If You'd Invested $500 in Dogecoin 5 Years Ago, Here's How Much You'd Have Today

Key Points

• Dogecoin is a top 10 cryptocurrency by market cap.

• The token doesn't have much real-world utility.

• But that doesn't mean it hasn't been a good investment so far.

• 10 stocks we like better than Dogecoin ›

The original meme token Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE) launched toward the end of 2013, largely as a joke about cryptocurrencies, leveraging the Shiba Inu dog as its mascot. But what started as a joke rose to unimaginable highs in 2021 and has lasted far longer than most could have imagined. Today, Dogecoin is the eighth-largest cryptocurrency in the world with a market cap over $37 billion as of Sept. 24.

Still, despite its survival, Dogecoin has no real-world utility. Unlike Bitcoin, the world's largest cryptocurrency, which is viewed by many investors as a superior store of value due to its 21 million finite tokens, Dogecoin grows its supply by 5 billion tokens every year.

Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now. Learn More »

Image source: Getty Images.

Additionally, Dogecoin does not have a strong technical network because it doesn't process many transactions per second (TPS), a key feature of many highly regarded blockchain networks. Dogecoin's network also lacks smart contract functionality, which is what enables decentralized applications.

Now, this could eventually change. MyDoge, the organization behind a free custodial Dogecoin wallet, has reportedly raised funds to build a layer-2 solution that would enable smart contract functionality, but it's unclear if and when this would actually happen.

If you'd invested $500 in Dogecoin five years ago

From a fundamental perspective, it doesn't make a ton of sense why Dogecoin has delivered such incredible gains over the past five years, but it has. One explanation is that it was one of, if not the first cryptocurrency to truly take advantage of the power of virality and build a social media community, which has made the token thrive.

Dogecoin Price data by YCharts

As you can see, a $500 investment in Dogecoin five years ago would be worth over $44,000 today! That's a return of more than 8,730%, which crushes the broader benchmark S&P 500 index's five-year return of over 100%.

Should you invest $1,000 in Dogecoin right now?

Before you buy stock in Dogecoin, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Dogecoin wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $651,593!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,089,215!*

Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 1,058% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 188% for the S&P 500. Don’t miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor.

See the 10 stocks »

*Stock Advisor returns as of September 22, 2025

Bram Berkowitz has positions in Bitcoin. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Bitcoin. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.