Overview - Cosmos Docs
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Cosmos EVM is an open-source Cosmos SDK module that embeds a full Ethereum Virtual Machine into a CometBFT-based chain. Deploy existing Solidity contracts, use standard EVM tooling, and launch a sovereign L1 with instant finality and native cross-chain support. Unlike rollups, Cosmos EVM chains control their own validator set, governance, and fee economics, all while preserving full Ethereum bytecode and JSON-RPC compatibility.

Getting Started

Build and run your own EVM-compatible chain using the evmd reference implementation

Cosmos EVM Repository

Explore the source code, open issues, and contribute to Cosmos EVM

Ethereum Tooling & JSON-RPC

Deploy existing Solidity contracts and use MetaMask, Hardhat, Foundry, Remix, ethers.js, viem, and more

Cosmos-Native Capabilities

Access staking, governance, IBC, and other Cosmos SDK modules directly from smart contracts

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What you can build

Cosmos EVM is for teams that want full EVM compatibility without giving up the benefits of launching a sovereign L1. You control the entire stack: the EVM execution environment, gas model, validator set, governance rules, and which Cosmos SDK modules to include. If you already deploy to Ethereum or EVM rollups, you can deploy to a Cosmos EVM chain with no contract changes. Chains can also run a permissioned EVM—restricting contract deployment or calls to whitelisted addresses—for use cases that require access controls at the protocol level.

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EVM Equivalent

Your chain runs standard Ethereum bytecode and behaves like any Ethereum network: deploy Solidity contracts with Hardhat, Foundry, or Remix; connect MetaMask or any EVM wallet; use ethers.js, viem, or web3.js without changes. See the tooling and resources page for a list of supported tools. Cosmos EVM implements the full Ethereum JSON-RPC API and supports all common transaction formats: EIP-155 (chain ID protection), EIP-1559 (dynamic fees), EIP-2930 (access lists), and EIP-7702 (EOA code delegation). Because Cosmos EVM chains are sovereign L1 chains, they do not support L2-specific features like blob transactions (EIP-4844) and other rollup-oriented primitives.

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Ethereum with more

If you know Solidity, you already know how to build on Cosmos EVM. Contracts compile and deploy the same way, the same opcodes are available, and the same libraries work. The differences are additions, not substitutions.
  • Instant finality: On Ethereum, transactions reach probabilistic finality over multiple blocks. On Cosmos EVM, transactions are final after one block (~1–2 seconds) via CometBFT with no possibility of reorganization. Your contracts don’t need to account for reorgs.
  • Fee distribution: Both use EIP-1559 dynamic fees. The base fee on Cosmos EVM is distributed to validators and delegators rather than burned—same fee mechanics for the developer, different economics for the chain.
  • Native cross-chain: Rather than relying on external bridge contracts, Cosmos EVM has IBC (Inter-Blockchain Communication) built into the protocol. Cross-chain token transfers are a first-class feature, accessible from Solidity via the IBC precompile.
  • Precompiles: Cosmos EVM exposes protocol-level functionality as precompiled contracts at fixed addresses. From Solidity, you can call into staking, distribution, governance, bank, IBC transfers (ICS-20), slashing, vesting, and address conversion utilities the same way you’d call any other contract. See the precompiles reference for the full list of addresses and interfaces.
  • EIP-712 signing: MetaMask and other EVM wallets can sign Cosmos SDK transactions—including governance votes, staking operations, and more—using the standard eth_signTypedData method. No separate Cosmos wallet required.

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Getting started

The quickest way to get started is running the example chain locally— it takes less than 3 minutes and requires only Go and Make.