Ethereum average block size & gas limits

Ethereum’s blockchain is a public database that is updated constantly and shared across many computers in a network. The data that is being stored in consecutive groups on the blockchain is known as “blocks”. 

The data or these blocks are batches of transactions with a hash of the previous block in the chain. This means blocks get chained together. This is done to ensure that all participants on the Ethereum network maintain a synchronised state and agree to all transactions. 

This data in the chain of blocks cannot be changed without changing all subsequent blocks, which would require the entire consensus of the Ethereum network.

Ethereum uses a proof-of-work (PoW) consensus mechanism. A PoW consensus mechanism means that anyone who wishes to add new blocks to the chain must solve a “puzzle” (mathematical problem) through the use of their computational resources (miners). In summary, when an ETH transaction occurs, the transaction must be mined and added to the new block. The updated state of this block is then shared with the entirety of the Ethereum network.

In recent times, the size of these Ethereum blocks have increased. See the 3 year chart below:

As of right now, the average Ethereum block side is 86,321.00 bytes. This is pretty much a 400% increase from 3 years ago in which the average block size was around 20,000 bytes. Around February 21st, 2022, the average block size was up to a whopping 120,000.00 bytes. 

Much of this increase is due to the increase in gas limit per block and demand to transact on-chain. An actual increase in the block size quickens the storage needs for Ethereum nodes. 

In recent times, Ethereum’s co-creator Vitalik Buterin has suggested a new Ethereum Improvement Proposal (EIP) to increase the block size to 1 megabyte (Mb). Blocks in the Ethereum network are currently restricted by the total quantity of gas produced by each transaction. When this gas limit increases, node operators are hurt, as they are the ones storing all or parts of the transactions in order to maintain and validate the chain. The Eth 1.0 node runners continue to cop the costs if Ethereum 2.0 continues to be delayed, which is hopefully released in June, 2022. 

When this merge occurs, with a proof-of-stake consensus mechanism in place (rather than PoW), hopefully both the block and gas fee limit issues are solved.