Every action, from a simple transfer to a complex contract call, consumes an amount of gas, and you pay for it at the current going rate. Prices climb when the network is congested and fall when it is quiet.
High gas costs are a big reason layer-2 networks exist, moving activity off the base layer to make transactions cheaper.
How Crypto Transactions and Fees Work
Key takeaways
- Gas is the fee to do anything on Ethereum, priced in gwei.
- More complex actions cost more gas than a simple transfer.
- Fees rise with congestion and fall when the network is quiet.
Gas — perguntas frequentes
Can I reduce the gas I pay?
Often yes, by transacting at quieter times or using cheaper layer-2 networks built on top of Ethereum.
Where does the gas fee go?
It compensates the validators who do the work of processing and securing your transaction.
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