Best Crypto to Buy Now in October 2024 – Top Crypto to Invest In
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Our research shows the best cryptos to buy right now are Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP, Solana, BNB, Dogecoin, and Cardano. These projects range across various Web3 sectors, investment types, and risk levels, catering to diverse crypto investors.
Bitcoin is the best crypto to invest in today, combining unmatched security, global recognition, and long-term value. Here, we analyze the best cryptocurrencies to buy in October 2024, and share our methodology and criteria for rating crypto projects.
Best Crypto to Buy Now – Editor’s Choice
- The Pepe meme gets its own Ethereum Layer-2 chain
- Stake $PEPU to earn double the staking rewards through Layer-2 technology
- Pepe Unchained aims to replicate the success of Pepe but with its own ecosystem
ETH
bnb
usdt- +1 more
Top Crypto to Buy Right Now
| Crypto | 24-Hour Price Change | Year-to-Date Return | Current Price | Risk Level | Investment Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bitcoin |  BTC +1.06% |
+120.97% | $60,878.03 | Low to Moderate | Long-term |
| Ethereum |  ETH -1.57% |
+42.70% | $2,349.30 | Moderate | Long-term |
| XRP |  XRP -8.20% |
-1.44% | $0.52 | Moderate | Medium-term |
| Solana |  SOL -1.70% |
+496.35% | $137.20 | High | Long-term |
| BNB |  BNB +1.06% |
+156.25% | $544.80 | Moderate | Long-term |
| Dogecoin |  DOGE +1.63% |
+71.54% | $0.10 | High | Speculative, short-term |
| Cardano |  ADA +0.42% |
+33.37% | $0.34 | Moderate to High | Long-term |
💡 All information in the table above is updated daily to ensure the most accurate and current data is provided. The table was updated on October 3, 2024.
Best Crypto to Buy Now – A Detailed Analysis
We’ll start our in-depth reviews of the best cryptocurrencies to buy now with large-cap crypto coins that could provide the most reliable returns in the long-term. We update our list according to market trends and performance as well as evolving utility and adoption.
Each factor in our ranking methodology is weighted, reflecting its importance in predicting success and reliability. This ensures that the crypto assets with the strongest performance across all metrics make the top of the list.
1. Bitcoin (BTC) — The Original Cryptocurrency, Known as “Digital Gold”
Bitcoin is the world’s oldest cryptocurrency and the largest by market cap by a wide margin. It’s the only cryptocurrency that’s officially recognized by many major governments, including the US — it’s even used as legal tender in countries like El Salvador.
The first spot Bitcoin ETFs began trading on US stock exchanges in 2024, leading to massive capital inflows. Other major events such as cuts in US Federal Reserve interest rates can also significantly impact Bitcoin’s price.
Key Highlights:
- Bitcoin price as of October 3, 2024: $60,878.03
- Market cap: $1.20T
- Last 24 hours change in price: BTC +1.06%
- Bitcoin’s price has decreased in the last week with a change of -6.54%
- Year-over-year (YoY) return: +120.97%
2. Ethereum (ETH) — The First Blockchain for Smart Contracts and DApp Development
Ethereum is the world’s second-largest crypto by market capitalization and the most widely used blockchain network for dApp development. The project was the first to introduce smart contracts when it launched in 2015.
Ethereum transitioned from a PoW validation mechanism to PoS in 2022. The first spot Ether ETFs were approved earlier this year and started trading on July 23. Despite initial net outflows, this could propel ETH’s price to new heights.
Key Highlights:
- Ethereum price as of October 3, 2024: $2,349.30
- Market cap: $282.78B
- Last 24 hours change in price: ETH -1.57%
- All-time high: $4,867.17
- Ethereum price has decreased in the last week with a change of -10.96%
- Year-over-year (YoY) return: +42.70%
3. XRP (XRP) — Network for Fast, Low-Cost Cross-Border Transactions
XRP is the official crypto token of the Ripple payment network, which was built to make international payments faster and cheaper. The project is coming off a win against the SEC, which alleged that XRP was an unregistered security. XRP is now the 7th largest crypto by market cap.
Key Highlights:
- XRP price as of October 3, 2024: $0.52
- Market cap: $29.85B
- Last 24 hours change in price: XRP -8.20%
- All-time high: $3.92
- XRP price has decreased in the last week with a change of -10.91%
- Year-over-year (YoY) return: -1.44%
4. Solana (SOL) — High-Speed, Low-Fee Ethereum Competitor
Solana is a fast and cost-effective blockchain created as a challenger to Ethereum. It’s been one of the most successful crypto tokens of the resurgent crypto bull market, having increased +496.35% in value in the last 12 months. Solana is now the 5th-largest crypto by market cap and still has significant growth potential.
Key Highlights:
- Solana price as of October 3, 2024: $137.20
- Market cap: $64.34B
- Last 24 hours change in price: SOL -1.70%
- All-time high: $259.52
- Solana price has decreased in the last week with a change of -12.13%
- Year-over-year (YoY) return: +496.35%
5. Binance Coin (BNB) — Binance Ecosystem Utility Token
BNB is the official cryptocurrency of Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange. It offers discounts on trading fees and benefits like early access to crypto launches on Binance. It’s the 4th-largest crypto by market capitalization and has continued to perform strongly since the resignation of former CEO, Changpeng Zhao.
Key Highlights:
- BNB price as of October 3, 2024: $544.80
- Market cap: $80.40B
- Last 24 hours change in price: BNB +1.06%
- All-time high: $718.88
- BNB price has decreased in the last week with a change of -8.77%
- Year-over-year (YoY) return: +156.25%
6. Dogecoin (DOGE) – The Original Community-Driven Meme Coin
Dogecoin is the original meme coin, having launched in 2013. It was mostly unheard of until 2020-21, when it gained the attention of major celebrities including Tesla founder Elon Musk.
Since Dogecoin’s explosive gain during the last bull market, it’s inspired thousands of copycat meme coins — including highly successful ones like Shiba Inu and Pepe.
Key Highlights:
- Dogecoin price as of October 3, 2024: $0.10
- Market cap: $15.30B
- Last 24 hours change in price: DOGE +1.63%
- All-time high: $0.73
- DOGE price has decreased in the last week with a change of -11.23%
- Year-over-year (YoY) return: +71.54%
7. Cardano (ADA) – Research-Driven, Sustainable Blockchain Platform
Cardano is a third-generation blockchain platform known for its scientific approach to development and an emphasis on interoperability and sustainability. It utilizes a PoS consensus mechanism, which is far more energy-efficient than the traditional PoW model used by older cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin.
Key Highlights:
- Cardano price as of October 3, 2024: $0.34
- Market cap: $11.92B
- Last 24 hours change in price: ADA +0.42%
- All-time high: $3.10
- Cardano price has decreased in the last week with a change of -14.62%
- Year-over-year (YoY) return: +33.37%
Methodology: How We Rated the Best Cryptos to Buy Now
To curate this list of the best cryptos to buy now, our crypto analysts collectively dedicated over 300 hours to research. They evaluated factors like historical performance, long-term potential for growth, current price, utility, and security. Here’s how we researched and weighted each criterion.
Market Performance (25%)
- Recent Price Trend: We assessed the crypto’s price movement over the past week to 12 months, considering both short-term and long-term trends.
- Market Capitalization: We looked at the overall market value of the cryptocurrency, as it reflects its position and significance in the market.
Utility and Use Cases (20%)
- Practical Applications: We examined how the cryptocurrency is used in real-world scenarios, considering whether it has unique features or applications that set it apart.
- Technological Innovation: We evaluated the underlying technology and any recent innovations that contribute to the cryptocurrency’s utility.
Community and Adoption (15%)
- Community Engagement: We analyzed the level of activity on social media, forums, and community platforms as a colorful and engaged community often indicates strong support.
- Adoption Rate: Since higher adoption rates suggest a broader ecosystem, we looked at how widely the cryptocurrency is accepted by merchants, businesses, and other users.
Development Team (15%)
- Team Reputation: We investigated the track record and reputation of the development team. We don’t want to put down any crypto projects from newcomers, but we can all agree that experience and success in previous projects enhance credibility.
- Transparency: We assessed how transparent the team is in sharing project updates, development progress, and any challenges faced. The more the community knows about what’s going on, the more confident they can feel about their crypto purchase.
Security (15%)
- Network Security: We evaluated the security features of the underlying blockchain technology, considering factors like consensus mechanism and resistance to attacks.
- Past Security Incidents: We researched any historical security incidents or vulnerabilities, and analyze how well the team handled and mitigated them.
Regulatory Compliance (5%)
- Compliance with Regulations: We checked if the cryptocurrency complies with legal and regulatory frameworks in the regions where it operates — a crucial factor for long-term sustainability.
Roadmap and Future Plans (5%)
- Development Roadmap: A clear and well-defined roadmap can instill confidence in investors, so we also reviewed the crypto’s future plans, upcoming updates, and milestones outlined in its development roadmap.
Put together, the scores provided a comprehensive view of the cryptocurrency’s overall strength and potential, and allowed us to assign a percentage rating to each of the cryptos recommended on this page.
What Is Cryptocurrency?
Cryptocurrency is a type of digital or virtual money that uses cryptography for security, making it difficult to counterfeit. Unlike traditional currencies, crypto assets operate without a central authority, such as a government or bank. Transactions are recorded on a digital ledger called blockchain, which is maintained by a network of computers.
Bitcoin, launched in 2009, is the first and most well-known cryptocurrency. Other examples include Ethereum and XRP.
Cryptocurrencies can be used for online purchases, investments, and transferring money across borders without the need for traditional banking services. The value of cryptocurrencies can vary widely due to factors like investor interest, regulation, and technological advancements.
How to Find the Best Cryptos to Buy
In this section, we explain some of the factors that investors need to take into account when searching for good crypto to buy now for their portfolio. These include:
- Long-term potential
- Crypto presales
- Utility
- Market capitalization
- Competition
- Trading volume, signals, and bots
- Trends
1. Assess Long-Term Potential
First, it’s wise to consider the potential of assets as long-term crypto holdings. For example, Bitcoin will likely remain a ‘store of value’ in the long run, while Ethereum operates as the de facto smart contract blockchain, making it incredibly useful.
The long-term potential of both Bitcoin and Ethereum looks strong. Analysts at British investment bank Standard Chartered told their clients earlier this year that BTC could reach $120,000 by the end of 2024. A healthy Bitcoin means the rest of the crypto industry is healthy as investment trickles down into riskier tokens.
Similarly, many other established crypto coins should have a bright future ahead of them. For instance, XRP has formed partnerships with over 200 banks as part of its quest to become the world bridge currency.
There are dozens of examples of major brands investing in Web3 and blockchain technology and by the end of the decade, it is expected to become a much larger part of mainstream life. ARK Invest CEO Cathie Wood has predicted that the total cryptocurrency market — currently worth just over $2.27 trillion — will be worth as much as $25 trillion by the end of the decade.
2. Keep an Eye Out for New Cryptocurrencies
Cryptocurrency presales allow early investors to acquire coins at a discount before they’re listed on crypto exchanges and available for public trading.
Most investors missed out on the opportunity to buy BTC for less than $100 or Ethereum for less than $1. Fortunately, new high-potential crypto presales pop up weekly, giving investors opportunities to target similar gains.
Investors must be diligent in their research to ensure they only purchase tokens that have a legitimate chance of being a worthy investment. Research should include investigating the following:
- Read the whitepaper: A whitepaper is a document that outlines the whole project and should give readers a clear understanding of exactly what they are investing in. Poorly written or vague whitepapers should be considered a red flag.
- Read the roadmap: A roadmap is the plan of how a project will develop over the coming months and years. It is easy to promise a $1 billion market cap, but the best projects also outline plans of action and the steps they will take to get to that point.
- Check the smart contract: Unfortunately, the crypto world is rife with scammers; some projects are intended to steal funds from the get-go. Top projects will provide a full audit from a reputable third-party blockchain security firm.
- Check the team: Again, due to the proliferation of scammers in the space, doxxed and public teams will relieve investors as they know exactly who is behind the project. An anonymous team is not necessarily a red flag if other parts of the project (whitepaper/roadmap/audit) are legitimate.
- Check social media sentiment: Social media sentiment and hype are crucial to the success or failure of a project. Interesting projects will fail if they do not catch the attention of the wider marker. Similarly, be wary of projects that use bots or fake accounts to promote their tokens.
3. Prioritize Crypto Projects With Utility
Cryptocurrency projects offering high utility (utility tokens) are likely to be more sustainable in the long run, since investors can use the tokens within the ecosystem to generate real value.
When searching for one of the top 10 cryptos to invest in, it is wise to focus on projects that have a real-world use case. As we mentioned earlier, Ethereum is a high-quality utility project as it has hundreds of other protocols and thousands of altcoins built on top of its blockchain. This means that ETH maintains high demand as people engage with those projects.
At the time of writing ETH holds a 55.79% market share for DeFi chains, with a Total Value Locked (TVL) — the value of other projects built on its blockchain — sitting at more than $49.02 billion.
Ethereum has more than 1,032 protocols built on top of it. The Binance Smart Chain comes second with over 739 protocols. The second largest chain by TVL, Tron, is 83.76% lower than Ethereum, with a TVL of $7.96 billion and only 28 protocols.
4. Look Into Market Capitalization
Investors should have a firm grasp of how the market capitalization of a crypto asset works as it will enable the investor to assess what the potential upside looks like.
For example, when the price of Bitcoin traded at $16,000 in late 2022 it had limited upside potential because of Bitcoin’s size in terms of market cap. When Bitcoin made new highs above $70,000 in early 2024, this was a move of over 350% in less than two years.
Smaller market caps projects, such as trending new meme coins, have much larger room for growth as it doesn’t take so much investment to see their price increase. For example, two meme tokens have recently seen higher gains than Bitcoin, namely dogwifhat (WIF) and Dogecoin (DOGE).
Of course, low market cap crypto comes with increased risk that have to be priced in when investing. While small cap tokens can see much higher growth in a shorter spell than the more established crypto coins, they are also more likely to plummet in price.
5. Evaluate Competition From Other Coins
It is also a good idea to see how much competition the respective crypto asset has. After all, there are now more than 25,000 tokens listed on CoinMarketCap, and even more than that lie in waiting. For instance, there are many so-called ‘Ethereum Killers,’ each claiming to offer a faster, cheaper, and more scalable alternative.
Investors need to decide whether it is better to invest in Ethereum or a direct competitor such as Solana, which is capable of faster speeds and cheaper transactions, but has yet to gain the same footing with users.
The same is true of ‘Doge Killer’ coins that promise to one day surpass the market cap of Dogecoin, the biggest and most popular meme coin. Crypto investors often cycle through tokens and trends, with copycat and unoriginal tokens popping up if one token shows it resonates with investors.
For example, DePIN is a hot crypto sector in 2024, with Render Network as a leading project. RenderX attempted to replicate Render’s success but failed due to its lack of innovation and clear value proposition. Unlike Render, which excelled in decentralized GPU rendering, RenderX offered nothing new, leading to its quick decline.
6. Use Trading Signals and Trading Bots
Some investors prefer to integrate the best crypto signals into their trading strategy. This allows them to eliminate emotions from the investing process when deciding the best crypto to invest in.
We have also reviewed the best AI crypto trading bots for traders who want to execute trades 24/7. Considering that the crypto market never sleeps using a crypto trading bot can help eliminate emotions and automate the process.
7. Stay on Top of Crypto Trends
Trends should not be discounted when deciding which crypto to buy today. Investing in trending cryptos or theme can prove to be both hugely beneficial if the timing is good — or disastrous if the trend is no longer popular.
During the 2021 bull run, play-to-earn gaming and the metaverse were expected to become major industries in the 2020s, and revolutionize the way people played games and interacted in a virtual world. Games like Axie Infinity, Sandbox, and Decentraland benefited the most with their tokens trading at all-time highs.
In early 2024, meme coins and AI cryptocurrencies have had the highest returns. For example, the meme coins Bonk and dogwifhat traded mostly flat in 2023, while in February 2024, both had huge growth.
AI tokens like Render traded at a market cap of $500 million before the AI frenzy propelled chip-maker stocks like Nvidia to all-time highs. Riding on the AI stock hype wave, RNDR currently has a market cap of over $3.43 billion. Around the time the AI boom started, it took less than two months for the price of RNDR to move from $2 to over $11 — a 450% rise.
Investing in a trending token can bring huge rewards but investors should be diligent and cash out before the trend dies.
Crypto Market October 2024: Key Trends and Forecast
Bitcoin surged to $66,000 last week, driven by favorable inflation data and increased market liquidity. BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF saw large inflows, while MicroStrategy’s ETF attracted $72 million. Bitcoin is expected to hit $70,000 soon, with long-term forecasts suggesting a potential rise toward $925,000 within the next decade due to its scarcity premium and favorable macro conditions.
Ethereum continues to gain momentum with key levels at $2,100 and $4,000. Meme coins and risk assets support its growth, though the current outlook is more favorable for Bitcoin. Ethereum’s price could see further upward pressure if Fed policy remains loose.
Other top altcoins, such as Solana (SOL) and Saga (SAGA), are experiencing mixed results. Saga, in particular, has shown strong bullish signals. A rise in the minting of stablecoins has added significant liquidity to the market. Lower trading volumes are expected in the short term due to China’s National Day holiday.
Conclusion: What’s the Best Cryptocurrency to Invest in Today?
Bitcoin and Ethereum remain the best cryptocurrencies to buy for long-term growth. Bitcoin offers unmatched security and global recognition, while Ethereum leads in smart contract innovation. Both have strong adoption and institutional interest, making them solid investments. Consider adding them to your portfolio.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
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References
- Yahoo! Finance: Bitcoin ETFs hit record inflows, propel BTC to new highs
- CNBC: Bitcoin ETFs begin trading on U.S. exchanges
- Cointelegraph: Bitcoin hodlers scooped $23B in the past 30 days
- TechCrunch: Ethereum switches to proof-of-stake consensus after completing The Merge
- CoinDesk: Ether Price Poised for Supply ‘Shock’ as ETFs May Attract $4B Inflows in Five Months, K33 Research Says
- The Block: Spot Ethereum ETFs begin trading today: Here’s what you need to know
- Reuters: Ripple Labs notches landmark win in SEC case over XRP cryptocurrency
- CoinDesk: Brazil’s Securities and Exchange Commission Approves Solana-Based ETF
- Decrypt: In Meme-oriam: Kabosu, Original Doge Who Inspired Dogecoin, Has Passed Away
- Cardano: Voltaire — Cardano Roadmap
- Reuters: Standard Chartered boosts 2024 bitcoin forecast to $120,000
- Bitcoin.com: Ark Invest CEO Cathie Wood Sees Crypto Market Exploding to $25 Trillion in 2030
- CNBC: AI frenzy puts Nvidia briefly ahead of Amazon in market value
- TheBlock: USDT Supply by Blockchain
- DeFi Llama: Total Value Locked All Chains
- CoinDesk: BlackRock Highlights Bitcoin’s Unique Properties as Approved IBIT Options Could Cement Risk-Off Status
- CoinDesk: MicroStrategy 2X Leveraged ETF Sees Massive Inflows In First Week Of Trading
- The Block: Bitcoin price breaks out above $66,000 amid positive inflation data
- CoinDesk: Bitcoin FOMO Is Back: $70K and Then New Record Highs in Sight, Says Analyst
- CoinDesk: Altcoins Surge Leaving Bitcoin and Ether Behind After Fed Cuts Interest Rate
Eric Huffman 
Kane Pepi 