What is the Sepolia testnet?

Written by Alchemy

Reviewed by Brady Werkheiser

Published on 2023-03-032 min read

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In this article we will explain what Sepolia is, Sepolia's network and RPC information, and how to get test Sepolia ETH tokens.

What is the Sepolia Testnet?

Sepolia was a proof-of-authority testnet created in October 2021 by Ethereum core developers and maintained ever since. After the Ropsten testnet reached a Terminal Total Difficulty (TTD) of 50000000000000000 the Sepolia and the Goerli testnets transitioned to a proof-of-stake consensus mechanism to mimic the Ethereum mainnet.

Testnets are blockchains designed to mimic the operating environment of a ‘mainnet’ but exist on a separate ledger. These testnets help developers test their applications and smart contracts in a risk-free way before deploying their products to Ethereum’s mainnet environment.

Sepolia was designed to simulate harsh network conditions, and has shorter block times, which enable faster transaction confirmation times and feedback for developers.

Compared to other testnets like Goerli, Sepolia's total number of testnet tokens is uncapped, which means it is less likely that developers using Sepolia will face testnet token scarcity like Goerli.

Sepolia Network Information

If you are adding the Sepolia blockchain to your wallet, this is the network information to include:

• Network Name - Sepolia Test Netwok

• RPC URL - https://eth-sepolia.g.alchemy.com/v2/[YOUR-API-KEY]

• Chain ID - 11155111

• Currency Symbol - SepoliaETH

• Block Explorer URL - https://sepolia.etherscan.io/

Note: There is also a 1-click option to add Sepolia to your wallet in the Alchemy dashboard.

How to get Sepolia testnet ETH?

Sepolia ETH can be obtained from a Sepolia testnet faucet, that allows anyone to send a small amount of fake Sepolia ETH to their wallet. Sepolia ETH is the currency used to pay to complete transactions on the Sepolia testnet, similar to how ETH is used to pay for computation on the Ethereum’s mainnet which is also a Proof-of-Work chain before the merge.

1. Head to Alchemy's free Sepolia Faucet

2. Sign in to your Alchemy account

3. Enter your wallet address or ENS name

4. Click "Send Me ETH"

A popup will display ‘Transaction sent’ with the amount of Sepolia ETH deposited to your wallet.

Next, you can check your Ethereum wallet to confirm you received the SepoliaETH.

With your Sepolia ETH, you can now begin running smart contracts on the Sepolia testnet.

To view the date and time, the transaction fee, the gas burnt, and other transaction details, you can look up your transaction hash on the Sepolia Etherscan.