Although Dogecoin (DOGE 0.54%) doesn’t have much going for it as an investment, it has been one of the most successful cryptocurrencies. It’s worth about $21 billion (as of Jan. 22), making it one of the 10 largest coins by market cap.

This meme coin has also delivered staggering returns to those who got in early. Here’s how much it has grown in the last five years.

Image source: Getty Images.

A wild ride for Dogecoin fans

Over the last five years, Dogecoin’s value has increased by 1,380%. If you’d invested $1,000 in Dogecoin on Jan. 22, 2021, and held on until Jan. 21, 2026, your DOGE tokens would be worth $14,750. That’s better than the return you would’ve gotten from Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP, and even tech giant Nvidia.

Despite that, you might still be disappointed in the results. Why? Because for a brief period in 2021 (around the time Dogecoin fan Elon Musk appeared on Saturday Night Live), your Dogecoin position would’ve been worth over $75,000. And after the 2024 presidential election, it would’ve been worth about $50,000. You’d still be sitting on sizable profits today, but probably wishing you had taken the big money when you had the chance.

Dogecoin

Today’s Change

(-0.54%) $-0.00

Current Price

$0.12

Cryptocurrencies in general are extremely volatile, and that’s especially true with meme coins. Because their growth comes from hype rather than fundamental value, meme coins tend to have very short-lived peaks, if any. The peak is usually followed by a sell-off and a steep drop.

For that reason, it’s important to be ready to sell at a moment’s notice if you buy meme coins. Otherwise, you could miss your opportunity — and most crypto trades do. Dogecoin is now down over 80% from its all-time high of $0.74 in 2021 and has never come close to that price since then. Some people like to buy meme coins for fun or as a sort of digital lottery ticket.

The better option, though, is to stick to cryptocurrencies with legitimate use cases, as buying meme coins is much closer to gambling than investing.