CryptoSlate
A $100-per-month dollar-cost averaging strategy deployed across six major cryptocurrencies from January 2022 through August 2026 produced wildly divergent outcomes depending on which asset investors held. Tron led the field, turning $5,600 of total contributions into a $16,521 portfolio (a 195% return). Bitcoin, XRP and Solana all gained more than 40% on the same contributions, while Ethereum investors ended with $4,898, a 12.5% loss, and Cardano holders finished with just $2,616, a 53.3% loss, according to CryptoRank data.
Why it matters
The comparison isolates a structural point about DCA that retail investors routinely miss: the strategy smooths out entry prices, but it cannot rescue an asset that never recovers. Cardano's ADA token fell about 85% from roughly $1.38 to $0.20 over the period, and the average cost basis of monthly buyers never caught up. Solana showed the opposite case: SOL remained about 59% below its early-2022 price of $170 by August 2026, yet the monthly buyer still ended up 43.3% ahead because purchases made during the post-FTX collapse (when SOL traded below $10) accumulated large token counts ahead of the rebound. Tron sat at the extreme edge, climbing more than 300% from $0.075 to $0.33; the DCA strategy diluted those gains because each successive $100 bought fewer TRX as the price appreciated.
The period also captured the structural shift that drove the 2024 rally. The Securities and Exchange Commission approved spot Bitcoin exchange-traded products in January 2024 and spot Ethereum products in May, giving institutions regulated vehicles for the two largest assets. Donald Trump's November 2024 election win, with its pledges to build a national Bitcoin stockpile and replace SEC Chair Gary Gensler, accelerated the rally, and his administration followed through with the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, the US Digital Asset Stockpile, and the GENIUS Act for payment stablecoins.
Market impact
The 2024 highs marked the peak for most DCA portfolios and the starting point of the drawdown still weighing on returns.
Frequently asked questions
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Which cryptocurrency delivered the highest DCA return since January 2022?
Tron (TRX) led with a 195% return, turning $5,600 of monthly $100 contributions into $16,521 by August 2026, according to CryptoRank data.
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Why did Ethereum DCA investors still lose money on the strategy?
ETH traded around $3,770 at the start of 2022 and near $1,900 by August 2026, roughly 50% lower. Monthly buying lowered the average cost basis, but only enough to reduce the loss to 12.5%, not eliminate it.
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How did the 2024 crypto rally affect DCA portfolios?
Most DCA portfolios peaked at the end of 2024: Solana hit $17,728, XRP $14,345, Bitcoin $10,193 and Cardano $7,251. Subsequent drawdowns cut those gains by roughly 30% to 65% by August 2026.
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How much do US crypto ETFs hold today?
Total US crypto ETF assets fell from more than $123 billion at peak to roughly $92 billion, with Bitcoin ETFs holding about $78.3 billion and Ethereum products about $10.6 billion, per SoSoValue.
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What is dollar-cost averaging and why does it not guarantee a profit?
DCA means investing a fixed amount at regular intervals to smooth out entry prices. It reduces losses during downturns but cannot guarantee profit if the underlying asset never recovers enough to offset the accumulated cost basis.
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