Multidimensional analysis of Arbitrum, what advantages does it have compared to Optimism and zkSync?

Original Title: 《What Is The Most Profitable L2?》

Written by: Delphi Digital

Original Compilation: Kxp, BlockBeats

By monitoring metrics such as transaction volume, total value locked, security costs, and final profits, we can observe a clear upward trend in the demand for L2 block space.

Undoubtedly, the airdrops of OP and ARB have contributed to the growth of activity on their respective networks. However, sustained usage and growth have proven that this is not just a temporary surge.

Additionally, with the launch of zkSync's mainnet (Era) last month, accompanied by its anticipated upcoming airdrop, zkSync has also witnessed a surge in activity. In fact, zkSync Era now has the third-largest L2 TVL on Ethereum ($260 million).

So, among the top 3 L2s based on TVL (Arbitrum, Optimism, and zkSync), which one is the most profitable? To find the answer, we simply need to calculate the difference between fee revenue and L1 call data security costs (plus the verification costs of zkrollup).

In the past 12 months, Arbitrum's net profit has been approximately 5,200 ETH, which is 80% higher than Optimism. Considering that zkSync Era has just launched, it is not reasonable to include it in the comparison; however, for reference, zk has generated about 50 ETH in profit since its launch.

Therefore, from the perspective of raw profit, Arbitrum is clearly more advantageous than Optimism. But is this merely a result of increased transaction volume? Yes and no.

While Arbitrum's profit is 80% higher than Optimism's, it has only 54% of the transaction volume and 28% of the revenue growth. In short, Arbitrum has lower transaction costs, which leads to less revenue per transaction. The real answer lies in L1 security costs, where Arbitrum's security costs are only 20% higher than Optimism's. On a per-transaction basis, the fees Optimism pays for L1 call data are nearly double those of Arbitrum.

The demand for rollups will continue to grow. As the L2 ecosystem evolves, its profitability metrics will also improve. Currently, due to higher throughput and lower security costs, Arbitrum has stronger profitability compared to Optimism and zkSync.