Bitcoin Vs Other Cryptocurrencies: What’s The Better Option?
Undoubtedly, Bitcoin has been a trendsetter that set the way for other cryptocurrencies in motion. Not only that, but it has also become the standard for several types of cryptocurrencies, hence inspiring an ever-growing legion of spinoffs and followers.
Even though Bitcoin is the headline cryptocurrency for many, the market for digital currencies that rely on the blockchain is bigger. As a matter of fact, the size of blockchain technology worldwide stands at a massive figure of 1.2 billion USD.
Before we head over to the comparison of different cryptocurrencies, let’s first take a look at what cryptocurrencies actually are.
So, What Are Cryptocurrencies?
Before you can differentiate between the different cryptocurrencies, it is essential for you to first understand the meaning of cryptocurrency. Cryptocurrency gets its name as it makes use of encryption methods for the verification of payments and purchases.
Crypto is a digital currency that is facilitated by the internet and tends to operate without any centralized authority or bank. The transfer of crypto between the parties takes place using public and private keys. A minimal processing fee is associated with the transactions, which gives it an edge over traditional currencies.
Why Is Bitcoin So Popular?
Created in 2008, Bitcoin is perhaps the most prominent name among all the cryptocurrencies that exist in the world today.
The low transaction fee involved in Bitcoin transactions is perhaps one of the significant reasons for the popularity of Bitcoin. This usually attracts people who make huge transactions across borders and wish to protect themselves from the hefty transaction fees involved.
Another reason behind the popularity of Bitcoin is that no government or central authority is involved as a regulatory authority. Therefore, it remains stable even if the country goes through turmoil. Hence, Bitcoin serves as a good tool for protecting your wealth.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Bitcoin
Even though Bitcoin has become quite popular now, people are still not aware of its benefits and drawbacks. That being said, let’s shed some light on the advantages and disadvantages of Bitcoin.
Advantages of Bitcoin
- Online Purchases
Online purchases happen to be one of the prime advantages of Bitcoin. While some brands have started to accept Bitcoin as a direct payment method, others are still not there yet. This is where gift cards come in and save the day, as gift cards can be purchased using cryptocurrency and can be redeemed at the respective stores.
Coingate is one of the authentic websites that provides gift cards for over a thousand brands and for 70 different countries.
- Limited Supply
Bitcoin has a limited quantity of a total of 21 million, of which 18 million have been mined and are in circulation. Since its supply can’t be increased and will not exceed the 21 million mark, its price will increase in the near future.
Disadvantages of Bitcoin
- No Dispute Settlement
One of the drawbacks of Bitcoin is that there is no authority to settle transaction-related disputes. Even if you send funds to the wrong wallet mistakenly, you won’t be able to recover them. - Limited Usage
Even though Bitcoin is growing in demand, it is still not widely accepted. Hence, this limits where you can spend your money, and not everything can be bought with it.
What Are Some Popular Cryptocurrencies Other Than Bitcoin?
The field of cryptocurrencies is continually expanding, and there are many different cryptocurrencies besides Bitcoin now. That being said, let’s take a look at some of the other popular cryptocurrencies other than Bitcoin.
- Ethereum (ETH)
Created in the year 2015, Ethereum is one of the most popular cryptocurrencies besides Bitcoin. It is an open-source and decentralized project that is used to make peer-to-peer payments.
What makes it different from Bitcoin is the execution of smart contracts. Moreover, it allows you to build databases for decentralized finance, NFTs, and gaming, which is impossible on the Bitcoin network.
- Cardano (ADA)
Just like Ethereum, Cardano is another one of the popular cryptocurrencies other than Bitcoin that offers peer-to-peer transactions. Not just that, but it also allows developers to build applications on the network like Ethereum.
However, it is to be noticed that the platform of Cardano requires developers to take a research-intensive approach to build its blockchain network.
- Litecoin (LTC)
Litecoin happens to be another popular cryptocurrency in today’s era. It has different features and a significantly larger supply as compared to Bitcoin. Moreover, the transactions on the Litecoin network are comparatively faster.
Conclusion
All in all, Bitcoin has become a mainstream crypto now, and everyone knows about it. Other than that, the growth potential of Bitcoin is comparatively less as compared to other cryptocurrencies. However, the acceptance rate of Bitcoin is higher than others, so it gets an edge there.
Hence, before you decide to invest in any cryptocurrency, you can weigh your options and priorities and choose accordingly.
