Bitcoin Dominance (BTCD)
Bitcoin dominance, often shortened to BTCD or BTC.D, is the share of the total cryptocurrency market capitalization that belongs to Bitcoin. On October 20, 2026, Bitcoin accounted for about 60.1% of a crypto market worth roughly $2.73 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap, close to its highest reading of the year. Traders watch the number because it shows whether money is concentrating in Bitcoin or spreading out into altcoins.
What Does Bitcoin (BTC) Dominance Mean?
According to the BTC dominance definition, BTCD is the ratio between the market capitalization of Bitcoin and the market capitalization of all cryptocurrencies combined, expressed as a percentage:
Bitcoin dominance = Bitcoin market cap ÷ total crypto market cap × 100
With Bitcoin’s market capitalization at about $1.64 trillion and the whole market at about $2.73 trillion on October 20, 2026, dominance works out to about 60%. Ether, the second-largest asset, had a share of about 10.7%. Because the figure depends on which coins a data provider counts, readings differ slightly between CoinMarketCap, CoinGecko and TradingView’s BTC.D chart, so it is best to compare numbers from the same source.
| Metric (October 20, 2026) | Value |
|---|---|
| Bitcoin dominance | ~60.1% |
| Ether dominance | ~10.7% |
| Total crypto market cap | ~$2.73 trillion |
| Stablecoin market cap | ~$281 billion |
| 2026 range of Bitcoin dominance | ~57.3% (June 4) to ~60.6% (May 5) |
Source: CoinMarketCap global market data.
Blockchainreporter’s reading on November 8, 2026: Bitcoin dominance stood at about 60.0% on CoinMarketCap, little changed from 60.1% on October 20, even though the total crypto market fell from about $2.73 trillion to about $2.54 trillion. Bitcoin and the altcoins fell at roughly the same pace, so the drop did not signal a rotation in either direction. Ether’s share held near 10.7%, and stablecoins, worth about $273 billion, made up about 10.8%.
Relation of Bitcoin Dominance To the Overall Market Cap
Bitcoin dominance moves whenever Bitcoin’s value changes relative to the rest of the market, so it can rise in a falling market and fall in a rising one. If Bitcoin drops 5% while altcoins drop 10%, dominance goes up even though every price is lower. That is what has happened in October 2026: dominance climbed from about 58.6% on October 1 to about 60.1% on October 20 as altcoins fell harder than Bitcoin and US spot Ether ETFs lost about $1.06 billion during the month.
Stablecoins complicate the picture. Tokens such as USDT and USDC are worth about $281 billion, or roughly 10% of the market, and they count toward the total even though their prices do not move. When investors sell crypto for stablecoins, the stablecoin share grows and Bitcoin dominance can fall without any rotation into altcoins. Excluding stablecoins, Bitcoin’s share of the market is closer to 67%. For a live view of the wider market, see our daily crypto market today page and the Bitcoin price page.
The Effect of Bitcoin Dominance over the Altcoins
Back when there were fewer altcoins in the crypto market, Bitcoin accounted for more than two-thirds of its value until April 2017. The initial coin offering boom changed that: on January 8, 2018, Bitcoin’s share fell to about 33%, its lowest on record, as money poured into new tokens. Dominance dropped again to around 40% in 2021, when Ethereum and other large altcoins outperformed.
Traders read the trend in dominance as a guide to market rotation. A rising BTCD usually means capital is moving into Bitcoin, which happens both in early bull markets and in risk-off periods when investors cut their altcoin exposure first. A falling BTCD, when the total market is also rising, is often a sign of an “altcoin season,” in which smaller tokens outperform Bitcoin. A falling BTCD in a falling market, on the other hand, usually reflects a shift into stablecoins rather than strength in altcoins.
Dominance is a useful context indicator, not a timing tool. It says nothing about whether prices will rise or fall, and it is best read alongside the total market cap, Bitcoin ETF flows and stablecoin supply. Our analysis of how Bitcoin dominance fits into a bear-market regime shows how these signals can be combined.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Bitcoin dominance?
Bitcoin dominance is Bitcoin’s share of the total cryptocurrency market capitalization, shown as a percentage. It is calculated by dividing Bitcoin’s market cap by the market cap of all cryptocurrencies and multiplying by 100. On October 20, 2026, Bitcoin dominance was about 60.1%, according to CoinMarketCap, which means Bitcoin made up roughly three-fifths of a crypto market worth about $2.73 trillion.
What does a rising Bitcoin dominance mean?
A rising Bitcoin dominance means Bitcoin is gaining value relative to the rest of the crypto market. That can happen when investors favor Bitcoin in the early stage of a bull market, or when they cut riskier altcoin positions first during a sell-off. In October 2026, dominance rose from about 58.6% to about 60.1% as altcoins fell faster than Bitcoin.
What is a good Bitcoin dominance level for altcoin season?
There is no fixed level. Altcoin seasons have historically come with sharp drops in Bitcoin dominance, such as the fall to about 33% in January 2018 and to around 40% in 2021, but what matters is the direction of the trend while the total market is rising. A falling dominance in a falling market usually points to money moving into stablecoins instead.
Why do Bitcoin dominance figures differ between websites?
Data providers track different sets of coins and treat stablecoins and small tokens differently, so their totals for the crypto market are not the same. CoinMarketCap, CoinGecko and TradingView’s BTC.D chart can show readings a point or more apart on the same day. Excluding stablecoins also changes the result: on October 20, 2026, Bitcoin’s share without stablecoins was close to 67%.