Solana and Base Lead in 2025 Blockchain Ecosystem Popularity

In 2025, the Solana ecosystem emerged as the most popular blockchain ecosystem, capturing 26.79% of global interest in chain-specific crypto narratives, according to CoinGecko. Despite maintaining the top spot, Solana's dominance decreased by 12 percentage points from the previous year, indicating challenges in expanding beyond its association with meme coin speculation and price stagnation.

Base and Ethereum Ecosystems

Following Solana, the Base ecosystem, associated with crypto exchange Coinbase, held 13.94% of global investor interest. It experienced a smaller decline in mindshare compared to last year, despite developments like the rebranding of Coinbase Wallet and partnerships for USDC payments. Meanwhile, the Ethereum ecosystem retained its third-place position, growing its mindshare by 2.7 percentage points to 13.43%, narrowing the gap with Base.

Emerging Ecosystems: Sui and BNB Chain

The Sui and BNB Chain ecosystems saw significant growth, moving up to fourth and fifth positions respectively. Sui achieved the largest mindshare growth, reaching 11.77%, positioning itself as a strong contender in blockchain narratives. BNB Chain's interest surged to 9.05%, bolstered by the launch of Binance Alpha and resilient BNB price action.

New Entrants and Shifting Dynamics

New entrants like the XRP Ledger and Bittensor ecosystems have made notable entries into the top rankings, with XRP Ledger capturing 4.68% mindshare. Hyperliquid, another newcomer, increased its mindshare significantly, marking its presence with the USDH launch and innovations in DEX trading. These developments highlight the dynamic nature of the blockchain ecosystem landscape.

Overall, the analysis indicates that while traditional ecosystems like Solana, Base, and Ethereum still lead, the landscape is rapidly evolving with emerging players gaining traction. The study, based on CoinGecko's data, showcases the changing interests and narratives shaping the blockchain industry as it heads into 2026.