Plain English
ERC-721 is the original NFT standard — every token is unique, indexed by ID. ERC-1155 is a “multi-token” standard that lets a single contract issue both unique items and fungible batches (1,000 copies of the same item), which is dramatically more gas-efficient for games and collections.
How it actually works
ERC-721 contracts mint each token as a separate transaction. ERC-1155 can mint 10,000 tokens of three different types in one transaction. The standards are interoperable through wrappers; major marketplaces (OpenSea, Blur, Magic Eden) support both seamlessly.
What it means for you
For collectors, this is mostly invisible — the marketplace shows the asset the same way. For builders, ERC-1155 is the modern default for anything not strictly one-of-one, because the gas savings are enormous at scale. For tokenized real-world assets with multiple identical claims (event tickets, fractional real estate), ERC-1155 is the right tool.
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Educational content only. Not investment, tax, or legal advice.