Beginners who have just registered on the Binance Official Site are often overwhelmed by the hundreds of tokens available. Beyond BTC / Bitcoin and ETH / Ethereum, should you touch the rest, known as "Altcoins"? It is highly recommended to install the Official Binance APP first and use the checklist in this article to see if the tokens you are interested in are considered mainstream. TL;DR: Altcoins (Alternative Coins) is a collective term for all crypto assets besides BTC / Bitcoin, but their risk profiles vary wildly. "Mainstream Altcoins" on Binance—those with a top 20 market cap, high liquidity, and over 3 years of history—can be allocated moderately. However, tokens launched for less than a year, with a market cap under $500 million or thin trading volume, are strictly high-risk speculative plays. Beginners are advised to avoid altcoins entirely for their first 6 months. Afterward, start only with mainstream altcoins, ensuring no single token exceeds 10% of your total portfolio.
What Exactly Is an Altcoin?
A: Altcoin = Alternative Coin = Every crypto asset other than BTC / Bitcoin. The term gained popularity after the emergence of LTC / Litecoin in 2011.
In the crypto world, "Altcoin" is not a derogatory term; it is simply industry jargon. Early altcoins (LTC / Litecoin, DOGE / Dogecoin, XRP / Ripple) were mostly "copycats" that tweaked the original BTC / Bitcoin code, hence the name. Since the birth of ETH / Ethereum, crypto assets have branched out into various sectors: Public Chains (ETH, SOL, ADA), Exchange Tokens (BNB, OKB), Stablecoins (USDT, USDC), Meme Coins (DOGE, PEPE), DeFi Governance Tokens (UNI, AAVE), and more.
Technically, ETH / Ethereum is also an altcoin because it isn't BTC / Bitcoin. However, due to its massive market cap and ecosystem—ranking second in both—the industry usually puts ETH / Ethereum in its own category, using "Altcoin" specifically to refer to assets other than BTC + ETH.
The most dangerous misconception for beginners is treating all altcoins as the same. The reality is that a top 20 altcoin and an altcoin ranked below 1,000 are entirely different beasts—the former is "medium risk, high reward," while the latter is "gambling."
List of Mainstream Altcoins on Binance (Early 2026)
The table below lists mainstream altcoins on Binance as of April 2026, sorted by market capitalization. Since market caps fluctuate constantly, please refer to real-time data on Binance for the most accurate rankings.
| Token | Project Type | Launch Date | Primary Use | Market Cap Rank (Approx.) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BNB / Binance Coin | Exchange + Layer 1 | 2017 | Fee Discounts, Launchpool, BNB Chain Gas | 4 |
| SOL / Solana | High-Perf Layer 1 | 2020 | On-chain dApps, Meme Coins, Payments | 5 |
| XRP / Ripple | Cross-Border Payments | 2012 | Interbank Settlement | 6 |
| ADA / Cardano | Academic Layer 1 | 2017 | Smart Contracts, Sustainability Narrative | 8 |
| DOGE / Dogecoin | Original Meme Coin | 2013 | Social Payments, Musk-driven Sentiment | 9 |
| TRX / Tron | Content Layer 1 | 2018 | Major USDT Issuance Chain, Low Gas L1 | 10 |
| AVAX / Avalanche | Subnet Layer 1 | 2020 | Subnets, Institutional DeFi | 12 |
| LINK / Chainlink | Oracle | 2017 | Off-chain Data for Smart Contracts | 14 |
| TON / Telegram Open Network | TG-Integrated L1 | 2018 | Telegram Payments, In-app Mini Programs | 15 |
| DOT / Polkadot | Interoperability | 2020 | Parachain Ecosystem, Cross-chain Comms | 18 |
| MATIC / Polygon | Ethereum Layer 2 | 2017 | Ethereum Scaling Solution | 20 |
| LTC / Litecoin | "Digital Silver" | 2011 | Bitcoin-like, Faster Block Times | 22 |
| UNI / Uniswap | DeFi Governance | 2020 | Largest DEX Governance Token | 25 |
| ATOM / Cosmos | Interoperability Protocol | 2019 | Blockchain Interconnectivity | 30 |
| FIL / Filecoin | Decentralized Storage | 2020 | IPFS Storage Rewards | 35 |
| NEAR / NEAR Protocol | High-TPS Layer 1 | 2020 | User-friendly Optimized Public Chain | 38 |
Simple Standards for "Mainstream" Status:
- Ranked in the top 50 by market cap.
- Launched for more than 3 years.
- Listed with major trading pairs on Binance, Coinbase, and OKX.
- Average daily trading volume > $100 million.
- Features a verifiable developer team and a clear roadmap.
Assets meeting all these criteria are considered "Mainstream Altcoins" and can be reasonably allocated by beginners. Stay away from anything that fails these checks, especially projects that have been "launched for less than a year," have "24-hour volume below $1 million," or have "anonymous teams."
Can You Actually Make Money with Altcoins?
A: Yes, but the probability is lower than at a casino, and you must endure extreme volatility.
Historical data shows that in every bull market, 1 or 2 altcoins will outperform BTC / Bitcoin by 5 to 50 times. In 2017, it was ETH / Ethereum and ADA / Cardano; in 2020-2021, it was SOL / Solana and AVAX / Avalanche; and in 2024-2025, it was emerging chains like SUI and SEI.
Conversely, every bear market sees a vast number of altcoins drop by 90% to 99%, or even crash to zero. In the 2018 bear market, 90% of ICO project tokens went to zero. In 2022, LUNA plummeted from $119 to $0.0001, and FTT dropped from $80 to $1. Both were considered "mainstream" at the time.
More importantly, it is incredibly difficult for beginners to catch the main upward wave. By the time you hear about a certain altcoin, it has often already pumped 5-10 times, leaving you to buy at the top. In the altcoin market, "being too late to know" is the default state. Reversing this requires professional expertise or sheer luck.
Should You Buy Altcoins? And How?
A: Take a phased approach—avoid them for the first 6 months, try mainstream altcoins with small amounts between 6-18 months, and only consider niche altcoins after 18 months.
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First 6 Months: Stick 100% to BTC / Bitcoin, or a 70% BTC + 30% ETH split. Your goal here is to "understand the market and train your emotions," not to "get rich."
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6 to 18 Months: You may allocate 10%–20% of your total portfolio to 2 or 3 mainstream altcoins. For instance, if your total portfolio is $10,000, you could put $1,000–$2,000 into a basket like SOL / Solana + LINK / Chainlink + AVAX / Avalanche. Ensure no single token exceeds 10% of your total holdings.
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After 18 Months: If you can analyze on-chain data, read project whitepapers, and vet team backgrounds, you might allocate 5%–10% of your total portfolio to non-mainstream altcoins. This portion of capital must be money you are mentally prepared to "lose completely."
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Never Touch: "New coins" launched in the last 24 hours, "pump-and-dump coins" that have spiked 500%+ in a day, or "Meme coins" that go viral overnight—unless you are a professional player.
How to Buy Altcoins on Binance
A: Simply search for the token ticker in the Spot market and place an order. However, pay close attention to liquidity, spreads, and withdrawal fees.
The basic workflow:
- Complete KYC verification.
- Purchase USDT via P2P (C2C).
- Search for the token in the Spot page (e.g., SOL/USDT, LINK/USDT) and buy via a Market or Limit order.
Keep an eye on these three details:
- Liquidity: Check the 24h trading volume before buying. Pairs with volume under $1 million will have significant slippage.
- Spread: Tokens with low liquidity may have a 1%–3% bid-ask spread. Always check the order book before hitting buy.
- Withdrawal Fees: Altcoin withdrawal fees vary greatly. SOL / Solana is nearly free, Bitcoin costs a few dollars, but some altcoins may charge a fee that is more expensive than the token itself.
For your first purchase, stick to the most liquid tokens (SOL, BNB, XRP) until you are familiar with the process.
If you haven't installed the app yet, see the iOS Installation Guide.
Core Risks of Altcoins
A: Zero-value risk, liquidity risk, rug pulls, and regulatory risk—four areas where altcoins are far more dangerous than BTC / Bitcoin.
First, Zero-value Risk. While BTC / Bitcoin has dropped 80% in the past, it is nearly impossible for it to hit zero. For altcoins, crashing 100% is common—as seen with LUNA, FTT, LUNC, and SafeMoon.
Second, Liquidity Risk. During market panics, altcoin liquidity can vanish instantly, making it impossible to sell. This rarely happens to BTC / Bitcoin.
Third, Rug Pulls. This is a common scam where developers pump the price and then suddenly sell off their holdings and abandon the project, causing the price to hit zero instantly. While rare among top 50 mainstream altcoins, it happens almost daily with low-cap tokens.
Fourth, Regulatory Risk. The SEC's determination of many altcoins as "securities" is uncertain. If a token is labeled an "unregistered security," Binance might delist it, causing the price to collapse.
Fifth, Information Asymmetry. The true state of a project is often known only to the team. The information beginners see via charts or social media has already been filtered by the project owners.
Sixth, Crypto assets have no principal protection, and it is normal for altcoins to go to zero. For more details, see our Disclaimer.
FAQ
Q: Are Meme coins considered altcoins? A: Technically, yes. However, Meme coins (DOGE, SHIB, PEPE, WIF, etc.) are a much higher-risk sub-category with no utility, driven purely by social sentiment. Beginners are advised to avoid them entirely for the first 18 months.
Q: Can I use Dollar-Cost Averaging (DCA) for altcoins? A: Theoretically, yes, but it is much riskier than DCA-ing into BTC / Bitcoin. You could end up DCA-ing into a token that is heading to zero. Limit DCA strategies to the top 10 mainstream altcoins.
Q: How do I find the next 100x altcoin? A: There is no replicable method for "discovering a 100x gem." Every 100x story is a combination of luck + early participation + heavy conviction + holding until the top. Most people are lucky if they can meet even two of those conditions.
Q: Is altcoin staking safe? A: Binance's Earn platform is relatively reliable. Third-party DeFi protocols carry smart contract risks. Be extremely wary of any altcoin staking with "high APY" (above 50%).
Q: How do I choose between multiple altcoins in the same niche? A: Go with the one that has the largest market cap, the longest track record, and the best liquidity. For example, in Layer 2, choose ARB (Arbitrum) over a newer, smaller L2 project.
Q: Should I hold altcoins long-term or short-term? A: Except for a very few public chain tokens like ETH / Ethereum and SOL / Solana, most altcoins are not suited for long-term holding. Altcoins are best played with a "fast in, fast out" strategy—catch a trend and exit. Do not hold onto an altcoin as it sinks.
This article does not constitute investment advice. Altcoins carry high risks; please participate with caution.