Should You Forget Bitcoin and Buy Dogecoin Instead?

During the past decade, Bitcoin's (CRYPTO: BTC) price is up an awe-inspiring 20,260% (as of Jan. 8). This crushes the stock market's performance. However, it hasn't always been a smooth. In 2025, the top digital asset lost 6% of its value, adding fuel to the fire for the critics who believe Bitcoin's best days are in the past. Maybe it's time to look at other opportunities.

Should you forget about the world's dominant cryptocurrency and buy Dogecoin, a popular meme coin, instead?

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Dogecoin is a top choice for speculators

Dogecoin's gain in the past 10 years far outpaces Bitcoin's. The dog-themed token has seen its price skyrocket 81,110% since early January 2016. To further showcase just how incredible this return is, that monster gain would've turned a $10,000 starting investment into $8.1 million today. Dogecoin's early believers who were able to buy and hold on through the wild swings have been rewarded with life-changing wealth.

It looks like interest in Dogecoin is waning, though. The token's recent price of $0.14 sits about 80% below its peak from May 2021. There haven't been durable catalysts that can sustainably lift the price. Dogecoin experiences short bursts of market hype followed by rapid declines. This might make it a hot bed for speculators who think they can accurately time the market in an effort to achieve quick profits.

From a fundamental perspective, there's not much to be excited about. Dogecoin's current full-time developer community includes 21 people working to advance the blockchain network. Meanwhile, Bitcoin has 833 full-time developers. These are smart and talented computer scientists and software engineers who are choosing where to spend their time, indicating that Dogecoin doesn't have much promise in terms of utility. The only thing it has is the community, which isn't much to rest a long-term investment thesis on.

Serious long-term investors won't overlook Bitcoin

Investors shouldn't ignore Bitcoin in favor of Dogecoin. Over any random month or quarter, Dogecoin could surely outperform Bitcoin. But if you're thinking about the best option with a decade-long time frame, the best choice is very obvious.

Bitcoin's market cap of $1.8 trillion is 76 times that of Dogecoin. The former has long dominated the cryptocurrency market. This huge valuation, which rivals some of the world's largest companies, means that Bitcoin has stronger brand recognition and much deeper liquidity.

And owing to its first-mover advantage is the presence of an incredible network effect. Bitcoin's user base, node operators, miners, and developers all feed on each other, all increasing in size in a positive feedback loop. That has supported a higher price over time. And it should continue doing so in the future.

The network effect is further supported by external products and services that are created to boost Bitcoin adoption and utility. The popular spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds provide one notable example. The success that a trailblazing company like Strategy has had in investing in Bitcoin, using capital raised in the fixed income and equity markets, is another example.

Payments are interesting as well. Fintech powerhouse Block recently made it possible for its its eligible U.S. merchants to accept Bitcoin directly as a form of payment from customers.

Coin properties also play a factor here. Dogecoin's supply has no limit, with its coin count increasing by 10,000 every minute. Bitcoin, on the other hand, has a hard supply cap of 21 million coins, which is enforced by a predetermined halving schedule. The fact that there are 1.04 zettahashes of computing power per second, a number that has climbed steadily over time and helps keep Bitcoin secure, is another variable that makes it a safer bet over Dogecoin.

Looking out over the next five, 10, or 20 years, I'm confident Bitcoin will drastically outperform Dogecoin.

Neil Patel has positions in Strategy. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Bitcoin and Block. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.