Revocation Registry (EIP-5539) vs Bitmap Status List (W3C VC)

Specific advantage: Revocation status is stored directly on a smart contract (e.g., Ethereum, Polygon). This matters for dApps and DeFi protocols that require atomic, trustless verification without external HTTP calls. Status updates are blockchain transactions.

Specific advantage: Compresses revocation status for thousands of credentials into a single, compact bitmap string. This matters for mobile or bandwidth-constrained environments where credential size is critical, as it minimizes payload overhead in W3C Verifiable Credentials.

Specific advantage: Leverages existing Ethereum tooling (Ethers.js, Viem), wallets (MetaMask), and infrastructure (The Graph, Ponder). This matters for teams already building EVM-native applications who want to avoid introducing new, non-blockchain dependencies for revocation checks.

Specific advantage: A W3C Working Group standard, ensuring broad vendor support across SSI frameworks like Trinsic, Spruce ID, and Microsoft Entra. This matters for enterprise and cross-platform projects prioritizing vendor neutrality and compliance with established web standards.

Smart contract state: Revocation status is stored directly on an EVM blockchain (e.g., Ethereum, Polygon, Arbitrum). This provides cryptographic finality and a tamper-proof, public audit trail. Ideal for high-value credentials like KYC attestations or professional licenses where non-repudiation is paramount.

Direct integration with DeFi & DAOs: As an on-chain primitive, revocation events can be read by any other smart contract. This enables automated workflows, like a lending protocol suspending a loan the instant a credential is revoked, or a DAO removing voting rights. Enables programmable trust.

Off-chain compression: Statuses for millions of credentials are packed into a single, compact bitmap hosted on a simple HTTP(S) endpoint. Near-zero cost for issuance and revocation vs. on-chain gas fees. Critical for mass-scale use cases like event tickets, employee badges, or university diplomas.

HTTP-based verification: Verifiers check status via a simple, cacheable HTTP GET request, avoiding blockchain RPC calls, wallet connections, or gas. This broadens adoption to traditional web2 applications and mobile environments. The standard is natively supported by major VC libraries like Veramo and Trinsic.

Gas fees and latency: Every revocation transaction requires paying network gas and waiting for block confirmation. This creates operational overhead and makes it unsuitable for high-volume, low-latency revocation needs. A cost-prohibitive choice for issuing credentials at scale.

Centralized liveness risk: The status list's availability depends on the issuer's HTTP endpoint. This introduces a trust assumption and a potential single point of failure. Requires careful engineering for high availability, unlike the decentralized liveness guarantees of a public blockchain.

Native blockchain integration: Revocation status is stored directly on-chain (e.g., Ethereum, Polygon). This provides immutable, public audit trails and leverages smart contract logic for complex revocation policies. This matters for high-value DeFi credentials or DAO memberships where transparency and programmability are non-negotiable.

Built for the EVM stack: Seamlessly integrates with existing Ethereum tooling (Ethers.js, Hardhat) and identity standards (EIP-712, ERC-20/721). This matters for teams already building on EVM L2s (Arbitrum, Optimism) who need revocation to work with their existing wallet integrations and smart contract workflows.

Off-chain status, on-chain pointer: Stores a compressed bitmap (e.g., on IPFS, Arweave) with only a cryptographic commitment on-chain. This reduces gas fees by >99% for large-scale issuers (e.g., 1M credentials). This matters for enterprise SSO, education diplomas, or event ticketing where issuing millions of low-cost credentials is required.

Official Verifiable Credentials standard: Directly implements the W3C VC Data Model, ensuring interoperability with a vast ecosystem of issuers, wallets (SpruceID, Veramo), and verifiers. This matters for projects needing to integrate with government digital ID systems (EUDI Wallet), corporate credentials, or cross-platform mobile drivers' licenses.

Gas fees for every update: Each revocation or batch update requires an on-chain transaction, costing $2-$50+ on Ethereum L1. While batched, this creates ongoing operational expense. This is a critical trade-off for high-volume, low-margin use cases like discount coupons or frequent employee onboarding/offboarding.

Requires fetching and processing off-chain data: Verifiers must retrieve the status list from a decentralized storage network (IPFS), adding latency (100ms-2s) and complexity to the verification flow. This matters for real-time, high-throughput scenarios like physical access control gates or instant loan approvals where sub-second verification is critical.