DCA & Average Cost Calculator

What dollar-cost averaging means

Dollar-cost averaging (DCA) means buying an asset in several instalments, often a fixed amount at regular intervals, instead of all at once. Because a fixed amount buys more coins when the price is low and fewer when it is high, your average cost per coin ends up below the simple average of the prices you paid. DCA does not guarantee a profit or protect against a falling market; it only spreads the timing of your purchases.

How the average cost is calculated

• Coins from each buy = amount spent × (1 − fee %) ÷ price
• Average cost = total amount spent ÷ total coins
• Value now = total coins × current price; profit or loss = value now − total spent

With the default example, four buys of 250 at 100, 80, 60 and 90 give about 2.5, 3.125, 4.167 and 2.778 coins, a total of about 12.57 coins for 1,000. The average cost is about 79.56, while the plain average of the four prices is 82.50. At a current price of 95 the holding is worth about 1,194, a gain of about 19.4% before tax.

Assumptions and limits

• Fees are deducted from each purchase amount as a percentage. Fixed fees and spreads are not modelled unless you include them.
• The calculator ignores coins you sold or transferred. If you sold part of a holding, your tax rules decide which cost basis applies.
• Staking or interest rewards are not counted as purchases. They add coins without new spending, which lowers your effective cost per coin, but many countries tax them separately, so they are left out here.
• The calculator works in whatever currency you enter, so keep every price and amount in the same currency.
• The optional live price is a CoinGecko snapshot refreshed about every 15 minutes.

To check a single trade use the crypto profit calculator, and see live prices on the crypto prices page. Our crypto market basics guide explains why prices swing so much.