Uniswap posted its strongest network activity in a year this week, but the on-chain momentum has not translated into price strength. UNI trades near $7 after retreating from September's peak above $10, and the token remains below its 200-day moving average as October's correction continues.

For a decentralized exchange, address counts are among the most closely watched adoption gauges, since they track how many wallets actually interact with the protocol on a given day — a reading that can move independently of price.

According to data published by on-chain analytics firm Santiment, the protocol recorded 14,591 daily active addresses and 13,137 new UNI addresses — its highest yearly activity and largest network growth spike since September 2020.

Network Growth Follows Ecosystem Upgrades

In its latest report, Santiment Intelligence highlighted the surge alongside several ecosystem upgrades. Aggregator Hooks now route external liquidity through Uniswap v4, while VolatilePair Hooks have expanded dynamic pricing — both built on v4's hooks system, which lets developers attach custom logic to liquidity pools. In addition, Unichain's OP Enterprise upgrade was scheduled for October 29, a detail noted in the firm's accompanying X post. The report presents the upgrades alongside the usage spike without attributing the address growth to any single change.

On the price side, Santiment identified $7 as the level UNI needs to hold, with $7.50 representing the first confirmation of stronger momentum. The report also flagged $8 as a potential price target if network activity remains elevated and the token maintains support.

The figures present a divergence: adoption metrics sit at yearly highs even as UNI consolidates below its long-term moving average, a combination that keeps both network usage and price levels in focus. It is also why analysts typically read on-chain data alongside price rather than in isolation — usage can strengthen while market sentiment deteriorates.

Correction Leaves Moving Averages as Resistance

UNI's price history from April 29 to October 29, 2026, shows a steep first-half slide, with the token falling from approximately $3.30–$3.80 toward $2.40–$2.50 between late April and June. It then recovered through July and August, reaching around $4.50 before accelerating above $7 in late August and September. UNI briefly approached $10.00–$10.80 around September 23, but October brought a sharp reversal that pushed the price back below $8 and toward $7.

The 50-day moving average now slopes downward near $7, while the 200-day average stands at $7.88. Both are widely followed trend gauges, and price trading beneath them is conventionally read as a sign of weak momentum — which is why $7.88 remains overhead resistance, with $7.30–$7.50 forming a nearer resistance zone.

Key Levels and Adoption Signals Remain in Focus

Immediate support lies between $6.60 and $6.80, followed by $6.00. A break below the first support zone could extend the correction, while a recovery above $7.88 would strengthen the technical outlook.

Notably, Santiment's adoption figures contrast with the chart's most recent activity readings. The chart's orange bars show the latest daily active address reading near 122, below September's spike. As the report notes, active addresses alone cannot establish whether users are buying or selling UNI — making the interplay between network growth and price levels the main thread to follow going forward.