Methodology

Market Data

CoinMarketCap provides up-to-the-minute updates for all market data found on the site. Every minute, the various exchanges are queried for their most recent market data. All data is run through several data cleaning and verification algorithms to ensure data integrity. Here is a summary of how each metric is calculated:

(1) Price (Market Pair)

The price for each individual market pair is calculated by taking the unconverted price reported directly from the exchange and converting it to USD using CoinMarketCap’s existing reference prices. Let’s take LTC/BTC market as an example:

Let (E) be the price of LTC/BTC reported directly from the exchange.
Let (C) be the last known reference price of BTC from CoinMarketCap in USD.
Let (D) be the derived price reported on CoinMarketCap for the market pair.

For this example, let (E) = 0.01 BTC / 1 LTC and let (C) = 10,000 USD / 1 BTC.

D = E * C
D = (0.01 BTC / 1 LTC) * (10,000 USD / 1 BTC) = 100 USD / 1 LTC

Therefore, the derived price for LTC/BTC on this specific market pair is $100 USD.

Note: Any conversion into other fiat currencies (for example, EUR) are converted from the USD price based on current FX rates provided by openexchangerates.org.

(2) Volume (Market Pair)

The volume for each market pair is calculated by taking the 24h volume reported directly from the exchange in quote units, and converting it to USD using CoinMarketCap’s existing reference prices. Let’s take LTC/BTC market as an example:

Let (E) be the 24h volume of LTC/BTC reported directly from the exchange in quote units.
Let (C) be the last known reference price of BTC from CoinMarketCap in USD.
Let (D) be the derived volume reported on CoinMarketCap for the market.

For this example, let (E) = 100 BTC and let (C) = 10,000 USD / 1 BTC.

D = E * C
D = (100 BTC * 10,000 USD / 1 BTC) = 1,000,000 USD

Therefore, the derived volume for LTC/BTC on this specific market pair is $1,000,000 USD.

Note: Any conversion into other fiat currencies (for example, EUR) are converted from the USD volume based on current FX rates.

(3) Price (Cryptocurrency)

The price of any cryptocurrency is a volume weighted average of market pair prices (1) for the cryptocurrency. The higher percentage of volume contributed from the pair, the more influence it has on the average price. The rationale for using a weighted average is because in general, markets with higher volume have higher liquidity and are less prone to price fluctuations. Some prices are manually excluded from the average, denoted by an asterisk (*) on the markets tab if the price does not seem indicative of a free market price; for example, when an exchange disables withdrawals or deposits, or regulatory conditions make it impossible for anyone else outside of a certain geographical region to buy coins. Some prices are also automatically excluded when our algorithms detect that the reported price is a significant outlier when compared to other market pairs for the same cryptocurrency, denoted by three asterisks (***) on the markets tab.

(4) Volume (Cryptocurrency)

The volume of any cryptocurrency is the total spot trading volume reported by all exchanges over the last 24 hours for that cryptocurrency. Some market pairs are excluded from the sum, denoted by two asterisks (**) on the markets tab, if the exchange does not enforce a trading fee or otherwise offers significant incentives to trade on the market pair. Market pairs with these characteristics are rather susceptible to wash trading, resulting in artificially inflated reported volumes. From our experience, we have found that it is better to exclude these markets to give a better representation of relative trading volumes for the crypto market.

(5) Volume (Exchange)

The volume of any exchange is the sum of all market pair volume (2) reported from the exchange over the last 24 hours.

Note: Market pairs that have been excluded from the cryptocurrency volume calculation (4) are not excluded in the total exchange volume calculation (5). For example, when an exchange begins fee rebates on a specific pair, the pair will be excluded from the volume calculation in (4) but will not be excluded from its total exchange volume (5).

(6) Volume (Aggregate)

The total volume for all cryptocurrencies (found on the top of the site) is the sum of all individual cryptocurrency volumes over the last 24 hours (4).

Note: Any market pairs with a cryptocurrency on both sides of the market pair (for example, LTC/BTC) are essentially double-counted in this metric.

(7) Circulating Supply (Cryptocurrency)

Circulating Supply is the best approximation of the number of coins that are circulating in the market and in the general public's hands. We have found that Circulating Supply is a much better metric than Total Supply for determining the market capitalization – Coins that are locked, reserved, or not able to be sold on the public market, are coins that cannot affect the price and thus should not be allowed to affect the market capitalization as well. The method of using the Circulating Supply is analogous to the method of using public float to determine the market capitalization of companies in traditional investing.

Circulating Supply is verified by our team through communication with the project’s team. We ask for details including but not limited to the initial distribution, private allocations, locked addresses, team-controlled addresses, and addresses containing portions of the supply allocated for future use. We examine the project’s blockchain and distribution table to determine the best approximation of what is freely circulating in the market based on the information provided. Once the information is verified, circulating supply is usually updated in real time by using relevant block explorer APIs.

Note: Circulating supply may not be calculated for cryptocurrencies listed on less than 3 exchanges due to the outsized influence of these volumes on the cryptocurrency price and market cap.

(8) Market Capitalization (Cryptocurrency)

Market capitalization of the cryptocurrency is calculated by multiplying the existing reference price of the cryptocurrency (3) by the current circulating supply (7). Let’s take the market capitalization of Bitcoin as an example:

Let (C) be the last known reference price of Bitcoin from CoinMarketCap in USD.
Let (S) be the current circulating supply of Bitcoin.
Let (D) be the derived market capitalization for Bitcoin.

For this example, let (C) = 10,000 USD / 1 BTC and let (S) = 17,000,000 BTC.

D = C * S
D = 10,000 USD / 1 BTC * 17,000,000 BTC = 170,000,000,000 USD

Therefore, the derived market capitalization for Bitcoin is $170,000,000,000 USD.

(9) Market Capitalization (Aggregate)

The total market capitalization for all cryptocurrencies (found on the top of the site as “Market Cap”) is the sum of all individual cryptocurrency market capitalizations (8).

(10) Cryptocurrency Rank

Cryptocurrency Rank is determined by market capitalization (8) but penalizes cryptocurrencies with low 24h trading volume (4). The ranking is segmented into three sections in the following order:

1. Cryptocurrencies with a market capitalization and 24h trading volume >= $500 USD sorted by market capitalization.
2. Cryptocurrencies with a market capitalization with 24h trading volume < $500 USD sorted by market capitalization.
3. Cryptocurrencies without a market capitalization sorted by 24h trading volume.

Listings Criteria

On a daily basis, CoinMarketCap receives thousands of requests to add specific cryptocurrencies and exchanges to the website. In an ideal world, we would list every single request, but the reality is that due to finite resources, we must prioritize listings based on set criteria and guidelines to uphold the quality that users expect of CoinMarketCap.

(1) Cryptocurrencies

For a cryptocurrency to be listed on the site, it must meet the following criteria:

• Must fit the definition of a cryptocurrency.
• Must be traded publicly, and actively traded on at least two (2) exchanges that are supported on CoinMarketCap (if the cryptocurrency is an Initial Exchange Offering (IEO) or an exchange-based token only traded on its own exchange, we may add it given that off-platform withdrawals are possible).

Note that these are only necessary conditions and meeting them does not guarantee a listing. Please see tips below for increasing chances of your project being listed.

(2) Exchanges

For an exchange to be listed on the site, it must meet the following criteria:

• Must publish an API that exposes the last price and 24h volume of each cryptocurrency.
• Must be in operation for at least sixty (60) days.
• Must allow traders to place buy and sell orders on an orderbook.
• Must be able to provide a representative from the exchange with whom we can establish open lines of communication for any clarifications.

Note that these are only necessary conditions and meeting them does not guarantee a listing. Please see tips below for increasing chances of your project being listed.

(3) Tips on getting your listing added

• The online submission form is the only way to request a new addition to CoinMarketCap. Do not reach out through other channels, such as email or social media, because you will always be directed to this form.
• We evaluate many other factors besides the basic criteria when deciding to add a new listing. These factors include but are not limited to:
  • Community Interest – A project’s usefulness is largely a function of its adoption by its community and user base.
  • Trading Volume – Trading volume and liquidity help with establishing a market price for users to acquire and sell cryptocurrencies.
  • Uniqueness – It is easy to create a project by forking an existing project and changing a couple of parameters. Creating a new project with unique and interesting characteristics expands the use cases for crypto and helps the crypto ecosystem grow as a whole.
  • Age of the project – Many cryptocurrencies come and go. For this reason, we prefer to list projects that have stood the test of time.
• Please refrain from sending multiple help requests to our team members on social media or private emails, as this will not help in getting your request expedited. The only way that your request will be received is through the online submission form as cited above.
• Please do not ask for status updates on your application; we will respond accordingly. Doing so will only create a longer queue of requests, which may further delay a response from our team.
• Listings are always free of charge. If a third-party “listing service” or marketing agency claims to have a method to get your project added on CoinMarketCap, they are lying to you. Additionally, anyone asking you to pay a fee or tip for getting your project listed on CoinMarketCap is definitely not sanctioned to do so. While we gladly accept donations, attempting to bribe us in the hopes of influencing the outcome of your request will not work.
• Offering to pay large sums for advertising, contingent upon the outcome of your listing, will also not improve your chances of getting listed.
• CoinMarketCap does not accept payment of any form to bypass listing requirements or to intentionally publish inaccurate information. We evaluate every request with the same level of scrutiny.
• Focus on organic growth and use of your project. Inflating your project’s trading volume, traffic, or social media metrics will not increase your chances of getting listed. Getting your team members or community to send “angry comments” to our official email channels or social media accounts about why you have not yet been listed will not be entertained.
• Even if your cryptocurrency or exchange is not listed right away, we will continue to keep a close eye on your progress and community interest. You may send us additional information about your progress (as a new request on the online submission form) to keep us updated, especially if you have made some noteworthy progress. However, please do not submit duplicate requests as it will add to the request queue and may slow down the process.