Term
ERC20
ERC20 is the token standard used on the Ethereum blockchain and by most EVM-compatible chains — it defines the common functions that make tokens interoperable with wallets, exchanges, and smart contracts.
ERC20 (Ethereum Request for Comments 20) is the specification for fungible tokens on the Ethereum blockchain. Any ERC20 token is a smart contract that implements a common interface: balanceOf, transfer, approve, transferFrom, and a few event signatures. This standardization is why thousands of different tokens all work in the same wallets and on the same exchanges without custom integration.
The most heavily used ERC20 tokens are stablecoins (USDT-ERC20, USDC on Ethereum, DAI) and DeFi protocol tokens (UNI, AAVE, LINK, and so on). Any ERC20 transfer costs gas paid in ETH, which fluctuates based on network congestion — this is the main downside of ERC20 relative to cheaper networks like TRON or Solana.
Because ERC20 is technically an Ethereum smart contract, an ERC20 address is an Ethereum address (starts with 0x, 40 hex characters). This makes ERC20 addresses compatible with other EVM-based chains at the address format level — the same 0x address can receive tokens on Ethereum, BNB Smart Chain (BEP20), Arbitrum, Optimism, Base, Polygon, and other EVM networks. Which chain the tokens land on depends on the network of the sending transaction, not the address itself. Sending the wrong network to the same address is a common way to lose funds.
On SwapZilla, ERC20 tokens can be swapped into or out of any other supported asset. Rate quotes account for Ethereum gas at execution time, so what you see is what you get.
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