Method reference
eth_blockNumber
Returns the number of the most recent block the node has, as a hex string. It is the cheapest way to tell whether a node is keeping up and the usual starting point for polling a chain.
Block times across the 54 chains range from 250 ms to 389 s. The right polling interval, and whether polling can keep up at all, depends on the chain.
eth_blockNumber on 55 chains, measured
Measured 2026-10-13 by calling eth_blockNumber through the SwiftNodes endpoint for each chain, re-measured weekly. Each chain links to its own page with the full response and code.
| Chain | Block time | "finalized" behind head | newHeads gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abstract | 2.0 s | 71,417 blocks | 3.2 s |
| ApeChain | 723 ms | 1,033 blocks | 810 ms |
| Arbitrum | 295 ms | 4,250 blocks | 262 ms |
| Arbitrum Nova | 389 s | 1 blocks | – |
| Avalanche | 1.2 s | 6 blocks | 788 ms |
| Base | 2.0 s | 491 blocks | 2.0 s |
| Berachain | 2.0 s | 1 blocks | 1.9 s |
| Blast | 2.0 s | 743 blocks | 2.0 s |
| BNB Smart Chain | 450 ms | 0 blocks | 418 ms |
| BOB | 2.0 s | 2,011 blocks | – |
| Boba Network | 2.0 s | 1,966 blocks | 2.0 s |
| Celo | 1.0 s | 1,165 blocks | 1.0 s |
| Chiliz | 3.0 s | 38,375,298 blocks | 2.8 s |
| Core | 3.0 s | 2 blocks | 3.0 s |
| Cronos | 419 ms | 0 blocks | 401 ms |
| Ethereum | 12 s | 73 blocks | – |
| Ethereum Classic | 12 s | no tag | – |
| Fantom | 3.8 s | no tag | 10.2 s |
| Flare | 1.1 s | 0 blocks | 1.2 s |
| Fraxtal | 2.0 s | 601 blocks | 2.0 s |
| Gnosis | 5.1 s | 31 blocks | – |
| Hemi | 12 s | 128 blocks | – |
| Hyperliquid | 984 ms | 0 blocks | 985 ms |
| Immutable zkEVM | 2.0 s | no tag | – |
| Ink | 1.0 s | 1,532 blocks | 997 ms |
| Kaia | 1.0 s | 0 blocks | 997 ms |
| Katana | 1.0 s | 1,300 blocks | 997 ms |
| Linea | 14 s | 0 blocks | 7.8 s |
| Lisk | 2.0 s | 4,546 blocks | 2.0 s |
| Manta Pacific | 10 s | 721 blocks | – |
| Mantle | 2.0 s | 646 blocks | 1.3 s |
| MegaETH | 1.0 s | 2,075 blocks | 1.0 s |
| Mode | 2.0 s | 546 blocks | – |
| Monad | 302 ms | 0 blocks | 301 ms |
| Morph | 1.9 s | 977 blocks | 2.0 s |
| opBNB | 250 ms | 110 blocks | 192 ms |
| Optimism | 2.0 s | 679 blocks | 2.0 s |
| Plasma | 1.0 s | 1 blocks | – |
| Polygon | 1.5 s | 3 blocks | 1.5 s |
| PulseChain | 10 s | 83 blocks | – |
| Ronin | 2.0 s | 709 blocks | – |
| Scroll | 12 s | 1,456 blocks | – |
| Sei | – | 0 blocks | 460 ms |
| Shibarium | 6.3 s | 21 blocks | 9.4 s |
| Soneium | 2.0 s | 742 blocks | 2.0 s |
| Sonic | 1.5 s | 0 blocks | 423 ms |
| Story | 2.4 s | 0 blocks | 2.2 s |
| Taiko | 2.0 s | 797 blocks | 2.0 s |
| Telos EVM | 500 ms | 0 blocks | 464 ms |
| Tempo | 576 ms | 0 blocks | 553 ms |
| Unichain | 1.0 s | 1,075 blocks | 2.0 s |
| World Chain | 2.0 s | 679 blocks | 2.0 s |
| X Layer | 1.0 s | 1,349 blocks | 1.0 s |
| zkSync Era | 4.7 s | 16,904 blocks | – |
| Zora | 2.0 s | 4,425 blocks | – |
Replace YOUR_API_KEY in the examples on each chain page with your SwiftNodes key (free tier available).