Intro
Ethereum and other smart-contract blockchains have transformed the way users interact with decentralised applications, digital assets and Web3 services. However, transaction costs have remained one of the biggest challenges to mainstream adoption. Gas fees can increase when network demand rises, making simple transfers, token swaps and smart-contract interactions more expensive and potentially discouraging users from completing smaller transactions. Although Ethereum’s base-layer fees are considerably lower in 2026 than during the peak congestion of previous cycles, the underlying challenge remains important: users want fast, predictable and inexpensive blockchain transactions regardless of network conditions.
Layer-2 networks are playing an increasingly important role in addressing this challenge. Solutions such as Base, Arbitrum and Optimism process transactions away from Ethereum’s main execution layer while using Ethereum for settlement and security. At the same time, cryptocurrency wallets are evolving to make Layer-2 networks easier to use through smart accounts, passkeys, transaction batching, gas sponsorship and automatic network management. The result is a new generation of Layer-2 wallets designed to hide much of the technical complexity traditionally associated with blockchain transactions.
Lets Dive In
Why Gas Fees Matter to Web3 Adoption
Gas fees represent the cost of computation required to process transactions and execute smart contracts on a blockchain. On Ethereum, users generally pay gas in ETH, with the final cost influenced by the amount of computational work required and prevailing network demand. A straightforward transfer requires considerably less computation than interacting with a complex decentralised application or smart contract.
The problem is that users do not necessarily think about blockchain transactions in terms of computational resources. They think about whether sending £5 worth of tokens should cost a few pence or several pounds. When transaction fees become disproportionate to the value of an activity, blockchain applications can become difficult to use economically.
This has been particularly relevant to decentralised finance, gaming, NFTs, micropayments and other applications where users may need to complete many small transactions. High or unpredictable gas fees can make an otherwise attractive application difficult to operate.
The issue is therefore not simply whether Ethereum is expensive. It is whether blockchain applications can offer costs and user experiences that are competitive with conventional digital services.
Ethereum Gas Fees Have Changed
The perception of Ethereum as an inherently expensive blockchain largely comes from the high-fee environment experienced during periods of intense network activity between 2021 and 2023. Since then, several protocol upgrades have changed the economics of Ethereum transactions.
Ethereum’s Dencun upgrade in March 2024 introduced significant improvements for Layer-2 data availability through blobs. Pectra followed in May 2025, while Fusaka arrived in December 2025. Ethereum’s own 2026 documentation notes that these upgrades have materially changed the cost environment for developers and users. By May 2026, Ethereum reported typical gas levels far below those seen during the earlier congestion period.
This does not make Layer-2 networks obsolete. Instead, it changes their role.
Layer-2 networks can provide additional execution capacity, lower transaction costs and specialised environments for applications. They also allow wallets and applications to optimise transactions without requiring every activity to compete directly for Ethereum mainnet block space.
The future of Layer-2 therefore depends less on simply escaping high Ethereum fees and more on providing scalable, predictable and user-friendly blockchain infrastructure.
How Layer-2 Networks Reduce Transaction Costs
Layer-2 networks process transactions separately from Ethereum’s main execution layer and periodically submit information back to Ethereum. Rollups can bundle many transactions together, allowing the cost associated with Ethereum settlement to be distributed across a larger number of users.
This creates an important economic advantage. Instead of every transaction paying the full cost of interacting directly with Ethereum’s base layer, users can share the cost of posting compressed transaction data or proofs to Ethereum.
Optimistic rollups such as Arbitrum and Optimism use fraud-proof mechanisms, while zero-knowledge-based systems use validity proofs to demonstrate that transactions have been processed correctly. Although the technical approaches differ, both aim to increase transaction capacity while maintaining a connection to Ethereum’s security model.
L2BEAT’s 2026 data illustrates the scale of the Layer-2 ecosystem, tracking dozens of rollups and other scaling systems alongside substantial activity and value secured. Its current data shows Layer-2 systems processing significantly more user operations than Ethereum’s base layer.
For users, the most visible benefit is usually lower transaction cost. For developers, the benefit is access to an execution environment capable of supporting applications that would be difficult to operate economically on Ethereum mainnet alone.
Base Is Turning Low-Cost Transactions Into a Wallet Feature
Base has become one of the most visible examples of the connection between Layer-2 infrastructure and wallet innovation. Rather than treating the Layer-2 network as something users need to understand separately, the ecosystem increasingly aims to make low-cost blockchain transactions part of the normal application experience.
Coinbase’s Base ecosystem is particularly significant because the exchange, wallet and Layer-2 network can operate together. Coinbase’s current Smart Wallet documentation recommends low-cost networks such as Base, Optimism and Arbitrum for reducing network fees compared with Ethereum mainnet.
Base has also been developing smart-account infrastructure designed around sponsored transactions and transaction batching. Its stated objective is to make smart-account transactions extremely inexpensive while supporting features such as passkey authentication and bundled transactions.
This represents an important shift in wallet design. Previously, users needed to understand which network they were using, hold the correct native token for gas and manually approve individual transactions. Newer wallet systems can increasingly abstract these requirements away.
Smart Wallets Change the User Experience
Traditional crypto wallets generally rely on externally owned accounts controlled by private keys. Users must manage their recovery phrase and ensure that they have enough of the network’s native cryptocurrency to pay transaction fees.
Smart wallets operate differently. They use smart-contract functionality to provide additional capabilities such as transaction batching, sponsored fees, programmable permissions and alternative authentication methods.
Coinbase Smart Wallet, for example, uses passkeys and supports sponsored network fees and batched transactions. Coinbase currently supports the wallet across several low-cost EVM networks, including Base, Optimism, Arbitrum, Polygon and Avalanche C-Chain.
The significance of this development is not simply that transactions can be cheaper. Smart wallets can make blockchain applications feel more like conventional applications.
A user may be able to sign in using a passkey rather than manually managing a wallet extension. A decentralised application may sponsor the user’s transaction fee. Several blockchain operations can potentially be combined into a single user interaction.
This reduces the number of decisions a new Web3 user needs to make.
Gas Sponsorship Removes One of Crypto’s Biggest Frictions
One of the most visible wallet innovations is gas sponsorship. Traditionally, users need to hold the native token of a blockchain to pay transaction fees. This creates an awkward situation when a user owns the asset they want to transact with but does not have the network token required to pay gas.
Gas sponsorship changes this model by allowing an application, wallet or other service to cover eligible network fees.
MetaMask has expanded its gas-sponsorship capabilities, including sponsored transactions on selected networks. Its current documentation explains that certain eligible transactions can have network fees paid by MetaMask, with smart-account functionality used to support the process.
Coinbase Smart Wallet similarly allows applications to sponsor network fees for eligible transactions.
The potential impact is significant. If users no longer need to understand which token is required for gas, blockchain applications become easier to use.
For example, a user interacting with a decentralised game could potentially pay for an in-game action without separately acquiring ETH or another network token. A DeFi application could sponsor the first transaction to make onboarding easier.
The technology effectively moves gas management into the background.
Transaction Batching Can Reduce Costs
Another important Layer-2 wallet innovation is transaction batching.
Traditional blockchain interactions may require several separate transactions. A decentralised application might require a user to approve a token, sign another transaction and then complete the actual operation.
Each transaction can create additional network costs.
Smart accounts can combine multiple operations into a single transaction or execution sequence. This can reduce the number of times users interact directly with the blockchain and can improve the overall application experience.
Base identifies transaction batching as one of the capabilities being developed around smart accounts, while Coinbase Smart Wallet documentation also highlights batching as a way applications can help users save on network fees.
This is particularly valuable for complex DeFi applications, gaming environments and marketplaces where a single user action may otherwise require several blockchain interactions.
MetaMask Is Moving Beyond Basic Wallet Management
MetaMask remains one of the most widely recognised Web3 wallet platforms, but its functionality has expanded considerably beyond simply storing tokens and connecting to decentralised applications.
Its current gas-management tools can automatically calculate network fees, and MetaMask supports gas payment mechanisms that allow users to pay network fees using selected tokens on supported networks. The wallet handles the underlying conversion into the network’s native asset.
This is an example of abstraction becoming an important part of crypto wallet innovation.
The user does not necessarily need to know that ETH is required to pay the underlying Ethereum gas fee. Instead, the wallet can manage the conversion process behind the scenes.
MetaMask has also integrated gas-inclusive swaps, allowing network fees to be incorporated into swap quotations. The objective is to give users a clearer view of the overall transaction cost rather than forcing them to calculate network fees separately.
Layer-2 Network Switching Is Becoming Easier
One of the historical problems with Layer-2 adoption has been network fragmentation.
A user might hold ETH on Ethereum mainnet but want to interact with an application on Base. Another application might operate on Arbitrum or Optimism. Moving assets between networks can require bridging, and bridging can introduce additional costs and security considerations.
Wallets are increasingly attempting to make network switching automatic or at least easier to understand.
Coinbase Wallet currently provides several Layer-2 networks as preconfigured options, including Base, Arbitrum and Optimism.
MetaMask similarly supports a broad range of EVM-compatible networks and provides network-fee estimates within the transaction interface.
The long-term objective is to make the underlying blockchain largely invisible to the user.
Instead of asking which network an application uses, the user should ideally be able to select an action and allow the wallet to identify an appropriate route.
Cross-Chain and Bridging Tools Remain Important
Layer-2 adoption creates another challenge: moving assets between networks.
Bridges allow users to transfer assets between Ethereum and Layer-2 networks, although the process can involve additional transaction fees and security considerations. Ethereum’s official documentation explains that users can bridge assets to Layer-2 networks and then add the relevant network to a compatible wallet.
Wallet providers are increasingly incorporating bridging into their interfaces rather than forcing users to visit a separate bridge application.
This is an important usability improvement because bridging has traditionally been one of the more confusing parts of Web3.
However, users should still understand that bridges can introduce additional risks. The cheapest route is not automatically the safest or most efficient route. Liquidity, bridge design, settlement mechanisms and supported assets can all influence the overall transaction experience.
Layer-2 Wallets Are Becoming Multi-Network Platforms
The traditional idea of a crypto wallet was relatively simple: store assets and sign transactions.
Modern wallets increasingly function as multi-network financial interfaces.
A single wallet may support Ethereum, Base, Arbitrum, Optimism, Polygon and other networks. Users can swap assets, interact with decentralised applications, bridge funds and manage multiple blockchain accounts from one interface.
This creates opportunities but also introduces complexity behind the scenes.
The wallet must determine which network a transaction should use, estimate the cost, identify the correct gas token, manage smart-account permissions and present the result clearly to the user.
The best Layer-2 wallet innovations therefore involve much more than blockchain infrastructure. They involve interface design, transaction routing and automation.
Security Must Keep Pace With Convenience
Reducing friction can create new security challenges.
When wallets automate network selection, transaction signing or gas payments, users may have less visibility into what is happening underneath. A highly convenient wallet experience can therefore make it easier for users to approve transactions without fully understanding them.
Security features such as passkeys, transaction simulation, spending limits, address controls and clear transaction summaries are becoming increasingly important.
Passkeys are particularly interesting because they can replace traditional passwords and reduce reliance on manually entered recovery credentials. Base has highlighted passkey functionality as part of its smart-account development, while Coinbase Smart Wallet uses passkey-based authentication.
The future wallet therefore needs to balance two objectives: reducing technical complexity while still giving users meaningful control.
The Role of Account Abstraction
Account abstraction is one of the technologies underpinning many of these developments.
Traditional Ethereum accounts have limitations around how transactions are initiated and paid for. Smart-account architectures can introduce programmable transaction logic, allowing applications and wallets to sponsor fees, batch transactions and provide alternative authentication mechanisms.
For users, account abstraction can make blockchain transactions feel less like blockchain transactions.
This is important for mainstream adoption. Consumers do not generally want to understand gas limits, nonce management or network-specific tokens before using an application.
Account abstraction can move these technical details into the infrastructure layer.
Instead of the user managing every aspect of a transaction, the wallet and application can coordinate the process automatically.
Lower Fees Are Changing What Applications Can Build
The significance of Layer-2 scaling extends beyond cheaper transfers.
Lower transaction costs make entirely new application models more viable.
Gaming is one example. Blockchain games may require frequent transactions for item ownership, rewards or marketplace interactions. These activities can become economically difficult when every transaction takes place directly on a high-cost base layer.
Social applications are another example. On-chain identity, content ownership and micropayments can require large numbers of small transactions.
DeFi can also benefit. More affordable transactions make it easier for users to rebalance portfolios, provide liquidity or interact with automated financial products.
The result is that Layer-2 networks are not simply reducing the cost of existing blockchain applications. They can expand the range of applications that are economically practical.
Layer-2 Activity Continues to Expand
The growing importance of Layer-2 networks can be seen in activity data.
L2BEAT currently tracks a broad ecosystem of rollups and other scaling systems, with Layer-2 activity substantially exceeding Ethereum’s base-layer activity in several measurements. Its current dashboard lists Base, Arbitrum and OP Mainnet among the established Layer-2 networks, alongside newer scaling projects.
The ecosystem is also becoming increasingly diverse.
Optimistic rollups continue to play an important role, while zero-knowledge systems and other scaling approaches are developing rapidly. Some networks are designed around general-purpose applications, while others focus on gaming, trading, payments or specific application environments.
This diversification means wallets will increasingly need to support multiple types of Layer-2 infrastructure.
The Challenge of Fragmentation
Despite their advantages, Layer-2 networks introduce fragmentation.
A user may have assets spread across Ethereum, Base, Arbitrum and Optimism. Liquidity can also be divided between different networks, making it harder to find the best trading route.
Wallets and applications therefore have an increasingly important role to play in hiding this fragmentation.
Aggregated liquidity, intelligent routing, embedded bridging and cross-chain swaps can help users interact with multiple networks without manually managing every step.
However, abstraction can only go so far. Users still need to understand which network holds their assets and what happens when they move funds between networks.
The challenge for wallet developers is therefore to simplify the experience without making it opaque.
Recommended Online Courses to Build Layer-2 and Blockchain Skills in 2026
As Layer-2 networks become a larger part of the Web3 ecosystem, understanding blockchain architecture, Ethereum scaling and smart-contract technology can help learners make sense of the rapidly changing wallet and application landscape. The following online courses provide practical foundations for understanding blockchain development, Ethereum and decentralised applications.
Blockchain Developer — Udemy
Platform: Udemy
Level: Beginner to Advanced
Focus: Blockchain development, Ethereum, Solidity, smart contracts, Web3 applications and decentralised application development
This comprehensive Udemy course provides a practical introduction to blockchain development, covering core concepts behind Ethereum, Solidity, smart contracts and decentralised applications. Learners develop an understanding of how blockchain-based applications are designed and how smart contracts interact with decentralised networks.
The course is particularly relevant to Layer-2 wallet innovation because understanding blockchain development and smart contracts provides useful technical context for technologies such as smart accounts, account abstraction, transaction processing and decentralised applications.
Course Link: Blockchain Developer — Udemy
Blockchain Specialization — Coursera
Platform: Coursera
Level: Intermediate
Focus: Blockchain architecture, smart contracts, decentralised applications, cryptography and blockchain development
The Blockchain Specialization from the University at Buffalo provides a broader technical understanding of blockchain systems. The programme explores blockchain fundamentals, smart contracts and decentralised applications while examining the technologies that support modern blockchain ecosystems.
For learners interested in Layer-2 scaling, the specialisation provides useful background knowledge for understanding why blockchain networks require scaling solutions and how applications interact with decentralised infrastructure.
Course Link: Blockchain Specialization — University at Buffalo
Ethereum Developer Bootcamp — Alchemy University
Platform: Alchemy University
Level: Beginner to Intermediate
Focus: Ethereum development, smart contracts, Solidity, Web3 applications and blockchain infrastructure
Alchemy University’s Ethereum development training focuses on practical Web3 development and provides learners with experience building applications using Ethereum infrastructure.
This is particularly relevant to the development of Layer-2 applications because developers need to understand wallets, smart contracts, transaction execution and blockchain infrastructure before building applications that operate across Ethereum and scaling networks.
Course Link: Ethereum Developer Bootcamp
What the Future Holds for Layer-2 Wallet Innovation
The next stage of Layer-2 wallet development is likely to focus on making blockchain infrastructure increasingly invisible.
Users may no longer need to know whether a transaction is being processed on Ethereum, Base, Arbitrum or another network. Wallets could automatically select an appropriate network based on cost, liquidity, application requirements and security considerations.
Smart accounts will likely become more common, particularly as passkeys, sponsored transactions and transaction batching mature. These technologies can make blockchain applications feel more familiar to mainstream users while reducing the number of technical decisions required during each transaction.
AI could also become part of the wallet experience. Future wallets may be able to identify the cheapest route, compare bridge options, explain transaction risks and help users understand what a smart contract interaction will do before they approve it.
However, greater automation will increase the importance of transparency. Users need to know what they are approving, which network is being used and how much the transaction will ultimately cost.
Final Thoughts
Rising and unpredictable gas costs have played an important role in the development of Ethereum Layer-2 networks, but the 2026 landscape is more nuanced than simply moving transactions away from an expensive mainnet. Ethereum itself has become significantly more efficient following successive protocol upgrades, while Layer-2 networks have continued expanding capacity and reducing execution costs. The result is an ecosystem where scaling solutions such as Base, Arbitrum and Optimism increasingly serve as important execution environments for Web3 applications.
Wallet innovation is now becoming just as important as Layer-2 infrastructure itself. Smart wallets, account abstraction, passkeys, transaction batching, gas sponsorship and integrated bridging are helping hide much of the technical complexity that has traditionally made Web3 difficult to use. As these technologies mature, the most successful Layer-2 wallets are likely to be those that combine low transaction costs with strong security, intuitive interfaces and greater interoperability. The future of blockchain adoption may therefore depend not only on faster and cheaper networks, but on wallets capable of making those networks feel simple to everyday users.
