Ethereum’s native token, Ether (ETH), has experienced a turbulent journey in 2025. After closing 2024 at around $4,000, ETH slumped over the following four months, reaching a three-year low of $1,400 in mid-April. However, the token staged a remarkable comeback, surging to an all-time high of $4,831 in the final week of August. This rebound was fuelled by the launch of spot ETFs, mounting institutional interest, and surging activity across the Ethereum network, which recorded one of its busiest months ever.
Figures from CryptoPresales.com show that active Ethereum addresses reached 8.7 million in August, the third-highest total ever recorded.
Ethereum active addresses now just 4% below the May 2021 record of 9.1 million
As with Bitcoin, Ethereum’s network activity has swung dramatically over the past seven years, with sharp peaks often followed by significant declines. The trend has persisted in 2025: network usage fell by nearly 20% in the first quarter before surging again later in the year.
After recording more than 7.5 million monthly active addresses in December, activity dropped to 6.1 million in March as higher interest rates dampened demand for riskier assets. At that stage, without the boost of ETF inflows or fresh institutional support, ETH struggled for momentum. But sentiment shifted strongly in the second half of the year.
With spot ETFs drawing in new flows and institutional investors stepping up, ETH regained traction. Lower transaction costs and stronger network activity underpinned confidence in Ethereum’s real-world utility, while expectations of Federal Reserve rate cuts lifted risk appetite further.
Between March and July, ETH rose from around $3,300 to $3,700, while network activity increased from 6.1 million to 6.6 million monthly active addresses. The biggest surge came in August, when ETH jumped from $3,400 to its record $4,831 within three weeks. Over the same period, the network reported 8.7 million active users – its third-highest figure to date.
For context, that 8.7 million represents a 22% rise since the start of 2025, stands 36% higher than August 2024, and is only 4% short of the all-time high of 9.1 million in May 2021. The only other month to exceed August’s total was January 2018, when Ethereum recorded 8.8 million active addresses, just 0.6% more.
Monthly number of ETH addresses using smart contracts reaches record 10.5 million
Although 8.7 million active addresses sending or receiving ETH or tokens already signals strong network use, the number of wallets engaging directly with Ethereum’s dApps and DeFi ecosystem was even higher.
Glassnode data shows that in August alone, 10.5 million Ethereum wallets interacted with smart contracts. Activities included trading tokens on decentralised exchanges, minting NFTs, staking, and DeFi lending and borrowing. This figure is 20% higher than in January, 40% above August 2024, and marks the highest monthly total ever recorded.