Polygon zkEVM vs Arbitrum Nova Arbitrum Nova leads by 32 points.
Arbitrum Nova scores 32 points above Polygon zkEVM, which no longer operates (since 2026-07-01) and scores zero on the criteria block. Polygon zkEVM ranks #15 and Arbitrum Nova #6 of 15 published L2 blockchains. Every term of the gap is on the ledger below; the inputs are on the audit receipt.
Polygon zkEVM41
vs
ANArbitrum Nova73
Scores are out of 100; published scores fall within 41–99 · ranks #15 and #6 of 15
Arbitrum Nova scores 32 points above Polygon zkEVM, which no longer operates (since 2026-07-01) and scores zero on the criteria block.
Polygon zkEVM #15 of 1541
ANArbitrum Nova #6 of 1573
Scores are out of 100; published scores fall within 41–99; a bar is empty at 41 and full at 99.
Why, term by termArbitrum Nova leads on 8 of 8 published criteria; Polygon zkEVM on 0. The terms sum to the gap.
TermArbitrum NovaPolygon zkEVMWeightPoints
Forced withdrawals10/100/104.3+11.2for Arbitrum Nova+5.8 of 32
Proof system6/100/104.3+6.7for Arbitrum Nova+3.5 of 32
Data on Ethereum10/100/103.4+8.7for Arbitrum Nova+4.5 of 32
Censorship resistance10/100/102.9+7.5for Arbitrum Nova+3.8 of 32
EVM equivalence10/100/102.4+6.2for Arbitrum Nova+3.2 of 32
Track record8/100/102.4+5.0for Arbitrum Nova+2.6 of 32
Exit window2/100/102.4+1.2for Arbitrum Nova+0.6 of 32
Rollup stage3/100/101.9+1.5for Arbitrum Nova+0.8 of 32
No longer operatingEligibilityoperatingsunset 2026-07-01—0.0
Net of the terms+48.2
Criteria roundingThe criteria block is rounded to whole points before it is spread−0.1
Reproduced gap+48.1
Published gapAfter score rounding and bounds — see the note below7341+32.0
Weight is in points of the 86-point weighted total. Points are score points of the gap between the two.
Polygon zkEVM no longer operates (since 2026-07-01) and is kept for reference: the engine zeroes its criteria block, whatever its cells say.
A floor bound on one row means the criterion arithmetic does not reproduce the displayed gap exactly.
Arbitrum NovaScore 73Arbitrum's minimised Nitro chain: maintenance-only, with data on Ethereum since 31 August 2026Strength: EVM equivalence — 10/10Watch-out: Being wound down: the Arbitrum DAO's minimisation proposal moves Nova into "a minimized, maintenance-oriented state with reduced capacity and deprioritized support" and says "steps will be taken to help prevent additional user funds being bridged to Arbitrum Nova" (forum.arbitrum.foundation, posted 15 May 2026)Polygon zkEVMScore 41SUNSET — sequencer stopped 1 July 2026; claim your funds before 31 December 2027Strength: Nothing — this chain is sunset and cannot be built onWatch-out: DO NOT DEPLOY OR BRIDGE HERE. The sequencer was sunset on 1 July 2026 and the network stopped producing blocks; withdrawals can no longer be processed through the bridge.
Quick facts
At a glance
2 of 3 rows read the same for both.
FactPolygon zkEVMArbitrum Nova
Asset coverageEditorial——
Region fitSnapshotus, europe, globalus, europe, global
Security postureSnapshotNo proof system; data availability: External (L2BEAT, read 13 September 2026 and 2026-10-21: custom DA, state validation none); Ethereum L1 before the sunset.Optimistic rollup; data availability: Ethereum L1 (EIP-4844 blobs) since 31 August 2026; the AnyTrust committee is dormant.
From the published criteria
Which should you pick?
Polygon zkEVM
41#15 of 15
Pick it when
Polygon zkEVM leads Arbitrum Nova on no published criterion and no score dimension — pick it only if a fact outside the score (country, funding rail, custody) decides for you.
Strength
Nothing — this chain is sunset and cannot be built on
Tradeoff
DO NOT DEPLOY OR BRIDGE HERE. The sequencer was sunset on 1 July 2026 and the network stopped producing blocks; withdrawals can no longer be processed through the bridge.
AN
Arbitrum Nova
73#6 of 15
Leads
Pick it when
Pick Arbitrum Nova if forced withdrawals matters most — it scores 10/10 to Polygon zkEVM's 0/10 there (weight 18).
Strength
EVM equivalence — 10/10
Tradeoff
Being wound down: the Arbitrum DAO's minimisation proposal moves Nova into "a minimized, maintenance-oriented state with reduced capacity and deprioritized support" and says "steps will be taken to help prevent additional user funds being bridged to Arbitrum Nova" (forum.arbitrum.foundation, posted 15 May 2026)
Self-identify in 10 seconds
Which one is actually for you?
Polygon zkEVM
Polygon zkEVM leads Arbitrum Nova on no published criterion
Choose it only if something outside the published criteria decides for you — your country, a funding rail, or custody.
Polygon zkEVMScore 41SUNSET — sequencer stopped 1 July 2026; claim your funds before 31 December 2027Strength: Nothing — this chain is sunset and cannot be built onWatch-out: DO NOT DEPLOY OR BRIDGE HERE. The sequencer was sunset on 1 July 2026 and the network stopped producing blocks; withdrawals can no longer be processed through the bridge.
ANArbitrum NovaLeads
Choose Arbitrum Nova if proof system matters most
Proof system: 6/10 against 0/10 for Polygon zkEVM (weight 18)
Forced withdrawals: 10/10 against 0/10 for Polygon zkEVM (weight 18)
Data on Ethereum: 10/10 against 0/10 for Polygon zkEVM (weight 14)
Arbitrum NovaScore 73Arbitrum's minimised Nitro chain: maintenance-only, with data on Ethereum since 31 August 2026Strength: EVM equivalence — 10/10Watch-out: Being wound down: the Arbitrum DAO's minimisation proposal moves Nova into "a minimized, maintenance-oriented state with reduced capacity and deprioritized support" and says "steps will be taken to help prevent additional user funds being bridged to Arbitrum Nova" (forum.arbitrum.foundation, posted 15 May 2026)
Criterion by criterion
Scorecard
Published criteria · weight in points of 8616 of 16 cells scored. Strength is read from the evidence file; the weight is the published one. Methodology
EVM equivalence
by 10 of 10weight 2.4 of 86Arbitrum Nova leads
Polygon zkEVM0/10 out of 10
Arbitrum Nova10/10 out of 10
Track record
by 8 of 10weight 2.4 of 86Arbitrum Nova leads
Polygon zkEVM0/10 out of 10
Arbitrum Nova8/10 out of 10
Data on Ethereum
by 10 of 10weight 3.4 of 86Arbitrum Nova leads
Polygon zkEVM0/10 out of 10
Arbitrum Nova10/10 out of 10
Rollup stage
by 3 of 10weight 1.9 of 86Arbitrum Nova leads
Polygon zkEVM0/10 out of 10
Arbitrum Nova3/10 out of 10
Proof system
by 6 of 10weight 4.3 of 86Arbitrum Nova leads
Polygon zkEVM0/10 out of 10
Arbitrum Nova6/10 out of 10
Exit window
by 2 of 10weight 2.4 of 86Arbitrum Nova leads
Polygon zkEVM0/10 out of 10
Arbitrum Nova2/10 out of 10
Forced withdrawals
by 10 of 10weight 4.3 of 86Arbitrum Nova leads
Polygon zkEVM0/10 out of 10
Arbitrum Nova10/10 out of 10
Censorship resistance
by 10 of 10weight 2.9 of 86Arbitrum Nova leads
Polygon zkEVM0/10 out of 10
Arbitrum Nova10/10 out of 10
Score dimensions
weights sum to 86
The published score is five dimensions, each weighted for the category. "Published criteria" is the criteria block above; the other four are the engine's own terms — availability, friction, trust record, measured data. Each bar is one side's points out of that dimension's maximum; the weight beside the name is its points of the 86-point weighted total. The published criteria above can fill 24 of the block’s 30. A weight marked “constant here” belongs to a dimension every ranked product in the category holds at the same value: it still counts in the total, and it orders nothing here.
Availabilityweight 20 of 86 · constant here
Polygon zkEVM14/20Arbitrum Nova14/20
Tie
Published criteriaweight 30 of 86
Polygon zkEVM0/30Arbitrum Nova18.5/30
Arbitrum Nova leads
Frictionweight 10 of 86 · constant here
Polygon zkEVM2.7/10Arbitrum Nova2.7/10
Tie
Trust recordweight 8 of 86 · constant here
Polygon zkEVM3.2/8Arbitrum Nova3.2/8
Tie
Measured dataweight 18 of 86 · constant here
Polygon zkEVM5.5/18Arbitrum Nova5.5/18
Tie
Decision rulePublished order
Choose Arbitrum Nova unless the term Polygon zkEVM leads on is the one you are buying.
Polygon zkEVM leads Arbitrum Nova on no published criterion and no score dimension — pick it only if a fact outside the score (country, funding rail, custody) decides for you.
The published order weighs every criterion the same way for everyone. To weigh them your way, run .
From the published order
Next best action
If this isn't your case
Other matchups worth comparing
How you can lose money here, and what the ranking scores
Control failure: a key or vote changes the rules, freezes or mints.
Scored by Exit window before an upgrade · 10% (Polygon zkEVM 0/10, Arbitrum Nova 2/10)
Verification failure: an invalid state or transfer is accepted.
Scored by Ethereum data availability · 14% (Polygon zkEVM 0/10, Arbitrum Nova 10/10)
Scored by Proof system · 18% (Polygon zkEVM 0/10, Arbitrum Nova 6/10)
Liveness failure: the operator stops, censors you or loses data.
Scored by Withdrawals if the operator stops · 18% (Polygon zkEVM 0/10, Arbitrum Nova 10/10)
Scored by Transactions if the sequencer censors you · 12% (Polygon zkEVM 0/10, Arbitrum Nova 10/10)
Also scored, as cost, quality or a summary of several families: EVM equivalence (10%), Maturity & track record (10%), Rollup stage (8%).
Questions
Frequently asked questions
Arbitrum Nova scores 32 points above Polygon zkEVM, which no longer operates (since 2026-07-01) and scores zero on the criteria block. Published scores, out of 100: Polygon zkEVM 41 (rank 15 of 15 l2 blockchains), Arbitrum Nova 73 (rank 6 of 15).
Reviewed means both products compared here was read against its sources on or after that date; every ranked category is re-read at least every 45 days. Models research, extract and parse. A deterministic engine ranks. Every quote passes an adversarial refute pass.
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