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Research · Sector

Altcoins Explained

How to think about the thousands of coins beyond Bitcoin and Ethereum, the categories they fall into, and the risks involved.

Last updated June 19, 2026 12 min read

“Altcoin” simply means any cryptocurrency other than Bitcoin — and sometimes other than Ethereum too. There are thousands of them, ranging from established networks with real usage to short-lived speculative tokens. This page explains the main categories, how to weigh an altcoin, and why they tend to carry more risk & volatility than the largest coins.

Altcoins by market cap

264 altcoins tracked
# ▲Coin Price 1h 24h 7d Market Cap Last 7d
2Ethereum (ETH)ETH$2,256.30▲0.56%▼1.34%▼2.02%$275.69B
4BNB (BNB)BNB$692.46▲0.40%▼2.15%▼5.46%$91.07B
6XRP (XRP)XRP$1.25▲0.34%▲0.18%▼3.32%$79.28B
7Solana (SOL)SOL$91.92▲0.60%▼2.43%▼7.50%$54.25B
8TRON (TRX)TRX$0.3209▲0.26%▲1.81%▼2.11%$30.49B
9Figure Heloc (FIGR_HELOC)FIGR_HELOC$1.03▲0.00%▼0.35%$26.86B
10Hyperliquid (HYPE)HYPE$83.46▲0.20%▼2.85%▲7.99%$19.98B
11Dogecoin (DOGE)DOGE$0.0739▲0.43%▼1.72%▼4.06%$11.56B
13Rain (RAIN)RAIN$0.00638246▼0.70%▲6.53%▼11.03%$4.54B
14LEO Token (LEO)LEO$9.29▼0.15%▼1.10%▲2.80%$8.54B
15Zcash (ZEC)ZEC$1,134.74▲0.70%▼9.81%▼6.59%$19.31B
16Stellar (XLM)XLM$0.1613▲0.35%▼3.44%▼3.54%$5.70B
17Monero (XMR)XMR$626.16▲2.51%▲3.54%▲4.88%$11.79B
18Canton (CC)CC$0.0937▲0.53%▼1.26%▼4.20%$3.75B
19WhiteBIT Coin (WBT)WBT$73.75▲0.39%▼1.73%▼3.40%$8.75B
20Cardano (ADA)ADA$0.1869▲0.35%▼1.98%▼7.84%$7.02B
21Chainlink (LINK)LINK$11.10▲0.28%▼1.88%▼2.15%$8.51B
24Gram (prev. Toncoin) (GRAM)GRAM$1.17▼0.21%▼2.77%▼3.87%$3.32B
25Bitcoin Cash (BCH)BCH$275.05▲0.39%▼0.81%▼1.64%$5.53B
27LAB (LAB)LAB
28MemeCore (M)M$0.8313▲0.60%▼3.37%▼14.55%$1.91B
29Hedera (HBAR)HBAR$0.0692▲0.57%▼2.27%▼8.98%$3.07B
30Litecoin (LTC)LTC$53.72▲0.27%▼2.17%▼4.37%$4.18B
31Sui (SUI)SUI$0.8636▲0.46%▼2.89%▼4.44%$3.57B
32Circle USYC (USYC)USYC$1.14▲0.00%▲0.01%▲0.07%$2.24B
33NEAR Protocol (NEAR)NEAR$3.76▲0.56%▼7.98%▼14.11%$4.93B
34Avalanche (AVAX)AVAX$8.33▲0.46%▼2.50%▼4.70%$3.70B
35Shiba Inu (SHIB)SHIB$0.00000454▲0.33%▼2.01%▼5.68%$2.68B
38Cronos (CRO)CRO$0.0500▲0.23%▼1.67%▼5.25%$2.54B
39Tether Gold (XAUT)XAUT$3,897.80▼0.06%▲0.26%▼2.49%$3.15B
40BlackRock USD Institutional Digital Liquidity Fund (BUIDL)BUIDL$1.00▲0.00%▲0.00%▲0.00%$2.02B
41Bittensor (TAO)TAO$220.88▲0.36%▼3.90%▼10.51%$2.58B
42Worldcoin (WLD)WLD$0.3645▲0.04%▼4.87%▼15.82%$1.36B
44Uniswap (UNI)UNI$7.03▲0.72%▼1.95%▲0.01%$4.27B
45World Liberty Financial (WLFI)WLFI$0.0508▼0.08%▲2.13%▼3.22%$1.61B
46PAX Gold (PAXG)PAXG$3,911.90▼0.05%▲0.20%▼2.37%$1.75B
47Aster (ASTER)ASTER$0.6931▲0.16%▼0.62%▼1.83%$1.74B
48Mantle (MNT)MNT$0.4695▼0.01%▼0.30%▼7.73%$1.55B
49Ondo (ONDO)ONDO$0.3812▲0.31%▼3.94%▼5.90%$1.86B
50Polkadot (DOT)DOT$0.9291▲0.20%▼2.02%▼5.83%$1.59B
52HTX DAO (HTX)HTX$0.00000157▼0.02%▲1.51%▼3.44%$1.39B
53OKB (OKB)OKB$107.85▲0.48%▼4.43%▼0.09%$2.26B
55Pi Network (PI)PI$0.0756▼0.09%▼2.36%▼0.77%$857.04M
57Sky (SKY)SKY$0.0647▲0.48%▼2.87%▼0.04%$1.52B
59Internet Computer (ICP)ICP$2.44▲1.02%▼2.66%▼5.03%$1.36B
60Bitget Token (BGB)BGB$1.74▼0.00%▼2.40%▼7.29%$1.22B
61Morpho (MORPHO)MORPHO$2.13▲0.77%▼3.62%▼1.99%$1.50B
62Pepe (PEPE)PEPE$0.00000468▼0.16%▼3.01%▲8.91%$1.97B
63Ethereum Classic (ETC)ETC$6.92▲0.42%▼1.51%▼7.92%$1.10B
64Aave (AAVE)AAVE$126.92▲1.47%▼4.81%▼2.89%$1.96B
65Quant (QNT)QNT$193.79▲0.59%▼1.79%▼3.04%$2.82B
67Cosmos Hub (ATOM)ATOM$1.41▼1.18%▼3.62%▼14.06%$758.92M
68Invesco Short Duration US Government Securities Fund (USTB)USTB$11.26▲0.00%▲0.00%▲0.06%$640.95M
69Blockchain Capital (BCAP)BCAP
70KuCoin (KCS)KCS$7.11▲0.02%▼0.20%▼2.95%$992.31M
71Spiko EU T-Bills Money Market Fund (EUTBL)EUTBL$1.19▲0.10%▲0.07%▲0.37%$492.27M
73Render (RENDER)RENDER$1.49▲0.75%▼4.21%▼10.61%$794.61M
74Janus Henderson Anemoy Treasury Fund (JTRSY)JTRSY
75Algorand (ALGO)ALGO$0.0909▲0.42%▼2.13%▼11.66%$825.27M
76Kaspa (KAS)KAS$0.0313▲1.07%▼3.52%▼10.01%$870.50M
77Ethena (ENA)ENA$0.1676▲0.11%▼6.11%▼18.94%$2.25B
78NEXO (NEXO)NEXO$0.7450▲0.49%▼2.26%▼5.87%$744.96M
79POL (ex-MATIC) (POL)POL$0.0875▲0.43%▼2.14%▼2.11%$931.09M
80​​Stable (STABLE)STABLE$0.0270▲0.64%▲0.68%▲3.07%$485.40M
81Venice Token (VVV)VVV$21.05▼0.36%▼5.86%▼13.37%$1.03B
82Gate (GT)GT$9.51▼0.08%▼0.11%▼2.01%$995.65M
83JUST (JST)JST$0.1412▼0.28%▲1.68%▲2.64%$1.13B
84DeXe (DEXE)DEXE
85Janus Henderson Anemoy AAA CLO Fund (JAAA)JAAA$1.06▲0.00%▲0.00%▲0.12%$564.81M
86币安人生 (BinanceLife) (币安人生)币安人生$0.5197▲0.58%▼2.02%▲2.77%$519.75M
87Flare (FLR)FLR$0.00597714▲0.20%▼1.49%▼0.87%$524.20M
88Filecoin (FIL)FIL$0.8612▲0.26%▼0.30%▼3.22%$722.81M
89Jupiter (JUP)JUP$0.2417▲0.57%▼4.65%▼11.63%$802.28M
90Beldex (BDX)BDX$0.0724▲0.37%▲0.45%▼1.56%$569.83M
92XDC Network (XDC)XDC$0.0308▲0.60%▼1.54%▼8.28%$613.68M
93YLDS (YLDS)YLDS$0.9986▼0.01%▼0.06%▼0.01%$487.94M
94Aptos (APT)APT$0.6096▲0.22%▼2.44%▼10.72%$538.79M
96Spiko Amundi Overnight Swap Fund (EUR) (EURSAFO)EURSAFO$1.14▲0.10%▲0.07%▲0.37%$1.85B
97Injective (INJ)INJ$7.00▲0.94%▼2.78%▼9.43%$700.27M
98Arbitrum (ARB)ARB$0.1530▲0.66%▼4.35%▼8.17%$1.05B
99A7A5 (A7A5)A7A5$0.0121▲193.94%▲582.33%▲0.62%$473.62M
100Pump.fun (PUMP)PUMP$0.00392634▲0.24%▼3.86%▼4.99%$1.80B
101USX (USX)USX$0.9993▼0.00%▼0.01%▲0.03%$201.43M
102Midnight (NIGHT)NIGHT$0.0401▼0.11%▼2.09%▲1.80%$666.18M
104ADI (ADI)ADI
105Ondo Short-Term U.S. Government Bond Fund (OUSG)OUSG$117.13▲0.00%▲0.02%▲0.07%$317.71M
106Audiera (BEAT)BEAT
107Dash (DASH)DASH$45.47▲0.25%▼4.97%▼16.27%$585.96M
108Provenance Blockchain (HASH)HASH$0.00650293▲0.28%▼13.02%▼12.53%$388.67M
109Artificial Superintelligence Alliance (FET)FET$0.1534▲0.44%▼3.30%▼10.49%$354.54M
110Official Trump (TRUMP)TRUMP$1.57▲0.21%▼4.57%▼6.29%$442.68M
111PancakeSwap (CAKE)CAKE$1.83▲0.31%▼3.10%▼13.21%$581.07M
112Aerodrome Finance (AERO)AERO$0.5963▲0.40%▼4.10%▼10.43%$471.75M
113Lighter (LIT)LIT$3.06▲0.31%▼2.12%▲2.33%$764.59M
114Pudgy Penguins (PENGU)PENGU$0.00684961▲0.34%▼4.71%▼7.35%$430.57M
116VeChain (VET)VET$0.00556923▲0.33%▼2.56%▼12.89%$478.87M
117Kite (KITE)KITE$0.1133▼0.57%▼3.71%▲0.16%$270.90M
118SPX6900 (SPX)SPX$0.3471▲0.85%▼1.20%▼7.35%$323.14M
119Bonk (BONK)BONK$0.00000275▲0.29%▼4.13%▼8.29%$241.88M
120Terra Luna Classic (LUNC)LUNC$0.00004068▲0.57%▼2.20%▼8.24%$224.49M
121Humanity (H)H
122Virtuals Protocol (VIRTUAL)VIRTUAL$0.5754▲0.64%▼2.31%▼5.87%$378.80M
124apxUSD (APXUSD)APXUSD$0.9896▼0.02%▼0.38%▲0.20%$301.18M
125Sei (SEI)SEI$0.0467▲0.27%▼1.57%▼9.51%$314.42M
126Celestia (TIA)TIA$0.4370▲0.21%▼5.17%▼17.24%$432.01M
127Stacks (STX)STX$0.3197▲0.70%▼2.26%▲6.50%$601.09M
129Curve DAO (CRV)CRV$0.2614▼0.04%▼4.00%▼21.98%$413.97M
130Ether.fi (ETHFI)ETHFI$0.5742▲0.50%▼3.75%▼11.07%$573.39M
131The9bit (9BIT)9BIT
132Jito (JTO)JTO$0.3492▲0.26%▼4.24%▼18.08%$188.44M
133Sun Token (SUN)SUN$0.0156▼0.13%▲1.28%▼3.98%$299.01M
134SkyAI (SKYAI)SKYAI
135Kinesis Gold (KAU)KAU$125.85▼0.19%▲0.05%▼1.88%$344.73M
136Pyth Network (PYTH)PYTH$0.0621▲0.78%▼2.57%▼14.60%$489.36M
137Unibase (UB)UB$0.1084▲0.33%▼4.26%▼9.73%$271.02M
138Plasma (XPL)XPL$0.0640▲1.81%▼8.63%▼10.34%$304.88M
139Gnosis (GNO)GNO$104.74▲1.19%▲1.12%▼5.50%$276.47M
140Grass (GRASS)GRASS$0.5480▲0.06%▼6.58%▼20.16%$395.62M
141Conflux (CFX)CFX$0.0452▲0.47%▼1.32%▼4.81%$237.43M
142Tezos (XTZ)XTZ$0.2450▲1.23%▼1.08%▼11.21%$269.67M
143BitTorrent (BTT)BTT$0.00000036▼0.03%▼0.42%▼1.51%$347.89M
144AINFT (NFT)NFT$0.00000023▼0.09%▼0.33%▼0.88%$230.83M
145DoubleZero (2Z)2Z$0.0227▲2.58%▼7.95%▼16.66%$119.33M
146Kinesis Silver (KAG)KAG$49.26▼0.46%▼2.69%▼7.28%$180.89M
147LayerZero (ZRO)ZRO$1.70▲0.91%▼3.99%▲5.73%$679.12M
148Monad (MON)MON$0.0169▲0.72%▼9.48%▼21.07%$199.59M
149Zebec Network (ZBCN)ZBCN$0.00194532▲1.30%▼5.32%▼10.38%$194.53M
151FLOKI (FLOKI)FLOKI$0.00002227▲0.62%▼1.69%▼1.94%$214.76M
152Chiliz (CHZ)CHZ$0.0117▲0.53%▼1.65%▼8.30%$124.34M
153ETHGas (GWEI)GWEI
154Pendle (PENDLE)PENDLE$1.73▲0.36%▼4.09%▼9.92%$301.15M
155Bitcoin SV (BSV)BSV$16.59▲0.07%▼2.16%▼3.14%$333.53M
156JasmyCoin (JASMY)JASMY$0.00364087▲0.26%▼2.34%▼13.59%$180.02M
158Olympus (OHM)OHM$18.43▲0.09%▼1.05%▼4.26%$275.27M
159Telcoin (TEL)TEL
160Lido DAO (LDO)LDO$0.3256▲0.59%▼2.79%▼10.16%$270.08M
161Optimism (OP)OP$0.1075▲0.55%▼4.79%▼2.10%$246.24M
162BUILDon (B)B$0.1218▲0.76%▼3.74%▼7.54%$121.82M
163Ape and Pepe (APEPE)APEPE$0.00000120▲0.39%▲0.48%▲2.76%$252.97M
164coco (COCO)COCO$0.1425▼0.61%▼0.79%▼7.25%$142.53M
165Starknet (STRK)STRK$0.0403▲0.65%▼3.59%▼12.64%$308.98M
166MegaUSD (USDM)USDM
167Kaia (KAIA)KAIA$0.0318▲0.84%▼2.55%▼7.27%$205.53M
168KOGE (KOGE)KOGE$60.46▼1.70%▼2.01%▼4.52%$204.35M
169Akash Network (AKT)AKT$0.5887▲0.11%▼2.31%▼14.48%$176.31M
170Falcon Finance (FF)FF$0.0872▼0.54%▼4.87%▼11.26%$309.27M
172Ethereum Name Service (ENS)ENS$4.72▲0.44%▼3.33%▼7.49%$199.69M
173IOTA (IOTA)IOTA$0.0386▲0.30%▼1.62%▼7.77%$182.36M
174Decred (DCR)DCR$12.64▲0.13%▼1.84%▼11.14%$223.47M
175The Graph (GRT)GRT$0.0193▲0.25%▼2.64%▼10.88%$211.42M
177Tradable NA Rent Financing Platform SSTN (PC0000031)PC0000031$1.00▲0.00%$227.50M
178RealLink (REAL)REAL
179Pieverse (PIEVERSE)PIEVERSE$1.16▼3.03%▲10.44%▲13.57%$319.92M
180USDai (USDAI)USDAI$0.9985▼0.00%▼0.02%▼0.03%$167.35M
182USAT (USAT)USAT$0.9967▼0.16%▼0.23%▼0.19%$179.73M
183Ultima (ULTIMA)ULTIMA
184Nexus (NEX)NEX
185BTSE Token (BTSE)BTSE$1.10▲0.00%▼2.39%▲1.01%$178.14M
186apyUSD (APYUSD)APYUSD$1.42▼0.04%▲0.05%▲1.14%$155.07M
187Axie Infinity (AXS)AXS$0.8215▲0.64%▼2.85%▼12.63%$144.25M
188WeFi (WFI)WFI
189Spiko US T-Bills Money Market Fund (USTBL)USTBL$1.10▲0.00%▲0.03%▲0.08%$172.50M
190Compound (COMP)COMP$19.74▲0.77%▼2.57%▼7.70%$197.36M
191Re Protocol reUSD (REUSD)REUSD$1.11▼0.04%▲0.04%▼0.03%$371.85M
192Trust Wallet (TWT)TWT$0.3987▲0.38%▼3.95%▼8.02%$166.13M
193Maple Finance (SYRUP)SYRUP$0.1542▲0.06%▼2.74%▼10.71%$179.94M
194dogwifhat (WIF)WIF$0.1674▲0.18%▼3.26%▼6.36%$167.19M
195MX (MX)MX$1.59▼0.00%▼0.80%▲1.66%$145.95M
196Raydium (RAY)RAY$1.51▼0.54%▼5.56%▼15.50%$406.59M
197Tradable APAC Diversified Finance Provider SSTN (PC0000033)PC0000033$1.00▲0.00%▲0.00%▲0.00%$162.50M
198Theta Network (THETA)THETA$0.1485▲0.48%▼2.61%▼16.46%$148.50M
199Railgun (RAIL)RAIL$2.13▲0.18%▼5.86%▼9.66%$127.76M
200Billions Network (BILL)BILL
201Polygon (MATIC)MATIC
202Pyth Network (PYTH)PYTH$0.0621▲0.78%▼2.57%▼14.60%$489.36M
203THORChain (RUNE)RUNE$0.5802▼2.04%▲12.48%▼7.71%$191.05M
205Basic Attention Token (BAT)BAT$0.1246▼0.40%▼4.54%▼15.63%$186.35M
206Tagger (TAG)TAG
207Wrapped Beacon ETH (WBETH)WBETH
208Fartcoin (FARTCOIN)FARTCOIN$0.1149▲0.39%▼4.35%▼9.96%$114.90M
209Decentraland (MANA)MANA$0.0713▲0.69%▼2.85%▼7.27%$139.55M
210Centrifuge (CFG)CFG
211Onyxcoin (XCN)XCN$0.00354394▲0.74%▼1.85%▼9.75%$140.28M
212Convex Finance (CVX)CVX$1.91▲0.05%▼4.05%▼15.77%$177.69M
213Arweave (AR)AR$3.03▲0.72%▼1.19%▼10.22%$198.65M
214The Sandbox (SAND)SAND$0.0437▲0.86%▼3.73%▼8.06%$128.37M
215Drift Staked SOL (DSOL)DSOL
216Ribbita by Virtuals (TIBBIR)TIBBIR
217Pieverse (PIEVERSE)PIEVERSE$1.16▼3.03%▲10.44%▲13.57%$319.92M
217Sentient (SENT)SENT$0.0195▲0.98%▼0.78%▼6.37%$140.79M
218Shuffle (SHFL)SHFL$0.3823▲1.29%▼7.25%▼17.99%$191.29M
221Reserve Protocol ETH Plus (ETH+)ETH+
222SafePal Token (SFP)SFP
223edgeX (EDGE)EDGE$0.3175▲2.05%▼5.88%▼4.54%$111.11M
224The Vault Staked SOL (VSOL)VSOL
225Maker (MKR)MKR
226Block Street (BSB)BSB
228Vision (VSN)VSN$0.0353▲0.19%▼3.57%▼9.38%$135.33M
229GoMining Token (GOMINING)GOMINING$0.3980▲0.18%▼4.05%▲7.33%$160.25M
230Vaulta (A)A$0.0790▼0.24%▼1.42%▼12.38%$132.58M
231KAITO (KAITO)KAITO
232Cheems (CHEEMS)CHEEMS
233eCash (XEC)XEC$0.00000597▲0.12%▼3.27%▼13.43%$119.97M
235LayerZero (ZRO)ZRO$1.70▲0.91%▼3.99%▲5.73%$679.12M
236Astherus Staked BNB (ASBNB)ASBNB
238Story (IP)IP
239Golem (GLM)GLM
240YZY (YZY)YZY
241AWE Network (AWE)AWE$0.0634▲1.09%▼1.62%▼1.86%$123.09M
242Zeebu (ZBU)ZBU
243Banana For Scale (BANANA)BANANA
245TAC Protocol (TAC)TAC
245Bitway (BTW)BTW$0.9305▼0.45%▼5.35%▼32.25%$1.40B
2461INCH (1INCH)1INCH$0.0796▲0.65%▼1.92%▼8.28%$111.83M
247AB (prev. Newton) (AB)AB
248Home (HOME)HOME
249BitMart Token (BMX)BMX
250o1.exchange (O)O
251Sonic (S)S$0.0372▲0.76%▼3.41%▼19.26%$144.38M
252Rollbit Coin (RLB)RLB$0.0719▼0.34%▼3.58%▼3.33%$110.97M
253Gala (GALA)GALA
254PulseX (PLSX)PLSX
255Pulsechain (PLS)PLS
258Tokenize Xchange (TKX)TKX
259Smilek to the Bank (SMILEK)SMILEK
260ApeCoin (APE)APE
262WEMIX Token (WEMIX)WEMIX
262Aethir (ATH)ATH
263Sanctum Staked SOL (SCNSOL)SCNSOL
264Litentry (LIT)LIT$3.06▲0.31%▼2.12%▲2.33%$764.59M
265Origin Ether (OETH)OETH
266River (RIVER)RIVER
267Magma Finance (MAGMA)MAGMA
268ViciCoin (VCNT)VCNT
269Fantom (FTM)FTM
270Four (FORM)FORM
271Renzo Restaked ETH (EZETH)EZETH
272Bybit Staked SOL (BBSOL)BBSOL
273BitDCA (BDCA)BDCA
274Livepeer (LPT)LPT
275MultiversX (Elrond) (EGLD)EGLD
276DYDX Chain (DYDX)DYDX
277Reserve Rights (RSR)RSR
278Synthetix Network (SNX)SNX
279UXLINK (UXLINK)UXLINK
280AI Rig Complex (ARC)ARC
282Undeads Games (UDS)UDS
283UltimaEcosystem (ULTIMA)ULTIMA
284staked USD1+ (SUSD1+)SUSD1+
285HEX (Pulsechain) (HEX)HEX
286Beam Token (BEAM)BEAM$0.00417157▲0.26%▼15.33%▲26.49%$209.90M
286Binance-Peg SOL (SOL)SOL$91.92▲0.60%▼2.43%▼7.50%$54.25B
288BNB Attestation Service (BAS)BAS
289Siren (SIREN)SIREN
291Useless Coin (USELESS)USELESS$0.1201▲0.38%▼4.39%▼19.93%$120.07M
292Qtum (QTUM)QTUM
293Arkham (ARKM)ARKM
2940x (ZRX)ZRX
295Pharos (PROS)PROS
295Gas (GAS)GAS
297ZIGChain (ZIG)ZIG
298MAG7.ssi (MAG7.SSI)MAG7.SSI
299AIOZ Network (AIOZ)AIOZ$0.0910▲0.18%▲0.20%▼5.42%$117.27M
300Comedian (BAN)BAN
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Live data — click a column to sort, search to filter, or open any coin for its full price page. Figures update through the day.

The main categories

Most altcoins fall into a handful of buckets. Knowing which one a coin belongs to tells you a lot about what it is trying to do and what could move its price.

CategoryWhat it isExample use
Layer 1Base blockchains that settle their own transactionsSmart-contract platforms competing with Ethereum
Layer 2Networks built on top of a layer 1 to scale itCheaper, faster Ethereum transactions
DeFi tokensGovern or power decentralised finance appsExchanges, lending markets
StablecoinsTokens designed to hold a steady valueTrading, payments, savings
Utility / app tokensUsed inside a specific product or networkStorage, computation, gaming
Meme coinsDriven mainly by community and speculationHighly volatile, often no underlying use

Stablecoins are important enough to get their own page — see stablecoins — and DeFi tokens connect to the wider world of DeFi.

Why altcoins are riskier

Smaller coins usually have thinner liquidity, more concentrated ownership, and less battle-tested code than Bitcoin or Ethereum. That means larger price swings, sharper drawdowns, and a higher chance a project simply fades away. The further down the market-cap rankings you go, the more these risks compound. Read risk & volatility before committing capital, and size positions with the position-size calculator.

A practical evaluation checklist

  • What does it do? Is there a real use, or just a narrative?
  • Who uses it? Look for genuine activity, not just price action.
  • Supply & distribution. How many tokens exist, and who holds them?
  • Liquidity. Can you enter and exit without moving the price?
  • Track record. How long has it run, and through how many market cycles?

Our guide to reading a market page explains how to interpret the supply and volume figures behind several of these questions.

Track altcoins on TBN Express

Browse the broader market through our live market data, check the day’s market sentiment on the Fear & Greed Index, and look up unfamiliar terms in the glossary.

Bitcoin dominance and “alt season”

Traders often watch Bitcoin dominance — bitcoin’s share of the total crypto market value — as a rough gauge of where money is flowing. When dominance rises, capital is concentrating in bitcoin; when it falls, money is often rotating into altcoins, a pattern some call an “alt season”. These are descriptive observations, not laws: dominance can move for many reasons, and it tells you nothing about whether any individual altcoin is sound. Use it as context, never as a signal to buy.

Tokenomics: supply and incentives

Two coins with the same price can be worth wildly different amounts in aggregate because of how many tokens exist. Before judging value, look at circulating supply versus total and maximum supply, and check whether large tranches are scheduled to unlock for early investors or the team. A token with most of its supply still locked can face selling pressure as those tokens are released. Reading these figures is a core skill we cover in how to read a market page.

Liquidity, listings and access

Smaller altcoins can be thinly traded, meaning a relatively modest order moves the price noticeably and selling in a hurry may be costly. Where a coin is listed matters too: assets traded only on a handful of venues carry more access and counterparty risk than those listed broadly. None of this makes an altcoin “good” or “bad” — it simply shapes how easily you can enter and, just as importantly, exit a position.

Do your own research. The number of altcoins runs into the thousands, and many will not last. Treat marketing, social hype and price momentum as noise, not evidence.

Storing and securing altcoins

Holding a wide range of altcoins adds practical complexity that bitcoin alone does not. Different assets live on different networks, and not every wallet supports every token, so you need to confirm compatibility before moving funds — sending a token to a wallet or network that does not support it can mean losing it permanently. Smaller or newer coins are also more likely to be available only on a limited set of exchanges, concentrating counterparty risk. The same self-custody principles from Bitcoin apply: whoever controls the keys controls the coins, and a written-down recovery phrase kept offline is the foundation of safe storage.

A sensible approach to altcoins

Because the altcoin universe is enormous and most projects will not endure, a disciplined process matters more than enthusiasm. Favour assets you can actually explain — what problem the project claims to solve, who is building it, how the token is used, and how supply is distributed over time. Be especially wary of coins whose entire case rests on price momentum or social-media hype, since those provide no durable reason to expect value. Above all, size any position so that a total loss would be survivable, because for many altcoins that remains a real possibility. None of this is a recommendation to buy any particular asset — it is a framework for thinking clearly before you do.

Where altcoins fit alongside Bitcoin

It helps to keep some perspective on scale. Bitcoin and Ethereum together account for a large share of the total crypto market, while thousands of altcoins compete for the remainder — and the long tail of smaller projects is where both the biggest gains and the most complete losses tend to occur. Many altcoins are correlated with the broader market, often rising and falling alongside bitcoin rather than independently of it, which means owning more of them does not automatically reduce risk. Approaching altcoins as the higher-risk, more speculative end of an already volatile asset class — rather than as lottery tickets or guaranteed “next bitcoins” — keeps expectations grounded. The aim of this page is to help you read and weigh these assets clearly; it is not a suggestion to buy any of them.

Frequently asked questions

Are altcoins a good investment?
TBN Express does not give investment advice. Altcoins can offer higher potential upside than large-cap coins but also carry significantly higher risk of loss, including total loss. Always do your own research.
What is "altcoin season"?
An informal term for periods when altcoins broadly outperform Bitcoin. It is a description of market behaviour, not a scheduled event, and such periods can reverse quickly.
How many altcoins are there?
Thousands, with new ones launching constantly. The vast majority have little liquidity or lasting usage, so the headline count is far larger than the number of meaningful projects.
Why do some altcoins go to zero?
Projects can fail because of weak demand, flawed technology, loss of funding, security exploits, or abandonment by their teams. Thin liquidity makes a collapse in price faster and harder to exit.

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