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Head-to-head · L2 Blockchains

Polygon zkEVM vs Ink Ink leads by 35 points.

Ink scores 35 points above Polygon zkEVM, which no longer operates (since 2026-07-01) and scores zero on the criteria block. Polygon zkEVM ranks #15 and Ink #4 of 15 published L2 blockchains. Every term of the gap is on the ledger below; the inputs are on the audit receipt.

Polygon zkEVM41
Ink76
Scores are out of 100; published scores fall within 41–99 · ranks #15 and #4 of 15
Methodology v2026.10.18Ranking snapshot Evidence verified through 8 published criteria5 score dimensions Receipt #cc-VS-POLYGON-ZKEVM-VS-INK-9f50f673
Published verdictRanking snapshot 3 November 2026

Ink leads by 35 points

Ink scores 35 points above Polygon zkEVM, which no longer operates (since 2026-07-01) and scores zero on the criteria block.

Polygon zkEVM #15 of 1541
Ink #4 of 1576
Scores are out of 100; published scores fall within 41–99; a bar is empty at 41 and full at 99.
Why, term by termInk leads on 7 of 8 published criteria; Polygon zkEVM on 0. The terms sum to the gap.
TermInkPolygon zkEVMWeightPoints
Proof system10/100/104.3+11.2for Ink+5.8 of 32
Forced withdrawals10/100/104.3+11.2for Ink+5.8 of 32
Data on Ethereum10/100/103.4+8.7for Ink+4.5 of 32
Censorship resistance10/100/102.9+7.5for Ink+3.8 of 32
EVM equivalence10/100/102.4+6.2for Ink+3.2 of 32
Track record4/100/102.4+2.5for Ink+1.3 of 32
Rollup stage7/100/101.9+3.5for Ink+1.8 of 32
No longer operatingEligibilityoperatingsunset 2026-07-01—0.0
Net of the terms+50.9
Reproduced gap+51.0
Published gapAfter score rounding and bounds — see the note below7641+35.0

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.
Quick facts

At a glance

2 of 3 rows read the same for both.
FactPolygon zkEVMInk
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).
From the published criteria

Which should you pick?

Polygon zkEVM

41#15 of 15
Pick it when
Polygon zkEVM leads Ink 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.

Ink

76#4 of 15
Leads
Pick it when
Pick Ink if proof system matters most — it scores 10/10 to Polygon zkEVM's 0/10 there (weight 18).
Strength
EVM equivalence — 10/10
Tradeoff
Younger than the 2021-era rollups: public mainnet since December 2024
Self-identify in 10 seconds

Which one is actually for you?

Polygon zkEVM

Polygon zkEVM leads Ink on no published criterion

  • Choose it only if something outside the published criteria decides for you — your country, a funding rail, or custody.
InkLeads

Choose Ink if proof system matters most

  • Proof system: 10/10 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)
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 86Ink leads
Polygon zkEVM0 out of 10
Ink10 out of 10

Track record

by 4 of 10weight 2.4 of 86Ink leads
Polygon zkEVM0 out of 10
Ink4 out of 10

Data on Ethereum

by 10 of 10weight 3.4 of 86Ink leads
Polygon zkEVM0 out of 10
Ink10 out of 10

Rollup stage

by 7 of 10weight 1.9 of 86Ink leads
Polygon zkEVM0 out of 10
Ink7 out of 10

Proof system

by 10 of 10weight 4.3 of 86Ink leads
Polygon zkEVM0 out of 10
Ink10 out of 10

Exit window

weight 2.4 of 86Tie
Polygon zkEVM0 out of 10
Ink0 out of 10

Forced withdrawals

by 10 of 10weight 4.3 of 86Ink leads
Polygon zkEVM0 out of 10
Ink10 out of 10

Censorship resistance

by 10 of 10weight 2.9 of 86Ink leads
Polygon zkEVM0 out of 10
Ink10 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 zkEVM14/20Ink14/20
Tie
Published criteriaweight 30 of 86
Polygon zkEVM0/30Ink19.6/30
Ink leads
Frictionweight 10 of 86 · constant here
Polygon zkEVM2.7/10Ink2.7/10
Tie
Trust recordweight 8 of 86 · constant here
Polygon zkEVM3.2/8Ink3.2/8
Tie
Measured dataweight 18 of 86 · constant here
Polygon zkEVM5.5/18Ink5.5/18
Tie
Decision rulePublished order

Choose Ink unless the term Polygon zkEVM leads on is the one you are buying.

Polygon zkEVM leads Ink 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, Ink 0/10)
  • Verification failure: an invalid state or transfer is accepted.
    Scored by Ethereum data availability · 14% (Polygon zkEVM 0/10, Ink 10/10)
    Scored by Proof system · 18% (Polygon zkEVM 0/10, Ink 10/10)
  • Liveness failure: the operator stops, censors you or loses data.
    Scored by Withdrawals if the operator stops · 18% (Polygon zkEVM 0/10, Ink 10/10)
    Scored by Transactions if the sequencer censors you · 12% (Polygon zkEVM 0/10, Ink 10/10)
Not assessed by this ranking: Contract failure, Execution failure. A high place says nothing about these; the Methodology tab says what each means.
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

Ink scores 35 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), Ink 76 (rank 4 of 15).

Related pages

Go deeper

Reviewed Next review by Methodology v2026.10.18
How this page is reviewed

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.

Accountable for this review: Mathias Siemonsmeier, Founder.

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