Ethereum raises its gas limit to 60M, a first in 4 years

The approach of the Fusaka upgrade sets minds ablaze. In the Ethereum ecosystem, developers and enthusiasts alike are teeming with enthusiasm. There is consensus on the idea of ​​a network capable of absorbing ever more activity, without giving in to congestion. This time, the lever is called gas limit, this invisible gauge which limits the load of a block. And in this area, the network has just crossed a threshold not seen in four years. A technical and symbolic milestone, which could redesign the architecture of the blockchain for years to come.

Ethereum boosted by its base: 60M, the result of a technical consensus

Born from a collective effort called “Pump The Gas”, the initiative aimed at increasing the capacity of Ethereum blocks has borne fruit: the limit has increased from 45 million to 60 million gas per block. This increase was made possible thanks to more than 513,000 validators having massively indicated their agreement. An automatic switchover took place in November 2025, resulting in a doubling of execution capacity at the base layer.

The initiative, led among others by Eric Connor and Mariano Conti, focused on decentralized mobilization. Independent stakers, client teams, pools — all were called upon to get involved. The objective: to reduce pressure on transaction fees, improve fluidity, and prepare for the next evolution of the protocol.

Barely a year after the community began advocating for higher gas limits, Ethereum is now operating with a gas limit of 60 million per block. That's a doubling in a single year — and it's only the beginning.

Toni Wahrstätter

Smart scaling: Ethereum bets on targeted growth

Increase block size is no longer enough. Vitalik Buterin proposes a refined approach, based on increasing the gas limit combined with a revaluation of costly operations. The idea? Sanction heavy calculations and memory access while encouraging more efficient contract designs.

Among the potential targets: SSTORE, CALL towards large contracts, precompiled, or even MODMUL. This paradigm shift repositions Ethereum as a smarter, rather than exclusively more powerful, blockchain.

Vitalik summarizes this logic as follows:

Expect continued growth, but more focused and less uniform next year. For example, one possible future would be a five-fold increase in the gas limit, accompanied by a five-fold increase in the cost of gas for operations that are relatively inefficient to process.

This change is not only technical. It encourages developers to review the very structure of their applications, while laying the foundations for sustainable scaling, going against the classic side effects of “everything bigger”.

Blockchain, Fusaka and the new lease of life for the Ethereum network

The Fusaka update, expected on December 3, officially anchors this new gas cap in the mainnet. Thanks to this increase, Layer 1 sees its capacity increase by 33%. The side effects in Layer 2 are even more striking: up to +133% more throughput via rollups.

While competitors like Solana focus on pure speed, Ethereum chooses a hybrid path combining robustness, security and controlled scalability. In this context, even protocols like Arbitrum, Optimism or Base benefit from this breathing space offered by the base.

The data blobs introduced by EIP-4844 also play a crucial role. Less demanding, they make the L2s more fluid without weighing down the main chain. This multi-layered strategy makes Ethereum less vulnerable to congestion and more suitable for a mainstream DeFi future.

Points to remember

• 513,000 validators pushed for the increase to 60M;
• $3,012: ETH price at time of writing;
• +33% capacity on Layer 1 upon entry into force;
• Fusaka will be activated on December 3, 2025 on the mainnet;
• EIP-4844 and data blobs support L2 rollups.

The increase in the gas limit constitutes a breakthrough. But it is not without risk. Three threats loom: increasing centralization, overloading hardware requirements, and exclusion of small validators. The future of Ethereum will rest on its ability to combine inclusiveness, scalability and resilience.