Best Ethereum L2

Combined ranking

1. 1
   AArbitrum—19 pts

   GPT #1Claude #1Gemini #2Grok #1

   Best overall balance of deep DeFi liquidity, broad application coverage, EVM compatibility, low fees, and relatively mature Stage 1 rollup safeguards; ranked for a typical developer or onchain user, and narrowly leads Base on security maturity and capital efficiency

   Claude Deepest DeFi liquidity and TVL of any L2, the most mature security posture (L2Beat Stage 1 with BOLD permissionless fraud proofs), near-perfect EVM equivalence via the Nitro stack, battle-tested tooling, and Orbit for spinning up app-specific L3s — the default choice for a team that wants ecosystem depth without company lock-in; near-tie with Base at the top, edging it on decentralization and liquidity.

   Grok Largest or near-largest TVL (~$10-20B range across 2026 data), deepest DeFi liquidity and composability with major protocols (Uniswap, Aave, GMX) deployed at scale, mature EVM-compatible Nitro stack, strong developer adoption, proven track record, and Stage 1 security progress on L2Beat; assumption: real-world merit prioritizes usable liquidity and ecosystem depth for typical DeFi/trading practitioners over raw user counts.

   Gemini Near-tied with Base; offers the deepest DeFi liquidity, highest capital efficiency, and most robust Nitro-driven EVM compatibility, making it the industry standard for financial applications under the assumption that liquidity composability is the developer's primary bottleneck.

   Where it falls short

   per GPT Centralized sequencing and Security Council emergency powers remain meaningful trust assumptions, while native withdrawals inherit the optimistic-rollup delay

   per Claude Optimistic design means ~7-day native withdrawal challenge windows (you lean on third-party fast bridges) and the sequencer is not yet fully decentralized — not for those needing instant L1 finality.

   per Gemini Lacks a native, direct-to-retail consumer pipeline, making user onboarding friction higher for non-financial consumer-facing applications.

   per Grok Optimistic rollup withdrawal delays (7-day challenge period) and still-evolving full sequencer decentralization; NOT for users needing instant finality or ultra-low latency apps.

2. 2
   BBase—17 pts

   GPT #2Claude #2Gemini #1Grok #2

   Near-tied with Arbitrum One; offers unparalleled distribution to mainstream retail users via Coinbase's smart wallet integration, off-ramp rails, and low gas fees, making it the premier choice for consumer-focused applications under the assumption that user acquisition is the developer's primary bottleneck.

   GPT Near-tied with Arbitrum for first: exceptional transaction capacity, low costs, excellent EVM tooling, strong consumer-app distribution, and one of the richest active ecosystems

   Claude Highest real user activity and the best onboarding funnel in the space via native Coinbase fiat/exchange distribution, very low fees, reliable OP Stack engineering, and the strongest consumer/social app gravity (Farcaster, onchain apps) — the pragmatic pick if reaching mainstream users matters more than credible neutrality.

   Grok High activity and user growth driven by Coinbase integration/onboarding, strong consumer/retail focus with low fees and fiat-native flows, significant TVL (~$10-13B), OP Stack reliability, and rapid scaling for everyday onchain use; earns spot via proven real adoption metrics and accessibility for typical practitioners.

   Where it falls short

   per GPT Its upgrade governance and sequencer remain centralized, and its evolving proof system carries greater trust assumptions than the activity numbers suggest

   per Claude Sequencer is fully Coinbase-operated and the chain is Coinbase-dependent with no native token, so it's the wrong choice for maximal decentralization or censorship-resistance; same optimistic withdrawal delay as Arbitrum.

   per Gemini High centralization risk due to Coinbase operating as the sole sequencer, making it unsuitable for applications requiring strict censorship resistance.

   per Grok More centralized sequencer (Coinbase-operated) and reliance on parent OP Stack governance; NOT for maximal decentralization purists or heavy DeFi liquidity seekers where Arbitrum dominates depth.

3. 3
   OOptimism—12 pts

   GPT #3Claude #3Gemini #3Grok #3

   Battle-tested EVM-equivalent execution, Stage 1 fault proofs, substantial liquidity, strong developer tooling, and alignment with the widely adopted OP Stack make it a dependable general-purpose network

   Claude The foundational OP Stack and Superchain — shared, open-source infrastructure that Base, Worldchain and dozens of others build on, with live fault proofs, native cross-chain interop, and a strong public-goods/retro-funding ethos; high value for teams that want standardized tooling and Superchain interoperability.

   Gemini Serves as the central hub of the OP Stack Superchain, providing developers with modular blueprints, shared governance, and native interoperability with a fast-growing multi-chain network.

   Grok Foundational OP Stack powering multiple chains (including Base), solid TVL and ecosystem, emphasis on public goods funding and Superchain interoperability, established optimistic rollup tech with Stage 1 progress; strong for infrastructure-minded developers valuing long-term Ethereum-aligned scaling.

   Where it falls short

   per GPT Base now offers greater user activity and distribution on similar technology, while OP Mainnet still has centralized sequencing and instant Security Council upgrade authority

   per Claude The flagship chain itself carries less native liquidity and activity than Base or Arbitrum — much of its worth is in the stack, not OP Mainnet as a deployment target.

   per Gemini High user and liquidity fragmentation to its own derivative networks (such as Base), reducing its appeal as a standalone deployment destination.

   per Grok Lower direct TVL/liquidity compared to Arbitrum and Base in many snapshots, with activity sometimes fragmented across Superchain; NOT for users prioritizing the single deepest liquidity pool or simplest consumer onboarding.

4. 4
   SStarknet—5 pts

   GPT #4Claude #5Gemini #4Grok —

   Powerful validity-proof architecture, Ethereum-posted data, account abstraction, high potential throughput, and Cairo’s performance-oriented design make it the strongest differentiated ZK option

   Gemini Offers native, protocol-level account abstraction (enabling seamless session keys and gas sponsorship) and high computational scalability via ZK-STARK proofs, making it excellent for performance-intensive applications like gaming.

   Claude The strongest cryptographic foundation (STARK proofs, no trusted setup), excellent scalability headroom, native account abstraction, and Cairo's ability to express things the EVM cannot — a merit pick for teams pushing performance and novel onchain logic.

   Where it falls short

   per GPT Cairo and Starknet-specific tooling impose substantially more migration and learning friction than EVM-compatible networks, with a smaller liquidity and application base

   per Claude Cairo is not EVM-compatible, forcing a full rewrite and a new toolchain/talent pool, which is a steep adoption cost and shrinks its ecosystem versus EVM L2s — not for teams porting existing Solidity or wanting instant EVM tooling.

   per Gemini Uses a non-EVM execution environment (Cairo), which creates a steep learning curve and separates developers from standard Ethereum developer tooling.

5. 5
   ZzkSync Era—3 pts

   GPT —Claude #4Gemini #5Grok —

   The largest ZK-rollup ecosystem, offering validity-proof security and far faster finality than optimistic rollups (no multi-day withdrawal wait), plus first-class native account abstraction and the Elastic Chain model for interconnected ZK chains — real practitioner wins for UX and bridging speed.

   Gemini Combines the mathematical finality of ZK-rollups with native account abstraction and EVM compatibility, while facilitating multi-chain scaling through its ZK Stack Elastic Chain framework.

   Where it falls short

   per Claude Not bytecode-EVM-equivalent (Solidity compiles through zksolc, so some contracts and tooling need adaptation), and DeFi liquidity trails Arbitrum/Base — not a drop-in for battle-tested EVM code or deep-liquidity trading.

   per Gemini Its Type 4 zkEVM VM uses a compiler-based translation rather than bytecode equivalence, which can break compatibility with complex legacy Solidity contracts.

6. 6
   LLinea—1 pts

   GPT #5Claude —Gemini —Grok —

   Combines ZK validity proofs with close EVM compatibility and familiar Ethereum tooling, making it a practical ZK choice for Solidity teams; it edges ZKsync Era, but only narrowly, on practitioner accessibility and ecosystem integration

   Where it falls short

   per GPT Stage 0 maturity, centralized upgrades and proposing, and much thinner usage and liquidity than the leaders make it unsuitable for applications prioritizing minimized trust or deep markets

Just missed the top 5

By model

Tracked by ModelsAgree · rank 1 = 5 pts … rank 5 = 1 pt · re-polled continuously