Base Leads L2 Fees With $147K Daily as Most Chains Earn Under $5K

Base led Ethereum’s layer-2 fee rankings on January 14, generating about $147,000 in daily revenue, far ahead of Arbitrum’s roughly $39,000 and Starknet’s $9,000, according to figures shared by CryptoRank.io.

The data points to a sharp concentration of activity on one network, even as most other Ethereum scaling chains struggled to clear $5,000 in fees over the same 24-hour period.

Base Pulls Ahead as Fee Data Shows Widening Gaps

CryptoRank said Base’s share of total Ethereum L2 revenue was nearing 70% based on the January 14 snapshot, while all other L2s combined brought in just over $15,000. Linea posted around $4,500 in fees, Optimism $2,400, Unichain $2,000, Ink $1,500, zkSync $900, and Scroll $600, showing how thin fee generation remains outside the top tier.

The fee figures quickly set off debate on social media, especially after some users pointed to Polygon’s much higher revenue on the same day. Crypto analyst Vadim and X user New York Pascal both posted that Polygon recorded about $155,000 in daily fees, slightly above Base’s total, based on a network-wide revenue table from DefiLlama shared within hours of CryptoRank’s post.

That comparison led to questions about how Polygon should be classified. X user Thorex asked whether Polygon is an L2 at all, reflecting a long-running discussion in the community about Polygon’s mix of scaling solutions, including its proof-of-stake chain and newer zero-knowledge products.

The distinction matters because CryptoRank’s post focused specifically on Ethereum L2s, while Polygon’s revenue figures often include activity from its broader ecosystem.

DefiLlama’s revenue table showed Tron at the top across all chains with more than $1 million in daily fees, followed by Polygon, Base, Ethereum, BNB Chain, Solana, and Arbitrum. Within that wider context, Base still ranked near the top for Ethereum-aligned networks, even if it was not the highest-earning chain overall.

Ecosystem Growth Adds Context to Base’s Fee Strength

Base’s recent fee performance comes as Coinbase continues to expand products built on the network. Late last year, the exchange launched its tokenized “Everything app,” a rebranded version of Coinbase Wallet that blends social content, trading, and payments in one interface.

The company said the app, now live in more than 140 countries, is built on Base and uses tokenized posts and assets that can be traded directly from a social-style feed. The launch introduced new ways for users to interact on-chain, including earning from content engagement and settling rewards instantly to their wallets.

While Coinbase has not published a direct link between the app and daily fee totals, the timing helps explain why Base continues to attract activity compared with other L2s that lack a similar consumer-facing funnel.

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