Smart contracts

Discover the languages of Tezos

Learn to write smart contracts and build everything from marketplaces to financial applications. In the Tezos ecosystem, most smart contracts are written in Archetype, LIGO, or SmartPy. All features available on Tezos can be written by any of these high-level languages, which all compile down to Michelson. You can switch between languages based on your preferences and projects.

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Archetype

Archetype

A high-level language for building verifiable smart contracts on Tezos.

Archetype is a language designed specifically for the Tezos blockchain to simplify the building, testing, and deployment of smart contracts.

Projects built using Archetype

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Ligo

LIGO

A smart contract language available in multiple, familiar syntaxes.

LIGO is a flexible, minimalist smart contract language that compiles down to Michelson. Choose from JsLIGO, CameLIGO, PascaLIGO, and ReasonLIGO.

Projects built using LIGO

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SmartPy

SmartPy

A framework and online IDE for building Tezos smart contracts with Python.

SmartPy is a Python library for building and analyzing smart contracts. SmartPy tools include a compiler that generates Michelson code, a simulation engine, and an online IDE for a streamlined development process.

Projects built using SmartPy

Compare languages

Compare the different languages used in the Tezos ecosystem to build and deploy smart contracts.

Archetype

Archetype

Ligo

Ligo

Layer 1

SmartPy

SmartPy

Code example

Code example

Code example

Testing suite

Dedicated JS library & sandbox environment

Testing suite

Unit testing integrated into the language

Testing suite

Unit testing integrated into the library

Online IDE and deployment

Online tryouts via Gitpod instance

Online IDE and deployment

YES

Online IDE and deployment

YES

IDE extensions

VS Code

IDE extensions

LSP extension for VSCode Emacs plugin

IDE extensions

VS Code

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