Since 2017’s major Bitcoin hype, the world of blockchain has been constantly evolving. The efforts of the planet’s best minds have been targeted toward building an ideal decentralized network. Still finding a balance between security, scalability, and decentralization is a complex task.
As a result, we have blockchains like Ethereum, Fantom, Solana, and others. Their main goal
is to work as efficiently as possible while trying to implement these three fundamental features at once. Today we’ll compare Algorand vs Cardano, the networks which both were developed to solve the ultimate problems of the crypto-industry, to see which is a better investment.
What Is Cardano?
Cardano is an environmentally sustainable blockchain platform with one of the most oversized market caps. Being a brainchild of Charles Hoskinson, Cardano launched in 2017, and since then, it has developed a large fanbase of users. The platform positions itself as an “Ethereum killer” and aims to solve its predecessor’s scalability problem. Similar to Ethereum, Cardano is trying to create an ecosystem to interchange between different blockchains.
The primary cryptocurrency of Cardano is ADA running on Ouroboros, the first provably secure PoS consensus mechanism. It has faster transaction speed and less energy consumption compared to a more traditional proof of work. Moreover, that means there are no miners to validate transactions.
You can buy ADA pretty much anywhere, with Godex being one of the safest crypto exchange options.
What Is Algorand?
Algorand is an open-source blockchain technology designed to operate similar to Mastercard and Visa. It was launched in 2019 by MIT’s professor Silvio Micali. Algorand’s primary concept is solving the “blockchain trilemma,” aiming at speed, decentralization, and scalability at the same time.
While Algorand is similar to networks like Ethereum in terms of functionality, it has become a viral project among crypto enthusiasts. Being both a cryptocurrency (ALGO) and a blockchain platform, Algorand remains a public repository that supports Java, Python, and C#. This allows anyone to contribute and possibly improve the platform.
It uses a modified version of Proof of Stake, which results in outstanding transaction speed. Moreover, Algorand, unlike Solana, has experienced zero downtime since its launch.
The growth and openness of ALGO allowed it to build partnerships in the industries of entertainment, stablecoin, and even climate.
Algorand Vs Cardano Comparison
Category | Algorand | Cardano |
License | Open-source;
Public repository |
Open-source |
Consensus Mechanism | Proof of Stake | Proof of Stake |
Transaction speed | Up to 6,000 transactions per second;
Faster block time |
Up to 250 transactions per second |
Security | Partition Resilient Against Network Attacks | Ouroboros protocol |
Scalability | Pixel digital signature scheme;
Vault; Self-validating transactions; Traditional programming languages |
Haskell, Plutus programming languages;
Academic peer review; Use of sidechains |
Smart contract capability | 2-layered | standard |
Native token | ALGO | ADA |
Decentralization | No points of control | Is regulatory compliant |
Market cap | $2.3B | $13.9B |
As you can see, both platforms do their best to solve the “blockchain trilemma.” They use an effective Proof of Stake and are relatively secure. Algo is newer and has less public attention, so its market cap is lower.
The main benefit of Algorand is its significantly quicker speed achieved by the product’s transparency and openness. Moreover, the transaction fees are lower than Cardano’s.
Both platforms are great at scaling, though they achieve this result with different means.
Algorand Or Cardano — What Is The Best Investment?
To summarize, both Algorand and Cardano are good representations of Crypto 3.0. While Algorand has greater transaction speeds and scalability mechanisms, Cardano outweighs its cons with a huge fan base and good marketing.
Nevertheless, both platforms are smart contract blockchains developed by some of the most talented people in the industry. That means that investing in any of these is a good idea as both are expected to grow large in only a few years.