The ETH/BTC ratio is the price of one Ether measured in Bitcoin instead of dollars. If Ether trades at $3,000 and Bitcoin at $100,000, the ratio is 0.03, meaning one ETH buys 0.03 BTC. Because both prices usually move in the same direction against the dollar, the ratio strips out the general market move and shows only which of the two largest cryptocurrencies is doing better.
Latest reading: in our most recent weekly crypto market wrap, captured on September 20, 2026, one ETH bought 0.03203 BTC, with Bitcoin at $80,522. This line updates every Sunday.
How to calculate the ETH/BTC ratio
ETH/BTC = price of Ether ÷ price of Bitcoin
You do not need to work it out yourself. ETH/BTC is a real trading pair on most large exchanges, so the ratio is simply the last traded price of that pair. On TradingView it appears as ETHBTC.
What the ratio represents
Traders treat ETH/BTC as a quick gauge of appetite for risk inside crypto. Bitcoin is the largest and most established asset. Ether is the base of the biggest smart-contract network, and most other tokens, decentralised finance applications and NFTs are built on Ethereum or on networks that settle to it. When the ratio rises, money is moving further along the risk scale. When it falls, money is staying in, or retreating to, Bitcoin.
- Ratio rising: Ether is outperforming Bitcoin. Historically this has often come with broader strength in smaller coins.
- Ratio falling: Bitcoin is outperforming. This has been the dominant trend for long stretches, including most of the period from late 2022 into 2025.
- Ratio flat: the two are moving together and the ratio is telling you nothing new.
Key moments in the ratio’s history
- June 2017: the ratio reached its all-time high of roughly 0.15 during the initial coin offering boom, when new tokens were bought mainly with Ether.
- 2018 to 2019: it fell below 0.02 as the token boom unwound.
- Late 2021: it recovered to about 0.088 at the height of the decentralised finance and NFT cycle.
- September 2022: Ethereum completed the Merge, its switch from proof of work to proof of stake, with the ratio near 0.08. It trended lower afterwards.
- April 2025: it dropped below 0.02, its lowest level in about five years, before rebounding later that year.
What moves ETH/BTC
- Institutional flows. Spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds launched in the United States in January 2024 and spot Ether funds followed in July 2024. The Bitcoin products attracted far more money at first, which weighed on the ratio.
- Activity on Ethereum. Busy periods for decentralised finance, stablecoins and tokenisation raise demand for Ether to pay transaction fees, part of which is destroyed under the fee-burning mechanism introduced in 2021.
- Competition. Faster or cheaper networks such as Solana compete for the same users and developers, and Ethereum’s own layer-2 networks have moved activity away from the main chain.
- Market mood. In sharp sell-offs Ether usually falls more than Bitcoin, which pulls the ratio down quickly.
How it relates to Bitcoin dominance
The two measures often move in opposite directions, but they are not the same thing. Bitcoin dominance compares Bitcoin with the entire market, including stablecoins and thousands of small tokens. ETH/BTC compares Bitcoin with one asset. Ether can gain on Bitcoin while Bitcoin dominance still rises, if the rest of the market is weak.
Limits of the ratio
ETH/BTC says nothing about dollar returns: both coins can lose value while the ratio climbs. It also reflects only two assets, so it can miss a rally that is concentrated elsewhere. Use it as one input next to price, dominance and market breadth.
Frequently asked questions
What is a good ETH/BTC ratio?
There is no good or bad level. Over the past eight years the ratio has ranged from under 0.02 to about 0.15. Analysts pay more attention to the trend over weeks and months than to any single reading.
Why did the ETH/BTC ratio fall for so long?
From late 2022 to early 2025, Bitcoin benefited from exchange-traded fund demand and its role as the simplest institutional crypto holding, while Ethereum faced stronger competition and lower fee income on its main chain. Both factors favoured Bitcoin.
Where can I see the current ETH/BTC ratio?
We record it every Sunday in the weekly crypto market wrap, together with how Ether performed against Bitcoin over the week. Any exchange that lists the ETH/BTC pair shows it live.
Does a rising ETH/BTC ratio mean altcoin season?
It is one of the usual ingredients, but not proof. The clearer sign is breadth: most large coins beating Bitcoin over several weeks.
This guide is educational. It describes how a market measure works and is not investment advice. Crypto assets are volatile and you can lose money.
