A full blockchain node requires a client for proper functioning. It’s a specific software from the blockchain developers that realizes its connections with other nodes and ensures that its methods are working steadily. Therefore, different blockchains have various client options, which can differ in size depending on their implementation and data management strategies.
Here, we look closer at these differences to see which public blockchain offers the lightest full node client for Ethereum and Bitcoin, and see why.
Full-node client for a public blockchain
To see what a full node client is, let’s overview the structure of a full node in general. It has two distinct components:
- A full node itself is a computer with robust hardware and stable Internet connection, enough to proceed with the blockchain’s full or pruned transaction history, depending on whether it’s an archive or pruned node. Read more about node types in the guide.
- Client software is the blockchain-specific service that ensures the blockchain’s proper functioning, including transactions, methods, and consensus participation.
While the transaction history enables the node to keep, update, and synchronize the blockchain’s state, the client performs all functions that are encoded in the blockchain. Therefore, blockchain nodes need clients to perform all blockchain actions, such as validating or connecting a dApp to the chain.
For Ethereum, there are especially many full node clients. It has an extensive network of L2 rollups, such as Polygon, and dApps built on it, so the demand for such clients is high. Other chains have clients as well, but here we’ll cover the most popular ones.
Lightest full node clients for different blockchains
All popular blockchains occupy large disk space. It’s easy to understand why.
The blockchain records all of its transactions and encrypts them in its blocks. With each new transaction, blocks are filled, and new ones are created. Therefore, the more it’s used, the larger it becomes. It grows as people send money, sign contracts, execute programs, and perform other actions.
For example, one can see how the Bitcoin size is changing as time passes by.
Source: Statista
Let’s now focus on specific full node clients and their implementations.
Bitcoin
The Bitcoin size as of September 2024 is slightly less than 600 GB. Its official client, Bitcoin Core, requires 600 GB for running and an additional 10 GB for each month to oversee the blockchain’s growth. It should be used for running a full node and contributing to the Bitcoin network, and it’s the only official client provided by the Bitcoin Foundation.
It has other node clients, developed by enthusiasts. While they can be lighter, they’re very eccentric and aren’t widely used.
Ethereum
The Ethereum size is larger, as it is programmable and records smart contracts executed by its Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM). Therefore, due to numerous dApps and transactions, its records grow faster than Bitcoin’s.
In September 2024, the full node is about 1 TB, but if we need to cover all of its historical states, the size can be significantly larger, up to 15 TB. Before diving into its clients, it’s important to remember its two layers: consensus and execution. The former works with maintaining the network using validation, while the latter executes smart contracts and connects with dApps. Unlike Bitcoin, there are different clients for running a full node, each with its specifics, and they have different disk sizes.
Want to know more about Ethereum layers and functionalities? Read a guide here!
Its most widely used execution client is Go-Ethereum (Geth), which requires up to 12 TB of disk space, although usually 2–4 TB is enough. Two others, Nethermind and Erigon, are much more efficient, as they prune the archive node and distribute its data, so they require 2–3 TB for Erigon and 1 TB for Nethermind. Another popular option, Besu, requires 1–2 TB.
While Geth enables the fullest possible functionality, using the Go programming language, Nethermind and Erigon are much more optimized for speed and efficiency. As for Besu, it uses Java and is optimized for business software solutions using blockchain. One can see the statistics of their usage below.
Source: Client Diversity Ethereum
As for consensus clients, Prysm and Lighthouse are the most used ones, and both require around 1–2 TB of disk space. Teku is lighter, usually requiring less than 1 TB. They can be run along with the execution client if there is enough disk space and RAM, or on separate computers for better performance. The choice depends mostly on which programming language is better for each specific implementation, despite Teku being the lightest among them.
See the summary below:
| Geth | Nethermind | Erigon | Besu | Prysm | Lighthouse | Teku |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Execution layer | Execution layer | Execution layer | Execution layer | Consensus layer | Consensus layer | Consensus layer |
| 2–12 TB | 1 TB or less | 2–3 TB | 1–2 TB | 1–2 TB | 1–2 TB | 1 TB |
| Go | C# | Go | Java | Go | Rust | Java |
All data are taken from public evidence of validators and node users.
Therefore, there are different Ethereum clients for both consensus and execution layers, and depending on their implementation, they can have different sizes. Overall, running its clients requires 2–4 TB of free disk space and can be optimized to less than 1 TB, while the full functionality requires up to 15 TB.
Which public blockchain offers the lightest full node client?
For different networks, there are solutions that are more lightweight compared to others. The difference is in its data management and pruning mechanics. Some clients organize blockchain data by pruning the node, reducing its size without losing the ability to communicate with the blockchain and sync its data. It can be seen in the example of Ethereum clients, where size variations are immense, from less than 1 TB to more than 10 TB.
The lightest Ethereum full node execution client is Nethermind, which requires less than 1 TB for functioning. As for consensus clients, differences are smaller and the lightest one, Teku, requires around 1 TB, too. For Bitcoin, the Bitcoin Core requires more than 600 GB of space, and it’s the only official client.
Choosing a full node client depends on its purpose. Archive data are needed if one needs to explore and analyze the blockchain’s history. In other cases, lightweight solutions are much easier to run and more computationally efficient. Therefore, smart data management and full node pruning are good strategies to optimize blockchain interactions using client software.
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