Shape is an Ethereum Layer 2 mainnet that uses ETH as the native gas token and is fully EVM-compatible, so Solidity apps deploy without changes. It’s built for low-fee, high-throughput activity like DeFi swaps, NFT minting, gaming, and payments, and integrates with major bridges for fast on/off ramps. Compared to Ethereum L1, average fees are typically sub‑cent with block finality in seconds; see the Shape explorer via shape.us for live gas, TPS, and activity metrics.
Shape stands out with ETH‑native gas, seamless Ethereum tooling, and a UX optimized for bridging and cross-chain liquidity. Typical block times are a few seconds with sub‑cent average gas and burst throughput capacity into the thousands of TPS, delivering materially faster and cheaper transactions than L1 while settling back to Ethereum. Strong bridge integrations and routing help minimize slippage and wait times when moving assets to and from Shape.
Shape uses ETH as the gas token for transaction fees. You can obtain ETH by bridging from other chains or purchasing using thirdweb Bridge.
To bridge ETH to Shape, connect your wallet to thirdweb bridge, select your source chain, choose the token you want to bridge, select Shape as the destination, enter the amount, and confirm the transaction. The bridge will handle the cross-chain transfer instantly.
To build on Shape you can use thirdweb, which provides an easy way to build, monetize and scale your apps, games or agents. You can find detailed guides and documentation on https://portal.thirdweb.com to get started quickly.
To add Shape to your wallet, you can connect your wallet and click on [Add to Wallet] button at the top of the page. Alternatively, you can add the network manually using the RPC URL and chain details and add it to your wallet's network settings.
To send ETH on Shape, ensure your wallet is connected to the Shape network, enter the recipient's address, specify the amount of ETH to send, review the gas fee, and confirm the transaction in your wallet.