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XRP Ledger XRP Ledger is a payments-focused Layer 1 blockchain running the rippled client, with a native JSON-RPC and WebSocket API, built-in decentralized exchange, and 4-6 second consensus finality.
XRP Ledger is a Layer 1 blockchain running rippled with a native JSON-RPC over HTTPS and WebSocket API. Consensus reaches deterministic finality in 4-6 seconds, transaction fees remain sub-cent under normal conditions, and WebSocket subscriptions are available for real-time ledger event streams.
XRP Ledger is designed for payments-native applications: cross-border settlement, remittances, merchant payments, currency exchange, tokenized assets, and treasury operations. A native decentralized exchange with automatic path-finding lets developers route currency-to-currency payments across order books and AMMs without smart contracts or third-party liquidity venues.
| Consensus | XRP Ledger Consensus Protocol — validators exchange proposals and reach agreement on transaction ordering every 4-6 seconds. When 80% of validators agree on a set of transactions, a new ledger is finalized. Over 120 independent validators operated by universities, exchanges, and businesses secure the network. |
| Public / Private / Permissioned | Public and permissionless for users and developers. Validator participation is open, though each node operator maintains a list of trusted validators to reach consensus. |
| Smart contracts | Purpose-built. XRP Ledger uses native transaction types (payments, offers, escrows, AMMs, NFTs) rather than general-purpose smart contracts. XRPL EVM Sidechain is a separate chain for Solidity contracts. |
| Smart contract language(s) supported | Not applicable at the base layer. XRPL uses transaction-type primitives, not a general-purpose contract language. |
| Transaction privacy | Not by default. XRP Ledger uses a public ledger where transactions, balances, and account state are visible onchain. Multi-Purpose Token (MPT) confidential transfers can keep balances and transaction amounts private while enabling designated auditors to decrypt values offchain. |
| Transaction visibility | Public by default. Transactions, account state, and ledger objects are queryable through public RPC endpoints and XRPSCAN (xrpscan.com). |
| Transaction ordering | Transactions enter the network mempool, and validators include them in the next ledger based on order and fee. Priority fees can improve inclusion during congestion, though most transactions require only the minimum transaction fee under normal conditions. |
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