Following Pectra, Ethereum Fees Stay Low as Bitcoin Fee Market Remains Soft

With the Ethereum Pectra upgrade now fully implemented, gas fees across the network have stayed minimal, with median-sized transactions averaging approximately 0.000061 ETH or $0.15 per transfer. Onchain fees for Bitcoin have also held steady—though generally higher than Ethereums—as a high-priority Bitcoin transaction this weekend is expected to clear for about $0.58.

2 Largest Blockchain Networks by Market Cap Maintain Low Fee Environments

Since the activation of Pectra on May 7, 2025, fees have largely remained subdued. There was, however, a temporary uptick on May 12 when median gas prices climbed to $0.687 per transaction. As of May 17, the median fee on Ethereum sits at roughly 0.000061 ETH, or $0.15. That said, users can currently secure confirmations in under 30 seconds by paying just 0.65 gwei—or about $0.03.

Across all priority levels this weekend, Ethereum gas costs remain below one gwei, according to data from Etherscans Gas Tracker. For context, a token swap is running around $0.48, an NFT sale averages $0.82, bridging tokens costs about $0.16, and engaging with a borrowing contract comes in at $0.41. Median Ethereum fees have hovered below $1 for a continuous stretch of 82 days—dating back to Feb. 24, 2025.

Bitcoin fees, while relatively elevated compared to Ethereum, have also been modest. Over that same 82-day window, median Bitcoin fees have not exceeded $1.50. In fact, excluding Feb. 24, April 23, and May 17, Bitcoins median fee has typically remained under $1. On May 17 specifically, costs are even more favorable for senders.

Currently, a high-priority transaction on the Bitcoin network requires a fee of about 2 satoshis per virtual byte (sat/vB), equivalent to roughly $0.29. At precisely 4:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, fewer than 2,300 unconfirmed transfers lingered in the mempool, signaling light network activity. The decline in transaction fees corresponds with a rise in BTC and ETH values against the U.S. dollar, as bitcoin trades near $103,000 and ether hovers around $2,500 per coin.