The year 2022 was a rollercoaster for the entire crypto market. In contrast to the bountiful increases recorded in 2021, in terms of trade volume and user activity, 2022 was more of a rapid decline and increased user sentiment. Right from the second quarter, the crypto ecosystem had high volatility which wiped billions of dollars off the market.

While the steep decline in major cryptocurrencies filled the news, NFTs suffered their losses, albeit somehow quietly. Consequently, that reflected in the performance of NFT marketplaces where digital assets were traded. However, despite these negative performances, some NFTs still held strong, same as NFT marketplaces that recorded high numbers. 

This article reviews the 5 best performing NFT marketplaces in 2022. But first, a refresher – what are NFT marketplaces?

What are NFT marketplaces?

NFTs, or Non-Fungible Tokens, are unique, non-replicable digital representations of ownership that are permanently stored on the blockchain. Anything that can be owned can be represented as an NFT – songs, videos, pictures, real estate, or even tweets. 

Just like online marketplaces where users can buy items such as shoes and bags, NFT marketplaces are platforms where NFTs are traded. Some marketplaces provide features allowing users to create, mint, and market their NFTs. Essentially, NFT marketplaces help users breach the problem of finding buyers or sellers of digital assets or even getting information about a digital asset. 

Now that it is clear what NFT marketplaces are, let’s go through a list of the best-performing marketplaces in 2022. 

OpenSea

OpenSea, the world’s largest NFT marketplace by trade volume, launched in 2017. Built on Ethereum, the platform is a multi-chain marketplace that integrates popular blockchains such as Ethereum, Polygon, Solana, and Klaytn. As a result, most NFT transactions occur on OpenSea, making it a go-to destination for buying, selling, and discovering NFTs.

Due to its popularity and array of options, the platform is the premier marketplace for most NFT enthusiasts, offering a user-friendly interface, that also makes it an ideal choice for new users just entering the NFT ecosystem. 

Registration on the platform is straightforward and can be completed in minutes. For payment, the marketplace supports major cryptocurrencies like Ethereum, Solana, and USDC. On the downside, fiat currencies are not supported. Users with fiat currencies will have to convert their fiat currencies to a supported cryptocurrency to trade. 

In addition, OpenSea supports many popular wallet service providers. As a result, users are not limited to just a particular wallet compared to other marketplaces that do not support as many wallet services. 

A 2.5% transaction fee is charged on every transaction. This fee is different from gas fees, which are paid to miners who confirm and validate transactions. Users who don’t want to pay gas fees can use Polygon. However, they need to be sure the NFT they want to trade supports Polygon. They can confirm this by checking for the Polygon logo on their NFT of interest.  

Rarible

Rarible is a multi-chain NFT marketplace built on Ethereum. The platform features NFTs from blockchains such as Ethereum, Solana, and Tezos. It is viewed by many as the biggest competitor to OpenSea, while its user-friendly interface is also one of the reasons why it is highly used. 

As seen in most marketplaces, Rarible removes the technical difficulties associated with trading NFTs or transferring them. Users do not require any prior coding knowledge to easily use the platform for their desired purposes. 

The platform focuses mainly on digital collectibles and arts, and recently, NFT games. NFT creators can easily create their NFTs, mint them, and list them for sale. In addition, creators using Rarible can program royalties into their NFTs. Thus, each time the NFT is sold, they get a certain percentage of the sale. 

NBA Top Shot

NBA Top Shot is one of the first NFT marketplaces built for the sports industry. Launched in 2020, the marketplace was created through a partnership between the National Basketball Association (NBA) and DapperLabs. The marketplace was built as a place where sports fans can buy digital collectibles and video clips called moments. 

The marketplace has recorded considerable success since its launch, while simultaneously recording high user activities and trade volumes. In a way, it enabled the NBA to tap into the growing NFT culture amongst its fanbase to generate revenue. 

The most popular NFTs traded on the marketplace are NBA moments, these are video clips of game highlights and iconic gaming segments. Digital collectibles on the marketplace are not transferable to other secondary NFT marketplaces, however, some collectibles on the marketplace are as cheap as a few dollars. 

Binance NFT Marketplace

Launched in June 2022, the Binance NFT marketplace is one of the newcomers. Despite that it launched this year, the marketplace has hit the ground running with high user activities and trade volume. However, that is not a surprise considering that Binance is the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the world.

Aside from the influence it enjoys from its affiliation with Binance, the marketplace has some features which make it convenient to use for a lot of users. The NFT marketplace is accessible through a mobile application and users can easily convert their profits to other cryptocurrencies or fiat currency. 

Users can mint, sell, or buy NFTs on the platform. On cost, the Marketplace charges a mere 1% commission as transaction fee on all trades. This low transaction point means users will have more profit compared to trading on other major marketplaces.

Nifty Gateway

Nifty Gateway is one of the most popular NFT marketplaces in the world. The platform is renowned for its limited-edition NFTs and partnerships with top digital artists such as Beeple and musician Grimes. Unlike other marketplaces, Nifty Gateway focuses more on music and art-related NFTs. 

Moreover, Nifty Gateway is quite restrictive on who gets to create or mint NFTs on their platform. As a result, only popular digital artists have exclusive access to its services. One of the features of Nifty Gateway that separates it from other marketplaces is its custodial wallet. While other marketplaces require that you use a third-party wallet service, Nifty Gateway helps you store your digital assets in an off-site location. 

In addition, the marketplace allows users to trade using fiat currencies. Thus, eliminating the stress users go through while trying to change their fiat currencies to cryptocurrencies. 

Due to the nature of creators allowed on its platforms, NFT drops on Nifty Gateway are highly sought after. The NFT collections are often Limited-edition, so people hurry to get them due to FOMO. 

Artists on Nifty Gateway can also determine how much royalties they make from secondary sales. Hence, when a user resales an NFT, they get a particular percentage of the resell amount. On the downside, the marketplace charges a transaction fee of 5%, which is higher than most competitors. 

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*All investment/financial opinions expressed by NFT Plazas are from the personal research and experience of our site moderators and are intended as educational material only. Individuals are required to fully research any product prior to making any kind of investment.

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