The Polygon Stack: Clarifying the Choice¶
When entering the Polygon ecosystem, the choice of which stack to build on can be daunting. This document aims to clarify the different options available and help you make an informed decision.
Polygon CDK is a developer toolkit for designing ZK-powered Layer 2s. If your goal is to build a custom blockchain which inherits the security of the Ethereum mainnet but also plays well with the AggLayer to leverage unified liquidity and the unlimited composability this allows, then Polygon CDK is the way to go.
With Polygon CDK, you can build a custom blockchain with modules and core-level modifications that allow you to tweak anything from account model to consensus algorithm to state transition function.
If you are looking to build an application on top of Polygon, two main options are available, both inheriting the security of the Ethereum mainnet:
Polygon PoS is a proof-of-stake blockchain and a good choice if you are looking to build an application on top of Polygon that requires low transaction fees and fast confirmation times. Its massive ecosystem also make it a good target for DeFi applications, game projects, and other applications which could benefit from hooking into a vibrant and popular environment.
Polygon zkEVM is a ZK-powered Layer 2 which can be a good choice if you are looking to build an application on top of Polygon that requires high transaction throughput and low transaction fees, while also leveraging ZK technology to provide validation and fast finality of off-chain transactions. With ZK progress ramping up and zkEVM connecting to AggLayer, zkEVM gives builders the same connectivity to a built-out ecosystem as PoS, but with a brand new architectural approach. The zkEVM ecosystem is expanding rapidly, but the fact that it’s relatively new leaves room for some more first-mover-advantages to be claimed. One caveat is that due to the nature of ZK technology and its mathematical specificity, EVM and zkEVM are not exactly at full feature parity, so some caution is warranted. For a full list of differences, please see the zkEVM docs.
Polygon Miden is a zero-knowledge rollup for private, high-throughput applications. It is a modular execution layer that extends Ethereum’s capabilities using powerful features such as parallel transaction execution and client-side proving.
Miden allows users to prove state changes locally while the network only tracks a commitment, leading to privacy and high-throughput. Users can also let the operator prove public state changes like other rollups.
With Miden, developers can create novel, high-throughput, privacy-preserving dApps for DeFi, RWA, and on-chain games with languages such as Rust and TypeScript.
Which one should you choose? Consult the table below.
