’s second-largest blockchain after a volatile start to the fourth quarter.
According to Etherscan, executing a token swap on Ethereum now costs just $0.11, while NFT sales carry an average fee of $0.19.
Ethereum Bridge Fees Drop to $0.04 After October’s Spike
Bridging assets to other blockchains costs around $0.04, and onchain borrowing roughly $0.09.
By contrast, gas prices hit 15.9 Gwei on October 10, when the flash crash erased more than 90% of value from some altcoins within a single day.
The relief came quickly. By October 12, gas prices had collapsed to 0.5 Gwei and have remained under 1 Gwei for most of October and November, data shows.
While the drop has made Ethereum transactions cheaper than ever, analysts warn that the network’s long-term sustainability could be tested if fees remain this low.
During the 2021 bull run, transaction costs on Ethereum’s base layer frequently exceeded $100–$150, driving users toward cheaper alternatives and layer-2 solutions.
However, since the Dencun upgrade in March 2024, which optimized gas fees for layer-2 rollups, Ethereum’s fee revenue has collapsed by 99%, according to Token Terminal.
While low fees improve user accessibility, they also reduce income for validators, the participants who secure the network and process transactions.
Analysts note that without sufficient fee incentives, Ethereum could face both financial and security pressures over time.
Research from Binance describes this as a “double-edged sword.” Ethereum’s layer-2 scaling ecosystem, which includes networks like Arbitrum, Optimism, and Base, has helped Ethereum scale efficiently but has also cannibalized much of its own base-layer revenue.
For now, traders may welcome near-free transactions, but if activity and fees don’t recover, Ethereum’s economic model could face renewed scrutiny, especially as rival blockchains continue to court developers and users with lower-cost, high-throughput alternatives.
Ethereum MEV Fraud Trial Ends in Mistrial as Jury Fails to Reach Verdict
As reported, a US federal judge has declared a mistrial in the landmark case against brothers Anton and James Peraire-Bueno, accused of stealing $25 million through an alleged exploit on the Ethereum blockchain.
The case marked the first-ever criminal prosecution involving maximal extractable value (MEV), where traders profit from how transactions are ordered on the network.
Prosecutors claimed the pair went beyond standard MEV tactics by manipulating Ethereum’s validator layer to reorder transactions and drain funds, calling it “the first exploit of its kind.”
The defense countered that their actions followed Ethereum’s internal rules, arguing the brothers operated within the system’s design rather than hacking it.
After three days of deliberation, jurors admitted they were exhausted and divided, prompting Judge Jessica Clarke to end the trial.
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