A Guide to Smart Contract Languages for Web3 Developers

Smart contracts are automated execution agreements on blockchain platforms that allow both parties to conduct trustworthy transactions without intermediaries. They contain code functions that can interact with other contracts and execute automatically when predefined conditions are met.

Although the concept of smart contracts was proposed as early as the 1990s, it wasn't until the emergence of Ethereum that it gained widespread application. Ethereum supports the deployment and execution of smart contracts and is known as a second-generation blockchain.

Smart contract languages are programming languages used to write these contracts. They need to be able to safely and efficiently express contract rules and provide tools for handling blockchain transactions and states.

Main smart contracts languages

EVM series

The EVM (Ethereum Virtual Machine) is the core of Ethereum, responsible for executing smart contracts and processing transactions. On Ethereum and EVM-compatible blockchains, developers can use a variety of high-level programming languages:

1. Solidity: The most popular language, object-oriented, influenced by C++, Python, and JavaScript.

2. Vyper: A language similar to Python, focused on security and readability.

3. Yul: An assembly language with advanced control flow.

4. Fe: A high-level language similar to Rust, using a module-based system for code reuse.

5. Huff: A low-level assembly language that allows direct control of EVM instructions.

On Ethereum, Solidity occupies about 90% of the market share.

Solana Series

Solana is known for its high performance and low latency, primarily using the Rust language to write smart contracts. Solana uses its own virtual machine SVM and bytecode SBF.

1. Rust: The officially supported language, high performance and memory safety.

2. Solang: Allows the use of a modified version of Solidity to write Solana smart contracts.

Move Series

Move is a language designed for secure asset management, originally developed for Meta's Diem project. Its features include:

1. First-class resource type protection
2. Flexibility
3. Security and Verifiability

Aptos and Sui are two major blockchain platforms that use Move.

Development Tools

EVM development tools

• Hardhat: A development environment for compiling, deploying, testing, and debugging Ethereum applications.
• OpenZeppelin: Provides a secure library of smart contracts.
• Foundry: A development and testing framework centered around Solidity.

Solana development tools

• Anchor: A framework that simplifies the Solana development process.

Move Development Tools

The development tools for Move are relatively underdeveloped, and the ecosystem is still in the early stages.

Selection Advice

• For Web3 beginners or developers looking to create EVM-compatible blockchains, Solidity is the best choice.
• Solana is the second choice after Ethereum, but the learning curve for Rust is relatively steep.
• Move has innovations in security design, but the ecosystem is still immature.

When choosing a smart contract language, usability, security, and ecosystem resources should be considered. The Solidity ecosystem is the most mature, Rust has advantages in security, and Move has innovations in underlying security mechanisms.