BTC dominance is the percentage of the total cryptocurrency market capitalization held by Bitcoin. It is calculated by dividing Bitcoin's market cap by the combined market cap of every tracked cryptocurrency, then multiplying by 100.
If the entire crypto market is worth $2 trillion and Bitcoin alone is worth $1.2 trillion, BTC dominance is 60%. The metric moves both when Bitcoin's price changes relative to other coins and when new coins enter or leave the tracked universe.
Most data providers (CoinGecko, CoinMarketCap, TradingView) calculate dominance over the top 1,000 to 2,000 coins by market cap. The exact denominator differs slightly between providers, so dominance numbers can vary by 1 to 2 percentage points depending on the source.
Dominance is a rotation signal. When BTC dominance rises, it usually means capital is flowing into Bitcoin and out of altcoins, either because traders are de-risking (Bitcoin is the most established crypto asset) or because Bitcoin is outperforming during a rally. When dominance falls during a market upswing, capital is rotating into altcoins, typically late in a market cycle when speculation peaks.
Common patterns: dominance spikes during sharp risk-off moves as alts get sold harder than BTC. Dominance falls during "alt season" when smaller-cap coins outperform on percentage terms. A breakout above prior dominance highs often precedes broader Bitcoin-led market moves.
The Crypto panel on the TerminalFeed dashboard shows live BTC Dominance alongside total market cap and 24h volume. The Bitcoin Ticker page links to the same source data. For context on what dominance moves often precede, see our writeup on price/sentiment disconnects.