There are many ERCs used in the world of NFTs. From ERC-20, ERC-721, to ERC-1155, all of them have their specialized uses. But what exactly do these token standards do and which one is best for your NFT project? Read on to find out how ERC-875 is different from ERC-1155!
What Are ERC Token Standards?-
ERC stands for “Ethereum Request for Comments”. These are application-level standards for the Ethereum blockchain that can include name registries, library formats, token standards, and many more items.
Anyone can submit a proposal for an ERC, called an EIP (Ethereum Improvement Proposal), but not all of them can become widely adopted by the community. Generally, it’s on the author to make sure that their ERC proposal is easy to understand so it can gain support in the community.
Once an EIP is submitted, the community will then provide their input so the developer can revise and adjust it based on feedback. If the community supports a certain EIP, then it can officially become an ERC token standard usable by the Ethereum community.
Many commonly-used ERCs become a standard that defines how things work on various elements along the Ethereum blockchain. Take the common ERC-20 standard, for example. Since this standard is used when transferring tokens on the Ethereum blockchain between users and it’s used everywhere, all of the major cryptocurrency exchanges support this token standard.
Another example is the ERC-721 standard that governs non-fungible assets. Since most NFTs minted today use the ERC-721 protocol, it’s a given that all NFT exchanges and marketplaces need to support ERC-721.
ERCs define rules that all of its related tokens and byproducts follow. With this logic, ERCs are like the “blueprints” for token and crypto project development. Instead of having to experiment and invent new protocols each time, project developers can just take an existing ERC and build on it to save time and resources.
It’s also worth noting that not all ERCs define new protocols or standards. Some of them simply improve and build upon existing ones, like ERC-223. The ERC-223 standard fixes a design flaw in the ERC-20 standard that causes people to accidentally lose tokens when transferring to another user.
Benefits And Caveats Of Implementing ERC Token Standards
Since they’re token standards, developing your projects with an ERC in mind will ensure its compatibility with all related platforms. Instead of having to guess and experiment whether or not your token will be compatible with a crypto exchange, you can just see what the exchange uses as a standard and implement its rules in your token.
However, there is one thing you should keep in mind: If you’re building your token based on a token standard, it needs to have all its functionalities. Skipping the implementation of a certain function set by your chosen ERC standard may end up with your token experiencing errors down the line.
Examples Of ERC Token Standards
There are dozens of ERC standards in use and proposed by the community nowadays. Here are some of the most prominent ones:
- ERC-20: The most common ERC standard used in cryptocurrencies, ERC-20 governs the use and transfers of fungible tokens on the Ethereum blockchain.
- ERC-223: This standard builds upon ERC-20 to prevent token loss on accidental transfers.
- ERC-420: A standard used to govern digital trading cards.
- ERC-721: The most popular standard for non-fungible tokens or NFTs. Similar to ERC-20, this standard governs how users transfer, trade, and own NFTs.
- ERC-809: A standard that allows a user to rent out their NFTs.
- ERC-865: Instead of paying gas fees in ETH, this standard allows you to pay transaction fees with other tokens.
- ERC-998: This standard extends the ERC-721 standard so an NFT can own other NFTs as well as fungible tokens.
- ERC-1238: A standard that governs non-transferable and non-fungible tokens called “badges”. Once assigned to a person, this badge cannot be removed or transferred to someone else.
- ERC-1400 & ERC-1404: In lieu of digital assets, these token standards are used to represent physical assets on the Ethereum blockchain network.
What Is The ERC-1155 Token Standard?
So what is the ERC-1155 protocol? This standard was first proposed in 2018 by developers at Enjin named Witek Radomski, Andrew Cooke, Philippe Castonguay, James Therien, Eric Binet, and Ronan Sandford. Enjin, a blockchain development company, saw the need for a new token standard because it sees that the existing ERC-721 and ERC-20 tokens need more flexibility.
The ERC-1155 protocol was built to bridge ERC-20 and ERC-721, boasting both standards’ features to contain fungible and non-fungible tokens in addition to semi-fungible tokens within the same smart contract. The team at Enjin compares ERC-1155 to a vending machine – just like how a vending machine can contain different types of snacks or drinks, the ERC-1155 smart contract can contain multiple token types at the same time.
The ERC-1155 smart contract standard comes with functions that allow you to:
- Transfer multiple digital tokens in a single transaction.
- Check the balance of multiple digital assets simultaneously.
- Approve multiple token transfers.
- Detects whether or not a digital asset is an NFT.
- Set rules to ensure secure token transfer.
Key Characteristics Of ERC-1155
These key traits define the ERC-1155 token standard:
- ERC-1155 represents fungible, semi-fungible, and non-fungible tokens in the same smart contract.
- ERC-1155 performs the function of an ERC-20 and ERC-721 token simultaneously.
- ERC-1155 can store an unlimited amount of tokens, contrasting ERC-721 that can only save one token per smart contract.
- ERC-1155 can perform batch transfers, unlike ERC-721 where each token has to be transferred individually.
ERC-1155 Use Cases
Like ERC-20 and ERC-721, ERC-1155 has its unique use cases where it truly shines. Here are just a sample of how you can use ERC-1155:
- Online NFT-based gaming: Since Enjin started as a Minecraft development company, it’s no surprise that ERC-1155’s foremost use is for the gaming industry. With ERC-1155, gamers can save their life, energy, and gold as fungible tokens, while their weapons and unique items can be saved as non-fungible tokens. If they want to sell off their account, all they need to do is trade the entire contents of their smart contract instead of selling things one by one.
- Digital content packages: Another interesting use case is digital content packs. As an artist, you can sell a content pack that includes a 1/1 NFT, limited-amount reproductions, as well as free use images all within one transaction.
What Is The ERC-875 Token Standard?
ERC-875 was created by Weiwu Zhang and James Sangalli in 2018. Similar to ERC-1155, it also outlines a new token standard that allows you to trade tokens in lots. It also allows you to close on atomic transfers quickly.
Zhang and Sangalli created ERC-875 to make it easier for users to transfer NFTs. Instead of having to transfer them one by one and get saddled with a high transaction fee on a congested Ethereum blockchain, ERC-875 allows them to transfer multiple tokens at once.
An additional benefit of ERC-875 is that it also boasts easy atomic swaps. This means that with ERC-875, users can easily transfer their virtual tokens between wallets on different blockchains without resorting to an intermediary or additional third party.
The basic functionality found in the ERC-875 token standard are:
- Check the name of the smart contract.
- Check the NFTs contained in the smart contract.
- Transfer tokens into a different wallet address.
ERC-875 Use Cases
Several sample use cases where ERC-875 proves useful are:
- Batch token transfers: Transferring multiple tokens at once requires multiple transactions if you’re on ERC-875. Not only is this slow, but you’ll also be saddled with high gas fees. ERC-875 lets you transfer several tokens at once, making transactions faster and cheaper.
- Atomic swapping: ERC-875’s atomic swapping capabilities let you transfer tokens between different blockchains easily and without intermediaries.
What Are The Major Differences Between ERC-1155 vs ERC-875?
There are some similarities between ERC-1155 and ERC-875, but at their cores they’re wildly different token standards. Here are some of their fundamental differences:
Intended Usage
The first key difference is their intended usage. ERC-1155 is primarily intended for use in blockchain games, where one account can have a single smart contract containing all its assets – life, gold, and other game items as either fungible or non-fungible tokens.
Meanwhile, ERC-875 is primarily made to make transferring NFTs easier. Instead of having to transfer multiple tokens one by one and get saddled with high gas fees, you can transfer tokens as one batch.
Features
ERC-1155 boasts many features, chiefly its ability to store an infinite amount of tokens spanning fungible, non-fungible, and semi-fungible digital assets on a single smart contract. It also lets you trade multiple – or all of these tokens at the same time, saving you lots of money on gas fees. Moreover, ERC-1155 can automatically detect NFTs by looking at the token supply as well as perform atomic swaps.
On the other hand, ERC-875’s primary feature is batch token transfers and atomic swapping. This means that almost all of ERC-875’s features are already covered by ERC-1155.
Community Adoption
Last but not least is community adoption. ERC-1155 has been officially adopted by Ethereum in 2019, with more and more projects using it as a multi-token standard as time passes.
Meanwhile at the time of this writing, the Ethereum Improvement Proposals page states that the proposal for ERC-875 has been withdrawn. This means that unfortunately, ERC-875 did not see widespread implementation.
Closing Thoughts
The ERC-1155 standard boasts more versatility and can be used for more things compared to ERC-875. In addition to the batch transfers and atomic swaps offered by ERC-875, ERC-1155 also offers other uses like containing multiple token types and automatic NFT detection.
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