What is a Market Cap?

Tokenomics and crypto research can be hard to wrap your head around - especially when it comes to market cap.

But don't worry, let's break down what market cap is and how it's calculated so that you can start making more informed decisions about which projects you want to invest in.

What is a Market Cap?

Market cap - or market capitalization - is generally seen as the most important metric when it comes to evaluating a cryptocurrency's value. It's simply the total dollar market value of all outstanding tokens, multiplied by the current price of a single token. To put it another way, you can think of it as the estimated cost that would be required to purchase every single existing token on the open market at its current price.

Market cap can tell you a lot about how much investors are willing to pay for an asset. Generally speaking, coins with higher market caps have more liquidity and greater popularity than those with lower market caps. This makes sense considering that it takes a lot of investment - both in terms of time and money - to build up the infrastructure and trust necessary for such projects. For example, Bitcoin currently has the highest market cap, which likely reflects its established position as the most popular cryptocurrency in the world.

Why does this Matter?

The value of a cryptocurrency can be expressed in two different ways: either through its market cap or its circulating supply (the number of tokens that are currently in circulation). Market cap takes both into consideration, allowing you to better gauge the potential value of an asset. It also helps investors determine whether or not a particular project is overvalued or undervalued compared to other projects with similar features and characteristics.

How to Calculate Market Cap in Crypto

The total market capitalization of a cryptocurrency can be easily calculated by simply multiplying the current price of the crypto asset with its circulating supply. For example, if a crypto has a circulation supply of 30 Million tokens and each token is priced at $10, then the total market cap would equal 300 Million dollars (30M x 10$ = 300M). As another example, if the current price of a token is $5 and its circulating supply is 60 Million, then its total market cap would equal 300 million dollars (60M x 5$ = 300M).

Note that market cap factors in circulating supply and not the total supply.

What's the difference?

The difference between circulating supply and total supply is that circulating supply only takes into account the amount of tokens currently in circulation, whereas total supply takes into account the maximum number of tokens that will ever be created.

What Does Market Cap Say About a Cryptocurrency?

Market cap is one of the most important metrics when it comes to evaluating and comparing cryptocurrencies. A higher market cap usually means more liquidity and better chances of survival in the crypto markets but it doesn't guarantee success by any means. For example, projects with larger market caps may have a certain level of stability due to high liquidity, but they can also be subject to manipulation from large holders and thus present bad investment options. On the other hand, smaller coins with lower market caps may be more volatile but potentially offer greater upside potential. Think of it this way, a higher market cap can mean more eyes and a bigger community, but it also means that the price may not have much room to grow.

What is the Right Market Cap for a Cryptocurrency?

There isn't one right answer to this question as different investors may have different strategies when it comes to evaluating cryptocurrencies. Generally speaking, however, most experienced investors tend to favor coins with lower market caps as they present a greater opportunity for price appreciation over time.

Is Market Cap the Best Way to Measure the Popularity of a Cryptocurrency?

The concept behind market cap is often subject to criticism due to it not taking into account the real usage of a cryptocurrency. For example, two coins may have the same market cap but one might be more widely used than the other. As such, some investors prefer to use metrics like daily trading volume or active addresses as alternative ways to measure the popularity of crypto assets.

How Market Cap Affects Volatility

A higher market cap usually means more stability for a given asset, as there is usually more liquidity and less risk of manipulation from large holders. This can reduce the volatility of an asset, making it an attractive option for investors looking to minimize their downside risk. On the other hand, smaller coins with lower market caps can be much more volatile, but they may also offer greater upside potential if the project succeeds in gaining traction.

Why is this important?

Finding the right market cap for a given cryptocurrency is important because it serves as an indication of whether or not a particular project is overvalued or undervalued compared to other projects with similar features and characteristics. In addition, understanding the concept behind market cap can help investors make better decisions when selecting which cryptocurrencies to invest in and help them understand why some coins have more value than others.

When evaluating crypto projects, checking the total market capitalization of a coin is an important step in your research process and should be considered alongside other metrics such as trading volume or liquidity ratios before making any investment decisions. Nonetheless, no single metric should be taken in isolation when analyzing crypto assets and each investor should do their own due diligence before investing in any project.

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