A Guide to CoinGecko: How to Use It for Research on Various Crypto Projects
Investing or trading crypto can be a daunting task given the plethora of information you need to gather as you do your due diligence across different projects in your portfolio. Not only do you have to read through whitepapers, check out the background of project founders on Linkedin and other social sites while verifying the technical details of the project, you also need accurate historical market data to decide on your entry and exit points.
Luckily, CoinGecko is one of the services that offers a one-stop shop for all your crypto data. With CoinGecko, you can pretty much access all the information you need about a specific crypto or DeFi project in one go. The website offers coin metrics, market cap, and trading volume tracking for over 9,000 coins and 495 exchanges. You can even use their desktop and mobile app to track your crypto portfolio or check out what’s new on their NFT marketplace.
In this guide, we show you everything you need to know to get started using CoinGecko in your research and study on various crypto projects.
CoinGecko’s Home Page
CoinGecko is designed with a minimalist design that makes it easy to identify the data you are looking for. The UX work for the site was done by the same team who did the UX for Netflix and Credit Card Reviews.
From the top of the page, you can easily navigate to the various services offered by CoinGecko including ranking for top exchanges, DeFi projects, and an NFT marketplace not to mention a Portfolio management section. You also get access to CoinGecko’s latest publications and reports including crypto-related newsletters as well as a community center for the CoinGecko community.
CoinGecko also gives you an easy view of the total market capitalization of the entire crypto space with the total data of the last 24-hour trading volume right at the top of the home page. If you want to know how much top coins such as Bitcoin and Ethereum are dominating the market, you can easily find this data on the home page as well. There is even a quote on the current estimate of gas fees on Ethereum’s network.
CoinGecko’s Price and Global Market Metrics
Cryptocurrency prices and overall market metrics are by far the biggest reasons crypto enthusiasts, speculators, and investors keep track of the entire sector. Crypto prices are often volatile, with instant changes that can be difficult to track.
CoinGecko is designed with a real-time price data tracker for more than 9000 coins boasting the title of the world’s largest crypto data aggregator. With CoinGecko, anyone can view the various global market metrics. From the home page, for instance, you can gain access to the global crypto charts and get an overview of the entire industry’s market cap as shown in the figure below.
As more projects emerge even as some collapse along the way, you can get access to data showing an overview of all the tracked coins as well as the exchanges being tracked by CoinGecko. The global chart gives you the movement of the total market cap throughout the years and right below the page, you can check out cryptocurrencies with the highest volumes as well as the market’s top gainers and losers.
CoinGecko’s Search Function
The CoinGecko search function is one of the most effective tools the site has to offer. You can use it to search any token either by its ticker symbol or its full name. With over 9,000 coins to choose from, CoinGecko has done a great job at covering nearly every crypto project that exists. You can filter your searches based on the niche the crypto projects cover such as projects that are in the charity business, projects in asset management, big data, artificial intelligence, digital collectibles entertainment, or educational projects.
You can also filter your searches based on the blockchain network, for instance, you can set your search to only find projects on the Ethereum, Cosmos, or the Binance Smart Chain ecosystem.
CoinGecko’s Coin Metric
After you have settled on a coin, you can zoom in on that coin’s metrics with data ranging from market capitalization to 24-hour trading volume and that token’s maximum supply.
CoinGecko gives you an intuitive overview of each coin with a chart tracking that coin’s performance with its value according to USD and other fiat currencies such as the Japanese Yen, Chinese Yuan, the Euro, and even the Russian Ruble to mention a few. You can adjust the value of the cryptocurrencies such that you only see the coin’s value in fiat currency, or to Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. What’s more, you can even adjust this to view how much a coin would cost in Bitcoin satoshis which is great for estimating a coin’s price in Bitcoin (the market’s leading cryptocurrency).
Another useful metric on the coin metric page is the percentage change of that coin over a stipulated period. For instance, you can view how much a cryptocurrency’s price has changed in the past year, month or week thanks to a simple and intuitive chart on CoinGecko as seen below.
This data helps you estimate with accuracy how much a coin’s price is appreciating down to the hour thus enabling you to create reliable trading strategies or price predictions.
Right below the page, are links to all the exchanges where that cryptocurrency’s market pairs exist. Each exchange comes with a quick overview of the spread when that coin was last traded, a 24-hour trading volume, and even a trust score to show the reliability of that exchange.
At the end of the coin metric page of each cryptocurrency, CoinGecko gives you a roundup description of the cryptocurrency as well as gathered links to news articles and guides related to the cryptocurrency across the web. This offers easy access to additional information on the specific cryptocurrency which can be useful while conducting due diligence.
Market Capitalization
CoinGecko’s market capitalization for each coin is calculated by multiplying the current price (which is an aggregate average across multiple top exchanges) by that token’s circulating supply. For instance, the Bitcoin market cap is determined by multiplying its price of $44,315.79 by a circulating supply of 18,827,225 to get $$834,343,405,864.
Fully Diluted Valuation
CoinGecko also offers metrics showing the maximum valuation of the cryptocurrency in a case where all the coins were in circulation. This data shows you the cryptocurrency’s valuation at scale. The data is calculated by multiplying the coin’s maximum supply with its currency price.
Circulating Supply
The circulating supply of a token is defined by CoinGecko as the total amount of coins circulating in the market and tradeable by those holding the coin. This data is akin to the stocks of a company in the hands of the public and not locked by insiders and the government. CoinGecko pulls this data directly from API (Application Programming Interface) endpoints of each crypto project or their team.
Maximum Supply
Then there is data on the maximum supply of each cryptocurrency which is the total amount of tokens or coins that will ever exist for that project. Bitcoin for instance has a maximum supply of 21,000,000 coins. This is determined as per the theoretical supply as coded in the project’s whitepaper details and other relevant documentation.
Chart Data
CoinGecko also gives you a historical point of view of that coin’s price movement in the form of a chart. This is helpful for traders looking to use the chart for technical analysis. CoinGecko offers its users various customization features with this chart such that you can view it in the form of candlesticks as well as a line graph. You can even switch to the trading view chart which comes with various technical analysis tools such as Fibonacci retracements as well as Trend Lines to mention a few.
Historical Data
You can also export the historical price data of the specified coin by clicking on the “Historical Data” button just above the chart. This data not only gives you an overview of the coin’s price trajectory but can also be used to create a trading strategy.
CoinGecko’s Exchange Ranking
Exchange rankings are just as important as cryptocurrency rankings and getting an overview of top exchanges based on trading volume can help you determine the health of the market as well as the best venues for conducting your trades. CoinGecko ranks exchanges based on categories such as spot market exchanges, derivatives markets, and decentralized exchanges (DeX).
Besides each exchange, you can view the trust score rating of the exchange, its trading volume in 24 hours as well as traffic levels on that exchange. Each exchange is also ranked based on the number of tokens and the number of market pairs featured.
For decentralized exchanges, you can view the most traded pairs which is a great way of identifying DeFi projects that have the most liquidity.
CoinGecko’s derivatives exchange ranking features a ranking factor based on the number of perpetual contracts on each exchange as well as an overview of the settlement method of each exchange.
While the trust ratings are useful, it’s equally important to research exchanges before using them and read in-depth crypto exchange reviews on each platform prior to sending funds and begin trading or buying crypto. Some exchanges are not available to people in certain areas and it’s important to do your due diligence.
CoinGecko’s NFT Collection Ranking
With the booming NFT marketplace, CoinGecko has just launched a beta version of the NFT collection ranking by trading volume. This offers users an easy overview of the top trading NFT projects with a look at the percentage increase of owners of that NFT collection in the past 24 hours, the total number of assets in the collection, and even a floor price of the NFTs. A floor price is simply the lowest price of an NFT asset in the collection.
Users can even go as far as looking at the metrics of each project and since most booming NFTs at the moment are in the form of digital art, CoinGecko gives you an overview of all the NFT art in the collection.
On the individual dashboard of the NFT collection, users have access to the highest sale price of the top item in the collection as well as relevant links concerning the NFT collection.
CoinGecko’s DeFi Coin Ranking
DeFi coins are all the rage right now and with this understanding, CoinGecko gives its users access to the top 100 DeFi coins by market capitalization. You can use the data presented on CoinGecko to get an overview of the DeFi: Eth ratio just to have an understanding of the total value locked in DeFi projects. Metrics about DeFi dominance, DeFi market cap, and Ethereum’s market cap as the top DeFi platform are also presented.
CoinGecko also offers a ranking of the top DeFi coins ranging from the likes of Uniswap to Chainlink.
Portfolio Tracker
In addition to tracking the price movements of various crypto projects, it is also important to keep track of all the coins in your portfolio. CoinGecko makes it easy to track your portfolio thanks to a portfolio manager that can be customized with a list of the crypto projects whose coins you are holding. What’s more, CoinGecko makes it even easier to track your portfolio thanks to a mobile app that offers the same and is available on both Android and iOS devices.
Other Useful CoinGecko Resources
If you are looking to earn yields on your crypto, CoinGecko offers a useful tool for researching the best platforms with the best yields.
You can compare and contrast the APR expected on various yield generating platforms and this can be done with multiple cryptocurrencies.
CoinGecko also comes with an APY and Impermanent Loss calculator for yield farmers in the DeFi space. CoinGecko ranks the top yield farming pools based on the value locked as well as estimated returns.
What’s more, CoinGecko also features APIs that allow users to retrieve cryptocurrency data such as volume, market cap, and exchange data straight from CoinGecko. These APIs can be used for free for algorithmic trading and other purposes.
Conclusion: A Fully-Fledged Crypto Data Tracking Solution
CoinGecko is a leading data tracker in the crypto space with a plethora of features that make it easy for crypto enthusiasts to navigate the crypto space. With a wide variety of information spread across multiple projects, CoinGecko makes it easy to access the most vital and relevant data all on one platform. The site also features educational publications with crypto reports, newsletters, and guides that help users stay afloat in the sophisticated and complex crypto landscape. With this guide, you will now be able to make the best use of CoinGecko.
This article has been scheduled in accordance with Socialnomics’ disclosure policy.
