Aragon is a blockchain-based platform designed to support the development and management of decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) and their ecosystems. It was launched in 2016 and has developed several key tools that support the development and management of on-chain DAOs. These include a protocol for developing on-chain DAOs, a software development kit (SDK), and user-friendly applications that enable users to launch DAOs without needing to write code.
Luis Cuende and Jorge Izquierdo were the founders of Aragon, which they created to develop tools to allow developers and communities to build and manage decentralized autonomous organizations.
Aragon held an Initial Coin Offering (ICO) in May 2017 to raise approximately $25 million from ANT token sales to be used for the further development of the platform.
Aragon released the aragonOS in October 2017, which is a framework of smart contracts allowing developers and DAOs to manage their creations through decentralized governance.
The platform introduced Aragon Network Jurisdiction in 2018, a decentralized court system intended to resolve conflicts among DAOs using bonded assets (ANT) and a system of judges.
Aragon also acquired Vocdoni, an open-source suite of technologies for private and scalable voting, to enhance the capabilities of the platform in providing governance solutions.
In 2018, Jorge Izquierdo resigned as CEO of Aragon due to disagreements over the direction of the company.
Aragon was embroiled in controversy in late 2018 when activist investors accumulated enough ANT tokens to give them influence in the DAO and thus cancelled plans to hand control of the treasury back to the community. In response to this Aragon then launched Aragon OSx in March 2019 to modernize the platform.
At the beginning of 2024, Aragon had changed its leadership and reorganized its team, while refocusing on innovation. A new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) was appointed to lead the development of the platform.
In November 2024, Aragon launched the Aragon Foundation, a nonprofit organization governed by a Strategic Council, to carry out the mission of the Aragon Project.
Decentralized blockchain infrastructure on Ethereum and Polygon networks
Not primary focus; platform emphasizes decentralized governance smart contracts and protocol design
Based on official Aragon documentation and product information
| Service | Cost | Details | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| DAO Creation on Ethereum | $50-$200 | Gas fees for deploying smart contracts, varies with network congestion and selected modules | Bitrue |
| DAO Creation on Polygon | ~$0.10 | Almost zero gas fees through Aragon-Polygon partnership (approximately 5,000x discount from Ethereum) | DeFipedia |
| Aragon App (No-Code Platform) | Free to use | No-code hub for designing and managing governance and ownership structures | — |
| Aragon OSx Protocol | Free to use | Smart contract framework for custom DAO development with plugins | — |
| Advisory & Development Services | Custom quote | Bespoke governance and tokenomics infrastructure from 25+ expert team members | Aragon.org |
| Feature | Aragon | DAOstack |
|---|---|---|
| DAO Creation | Yes | Yes |
| On-Chain Voting | Yes | Yes |
| Token-Weighted Voting | Yes | Yes |
| Multi-Signature Support | Yes | Yes |
| Dispute Resolution Court | Yes | Partial |
| Ethereum Deployment Cost | $50-$200 | $50-$200 |
| Polygon Integration | Yes | No |
| No-Code Platform | Yes | Limited |
| Modular App Ecosystem | Yes | Partial |
| Smart Contract Framework | Aragon OSx | Genesis/Hydra |
Aragon has the ability to allow creation of a DAO with on-chain governance and in addition to that Aragon has a significant advantage over DAOStack due to Aragon’s modularity and usability. The no code interface and the modular app store of Aragon allows users who are not tech-savvy to create their own DAOs, whereas DAOStack will appeal to developers.
Use Aragon if you want to create a general purpose DAO, or if you have a technical governance structure, use DAOStack.
Aragon offers a comprehensive and flexible governance platform that can accommodate most organizational forms of DAOs, where Moloch was specifically designed as a platform to facilitate capital efficient grant-giving DAOs. Due to this reason, Aragon has a larger market and more options for customization.
If you are looking to create a general purpose DAO, then use Aragon. However, if you are creating a special grant-distribution organization, then use Moloch.
While Snapshot is a very cost-effective solution for voting and does not require payment for gas when using their service, they do not offer an execution feature or a treasury management feature. Aragon provides a complete organizational infrastructure by integrating voting with on-chain execution and treasury functions, making it better suited for operational DAOs.
Use Aragon for a complete set of tools for your DAO operations, and use Snapshot for only voting-based governance at a lower cost.
Aragon is a platform that enables you to create and manage Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs) on both Ethereum and Polygon. This platform offers a no-code application, which lets you build governance, voting, treasury management and permission systems using smart contracts without having to write code.
The original ANT token is now delisted from exchanges, and the redeeming process for the token has ended; therefore, the focus of Aragon is now solely on the protocol and how it can be used instead of its governance token.
Aragon OSX allows governance logic to be split into multiple modular plugin components each with their own granular access controls. Organizations are able to use an EVM wallet address (wallets, safes or contracts), as the governance body; this increases the security and flexibility of your organization.
Aragon runs on both Ethereum MainNet and Polygon. A number of testnets such as Rinkeby, Mumbai, etc. are also available for development and testing purposes.
Aragon Court is a mechanism to resolve disputes on a decentralized basis. Users stake ANT (which is converted to ANJ) to become jurors, who cast ballots on escalated disputes, and appeals are handled by even larger juror groups.
Yes, the Aragon App itself is a free service to use with the only cost being the blockchain gas fees associated with deploying your applications and configurations. There is additional pricing associated with Enterprise Services and Custom Development Solutions.
Aragon offers on-chain execution (for example real treasury control and binding votes) and Snapshot offers off-chain signaling for free. The former is intended to be used by production DAOs that need enforceable governance.
Yes, Aragon supports the minting and distribution of custom governance tokens during the configuration and setup of your DAO. The no-code app will handle the creation and distribution of your tokens, as well as integrate those tokens with your voting processes.
The number of mature, battle-tested on-chain organization infrastructures that can support large-scale operations such as those of 1,700+ DAOs with $3B+ managed market capitalization is limited. Aragon's modular OSx protocol and no-code application are superior to other offerings in terms of flexibility for producing governance, but it does require familiarity with the blockchain and will incur gas costs. Aragon has successfully transitioned from focusing on token redemption to focusing solely on its protocol.
Aragon excels as production-grade DAO infrastructure for serious Web3 projects that are willing to operate completely on-chain.
Aragon is the well-established leader in on-chain DAO infrastructure that uses modular governance through Aragon OSx and allows for no-code applications to deploy. Supports over 1,700 organizations and manages a total market capitalization of $3B+, which includes both Ethereum and Polygon. Aragon has completed token redemption and now focuses solely on its protocol. In recent months, Aragon has made available, flexible EVM governance bodies and enhanced access controls.
Good - comprehensive protocol documentation from aragon.org, verified usage stats across multiple sources. No current pricing transparency (enterprise services); limited 2026 updates available.
Colony currently supports over 1700 DAOs with over 3 billion dollars in project market capitalization. Colony is utilized by several high-profile organizations such as Lido, Aave and PoolTogether to manage their mission-critical governance systems.
Colony's decentralized dispute resolution system utilizes ANJ Juror tokens. When disputes arise within a DAO, they can be escalated to Colony's decentralized dispute resolution system where staked jurors will resolve them. The dispute resolution process is multi-stage and allows for multiple levels of appeal.
Colony has developed a team of over 25 experts who provide a range of services including custom governance designs, tokenomic engineering and customized development services to help support projects that are scaling.
Colony has made significant improvements to their governance capabilities with the launch of OSx which now enables users to utilize any EVM compatible address to enable governance (i.e. Safes, smart contracts, etc.). Also, Colony has created a gas-free version of their governance functionality utilizing the ANTv2 migration, resulting in a 66% reduction in cost for users.
Colony supports deployment to both the Ethereum and Polygon mainnets and provides testnet sandboxes to allow developers to experiment with their applications. Colony also plans to support additional EVM compatible chains to expand their reach into the future.
Colony utilizes a voting power mechanism based upon ANT balances to determine how much influence each member has in the decision-making process of their organization.
Colony's voting mechanism allows members of a DAO to vote on organizational proposals submitted to the DAO.
Colony allows users to customize the voting mechanisms for their DAO through the use of Colony Apps.
Colony integrates with Safe and other multi-signature contract solutions to enhance the functionality of their governance application.
Colony offers granular access controls to restrict voting rights for specific members of the DAO.
In Colony, the ANT token balance is what determines how much voting power a member has within the DAO.
Delegate voting power through Aragon Network DAO
Delegate to Safe wallets and EVM addresses
DAO-specific governance tokens
ANT staking converts to ANJ for dispute resolution
Primary support for Ethereum mainnet and Polygon with EVM compatibility
Integrates with major wallets, security providers, and leading DAO projects
