Both networks aim to connect with financial institutions to reduce the time and cost of transactions globally.
Yet unlike Ripple, which is more focused on working with banks, Stellar is more focused on emerging markets and wider application.
Stellar operates in a similar way as other decentralized platforms for transactions and payments. Stellar has its own network with a ledger that is updated every 2-5 seconds.
The Stellar blockchain also has its own cryptocurrency Stellar Lumens - XLM.