ERC-1155 Semi-Fungible Trading vs. ERC-721 Non-Fungible Trading

Single contract for multiple assets: Deploy one contract to manage an entire game's items (swords, potions, skins). This reduces gas costs by up to 90% for multi-item transfers compared to sequential ERC-721 calls. This matters for GameFi, ticketing platforms, and digital merchandise where users need to mint or trade many items at once.

Native support for fungible and non-fungible tokens: A single token ID can represent 10,000 in-game gold coins (fungible), while another ID represents a unique legendary sword (non-fungible). This simplifies inventory logic and is critical for complex economies in metaverses and blockchain games like The Sandbox and Enjin.

The industry standard for unique assets: Supported by every major marketplace (OpenSea, Blur, LooksRare) and wallet. Represents over $20B in NFT market cap across collections like Bored Ape Yacht Club and CryptoPunks. This matters for high-value PFP art, collectibles, and real-world asset (RWA) tokenization where maximum liquidity and broad compatibility are non-negotiable.

One smart contract per collection, one token per asset: This creates an immutable, on-chain lineage for each individual item. Essential for provenance tracking, fine art, and identity NFTs where the history of a single, distinct asset is its primary value driver. Tools like Etherscan provide straightforward verification.

Massive gas savings: Transfer multiple token types (fungible and non-fungible) in a single transaction. This matters for game asset marketplaces (like OpenSea's Seaport) and loot box drops, where distributing 100 items can cost 90% less gas than 100 separate ERC-721 transfers.

Single contract for all assets: Manage an entire collection's metadata, supply, and logic in one place. This matters for gaming studios (like Enjin) and ticketing platforms, simplifying deployment, upgrades, and reducing on-chain footprint versus deploying a new ERC-721 contract for each new item.

De facto standard for NFTs: Near-universal support across all major marketplaces (OpenSea, Blur, Magic Eden), wallets (MetaMask, Rainbow), and indexers (The Graph). This matters for PFP projects (like Bored Ape Yacht Club) and high-value art, ensuring maximum liquidity and user accessibility without custom integrations.

One owner per unique token: Enables straightforward royalty enforcement, provenance tracking, and per-token approvals. This matters for fine art NFTs and real-world asset (RWA) tokenization, where clear, indivisible ownership and transfer history are legal and commercial requirements.

Native support for fungible items: A single token ID can have a supply >1, acting as a currency or consumable. This matters for in-game economies (e.g., 1000 'Gold' tokens) and event ticketing, eliminating the need to manage separate ERC-20 contracts alongside NFTs.

Less complex security surface: A simpler, battle-tested standard with fewer edge cases (e.g., no supply tracking per ID). This matters for new developer teams and auditors, reducing the risk of critical bugs in custom logic compared to the more complex state management of ERC-1155.

Indivisible, unique assets: Each token is a distinct, non-fungible item with a unique ID. This creates verifiable digital scarcity, critical for high-value collectibles like CryptoPunks and Bored Ape Yacht Club. The standard is universally supported by all major marketplaces (OpenSea, Blur, LooksRare) and wallets, ensuring maximum liquidity and composability.

Inefficient for batches: Trading multiple unique items requires separate transactions per token, leading to high gas costs. Minting a 10k PFP collection is a sequential, expensive process. This model is poorly suited for in-game economies where users need to trade hundreds of items (e.g., potions, common skins) frequently, as seen in early iterations of Axie Infinity.

Batch transfers & mints: Send multiple token types (both fungible and non-fungible) in a single transaction. This reduces gas costs by over 90% for multi-item operations. It's the backbone for game asset economies like The Sandbox and Enjin, where players trade stacks of items and unique wearables simultaneously.

Limited marketplace integration: While supported by major platforms, the semi-fungible model can complicate listings and rarity rankings. Liquidity is often fragmented as the standard is less dominant for pure 1/1 art. Developers may need custom tooling for indexing and displaying complex token supplies, unlike the plug-and-play ecosystem for ERC-721.