Bitcoin vs Dogecoin: Comparing the World’s First Cryptocurrency to the Ultimate Meme Coin

Bitcoin and Dogecoin may both be cryptocurrencies, but they differ in design, purpose, economics, and community culture. See how they compare.

Introduction

The cryptocurrency industry thrives on innovation, yet traders continue to show preference for its most established tokens. Since Satoshi Nakamoto published Bitcoin’s white paper in 2008, countless cryptocurrencies have emerged, many boasting superior functionality and faster transaction speeds. 

However, Bitcoin remains the dominant force, shaping market trends. Altcoins generally follow its lead. Despite infrequent upgrades to the core Bitcoin blockchain, BTC holds the highest market capitalisation and per-coin value, validating its first-mover advantage.

Dogecoin (DOGE) exhibits a parallel path. Created in 2013 by Billy Markus and Jackson Palmer as a fun alternative to Bitcoin, DOGE inadvertently became the first meme coin. Since then, an endless stream of meme coins have followed, featuring dogs, cats, celebrities, and more, but DOGE has withstood all of these to remain the top meme coin by market cap.

While DOGE hasn’t seen a major technological upgrade since 2015, its community-driven appeal has kept it relevant, continuing to dominate social media conversations and setting the benchmark for meme coins.

Both Bitcoin and Dogecoin enjoy their status as originals in their respective niches, but how do they compare in terms of tokenomics, adoption, and functionality? 

Key Differences Between BTC and DOGE

Bitcoin Overview

Bitcoin is a digital currency designed for peer-to-peer (P2P) electronic transactions without having to rely on banks or governments, laying the foundation for the modern decentralised finance (DeFi) movement. 

It operates on a distributed ledger, using blockchain technology, and includes a Proof of Work (PoW) consensus mechanism to verify transactions. The system allows participants, called nodes, to join and leave the network freely without disrupting the overall integrity of the blockchain ledger. The blockchain network synchronises everything by following the longest PoW chain as the definitive record of events.

The first Bitcoin was minted on 3 January 2009, with the first public trading markets emerging in July 2010. Nakamoto actively contributed to Bitcoin’s development until mid-2010, handing over control of the Bitcoin repository and network alerts to developer Gavin Andresen before disappearing from public communication entirely. Today, Bitcoin is supported by the nonprofit Bitcoin Foundation, but governance sits in the hands of its global user base, giving it a truly decentralised structure.

Upgrades to Bitcoin require community consensus and are often contentious. For example, Bitcoin’s growing adoption has led to slow and expensive transactions over the years, prompting debate over scalability solutions. By 2017, the problem was significant enough that the community pushed hard for a solution. One faction supported the Segregated Witness (SegWit) upgrade to improve efficiency and enable Layer-2 blockchain scaling solutions like the Lightning Network. Others argued that SegWit would not enhance Bitcoin’s usability for everyday transactions and instead pushed for larger block sizes to reduce network congestion.

The SegWit proposal ultimately won, but dissenters, led by influential Bitcoin enthusiast Roger Ver, initiated a hard fork in August 2017, creating Bitcoin Cash (BCH), with larger block sizes to prioritise transaction speed.

Check out Bitcoin’s current value and recent price trends.

Dogecoin Overview

Dogecoin was created in December 2013 by Billy Markus and Jackson Palmer. It began as a parody of the cryptocurrency space, inspired by the viral ‘Doge’ meme featuring a Shiba Inu. While it was initially launched as a joke without any practical utility, Dogecoin quickly built a strong and enthusiastic community, which went as far as to use DOGE as a tipping currency for quality social media content.

The community momentum was helped in part by DOGE’s ‘Do Only Good Everyday’ ethical stance and internet culture of memes. Dogecoin’s appeal lies in its low transaction fees, fast confirmations, and strong community culture focused on inclusivity, humour, and philanthropy.

Not surprisingly, DOGE’s meteoric rise resulted in a number of growing pains. As DOGE increased in value and more transactions were processed on its blockchain, there wasn’t enough hashrate to protect the network from cyberattacks. 

This vulnerability inspired Litecoin founder Charlie Lee to propose ‘merged mining’, which allows miners to simultaneously secure Litecoin and Dogecoin without compromising performance, since both protocols share the Scrypt hashing algorithm. 

The proposal was fiercely debated by Dogecoin’s community but ultimately accepted in 2014, making both networks more secure while giving miners additional revenue streams.

Check out DOGE’s current value and recent price trends.

Ecosystem Comparison: BTC and DOGE

Bitcoin and Dogecoin’s Consensus Mechanisms

Bitcoin pioneered the Proof of Work (PoW) consensus mechanism, requiring miners to solve complex mathematical puzzles to validate transactions and add new blocks to the blockchain. Since there is no shortcut to finding the correct answer, miners rely on powerful computing hardware to use trial-and-error techniques in attempts to find the proper solutions. The first to succeed secures the right to append a block to Bitcoin’s blockchain, earning transaction fees and a block reward as compensation.

Block rewards are funded through coin issuance, where winning miners are rewarded with newly minted bitcoins. To control inflation, Bitcoin’s block reward halves roughly every four years and will eventually phase out when the maximum supply of 21 million BTC is reached. At that point, miners will rely solely on transaction fees for revenue. While this system is highly secure and decentralised, it is extremely energy-intensive and slower than Proof of Stake (PoS) alternatives, attracting criticism for its environmental impact and scalability limitations.

Dogecoin also uses a PoW consensus mechanism, but with some key differences. Initially, DOGE had a similar halving schedule to Bitcoin, but it later adopted a fixed block reward of 10,000 DOGE per block, making its tokenomics significantly more inflationary. Unlike Bitcoin, which uses the SHA-256 hashing algorithm, Dogecoin relies on Scrypt, allowing DOGE miners to ‘merge mine’ with Litecoin and other Scrypt-based networks for additional earnings.

While Bitcoin is unlikely to transition to PoS due to its reliance on mining, Dogecoin could consider the switch. Ethereum (ETH) co-founder Vitalik Buterin, also a Dogecoin Foundation advisor, has publicly advocated for Dogecoin to migrate to PoS and offered Ethereum’s code as a framework for implementation. The idea is under discussion within Dogecoin’s community, though no formal transition has been confirmed.

Bitcoin and Dogecoin’s Scalability

Bitcoin’s scalability is one of its most significant obstacles as a payment processor. Its network processes an average of seven transactions per second (tps), significantly lower than Proof of Stake (PoS) blockchains like Solana (SOL), which handles over 1,000 tps, and traditional payment processors like Visa, which manages hundreds of thousands. Likewise, Bitcoin’s transaction fees are high, varying based on network demand and processing speed, with a recent range of $1.84 to $7.63.

Dogecoin’s network offers higher throughput, with around 33 tps, making it more efficient than Bitcoin but still lagging behind PoS alternatives. Transaction fees also fluctuate based on network conditions, averaging around $0.13. While Dogecoin’s energy footprint is lower than Bitcoin’s due to its less competitive mining landscape, it still shares the same scalability limitations as other PoW options.

Overall, neither BTC nor DOGE is particularly scalable. Instead, traders like to buy, hold, and sell these cryptocurrencies based on their popularity and long-term potential.

Tokenomics Comparison

Bitcoin Use Cases

BTC serves as the native cryptocurrency of the Bitcoin network, primarily used for trading, paying transaction fees, and compensating miners. The long-term appreciation in Bitcoin’s price keeps it widely regarded as a secure store of value, and it can be bought, sold, and traded on major platforms like Crypto.com. Bitcoin’s high liquidity allows holders to exchange it for fiat currencies or other cryptocurrencies with ease. Additionally, BTC underpins various financial instruments, including exchange-traded funds (ETFs), providing exposure to the broader market.

Acceptance as a Payment Method

Bitcoin remains the most widely accepted cryptocurrency for payments. Major brands like Whole Foods Market, The Home Depot, Tesla, and Starbucks support BTC transactions. Smaller retailers, including Real Mad Honey, Shiny Leaf skincare, and DroneShop, also accept Bitcoin to provide more options to customers and stand out from competitors. Additionally, BTC can be used to purchase gift cards for major retailers, and the Crypto.com Pay App enables Bitcoin payments for a broad range of goods and services.

Its strong network security and limited supply have made it a favourite amongst long-term investors and institutions. Bitcoin also supports Layer-2 payment protocols like the Lightning Network, which enable fast and low-cost transactions on top of the base chain.

Dogecoin Use Cases

DOGE functions as Dogecoin’s native token, primarily used for transaction fees and miner compensation. While it also serves as a digital store of value, its lower liquidity can lead to higher spreads when exchanging for fiat, and DOGE’s meme coin status results in greater price volatility compared to Bitcoin. The financial industry has shown interest in DOGE-based products, but they lack regulatory approval in the US as of this writing.

Acceptance as a Payment Method

Several large organisations accept DOGE payments, including Tesla, AMC, and Microsoft. However, some vendors limit DOGE transactions to specific products. Tesla, for example, only accepts DOGE for items that feature the Dogecoin logo in their product descriptions. DOGE holders can also use their tokens to purchase gift cards or pay for a variety of goods and services through Crypto.com Pay.

Key Pricing Moments

Every cryptocurrency’s value depends on market sentiment, so the price of BTC and DOGE can be affected by everything from macroeconomic trends to social media chatter. Below is a quick price timeline for both tokens.

BTC — Key Price Events

DOGE — Key Price Events

Performance and Market Metrics

Bitcoin has a market capitalisation valued at approximately $2.1 trillion as of this writing. Its tokenomics is driven by scarcity, with a fixed supply cap of 21 million BTC, of which 19.87 million are in circulation. This supply is clearly insufficient to meet demand, contributing to a price range between $80,000 and $110,000 per token (based on the period of November 2024 to the time of writing).

Dogecoin has a market cap sitting at around $28 billion. Unlike Bitcoin, DOGE has no maximum supply, making it inherently inflationary. Its circulating supply stands at over 149 billion DOGE, with an additional 10,000 DOGE minted per block. Despite the lack of scarcity, strong community engagement helps sustain a price range of $0.25 to $0.45 per token (based on the period of November 2024 to the time of writing).

Developments and Roadmaps: BTC and DOGE

Bitcoin’s Roadmap

Bitcoin doesn’t have a roadmap like other cryptocurrencies, and all Bitcoin upgrades must be approved by its decentralised community, a task that’s become virtually impossible as more people acquire BTC. Furthermore, developers generally prefer to build on top of Bitcoin’s protocol through Layer-2 blockchains rather than work on its source code.

Bitcoin’s Community

Tracking a crypto’s social media followers may provide valuable insight into engagement and excitement, which could have impacts on price. Bitcoin has 7.7 million X followers and 7.9 million Reddit followers as of this writing, indicating an extensive and passionate community. As the world’s leading cryptocurrency, it also has the highest engagement.

Dogecoin’s Roadmap

The Dogecoin Foundation’s Trailmap includes a site makeover for Dogecoin.com, documentation for developers (called Dogecoin Standard), and GigaWallet (expedited payment processing for businesses). Most of the roadmap focuses on community engagement and payment processing rather than software upgrades, which require the DOGE community’s support.

Dogecoin’s Community

Dogecoin has 4.3 million X followers and 2.6 million Reddit followers as of this writing, giving it one of the largest communities of any cryptocurrency. These numbers indicate that the engagement level of DOGE is significant.

Conclusion

BTC was created to revolutionise electronic payments, while DOGE was created as a humorous, user-friendly introduction to cryptocurrency that ended up innovating the concept of meme coins. Both are essential pioneers in the modern crypto industry, though comparing them directly is challenging since they are so different. Which one is better depends on the intended use case.

Merchants might prefer Bitcoin’s name recognition or Dogecoin’s relative price stability. Crypto speculators are more likely to opt for Bitcoin’s scarcity-driven price upside, but many others see potential in DOGE’s accessibility and value as a motivator for those new to cryptocurrency. Developers aren’t as likely to flock to either token since they lack an established community for decentralised applications (dapps) or non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

Always research a cryptocurrency’s price history, development team, community, documentation, and underlying technology before considering a purchase.

Due Diligence and Do Your Own Research

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