Statistics · 2026 · Crypto
Layer 1 and Layer 2 Statistics (2026)
CoinGecko’s layer-1 category is worth $2.49T as of October 2, 2026, 85.6% of the $2.90T crypto market. Bitcoin alone makes up 69.0% of the 50 listed layer-1 coins. The layer-2 category is $11.0B, 0.38% of crypto. These category totals overlap, so they cannot be added together.
Key takeaways
- CoinGecko’s layer-1 category totals $2.49T and its layer-2 category $11.0B; the layer-1 total is about 225 times the layer-2 total.
- Bitcoin is 69.0% of the 50-coin layer-1 list, so this page also reports the list without it.
- Ethereum is 13.0% of CoinGecko’s $2.53T smart-contract platform category total, and 40.5% once Bitcoin is removed from that total.
- The median ranked layer-1 coin changed -46.5% over one year (n=44); the median ranked layer-2 token changed -69.3% (n=42).
- L2BEAT reports $43.8B of total value secured across layer-2 networks, a different measure from market cap.
How big are layer-1 blockchains?
CoinGecko’s Layer 1 category totals $2.49T as of October 2, 2026, or 85.6% of the $2.90T global crypto market value. The 50 coins CoinGecko lists sum to $2.48T. Bitcoin makes up most of that value, so shares change sharply with and without it.
1. Layer-1 category total: $2.49T, 85.6% of crypto
The category traded $77.9B in 24 hours. Category totals come from CoinGecko’s category snapshot, and coin figures from its market snapshot. Share base: the $2.90T global total (WealthyBud data · layer-1 category · CoinGecko · October 2, 2026).
2. The 50-coin list sums to $2.48T, 99.8% of the category total
Shares below use this list sum as their base (WealthyBud data · 50 listed coins · CoinGecko · October 2, 2026).
3. Bitcoin is 69.0% of the layer-1 list
$1.71T of $2.48T. Without it, the pool is 49 coins worth $768.5B. The “without” pool drops only the largest member (WealthyBud data · 50 ranked coins · CoinGecko · October 2, 2026).
4. Categories overlap: the top 3 are the same coins in layer 1 and smart-contract platforms
CoinGecko names Bitcoin, Ethereum and BNB as the top three of both its layer-1 and smart-contract platform categories. Its smart-contract platform total is $2.53T (87.0% of crypto), $39.2B above the layer-1 total, so the two memberships differ. The dataset has no member list for it, so a full overlap count is not possible. Of the 50 layer-1 and 50 layer-2 listed coins, none appear in both lists. Never add category totals (WealthyBud data · three categories · CoinGecko · October 2, 2026).
Which layer-1 coins are the largest?
Ranked by CoinGecko market cap, Bitcoin leads layer 1 at $1.71T, followed by Ethereum at $328.7B and BNB at $103.1B. The top 10 hold 96.9% of the 50-coin list, and the ten largest without Bitcoin hold 91.0% of that smaller pool. The table below shows both shares.
5. The top 10 hold 96.9% of the list, or 91.0% without Bitcoin
The first figure is out of $2.48T (50 coins); the second is the ten largest coins other than the leader, out of $768.5B (49 coins) (WealthyBud data · 50 ranked coins · CoinGecko · October 2, 2026).
6. 27 of 50 layer-1 coins top $1 billion
50 of 50 top $100 million, and 50 rank in the CoinGecko top 250 (WealthyBud data · 50 ranked coins · CoinGecko · October 2, 2026).
7. Ethereum is 13.2% of the list and 42.8% without Bitcoin
At $328.7B, Ethereum ranks #2 among all cryptocurrencies. Solana ranks #7 (WealthyBud data · 50 ranked coins · CoinGecko · October 2, 2026).
8. No unranked or stablecoin coins appear in the layer-1 list
Pool rule: ranked coins CoinGecko tags layer 1, minus stablecoins. No wrapped, bridged or staked token is listed, so none is excluded. Membership follows CoinGecko’s tag, which also covers privacy coins such as Zcash and Monero (WealthyBud data · 50 listed coins · CoinGecko · October 2, 2026).
| Coin | Market cap | Share of 50-coin list | Share without Bitcoin | 1-yr change | From ATH |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bitcoin (BTC) | $1.71T | 69.0% | — | -28.2% | -32.4% |
| Ethereum | $328.7B | 13.2% | 42.8% | -38.3% | -45.6% |
| BNB | $103.1B | 4.2% | 13.4% | -26.0% | -43.5% |
| XRP | $94.9B | 3.8% | 12.3% | -49.1% | -58.8% |
| Solana | $70.6B | 2.8% | 9.2% | -46.4% | -59.1% |
| TRON (TRX) | $31.9B | 1.3% | 4.1% | -1.6% | -22.2% |
| Zcash (ZEC) | $23.2B | 0.9% | 3.0% | 904.5% | -57.1% |
| Hyperliquid | $19.9B | 0.8% | 2.6% | 84.2% | -8.8% |
| Monero (XMR) | $10.2B | 0.4% | 1.3% | 63.9% | -32.1% |
| Cardano (ADA) | $9.5B | 0.4% | 1.2% | -70.1% | -91.8% |
Track the top cryptocurrencies by market cap
How big are layer-2 networks?
CoinGecko’s Layer 2 category totals $11.0B as of October 2, 2026, 0.38% of crypto. A separate measure, L2BEAT’s total value secured, reports $43.8B at October 2, 2026, 17:00 UTC. Market cap prices layer-2 tokens, while value secured counts assets held on the networks, so the two do not compare.
9. Layer-2 category total: $11.0B, 0.38% of crypto
The category traded $1.1B in 24 hours. The layer-1 category total is about 225 times larger (WealthyBud data · layer-2 category · CoinGecko · October 2, 2026).
10. The 50-token list sums to $10.9B, 99.1% of the category total
One token has no CoinGecko rank and is excluded (XDAI, $45.3M, priced near $1), leaving 49 ranked tokens worth $10.9B. 4 of them top $1 billion, 12 top $100 million and 11 rank in the CoinGecko top 250 (WealthyBud data · 50 listed tokens · CoinGecko · October 2, 2026).
11. Ethereum.org: Ethereum focuses on being a settlement layer and cannot easily scale its own main chain
The ethereum.org layer-2 page says “Ethereum focuses on being the best settlement layer it can be” and that Ethereum “can’t easily scale its own main chain because it needs to stay secure and decentralized.” CoinGecko’s layer-2 tag is its own classification; this page does not test which tokens are rollups.
12. L2BEAT total value secured: $43.8B (October 2, 2026, 17:00 UTC)
L2BEAT defines it: “We define TVS to be the total amount of value that can be accessed on a project. Currently, L2BEAT only tracks fungible assets, but it could be extended in the future. Currently, TVS is calculated as the sum of canonical bridged tokens, externally bridged tokens and native tokens.” It is a different measure from market cap.
13. Two networks hold 63.3% of L2BEAT’s total
L2BEAT lists Base Chain at $16.2B and Arbitrum One at $11.5B. The share is WealthyBud’s calculation from L2BEAT figures, retrieved October 2, 2026, 19:02 UTC. No Base token appears in CoinGecko’s layer-2 list, so the two measures rank networks differently.
Which layer-2 tokens are the largest?
CoinGecko ranks OKB first among layer-2 tokens at $2.5B, then Mantle at $2.2B. As of October 2, 2026, the top 3 hold 56.4% and the top 10 hold 85.6% of the 49-token pool. Membership follows CoinGecko’s own tag, not a technical test.
- OKB is worth $2.5B, 23.4% of the pool, with a one-year change of -37.0%.
- Mantle (MNT) is worth $2.2B, 20.3% of the pool, with a one-year change of -65.4%.
- Arbitrum is worth $1.4B, 12.7% of the pool, with a one-year change of -53.3%.
- POL (ex-MATIC) is worth $1.2B, 10.6% of the pool, with a one-year change of -53.3%.
- Stacks (STX) is worth $680.5M, 6.2% of the pool, with a one-year change of -39.6%.
14. The top 3 layer-2 tokens hold 56.4% of the pool
OKB, Mantle and Arbitrum together are worth $6.1B of $10.9B (WealthyBud data · 49 ranked tokens · CoinGecko · October 2, 2026).
How concentrated is the smart-contract platform market?
Ethereum is 13.0% of CoinGecko’s $2.53T smart-contract platform category total as of October 2, 2026. CoinGecko lists Bitcoin in that category too, and without it Ethereum would be 40.5% of the remaining total. The top three coins together hold 84.9% of the category total.
15. Ethereum: 13.0% of the smart-contract platform category total
$328.7B of $2.53T. Base: the category total, not a member sum, because the dataset has no member list for it. For coin-level detail see the Ethereum page and Ethereum and altcoin statistics (WealthyBud data · smart-contract platform category · CoinGecko · October 2, 2026).
16. Without Bitcoin, Ethereum would be 40.5%
Bitcoin is 67.8% of the category total. Removing its $1.71T leaves $812.4B. CoinGecko’s category page lists Bitcoin first, so it is in the total. The subtraction is WealthyBud’s calculation (WealthyBud data · smart-contract platform category · CoinGecko · October 2, 2026).
17. The top 3 coins hold 84.9% of the category total
Bitcoin, Ethereum, BNB sum to $2.14T. Against the layer-1 category total, the same three are 86.3% (WealthyBud data · top 3 vs category totals · CoinGecko · October 2, 2026).
How have layer-1 and layer-2 tokens performed?
Among 44 ranked layer-1 coins with a one-year history, the median change is -46.5% as of October 2, 2026. For 42 ranked layer-2 tokens it is -69.3%. The median ranked non-stablecoin crypto moved -40.6%. This page does not test why.
18. Layer-1 median one-year change: -46.5%; without Bitcoin, -46.7%
39 of 44 coins fell with it included and 38 of 43 without it. The two medians differ by 0.1 percentage points, so excluding the largest coin barely moves the middle. 6 of 50 coins have no one-year figure and are left out (WealthyBud data · 44 coins with a 1-yr change · CoinGecko · October 2, 2026).
19. Layer-2 median one-year change: -69.3%
41 of 42 fell. 7 of 49 ranked tokens have no one-year figure and are left out. The layer-2 median sits 22.7 percentage points below the layer-1 median (WealthyBud data · 42 tokens with a 1-yr change · CoinGecko · October 2, 2026).
20. Broader market median: -40.6%
Across 186 of the top 215 non-stablecoin cryptocurrencies with a one-year figure. Both layer groups sit below it; a median describes the middle coin, not a group total (WealthyBud data · 186 top-250 coins excluding stablecoins · CoinGecko · October 2, 2026).
21. Extremes: Zcash +905% and Derive +732%
Zcash is the best layer-1 result and Plasma the worst (-89%). In layer 2, Derive leads and Merlin Chain is lowest (-90%) (WealthyBud data · 44 layer-1 and 42 layer-2 tokens · CoinGecko · October 2, 2026).
22. Median distance from peak: layer 1 -82.8%, layer 2 -96.5%
21 of 50 layer-1 coins and 36 of 49 layer-2 tokens trade 90% or more below their all-time high (WealthyBud data · 50 layer-1 and 49 layer-2 tokens · CoinGecko · October 2, 2026).
What this means for crypto buyers
For buyers, a layer-1 label is CoinGecko’s tag, not a ranking of quality. Bitcoin is 69.0% of the list. The median layer-1 coin fell 46.5% in a year, and the median layer-2 token fell 69.3%.
For researchers, never add category totals. Layer 1 and smart-contract platforms share their top three, and layer-2 token value ($11.0B) is a separate measure from the $43.8B that L2BEAT reports secured.
For comparison, read Solana statistics for one layer-1 network and DeFi statistics for the apps built on them.
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