Finder Cryptocurrency Adoption Index

The October 2024 survey was the final survey in this series

Finder’s Cryptocurrency Adoption Index measures cryptocurrency adoption in the United States through a quarterly survey.

Key US crypto adoption trends from our October 2024 survey

Cryptocurrency adoption statistics in the US

Currently, 27% of Americans own cryptocurrency, which is almost double the 15% from the October 2023 survey.

Interestingly, cryptocurrency is now one of the more common ways people find there way to investing more broadly, with 43% saying they bought stocks as their first investment, followed by mutual funds at 12% and cryptocurrencies in third at 9%.

Is cryptocurrency a good investment?

Just over half our respondents (52%) feel cryptocurrency isn’t a good investment, while 48% feel it is.

More men than women feel cryptocurrency is a good investment.

44% of the women investors polled feel cryptocurrency is a good investment, while 52% of the men polled feel it is.

Crypto is a young person’s game

Just 14% of those over 65 and 28% of people aged 55-64 say cryptocurrency is a good investment compared to over to half of both 18-24-year-olds (53%) and 25-34-year-olds (65%).

Popular cryptocurrencies in the US

Bitcoin (BTC) remains the most-held cryptocurrency, 77% of American crypto owners holding it. Ether (ETH) comes in second, with 45% of Americans who own crypto holding it.

First cryptocurrency purchase

BTC is the entry point for the majority of crypto owners.

Total investment in crypto

While crypto may be gaining in popularity, the majority of investors are not throwing all their money towards these assets, with 80% of investors holding crypto assets having less than $10,000 in exposure.

Reasons for not investing in cryptocurrency

“I think crypto is a scam” is one of the most common reason given by our respondents for why they don’t own crypto at 26% but a lack of money to invest is by far the biggest reason for not investing in crypto (47%).

• Methodology

  Methodology

  The Finder and Tastytrade Investor Sentiment Report is a US nationally representative survey of American adults about their investing habits. Results collected in August, 2024.

  Our survey asked people a range of investing-related questions, including whether they have ever invested outside of their 401(k), what they’re investing in and whether they think now is a good time to invest.

  Of the 2,016 adults surveyed, 874 said they had invested outside of their 401(k) and make up the sample of investors referenced throughout the article.

  We define geographical regions as defined by the US Census Bureau.

  • East North Central: Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin
  • East South Central: Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi and Tennessee
  • Mid-Atlantic: New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania
  • Mountain: Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming
  • New England: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont
  • Pacific: Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon and Washington
  • South Atlantic: Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virgina, Washington, D.C., and West Virginia
  • West North Central: Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota
  • West South Central: Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Texas

To make sure you get accurate and helpful information, this guide has been edited by Holly Jennings as part of our fact-checking process.

Written by

Richard Laycock

Editorial & PR Lead

Richard Laycock is Finder’s NYC-based lead editor & insights editor, spending the last decade data diving, writing and editing articles about all things personal finance. His musings can be found across the web including on NASDAQ, MoneyMag, Yahoo Finance and Travel Weekly. Richard studied Media at Macquarie University, including a semester abroad at The Missouri School of Journalism (MIZZOU). See full bio