Vitalik Buterin: Storing only Merkle roots on-chain won't fully solve state data issue

Ethereum (ETH) founder Vitalik Buterin has explained that regarding the issue of state storage, even if only a hash (Merkle root) is stored on-chain while users hold the actual data, the data needed for proof verification must still be stored and updated. On X, Buterin added that the size of this verification data could eventually approach the size of the entire state. "Solutions exist, but they require significant trade-offs and complex components compared to Ethereum's current structure," he noted. His comments follow an explanation from DeFi content creator marilyn100x.eth, who previously highlighted Ethereum's long-term state storage cost problem. The creator explained that EIP-8037 addresses this by increasing the cost of creating new contracts, accounts, and storage slots, rather than imposing a continuous storage fee.