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Can a Meme Coin Make You Rich?

People can get rich from meme coins or at least make some money from it, if they buy in before the meme coin has gone viral, and sell to take profits instead of holding on. For example, by buying $11.87 worth of Shiba Inu (SHIB) when it just launched in 2020, an investor could have become a meme coin millionaire within 1 year and 3 months.

That said, meme coins are a very risky type of crypto because they are based on Internet cultural references. In other words, the price movement depends on whether the meme coins can stay relevant by driving hype or support among the community, and lack fundamental value.

How Much Money Do You Need to Become a Meme Coin Millionaire?

An investor would have needed $66,298.25 on average to become a meme coin millionaire, according to an analysis of 10 meme coin price returns. To reach $1 million in meme coin holdings, the minimum initial investment that is needed ranges from $11.87 for Shiba Inu in 2020, to $190,585.57 for ArbDoge AI (AIDOGE) in 2023.

Meme Coin Millionaires with Lower Initial Investment

Someone buying into the first meme crypto Dogecoin on December 15, 2013, would have needed to put in $819.51 to become a millionaire. This is much higher than the amount needed to be a Shiba Inu millionaire, but the initial investment to become a Dogecoin millionaire can still be considered relatively affordable, for those with middle income and moderate risk tolerance. 

Investors who only caught onto the meme coin hype in 2021 would have had to buy at least $4,507.98 worth of FLOKI (FLOKI) to reach millionaire status. 

Meme Coin Millionaires with Higher Initial Investment

Becoming a meme coin millionaire with Dogelon Mars (ELON), Bonk (BONK) or Baby Doge Coin (BABYDOGE) would have been much more expensive. An investor would have had to put between $20,838.51 to $28,297.05, to reach $1 million in either of those 3 meme coins.

With the exception of the smaller cap crypto Ignore Fud (4TOKEN), the latest meme coins launched in 2023 require a much higher initial investment to turn into $1 million. 

Pepe (PEPE), Wojak (WOJAK) and ArbDoge AI (AIDOGE) have seen the lowest percentage price returns so far, from the hypothetical purchase date to the all-time high date. As a result of the comparatively modest price gains between 424.7% to 531.7%, an investor would have needed upwards of $158,311.59 to become a 2023 meme coin millionaire.

How Quickly Can You Become a Meme Coin Millionaire?

An investor could have become a meme coin millionaire in just under a year, or 361 days on average. At the fastest, a Bonk investor only needed 7 days to turn $26,667.85 into $1 million. At the slowest, Dogecoin took 2,701 days or almost 7 and a half years, to grow $819.51 into $1 million.

Out of the 2021 meme coins, the price of Dogelon Mars grew the fastest and needed just 19 days to make $20,838.51 become $1 million. FLOKI and Baby Doge Coin took much longer, at 4 months and 7 months respectively.

For the 2023 meme coins in particular, it is likely that Pepe, ArbDoge AI, Wojak and Ignore Fud will subsequently surpass their current all-time highs. Although they might take longer to reach higher prices, it also means that a lower initial investment is needed to become that meme coin’s millionaire.

What is the Most Successful Meme Coin?

In terms of price gains, Shiba Inu was the most successful meme coin with a 8,424,202.3% increase at its peak, compared to its starting price on August 1, 2020. 

On the other hand, Dogecoin has been the most successful meme coin over the long run, as a pioneer in the category since 2013.

What is the Next Big Meme Coin in 2023?

Pepe, ArbDoge AI and Wojak are the biggest meme coins launched this year, and have been among the top crypto trending recently. Ignore Fud is another new meme coin in 2023 that has enjoyed strong price gains since it went live.

However, given that meme coins are especially narrative-driven, it is almost impossible to know for sure whether these 4 meme coins can continue to grow and still be the biggest by the end of the year. 

While there is no telling what the next big meme coins will be, traders might turn to tools like a decentralized crypto exchanges' tracker. The small-cap tokens that can be found on these trackers offer the possibility of buying into early opportunities.

How Many Meme Coins Are There?

There are currently 179 meme coins being tracked on CoinGecko. As of May 4, 2023, three meme coins have made it into the top 100 crypto by market capitalization, namely Dogecoin, Shiba Inu and Pepe.

Methodology

The study examined a number of notable and illustrative meme coins’ price returns over time, based on CoinGecko data: Dogecoin (DOGE), Shiba Inu (SHIB), Pepe (PEPE), Baby Doge Coin (BABYDOGE), FLOKI (FLOKI), Dogelon Mars (ELON), ArbDoge AI (AIDOGE), Wojak (WOJAK), Bonk (BONK), Ignore Fud (4TOKEN). 

The hypothetical date of purchase above is taken from the start of data availability, and the hypothetical date for selling to realize profits is the all-time high price as of May 4, 2023.

This study is for illustrative and informational purposes only, and is not financial advice. Always do your own research and be careful when putting your money into meme coins, or any other crypto or financial asset.