Bitcoin vs 
Litecoin
Litecoin began in 2011 as "silver to Bitcoin's gold" — same design, faster blocks, four times the supply cap. The comparison today is mostly about network effect: Litecoin remains one of the oldest, most reliable payment coins, but Bitcoin has absorbed nearly all of the store-of-value premium the two once seemed to share.
12 months, both starting at 100 (AUD)
BTC → 48 · LTC → 31| Measure | BTC | LTC |
|---|---|---|
| Market cap | A$1813.3B | A$4.8B |
| Rank | #1 | #28 |
| Price | A$90,338 | A$62.35 |
| 90-day change (AUD) | −16.4% | −18.1% |
| 12-month change (AUD) | −49.8% | −66.3% |
| From all-time high | −52.6% | −88.1% |
| Supply model | Capped: 21.0M max | Capped: 84.0M max |
| AU exchanges we verify it on | 5 | check on-platform |
About Bitcoin
Bitcoin is the original cryptocurrency, launched in 2009 by the pseudonymous Satoshi Nakamoto: a peer-to-peer digital money with a fixed supply of 21 million coins, secured by proof-of-work mining. It remains the largest crypto asset by value and the reference point the rest of the market trades against.
About Litecoin
Litecoin, launched in 2011, is one of the oldest surviving cryptocurrencies — a Bitcoin fork with faster blocks and a larger supply, long marketed as "silver to Bitcoin's gold" and still widely supported for payments.
FAQ
Which is bigger, Bitcoin or Litecoin?
By market value today: Bitcoin (A$1813.3B vs A$4.8B). Size measures money invested, not quality — but it does measure liquidity, which affects how easily you can buy and sell.
Which performed better this year?
Over the past 12 months in AUD terms: BTC −49.8%, LTC −66.3% — the chart above shows the whole path, which matters more than the endpoints. Past performance is no indicator of future results, in either direction.
Can I buy both in Australia?
Availability differs — check the where-to-buy section on each coin's page. Compare costs first on the fee calculator, and remember every crypto-to-crypto swap between them is a CGT event.
Should I hold BTC or LTC?
That's a personal decision we don't make for you — this page exists to make the structural differences clear so the choice is yours. What we'd say to anyone: understand what job each coin is designed for, size positions like the risk is real, and check the honest failure statistics before going further down the market-cap list.
Data from our market records (powered by CoinGecko), refreshed with the daily rebuild. General information only, not financial advice — we compare structure and history, we don't pick winners.