Solana Puts it into Overdrive with Block Time Cuts
Solana has started to reduce its block time from 400 milliseconds to 200 milliseconds in four steps of 50 milliseconds each. The first step has already been implemented, taking the network's block time down to 350 milliseconds. Validators can pause the sequence at any point if too many blocks start getting skipped.
The rollout aims to increase the number of blocks per second from 144 to 300, but this does not mean bigger blocks. Each block will shrink in step with the clock, carrying the same total load as before.
At present, Solana's block time is roughly 29 times faster than Ethereum's 12 seconds per block. However, finality tells a different story, with Solana taking around 13 seconds to settle a transaction for good, compared to Ethereum's 13 minutes and Bitcoin's hour-long wait.
The speed push has been welcomed by traders, with SOL's price rising 5.8% in the last day to $89. The token is now seventh by market capitalization at $52.3 billion.