Setting up a 1-node ethereum testnet is not too hard (though it&#x27;s not especially user-friendly either). I did some work with Ethereum last year, and I ran a 1-node testnet on my laptop when working on code. The node was mining constantly, but it didn&#x27;t seem to demand too much from the CPU. No excessive fan noise or heat.<p>Both embark and truffle, two commonly-used frameworks, have modes that exercise the CPU even less, though I found them a bit hit or miss. I&#x27;m sure both have improved since, though.<p>I did a quick test run on the main network as well (which wasn&#x27;t too expensive - maybe 1ETH). You&#x27;re definitely better off using a testnet! - the turnaround time is much shorter.