When Aggregation Is Mandatory

This page explains the boundary between optional aggregation and mandatory aggregation. The key concept is simple: if the consumer is on-chain, the contract needs a receipt, so aggregation is required; if the consumer is only your application, you can stop at the verification result.

Start with mandatory scenarios: when your verification result must enter another chain or contract, aggregation is not an optimization; it is the only viable path. The reason is simple: contracts do not verify proofs directly; they only accept receipts (Merkle roots) and Merkle paths. Without a receipt, there is nothing a contract can verify.

An engineering analogy: aggregation “issues the acceptance receipt,” and the contract is the “gate that checks only receipts.” Without the receipt, the gate will not let you through.

Now the non-mandatory scenario: when verification results are consumed only in Web2 or internal systems, verify-only is enough. You only need the ProofVerified event or Finalized status as a business signal, without entering the receipt publication flow.

A common misunderstanding is “verification success means it is usable on-chain.” In reality, verification success is only the first step; on-chain consumption requires aggregation. If you treat verify-only as on-chain-ready, the contract side will keep failing.

Here is a minimal decision checklist to help you determine whether aggregation is required:

if consumer_is_contract or cross_chain:
  aggregation_required = true
else:
  aggregation_required = false

⚠️ Warning: Do not treat “verification success” as “on-chain usable.” Contracts only accept receipt + Merkle path.

💡 Tip: If you are unsure whether the consumer will be on-chain, design for verify-only first; once you commit to on-chain consumption, switch to the aggregation path.

Close with one sentence: aggregation is the ticket for on-chain consumption, not a performance optimization tool. The next chapter covers common questions and troubleshooting to help with real-world integration issues.