ETH · CRYPTOCURRENCYEthereum
Foundation of DeFi and smart contracts. Powers thousands of decentralized applications and tokens.
Price
$1,879
24h
-0.4%
About Ethereum
What is Ethereum?
Ethereum is the world's leading programmable blockchain. Where Bitcoin is digital gold, Ethereum is the platform digital finance runs on: DeFi protocols, stablecoins, NFTs, and thousands of decentralized applications all live here.
Created by Vitalik Buterin and launched in 2015, Ethereum introduced smart contracts: self-executing code that runs on the blockchain with no intermediary. Ether (ETH) is the native currency that powers everything on the network.
People buy ETH for three reasons: as a speculative position on the growth of decentralized applications, to use directly inside DeFi and NFT platforms, or simply as a highly liquid blue-chip crypto asset alongside Bitcoin.
At a glance
- Launched
- 2015
- Creator
- Vitalik Buterin
- Network
- Ethereum
- Supply
- Uncapped (≈120M)
- Consensus
- Proof of Stake (since 2022)
Price
Ethereum price
-3.1%past 30 days
Market Cap
$462B
Supply
120.3M
All-time high
$4,954
24h Volume
$18.2B
Where to buy
Find a Bitstop with Ethereum near you
Ethereum is available at over 2,500 Bitstop kiosks nationwide. Use the location finder to discover the nearest ATM that supports Ethereum.
Your wallet
Grab a wallet
Any wallet that generates a receive QR code works at a Bitstop ATM. New to crypto? Exodus takes a few minutes to set up.
Recommended for ETH
MetaMask
Web extension, best for DeFi
Exodus
Mobile + desktop, beginner-friendly
Use any wallet that supports ETH. The ATM scans your receive address. That's all it needs. Hardware wallets like Ledger work too: open the companion app and scan the receive QR.
Pair it with the Bitstop App
Register once, track transactions, and find ATMs on the go.
Frequently Asked Questions
What can I do with Ethereum?
ETH is used to pay 'gas' fees for transactions on the Ethereum network, to interact with DeFi protocols (lending, trading, yield), to mint or trade NFTs, and as a long-term investment in the platform itself.
Why are Ethereum fees sometimes high?
Fees rise when network demand is high. Solutions like Layer 2 networks (Arbitrum, Optimism, Base) move activity off the main chain and reduce fees to cents. For ATM purchases, fees are negligible.
Is Ethereum better than Bitcoin?
Different jobs. Bitcoin is built to be sound money: fixed supply, deliberate simplicity. Ethereum is built to be a programmable platform: flexible, fast-evolving. Many people hold both.
What happened with The Merge?
In September 2022, Ethereum switched from Proof of Work (energy-intensive mining) to Proof of Stake. Energy use dropped by 99.95%. The change was years in the making and ran without incident.