NFT Standards Explained: ERC-721, ERC-1155, and What They Mean for Your Digital Assets
When you buy an NFT, you’re not just buying a picture—you’re buying a piece of code that follows a set of rules called an NFT standard, a technical blueprint that defines how digital assets are created, owned, and transferred on blockchains. Also known as token standards, these rules make sure your NFT can be seen, traded, and verified across wallets and marketplaces. Without them, your digital art would be just a file with no proof of ownership.
Two standards dominate the space: ERC-721, the original NFT standard on Ethereum that lets you own one unique, indivisible asset, and ERC-1155, a more flexible standard that lets one contract handle both unique items and multiple copies of the same item. ERC-721 is what made CryptoPunks and Bored Apes possible—each one is one-of-a-kind. ERC-1155 is behind games like Axie Infinity, where you might own 3 rare dragons and 50 common land plots—all in the same smart contract. That’s why some NFTs cost thousands and others are worth pennies: the standard affects scarcity, function, and how they interact with apps.
These standards don’t just affect trading—they shape how NFTs are used. If an NFT uses ERC-721, it can’t be split or bundled easily. If it uses ERC-1155, developers can create dynamic NFTs that change based on game progress or unlock new features when you hold multiple tokens. That’s why projects like TAUR Generative NFT Collection, a profit-sharing NFT system requiring ownership and token holdings rely on ERC-1155: it lets them mix unique art with token-based rewards in one system. Meanwhile, fake NFT projects often ignore these standards entirely, making their tokens unusable outside their own website.
What you see as a JPEG is really a link to a smart contract following one of these rules. If the contract isn’t built right, your NFT won’t show up in your wallet, can’t be sold on OpenSea, and might vanish if the project disappears. That’s why checking the standard matters more than the artwork. It’s not about the image—it’s about the code behind it.
Most of the NFTs you’ll find in the posts below—whether they’re tied to airdrops, profit-sharing systems, or meme collections—depend on these standards to even exist. Some use them well. Others ignore them completely. Knowing the difference helps you spot real utility from empty hype. Below, you’ll see real examples of how these standards play out in the wild: from legitimate collections that actually work, to tokens that look like NFTs but behave like spam.