Top cryptocurrency 2021 by cost.
What is the top cryptocurrency by price right now? Here's our guide to Bitcoin, Ethereum, Dogecoin, BinanceCoin and more
It's quite easy to find out what the top cryptocurrency is at any given time: basically, it's Bitcoin. However, the marketplace moves so quick that it's a lot more difficult to keep up with what's happening.
That's due to the fact whilst we all realize about Bitcoin and the way rich we’d be nowadays if we’d invested in it 10 years ago, there are hundreds, if not thousands, or other cryptocurrencies. Many are alternative — supposedly improved — variations of Bitcoin, but others, like Ethereum, Cardano and Chainlink, are much more than just a forex. And then there's Dogecoin, which began out off as a joke but is now one of the most precious cryptocurrencies of all, as well as "memecoins" such as Shiba Inu coin.
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Whether you are considering making an investment or are just intrigued by this new monetary world, it's well worth locating out what the top cryptocurrency performers are. And unlike 10 years ago, we now know that it is a legit asset, as big banks, funds, and millions of people include crypto in their funding portfolios.
Latest cryptocurrency news (up to date May 15)
The crypto market is improving after a turbulent few of days sparked by Elon Musk's tweet that Tesla could not accept Bitcoin as fee due to worries over its environmental impact.
Bitcoin has dropped from $59,000 to $48,000 as of this writing, down about 18% for the week.
The Binance exchange is reportedly under research by U.S. agencies. According to Bloomberg, the U.S. DoJ and IRS are probing it in terms of multiple offenses.
An Elon Musk tweet stating that he was "Working with Doge devs to enhance system transaction efficiency. Potentially promising" sent Dogecoin soaring. It is now at $0.50, though that's down 29% in the last 7 days.
What is the top cryptocurrency by price?
So, which is the top cryptocurrency right now? One approach is to look at marketplace capitalization — basically the full greenback value of a company's shares of stock. And in that regard, it's hard to see past Bitcoin and Ethereum, that have full-size leads over their respective competition.
You can also look at the price of an person cryptocurrency share, or coin, which is useful for understanding how well (or otherwise) a crypto is performing, but it does not constantly tell the overall story. So we're sticking with market cap for this guide to the top cryptocurrency performers right now.
That said, some of the other crypto tasks listed below are super exciting and truly worth searching further into. And with new cryptocurrencies such as SafeMoon and Chia arising reputedly every day, we'll be updating this top cryptocurrency list regularly.
Editors' Note: This roundup does not represent funding advice and also you should be aware that buying cryptocurrency, like any funding, entails risk. In fact, cryptocurrency is in some ways more of a risk than other investments, due to the huge rises and falls withinside the value of even the top cryptocurrencies. We'd propose never spending more than you may afford to lose.
With that caveat in mind, here are all of the top cryptocurrencies (by marketplace cap as of May 15) and the tales behind them.
- Bitcoin
Bitcoin market cap: $902 billion
Bitcoin value: $47,908
The Bitcoin story: Bitcoin has been round since 2008 and is the blue chip cryptocurrency. It has, by far, the biggest marketplace cap, the very best coin value, and the biggest community of users.
Bitcoin was created by an unknown person or group who goes by the name of Satoshi Nakamoto. It was alleged to be the cash of the future, and even though you can use it today to buy many goods and services, you wouldn’t use it to buy a cup of coffee due to the fact the cost of the transaction would be too high.
Think of Bitcoin rather like the gold of the future: not really beneficial for daily transactions, but you want to have some for its saved value. It’s also like gold in that it has a limited supply, that's one of the matters that makes Bitcoin so appealing to investors: a total of 21 million Bitcoins will ever be released, which makes Bitcoin inflation-proof.
Bitcoin overall performance history: Like all cryptos, Bitcoin started out worth truely nothing. In 2017 it took off from under $1,000 to over $20,000, but inside a year was down round $4,000. In late 2020 it began skyrocketing again, this time from around $10,000 to a high of more than $60,000, earlier than losing steeply this week. It's presently in the high $47,000 range.
How to buy Bitcoin: Bitcoin can be bought on crypto exchanges along with Coinbase, Binance, and Kraken; at Bitcoin ATMs; on PayPal; and on Robinhood. Don’t be cast off by the high price of a coin: you may make investments as little as $25 in Bitcoin on Coinbase.
- Ethereum (ETH)
Ethereum marketplace cap: $447 billion
Ether value: $3,812
The Ethereum story: If there's another contender for the top cryptocurrency title, it's Ethereum. But it doesn’t compete with Bitcoin. It’s vital to note that many so-called cryptocurrencies aren’t straight-up currencies like Bitcoin. Some, like Ethereum, are rather precise technology that also have a coin component. In Ethereum’s case, its currency is called Ether, and it can be used in programs run on the Ethereum platform.
Ethereum is the leader in what’s known as these “smart contract” platforms. While Bitcoin was created for one use case — as a forex — Ethereum was based by Vitalik Buterin in 2015 with bigger and broader ambitions. The blockchain it runs on is programmable, that means it can run programs, or apps, in a decentralized way, i.e., on millions of computer systems at once. This opens up many feasible use cases, from generation and finance to gaming and collectibles, making Ethereum an attractive funding.
Ethereum overall performance history: In the beyond year, Ethereum’s price has shot up from round $200 to well over $3,000. In fact, it lately passed $4,000 for the first time in early May and reached an all-time high of more than $4,350 lately before dipping.
How to buy Ethereum: You should buy ETH at the major crypto exchanges, Robinhood, and PayPal.
- BinanceCoin (BNB)
BinanceCoin marketplace cap: $88.9 billion
BinanceCoin value: $574
The BinanceCoin story: BinanceCoin was released in 2017 by the Binance cryptocurrency trade, the world’s biggest crytpo trade by volume. During its initial coin offering (ICO), it sold 100 million coins to the general public at $0.15 per coin. BinanceCoin can be used to pay transaction costs on the Binance trade, to trade for other cryptocurrencies, and to pay for some goods and services. Every quarter, Binance uses 20% of its earnings to shop for back and ruin BinanceCoins. This will hold until Binance buys back and destroys 50% of the total supply, making its coin scarcer and consequently more precious.
BinanceCoin overall performance history: Since launching in 2017, BinanceCoin has made a long, slow climb to about $60 a coin, before taking pictures upwards in February 2021. As of today (Saturday, May 15) it was buying and selling in the $570 range.
How to shop for BinanceCoin: The best area to buy, sell, exchange, and hold BinanceCoin is Binance!