---
title: Gas
url: "https://www.unknowngravity.com/en/glosario/gas"
site: Unknown Gravity
published: "2025-06-07T15:12:02+00:00"
modified: "2026-07-15T10:51:28+00:00"
language: en-US
description: "Gas It's the unit of measure that determines the computational cost required to execute operations, transactions and smart contracts on Ethereum and other blockchains compatible with the Ethereum…"
section: "Home > Gas"
---

# Gas

GLOSSARY · BLOCKCHAIN & WEB3

Unit that measures the computational cost of executing operations on a blockchain such as Ethereum.

WHAT IS IT? · FOR DUMMIES

**Gas** is like the **digital fuel** you need for anything to work on the blockchain. If you want to send cryptocurrency or use a decentralized app, you have to pay a small amount of gas for the network to process it. Without gas, **the transaction is not executed**. The more complex the action, **the more gas you need**.

WHAT IS IT? · PRO

**Gas** It's the **unit of measure that determines the computational cost required to execute operations, transactions and smart contracts** on Ethereum and other blockchains compatible with the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM). Each instruction or function in a smart contract consumes a specific amount of gas, and the total amount of gas required for an operation reflects how complex that action is from the point of view of processing and storage.

For a transaction to be processed on the network, the user must define:

- **Gas Limit**: the maximum amount of gas you are willing to spend.
- **Gas price**: the price per unit of gas, usually expressed in gwei (a fraction of ETH).

The total cost of a transaction is calculated as:\
**`gas used × gas price = commission in ETH`**

In Ethereum and its L2, this system performs several functions:

- **Avoid misuse of computing resources** (like infinite loops).
- **Allows you to prioritize transactions** depending on the price offered (greater incentive = faster).
- **Reward validators or miners** that process transactions.
- **Adjust the internal economy of the network** through mechanisms such as EIP-1559 (base fee + tip).

Gas can vary greatly depending on:

- The state of network congestion.
- The type of transaction (e.g. transferring ETH vs. minting an NFT).
- The blockchain used (e.g. Ethereum mainnet, Arbitrum, Polygon).

In L2 solutions, gas still exists but is usually much cheaper. In many cases, the end user is even abstracted.

## 01 / Key points

- It is the measure of the computational cost of an operation in the blockchain network.
- Each executed transaction or action consumes a specific amount of gas
- It is paid in native cryptocurrency (such as ETH) to encourage validators or miners
- Avoid abuse and ensure the proper functioning of smart contracts
- Varies depending on network, traffic and type of operation

## 02 / Advantages

- **Control the efficient use of resources** on the blockchain network
- **Encourages transaction processing by nodes**
- **Allows you to adjust the execution priority** Depending on the gas price
- **Encourages code optimization** in dApps and smart contracts
- **It supports the economic sustainability of the network (base fee, burning, etc.)**

## 03 / Disadvantages

- **Can be expensive in times of congestion**, affecting usability
- **It hinders the non-technical user experience**, especially if you don't understand how it's calculated
- **Requires accurate estimates** to avoid failures in complex contracts
- **Misconfigured, can lead to failed or slow transactions**
- **It's not uniform across networks**, which can lead to confusion

RELATED CONCEPTS

[Ethereum](/en/glosario/ethereum) [Smart contract](/en/glosario/smart-contract) [Smart Contract](/en/glosario/smart-contract-contrato-inteligente) [EVM (Ethereum Virtual Machine)](/en/glosario/evm-ethereum-virtual-machine) [Layer 2](/en/glosario/layer-2-capa-2) [Token](/en/glosario/token) [Layer 3](/en/glosario/layer-3-capa-3) [Layer 1](/en/glosario/layer-1-capa-1)

KEEP LEARNING

[How to protect your digital assets in the cryptocurrency world](/en/articulos/como-proteger-tus-activos-digitales-criptomonedas) [Comparison of smart contracts programming languages](/en/articulos/lenguajes-programacion-smart-contracts) [Why are your users leaving your dApp? 5 keys to improving the UX of your dApp](/en/articulos/claves-mejorar-ux-dapp) [Smart Contracts without surprises: common mistakes in Solidity and how to avoid them](/en/articulos/smart-contracts-soliditys-errores-comunes-y-como-evitarlos) [What Do Blockchain Developers Do?](/en/articulos/que-hacen-los-desarrolladores-blockchain)

RELATED SERVICES

[Development for Ethereum (EVM)](/en/servicios/desarrollo-para-ethereum-evm) [Development of smart contracts](/en/servicios/company-development-smart-contracts) [Web3 Development](/en/servicios/desarrollo-web3) [Smart contract auditing](/en/servicios/blockchain-security-audits) [DeFi protocols](/en/servicios/protocolos-defi)

[Full glossary](/en/glosario)

This entry is informative. It is not legal, tax or investment advice. The rules cited change: check the current version on [BOE](https://www.boe.es) and [EUR-Lex](https://eur-lex.europa.eu).