EF Protocol Cluster Releases Unified Tier List for Hegoté Upgrades, Evaluating 62 Proposed EIPs

The Ethereum Foundation’s (EF) Protocol cluster has published its first-ever unified tier list for the upcoming Hegoté network upgrade. Evaluating a total of 62 Ethereum Improvement Proposals (EIPs), the comprehensive assessment combines the insights of approximately 60 researchers and engineers across nine different client and research teams, along with contributions from individual domain experts.

Unlike previous upgrade cycles where individual teams published isolated opinions, this year marks a significant shift toward a single, cohesive perspective. While execution layer client Geth will still release its own standalone tier list, its developers and researchers worked collaboratively alongside the rest of the Protocol cluster to integrate their feedback directly into the unified evaluation. The resulting dataset serves as a transparent baseline for every participating team and individual contributor.

The priorities driving these evaluations are detailed in a companion post titled EF Protocol: Current and Emerging Priorities, which outlines the cluster’s overarching north star, strategic roadmap, and core commitments.

I. How we tiered

The evaluation process was rigorous and collaborative. Across the entire cluster, contributors filled out 16 individual contribution templates. Twelve of these provided formal tier grades, with several specialists choosing to grade only those EIPs where they held deep domain expertise. This process yielded 397 individual tier grades across the 62 proposals, averaging about 6.4 grades per EIP, with the most heavily debated items drawing up to 9 distinct reviews.

The framework was heavily influenced by hard-earned lessons from retrospectives on the preceding Glamsterdam upgrade. Key takeaways included the realization that EIPs should be sized by their integration depth, that technical complexity compounds rapidly, that the available testing surface is a severely scarce resource, and that proposal champions frequently underestimate the true complexity of their ideas. To finalize the list, the cluster conducted half a dozen group calls and a dedicated 90-minute working session to debate contested items.

Under the scoring methodology, contributors graded each EIP independently using a standard scale: S-tier equaled 4 points, A-tier equaled 3, B-tier equaled 2, C-tier equaled 1, and D-tier or DFI (Declined For Inclusion) equaled 0. Averages were calculated strictly using cast grades, meaning abstentions never penalized a proposal. The published tier list represents a "steelman" approach, beginning with raw mathematical averages and refined through EIP-by-EIP debates during the working session. Per-team grades remain unpublished to maintain open collaboration.

Each tier level binds the cluster to specific delivery expectations. Furthermore, the accompanying notes for each proposal follow a strict pattern: expected shipments outline their merits, bubble items name the specific technical prerequisites required for a tier promotion, and proposals placed below the line or declined explicitly list their blocking concerns without extraneous commentary.

II. The tier list

While the complete interactive visualization remains accessible externally via Forkcast, the proposals have been carefully categorized by consensus layer and execution layer domains, sorted by tier and internal average scores.

Within the consensus layer, the standout headliner is EIP-7805, introducing FOCIL (Filter-Based Censorship-Resistant Inclusion Lists) with a unanimous S-tier average of 4 out of 7 possible grades. FOCIL guarantees ordinary users a reliable path to include eligible transactions without depending on centralized builders, and experts recommend it ship alongside EIP-8369, which defines transaction eligibility and validator verification rules. Other notable consensus proposals landing in the A-tier include EIP-8015 for removing dead deposit and eth1data fields, EIP-8365 for retiring vulnerable BLS withdrawal credentials as part of post-quantum hygiene, EIP-8383 for reducing the consensus layer block retention window, EIP-8334 for bundled attestation propagation to reduce gossip network load, and EIP-8025 for optional execution proofs that upstream stateless-execution changes directly into canonical specs.

Proposals sitting in the B-tier require further specification before securing a guaranteed spot in the upgrade. These include EIP-8146 concerning block access list sidecars, EIP-8237 exploring independent consensus and execution layer synchronization, EIP-8198 for "Quick Slots" which faces architectural scrutiny from engineering teams regarding slot-time changes, and EIP-8321 introducing hash-chain RANDAO.

Several proposals were explicitly declined for inclusion (DFI) or placed in lower tiers due to timing, systemic risks, or structural misalignment. Noteworthy DFI items include EIP-7716 regarding anti-correlation attestation penalties, which requires broader research on staker centralization impacts; EIP-8142 concerning block-in-blobs; EIP-8243 for batching attestations at source; and EIP-8363 addressing tapered issuance burns, which the cluster noted belongs to broader ecosystem economic policy rather than a standard fork scoping exercise. Additionally, EIP-8368 and EIP-8372 remain classified as "TBD," pending live mainnet data from the upcoming Glamsterdam upgrade regarding gas limit adjustments and normalized state gas limits.

On the execution layer, EIP-8141 for Frame Transactions secured the crown as a locked-in S-tier headliner with a near-unanimous average of 3.89 across 9 grades. Frame Transactions introduce native account abstraction designed to provide a sustainable path toward post-quantum signature schemes, transaction aggregation, and the eventual retirement of legacy secp256k1 keys. This headliner is designed to ship alongside EIP-8250 for keyed nonces and EIP-8272 for recent execution roots.

Other strong A-tier execution layer proposals include EIP-3298 for the removal of refunds, EIP-5920 introducing the new PAY opcode for secure value transfer without invoking recipient code, EIP-8279 and EIP-8131 establishing strict content and block access list floors, EIP-7906 for state diff assertions, EIP-8298 and EIP-8151 forming the core account abstraction and key-retirement package, and EIP-4758 for the full deactivation of the SELFDESTRUCT opcode, supported heavily by the engineering seats responsible for maintaining the EVM.

Conversely, multiple execution layer proposals landed in the C-tier and DFI categories. EIP-8355, proposing ML-DSA verification precompiles, was graded as C-tier due to concerns over premature cryptographic standardization ahead of dedicated adjudication. Similarly, EIP-8163, which reserves the EXTENSION opcode, and EIP-2488, deprecating CALLCODE, were declined for inclusion due to lack of immediate urgency and manageable application-layer breakage risks.

III. In closing

Out of the 62 proposals thoroughly evaluated by the EF Protocol cluster for Hegoté, exactly 2 have been designated as must-ship headliners, 15 are expected to ship, and 28 have been officially declined with fully articulated justifications. Among the remainder, 8 sit in the B-tier with clear requirements for inclusion, 7 reside in the C-tier below the deployment line, and 2 remain TBD pending vital mainnet observations. The cluster emphasizes that the long-term success of the network depends just as much on the rigorous proposals it declines as the critical features it chooses to ship.

For stakeholders seeking deeper insight into the foundational philosophy behind these decisions, the cluster strongly recommends reviewing the companion priority manifesto. Furthermore, to address community feedback and encourage transparent debate, the EF Protocol cluster is hosting a dedicated Reddit AMA on r/ethereum, inviting proposal champions, developers, and community members to challenge the grades and discuss the future trajectory of Ethereum’s protocol development.