Altcoin
Any cryptocurrency other than Bitcoin, or more broadly a non-leading coin within a specific market category.
- Also known as
- Alternative Coin
Altcoin is short for "alternative coin." In the most common usage, it means any cryptocurrency other than Bitcoin. In narrower market commentary, it can mean any coin that is not the dominant asset in a category, such as a smaller smart-contract platform or payment coin.
Altcoins include payment coins, smart-contract platforms, privacy coins, stablecoins, governance tokens, exchange tokens, and memecoins. Some introduce useful technical experiments; others are mainly speculative or short-lived.
Altcoins often have higher volatility, thinner liquidity, and greater project-specific risk than the largest crypto assets. Evaluating tokenomics, custody, supply unlocks, security, and real usage matters more than relying on a ticker or narrative.
Related terms
6 linkedExplore connected entries beyond the alphabetical index.
Bitcoin (BTC)
→The first widely adopted cryptocurrency, using proof of work and a fixed 21 million coin supply.
Ethereum (ETH)
→Ethereum is a proof-of-stake smart contract blockchain; ETH is its native asset used for gas, staking, and settlement.
Altseason
→A market phase when many altcoins outperform Bitcoin and attract rising liquidity, attention, and trading volume.
Market Cap
→Market cap estimates a cryptocurrency's total circulating value by multiplying price by circulating supply.
Token
→A digital asset issued on an existing blockchain, often representing value, rights, access, or unique ownership.
Shitcoin
→A derogatory label for a cryptocurrency viewed as low-quality, scammy, unserious, or lacking durable utility.
All terms and definitions may update as the Cryptionary improves.
