NFT Marketplaces Compared

NFT marketplace landscape changed dramatically 2021-2026. OpenSea's monopoly broken by Blur's fee war. Trading volume down 90% from 2021 peak. Here's the real comparison with actual data.

Complete NFT Marketplace Comparison 2026

Marketplace	Fee	Monthly Volume	Networks	Best For
OpenSea	2.5%	$2.8B	ETH, Polygon, Solana, Base, Arbitrum, Optimism, Avalanche, BNB	Beginners, variety
Blur	0.5%	$1.9B	Ethereum, Blast	Pro traders, sweeps
Magic Eden	1.95%	$850M	Solana, ETH, Polygon, Bitcoin	Solana collectors
LooksRare	2%	$420M	Ethereum	Staking rewards
X2Y2	0.5%	$380M	Ethereum	Low fees
Rarible	1%	$180M	Multi-chain (9 networks)	Multi-chain trading
Foundation	5%	$45M	Ethereum	Curated 1/1 art
SuperRare	15% primary, 3% secondary	$12M	Ethereum	High-end art only

The Fee Wars: What Actually Happened

2017-2022: OpenSea Monopoly

OpenSea had 95%+ market share. 2.5% fee on every transaction. No competition. Creators and traders had no choice but to use OpenSea despite high fees.

October 2022: Blur Launches

Blur launched with 0% marketplace fees and aggressive airdrop campaign. Traders who listed on Blur got BLUR token rewards. Volume exploded. OpenSea's market share dropped from 95% to 60% in 3 months.

February 2023: OpenSea Responds

OpenSea temporarily dropped fees to 0% to compete. Lasted 2 weeks. Then returned to 2.5% when they realized they couldn't sustain 0% fees. Market share stabilized around 50-55%.

2023-2024: Fee Settling

Blur increased fees from 0% to 0.5%. LooksRare, X2Y2, and others joined at various fee levels. Rarible cut fees to 1%. Magic Eden expanded from Solana to Ethereum. Market became truly competitive.

2026: Current State

Multiple viable marketplaces. OpenSea still largest but no longer monopoly. Fees: OpenSea 2.5%, Blur 0.5%, Magic Eden 1.95%, Rarible 1%, X2Y2 0.5%, LooksRare 2%. Traders use aggregators to find best prices across platforms.

Detailed Marketplace Analysis

OpenSea - The Veteran (Founded 2017)

Market share: 48% | Monthly volume: $2.8B | Fee: 2.5%

What Makes OpenSea Different

• Largest NFT selection (8 million+ collections)
• Supports 8+ blockchains (most of any marketplace)
• Free lazy minting for creators
• Mobile app for iOS and Android
• OpenSea Pro for advanced traders

OpenSea Pros

• Most beginner-friendly interface
• Largest liquidity (easiest to sell)
• Blue checkmark verification for collections
• Best for discovering new projects
• Established reputation (7 years operating)

OpenSea Cons

• Highest fees at 2.5% (competitors charge 0.5-2%)
• Phishing attacks ($3.2M lost in 2022)
• Made royalties optional (hurt creators)
• Oversaturated with dead collections
• Slower innovation than competitors

When to Use OpenSea

• You're new to NFTs
• You want the largest selection
• You need multi-chain support
• You're buying obscure collections (only listed there)
• You prefer established platform over new ones

Blur - The Trader's Choice (Founded 2022)

Market share: 33% | Monthly volume: $1.9B | Fee: 0.5%

What Makes Blur Different

• Built specifically for professional NFT traders
• Advanced features: floor sweeps, portfolio bidding, live data
• Aggregates listings from OpenSea, LooksRare, X2Y2
• BLUR token rewards for traders (airdrop ended)
• No-nonsense interface focused on speed

Blur Pros

• Lowest fees at 0.5% (5x cheaper than OpenSea)
• Best real-time market data and analytics
• Portfolio bidding (bid on multiple NFTs at once)
• Fastest interface, no unnecessary features
• See all marketplaces in one place

Blur Cons

• Not beginner-friendly (overwhelming for new users)
• Ethereum only (no multi-chain like OpenSea)
• Encouraged royalty-optional model (bad for creators)
• Less discovery features (focused on trading known collections)
• Accused of facilitating wash trading early on

When to Use Blur

• You're an active NFT trader
• You want to save on fees
• You use floor sweeping strategies
• You want aggregated marketplace data
• You know exactly what you want to buy

Magic Eden - Multi-Chain Pioneer (Founded 2021)

Market share: 15% | Monthly volume: $850M | Fee: 1.95%

What Makes Magic Eden Different

• Started as Solana's dominant marketplace (90% of Solana NFT volume)
• Expanded to Ethereum, Polygon, Bitcoin NFTs
• Strong launchpad for new projects
• Creator-friendly with royalty enforcement options
• Lower fees than OpenSea, higher than Blur

Magic Eden Pros

• Best Solana NFT marketplace by far
• Lower fees at 1.95% vs OpenSea's 2.5%
• Clean, modern interface
• Strong community and creator support
• Expanding to Bitcoin Ordinals (unique advantage)

Magic Eden Cons

• Smaller Ethereum selection than OpenSea/Blur
• Less established on Ethereum (newer entrant)
• Solana network issues affect trading
• No aggregation from other marketplaces

When to Use Magic Eden

• You collect Solana NFTs (it's important)
• You want lower fees than OpenSea
• You're interested in Bitcoin Ordinals
• You prefer creator-friendly platforms

LooksRare - The Yield Marketplace (Founded 2022)

Market share: 7% | Monthly volume: $420M | Fee: 2%

What Makes LooksRare Different

• Staking rewards: Stake LOOKS token, earn from trading fees
• Launched as "vampire attack" on OpenSea
• Early rewards program attracted traders
• Private sales feature (don't show price publicly)

LooksRare Reality

LooksRare had massive early volume due to reward farming, but much was wash trading. Users traded back and forth to earn LOOKS tokens. When rewards decreased, so did volume. Still relevant but smaller player now.

X2Y2 - The Underdog (Founded 2022)

Market share: 6% | Monthly volume: $380M | Fee: 0.5%

What Makes X2Y2 Different

• Same low fees as Blur at 0.5%
• Token staking rewards (X2Y2 token)
• Bulk listing and buying features
• Integrates with popular NFT wallets

Rarible - The DAO Marketplace (Founded 2020)

Market share: 3% | Monthly volume: $180M | Fee: 1%

What Makes Rarible Different

• Governed by RARI token holders (DAO structure)
• Supports 9 different blockchains
• Aggregates listings from other marketplaces
• Strong creator tools and minting options

Foundation - The Art Gallery (Founded 2021)

Market share: 1% | Monthly volume: $45M | Fee: 5%

What Makes Foundation Different

• Curated platform for serious 1/1 art only
• Invite-only (application required)
• Higher quality, less scams than open platforms
• Artists actually make money here (if accepted)
• 10% royalties automatically enforced

Foundation Reality

Foundation caters to collectors who value curation. Average sale prices are higher because of quality control. But getting accepted is difficult. Not for casual minting.

SuperRare - The Elite Gallery (Founded 2018)

Market share: 0.2% | Monthly volume: $12M | Fee: 15% primary, 3% secondary

What Makes SuperRare Different

• Most selective curation (very few artists accepted)
• 1/1 art only, no editions or collections
• Highest prestige in NFT art world
• Artists make $10k-100k+ per piece when they sell
• DAO governance by $RARE token holders

SuperRare Reality

If you get accepted to SuperRare, you're a successful NFT artist. Acceptance rate is under 1%. But artists who sell on SuperRare actually make livable income from NFTs.

NFT Aggregators: See All Marketplaces at Once

Aggregators pull listings from multiple marketplaces, showing you the best prices across platforms. Instead of checking OpenSea, Blur, and LooksRare separately, aggregators show everything.

Popular NFT Aggregators

Blur (blur.io)

Aggregates OpenSea, LooksRare, X2Y2. Shows lowest prices across all platforms. You can buy from any marketplace through Blur's interface.

Gem.xyz (Acquired by OpenSea)

OpenSea's aggregator. Shows listings from all major marketplaces. Supports sweeping (buying multiple NFTs at once).

Genie (Acquired by Uniswap)

Built by Uniswap. Aggregates listings and supports batch buying. Clean interface, reliable.

Reservoir

Open-source aggregation protocol. Used by many platforms. Most thorough aggregation.

Feature	Direct Marketplace	Aggregator
Price comparison	Only one marketplace	All marketplaces
Fees	Marketplace fee only	Sometimes small aggregator fee
Selection	Limited to one platform	See everything
Royalties	Optional on most	Optional on most
Speed	Fast	Slightly slower (more data)

Blockchain Network Comparison for NFTs

Network	Gas Fee	Speed	Marketplaces	Best For
Ethereum	$10-50	12 seconds	All major ones	Blue-chip NFTs, serious collecting
Polygon	$0.01-0.10	2 seconds	OpenSea, Rarible	Cheap NFTs, practice, gaming
Solana	$0.01	400ms	Magic Eden, Tensor	Fast trading, Solana ecosystem
Arbitrum	$0.50-2	1 second	OpenSea, TofuNFT	Lower gas, Ethereum security
Base	$0.10-1	2 seconds	OpenSea, Zora	Coinbase users, new projects
BNB Chain	$0.20-0.50	3 seconds	OpenSea, BakerySwap	Binance ecosystem

Network Reality

Ethereum has 80%+ of NFT value despite high gas fees. Why? Blue-chip collections are on Ethereum. Collectors trust Ethereum security. Polygon is great for cheap NFTs but carries less prestige. Solana has its own ecosystem but network instability concerns persist.

Choosing Your Marketplace: Decision Matrix

For Buyers

• New to NFTs? Start with OpenSea (easiest interface, most selection)
• Trading frequently? Use Blur (0.5% fees vs 2.5%, advanced tools)
• Solana collector? Magic Eden is important (90% of Solana NFT volume)
• Want best prices? Use aggregator like Gem or Blur Pro (see all marketplaces)
• Collecting art? Check Foundation and SuperRare (quality curation)
• Budget conscious? X2Y2 or Blur (lowest fees at 0.5%)

For Sellers

• First-time creator? OpenSea (free lazy mint, largest audience)
• Serious artist? Apply to Foundation or SuperRare (prestige, higher prices)
• Want fast sales? List on multiple marketplaces (aggregators show all)
• Solana NFTs? Magic Eden (only real option for Solana)
• Maximizing exposure? List everywhere, aggregators will show you

For Creators (Minting)

• No budget? OpenSea or Rarible lazy mint (completely free)
• Want prestige? Foundation or SuperRare (application required)
• 10k collection? Deploy own contract, list everywhere
• Multi-chain? Rarible (supports 9 chains)

Fee Comparison: Real Cost Examples

Scenario: You sell an NFT for 1 ETH ($3,000)

Marketplace	Marketplace Fee	Creator Royalty (5%)	Your Net
OpenSea	0.025 ETH ($75)	0.05 ETH ($150) optional	0.925 ETH ($2,775)
Blur	0.005 ETH ($15)	0 (not enforced)	0.995 ETH ($2,985)
Magic Eden	0.0195 ETH ($58.50)	0.05 ETH ($150) optional	0.9305 ETH ($2,791.50)
LooksRare	0.02 ETH ($60)	0.05 ETH ($150) optional	0.93 ETH ($2,790)
X2Y2	0.005 ETH ($15)	0.05 ETH ($150) optional	0.945 ETH ($2,835)

Fee difference: Selling on Blur vs OpenSea saves you $60 per 1 ETH sale. For high-volume traders, this adds up significantly.

Marketplace Security & Scam History

OpenSea Security Issues

• February 2022: $3.2M phishing attack via email
• April 2022: Insider trading scandal (employee bought NFTs before featuring them)
• Ongoing: Fake collection scams despite verification

Blur Security Issues

• Early 2023: Accused of facilitating wash trading for rewards
• Ongoing: Less collection verification than OpenSea

General Marketplace Risks

• Fake marketplace sites (opensea.com instead of opensea.io)
• Compromised Discord announcements with fake mint links
• Malicious smart contracts draining wallets
• Fake collections copying popular art

The Future of NFT Marketplaces

Trends to Watch 2026+

• Continued fee compression: Race to bottom on fees continues
• Better aggregation: Aggregators becoming standard way to trade
• Royalty enforcement tech: Smart contract-level royalty enforcement
• Bitcoin NFTs growing: Ordinals gaining traction, new marketplaces launching
• Decentralized protocols: Marketplaces moving to open protocols

Marketplace Predictions

• OpenSea remains largest but market share continues shrinking
• Blur maintains pro trader audience with advanced tools
• Magic Eden becomes multi-chain leader beyond Solana
• More marketplaces launch but most fail (like 2022-2023 wave)
• Aggregators become primary interface, direct marketplace use declines