{"id":"ERC-7677","name":"Paymaster Gas Sponsorship","status":"Draft","chain":"both","category":{"id":"transaction-friction","name":"Transaction Friction","description":"Reducing clicks, signatures, and mental overhead"},"journeyStages":[{"id":"executing","name":"Executing Transactions","description":"Performing on-chain actions"},{"id":"gas","name":"Gas & Fees","description":"Paying for transactions"}],"uxImpact":"Defines the standard interface for paymasters that let dApps cover gas fees — users experience 'no gas needed' onboarding. Design implications: detect empty wallets and offer gas sponsorship automatically, show clear indication when a transaction is sponsored vs user-paid, design paymaster selection if multiple are available, handle paymaster failures gracefully with fallback to user-paid. Design decisions: whether to show the sponsorship source (dApp, protocol), how to communicate the gas sponsorship model to users, fallback UX when paymaster rejects a transaction. Critical priority for gas UX — 'Detect empty wallets, offer gas sponsorship — new users transact immediately.' Modern replacement for ERC-2771 meta-transaction patterns.","hasDetailedContent":true,"content":{"id":"ERC-7677","sources":[{"label":"Official specification","url":"https://eips.ethereum.org/EIPS/erc-7677","type":"official-spec"}],"lastReviewed":"2026-05-25","lastUpdated":"2026-05-25","summary":"Defines the standard interface for paymasters that let dApps cover gas fees — users experience 'no gas needed' onboarding.","designerTakeaways":["You can detect zero-balance wallets and offer sponsored gas automatically.","Your fee row can clearly distinguish sponsored vs user-paid transactions.","You can design fallback paths when paymaster quotes fail."],"applicability":{"whenToUse":["Onboarding users who lack native token for gas.","You operate ERC-4337 smart accounts with paymaster support.","Gas sponsorship is a core growth lever for your product."],"whenToAvoid":["Users always hold enough native token and prefer self-pay.","No paymaster infrastructure exists on your target chain.","Regulatory constraints forbid third-party fee payment."]},"prototypeFirst":[{"screen":"Primary happy path","why":"Prove the core user promise before edge cases.","covers":["Success state","Clear outcome copy"],"include":["Primary CTA","Confirmation feedback","Next step"]},{"screen":"Blocked or unsupported state","why":"Users discover limits when wallets or chains lack support.","covers":["Unsupported wallet","Wrong network"],"include":["Plain-language reason","Fallback action"]},{"screen":"Failure recovery","why":"Trust breaks when errors look like bugs.","covers":["User rejection","Transaction revert"],"include":["Retry path","Support context"]},{"screen":"Advanced disclosure","why":"Power users need technical detail without cluttering the default path.","covers":["Contract address","Token ID","Raw status"],"include":["Expandable section","Copy buttons","Explorer link"]}],"mentalModel":[{"label":"User operation","description":"The smart account builds an action the user wants. Gas cost would normally require native token in the wallet."},{"label":"Paymaster quote","description":"A paymaster contract quotes whether it will sponsor the fee or accept payment in another token."},{"label":"Sponsorship decision","description":"Your fee row shows Sponsored, pay-with-token, or user-paid gas. Each path needs distinct copy and fallback."},{"label":"EntryPoint validation","description":"The bundler submits the op only if account and paymaster rules pass. Quote failures belong in product UI before sign."},{"label":"User-visible outcome","description":"Success should confirm who paid and whether sponsorship continues on the next action."}],"statesToDesign":[{"state":"Ready","trigger":"Prerequisites met.","userNeed":"Understand what happens next.","designResponse":"Enable primary action with plain-language preview."},{"state":"Awaiting signature","trigger":"Wallet prompt open.","userNeed":"Know what they are approving.","designResponse":"Mirror human-readable summary in app and wallet."},{"state":"Pending","trigger":"Transaction submitted.","userNeed":"Confidence it is progressing.","designResponse":"Show status strip with explorer link."},{"state":"Succeeded","trigger":"On-chain confirmation.","userNeed":"See updated ownership or balance.","designResponse":"Celebrate outcome and show new state clearly."},{"state":"Failed or reverted","trigger":"Validation or execution failed.","userNeed":"Fix or retry without guessing.","designResponse":"Name the failed constraint and offer a concrete next step."}],"designDecisions":[{"question":"How much protocol detail do users see?","recommendation":"Lead with outcomes; tuck identifiers behind review.","rationale":"Users decide on consequences, not function selectors."},{"question":"What happens when support is missing?","recommendation":"Block with explanation and fallback path.","rationale":"Silent failure feels like a broken product."},{"question":"How do you label restricted assets?","recommendation":"Use persistent badges for non-transferable, locked, or expiring states.","rationale":"Hidden restrictions cause rage-quits at transfer time."}],"problemsSolved":[{"problem":"Inconsistent behavior across apps","oldWay":"Each team reinvents copy and edge cases","newWay":"Shared standard gives predictable UX patterns","impact":"high"},{"problem":"Users surprised by on-chain rules","oldWay":"Generic transfer UI fails at submit time","newWay":"Standard-aware UI sets expectations upfront","impact":"high"},{"problem":"Support burden from opaque errors","oldWay":"Raw revert reasons in toasts","newWay":"Mapped states explain what to do next","impact":"medium"}],"uxPatterns":[{"name":"Sponsored Fee Row","description":"Clear label when gas is covered by the app.","mockup":"erc-4337/gas-abstraction","components":["FeeRow","SponsoredBadge"],"userFlow":["User initiates action","Paymaster quotes","UI shows Sponsored","User confirms without gas token"]},{"name":"Paymaster Fallback","description":"Graceful switch when sponsorship unavailable.","mockup":"erc-4337/gas-abstraction","components":["FallbackSelector","ReasonBanner"],"userFlow":["Paymaster rejects","UI explains why","Offers user-paid or alternate token","User continues or cancels"]}],"seenInTheWild":[{"app":"Biconomy","url":"https://www.biconomy.io/","note":"Paymaster infrastructure powers gasless onboarding patterns."},{"app":"Pimlico","url":"https://pimlico.io/","note":"Bundler and paymaster services set expectations for sponsorship UX."},{"app":"Coinbase Smart Wallet","url":"https://www.coinbase.com/wallet/smart-wallet","note":"Sponsored transactions for new users on supported networks."}],"antiPatterns":[{"pattern":"Hiding standard-imposed restrictions until submit","why":"Users feel tricked when actions fail at the last step","instead":"Show eligibility and badges before the primary CTA","severity":"critical"},{"pattern":"Protocol jargon in user-facing copy","why":"Non-technical users cannot consent informedly","instead":"Use outcome language with optional technical disclosure","severity":"high"},{"pattern":"No fallback when wallet lacks support","why":"Dead-end flows increase churn","instead":"Explain limitation and offer alternate path or network","severity":"high"}],"vocabulary":[{"use":"Your balance / Your item","avoid":"Token ID / Token contract","why":"Ownership language matches mental models."},{"use":"Cannot transfer yet","avoid":"Transfer reverted","why":"Explain restriction without EVM vocabulary."},{"use":"Confirm in wallet","avoid":"Sign transaction","why":"Matches wallet UX users already know."}],"onMonad":[{"aspect":"Confirmation speed","ethereum":"Multi-step flows can feel slow between signatures","monad":"Sub-second finality tightens feedback loops","designImplication":"Prefer inline status over long pending modals on Monad."},{"aspect":"Transaction cost","ethereum":"Gas can discourage exploratory actions","monad":"Lower fees enable lighter-weight interactions","designImplication":"Safe to offer preview retries and social actions more freely."}],"technicalNotes":"ERC-7677 defines paymaster interface for gas sponsorship in account abstraction flows.","relatedStandards":[{"id":"ERC-4337","relationship":"Paymasters attach to UserOperations"},{"id":"ERC-2771","relationship":"Legacy meta-transaction pattern being replaced"}]},"sources":[{"label":"Official specification","url":"https://eips.ethereum.org/EIPS/erc-7677","type":"official-spec"},{"label":"Discussion","url":"https://ethereum-magicians.org/search?q=ERC-7677","type":"discussion"},{"label":"Official specification","url":"https://eips.ethereum.org/EIPS/erc-7677","type":"official-spec"}],"urls":{"canonical":"https://www.eipsfordesigners.com/standards/ERC-7677","markdown":"https://www.eipsfordesigners.com/standards/ERC-7677/content.md","agent":"https://www.eipsfordesigners.com/standards/ERC-7677/agent.md","api":"https://www.eipsfordesigners.com/api/standards/ERC-7677","official":"https://eips.ethereum.org/EIPS/erc-7677","discussion":"https://ethereum-magicians.org/search?q=ERC-7677"},"freshness":{"lastReviewed":"2026-05-25","lastUpdated":"2026-05-25"}}