What is circulating supply in crypto?

The figure matters because people use it to size a coin's market value and to compare projects. It also shows how many coins can move in the market today, before you look at other measures.

How is circulating supply calculated?

Data sites usually start with total supply, the count of every coin that exists, and max supply is the lifetime cap when a project sets one. They subtract the coins the public cannot trade, and burned coins are already gone from total supply. The number changes over time: new coins from mining or block rewards add to total supply, scheduled unlocks move locked coins into circulation, and a burn lowers total supply.

• Coins locked in contracts or reserves.
• Coins held by the team or treasury.
• Coins reserved for future rewards or sales.

How do you read circulating supply?

Market cap equals price times circulating supply. Fully diluted valuation uses max supply when a project sets one, or total supply when it does not. A large gap between the two can mean many coins are not yet tradable.

What does circulating supply not tell you?

The number alone does not show liquidity, holder concentration, or real demand. A small circulating supply does not guarantee scarcity or a higher price. A large supply can still trade in deep markets, and a small supply can sit in a few wallets.

Written byVahe HakobyanVahe Hakobyan is the editor-in-chief of World-Crypt. He covers bitcoin, markets and regulation, and leads the newsroom that fact-checks every story before it goes live.