Cryptocurrency prices have rallied in 2024, leaving some investors with notable gains. But crypto is a notoriously risky investment and prices are known to fluctuate quite a bit. Keeping an eye out for the top performers every now and then can give you important context on how the market is performing.
Here are the top eight best-performing cryptocurrencies year-to-date.
Data as of Dec. 16, 2024.
Top-performing cryptocurrencies in 2024
| Cryptocurrency | Performance YTD |
|---|---|
| Pepe | 1,710.8% |
| Sui | 512.8% |
| Dogecoin | 348.9% |
| XRP | 296.7% |
| Hedera | 228.1% |
| Stellar | 227.40% |
| Shiba Inu | 162.9% |
| Toncoin | 162.1% |
Source: Coinmarketcap.com.
Note: The top eight cryptocurrencies featured here all have a market cap above $6 billion.
1. Pepe (PEPE)
Pepe is an Ethereum-based memecoin that was inspired by a Pepe the Frog meme, making its debut in 2023. Despite its humorous nature, the coin has some serious cash behind it. Three weeks after its launch, the coin reached a market cap of well over $1 billion. Today, Pepe’s market cap is more than quadruple that number.
- Price: $0.0000234
- Market cap: $9.85 billion
2. Sui (SUI)
Sui was created by former Meta engineers to enable fast transactions while charging stable fees. It’s also built to handle a large number of transactions at once, which makes it scalable.
- Price: $4.72
- Market cap: $13.82 billion
3. Dogecoin (DOGE)
Dogecoin takes its name from a Shiba Inu meme and was created by software engineers Jackson Palmer and Billy Markus in 2013 to basically poke fun at the quick rise in Bitcoin prices. Dogecoin has an unlimited number of coins and can be used for payments or sending money.
- Price: $0.4013
- Market cap: $59.08 billion
4. XRP (XRP)
XRP was created to enable faster money transactions. Its main use case is to power Ripplenet, which is a system that allows super fast and efficient international money transfers. In some cases, Ripplenet surpasses the capabilities of other similar platforms like SWIFT. The XRP ledger is open source, but not directly on the blockchain, which has led many people to question whether XRP is technically a cryptocurrency.
- Price: $2.51
- Market cap: $143.82 billion
5. Hedera (HBAR)
Similar to XRP, Hedera doesn’t technically operate on the blockchain. Unlike traditional blockchain operations, where transactions are grouped into blocks and then linked sequentially, the Hedera Hashgraph uses a Directed Acyclic Graph (DAG) approach, in which transactions are directly attached to one another and not in sequential order.
- Price: $0.2873
- Market cap: $10.99 billion
6. Stellar (XLM)
Stellar was founded in 2014. It uses blockchain technology but is known for offering a more user-friendly experience, similar to using cash. It’s also among the most energy-efficient cryptos. Stellar emphasizes its ability to operate without a financial intermediary and facilitate peer-to-peer transactions.
- Price: $0.4318
- Market cap: $13.03 billion
7. Shiba Inu (SHIB)
Shiba Inu is an Ethereum-based cryptocurrency and popular memecoin, created in 2020 by a founder called Ryoshi. Shiba Inu, despite its fluffy mascot and meme notoriety, has some serious money behind it, sitting within the top 15 cryptocurrencies ranked by market cap.
- Price: $0.0000274
- Market cap: $16.15 billion
8. Toncoin (TON)
Toncoin was developed by Telegram, a company that offers an encrypted messaging platform, in 2018. Telegram eventually abandoned the project and it was taken over by the TON Foundation.
- Price: $6.10
- Market cap: $15.56 billion
Should you invest in cryptocurrency?
Crypto has seen some wild gains in 2024. Bitcoin specifically has been a top performer, reaching an all-time high of over $105,000, bolstered by the Federal Reserve’s recent interest rate cuts and President-elect Donald Trump’s victory.
The important thing to remember is that crypto is so volatile because the tokens aren’t backed by any underlying asset, meaning that the price of crypto depends solely on what buyers are willing to pay for it. To that end, any investments you make in the crypto space (especially during times of market uncertainty) should be part of a broader investment strategy — not your only one — in order to offset any money you could lose. Take time to consider your individual risk tolerance and time horizon for meeting other financial goals like retirement.
Bottom line
When investing in any type of asset, it helps to look at the top performers to get a sense of what’s going on in the market. When it comes to crypto, it’s especially important because the prices fluctuate so much and new coins are issued at a fast pace. Before investing in crypto, consider your own risk tolerance and only invest what you’re willing to lose.
Editorial Disclaimer: All investors are advised to conduct their own independent research into investment strategies before making an investment decision. In addition, investors are advised that past investment product performance is no guarantee of future price appreciation.
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