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Crypto Fear & Greed Index vs Bitcoin Price

The Crypto Fear & Greed Index summarises market psychology on a 0–100 scale. Overlaid on Bitcoin's log-price, the pattern is clear: extreme readings often precede a reversal. Use this to gut-check conviction — buy when others are fearful, trim when they're greedy.

Chart · last 12 months

F&G index overlaid on BTC log-price

Sentiment readings on the right axis, Bitcoin log-price on the left. Watch how extremes line up with major turns.

Fear & Greed Index (0–100) BTC log-price

Filled area = Fear & Greed (left axis, 0 = extreme fear, 100 = extreme greed). Blue line = BTC log-price (right axis). Extreme readings often precede local price tops and bottoms. Sources: alternative.me, CoinPaprika.

Reading the bands

What each F&G zone means

0 – 25 · Extreme Fear

Capitulation territory

Investors are panicked, headlines are bearish, prices have usually pulled back ≥30% from recent highs. Historically this band has lined up with intermediate-term bottoms more often than not.

Contrarian setup: scale in, don't chase.

25 – 75 · Mixed

No sentiment edge

The most common reading. In this band, trend and structure matter more than sentiment. Don't try to fade noise — let other signals (price action, on-chain flows, macro) lead.

Sentiment-neutral: defer to trend.

▲

75 – 100 · Extreme Greed

Late-cycle pop

Headlines are euphoric, retail interest spikes, leverage builds up across exchanges. Not a market top in itself — sentiment can stay euphoric for weeks — but a clear reason to tighten risk.

Reduce risk, look for bearish divergences.

Background

How the Fear & Greed index works

The Crypto Fear & Greed Index is published daily by alternative.me. It combines five inputs into a single 0–100 score: Bitcoin price volatility (25%), market momentum and volume (25%), social media activity (15%), survey results (15%, currently paused), Bitcoin dominance (10%), and Google Trends data (10%).

The output is intentionally simple: a single number that summarises whether the market is fearful (low) or greedy (high). Like any aggregate, it loses nuance — but its directional signal has been useful at extremes.

The key insight: markets reach extremes because the underlying conditions are extreme. By the time F&G prints below 25, prices have usually already corrected sharply; by the time it prints above 75, prices have already rallied. So F&G is more confirmation than leading indicator.

The best use is as a discipline tool. When F&G is in the high-greed zone, the index is reminding you that the easy money has likely been made and you should rebalance. When it prints extreme fear, it's reminding you that this is when the next leg of opportunity usually shows up — even if it doesn't feel like it.

FAQ

Fear & Greed Index — frequently asked questions

How is the Fear & Greed Index calculated?

It's a weighted average of five inputs: Bitcoin price volatility (25%), market momentum and volume (25%), social media activity (15%), Bitcoin dominance (10%), Google search Trends (10%). The survey component (15%) is currently paused. The result is normalised to a 0–100 scale where 0 = maximum fear and 100 = maximum greed.

How accurate is the index at predicting reversals?

Extreme readings (<20 or >80) have historically aligned with intermediate-term turns, but the timing is loose — the index can stay extreme for weeks before the market actually pivots. Treat it as confirmation of conditions, not a precise timing signal.

Should I use Fear & Greed as a buy/sell signal?

Not on its own. The index is best used as a sanity check on your own positioning — buying when F&G is in extreme fear is a contrarian discipline that has worked historically. But combine it with other inputs (price levels, on-chain data, macro context) before acting on it.

How often does the index update?

Once per day, typically by mid-morning UTC. The Daily Coins caches the latest value and refreshes within the hour. The chart above plots daily readings going back 12 months.

Is there a Fear & Greed index for individual coins?

The public alternative.me index is BTC-focused (because Bitcoin dominance is an input). For altcoins, sentiment is typically read from coin-specific social activity and price action — both of which feed into our individual coin prediction models.

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