DCA vs lump sum: what would you have today?
Pick a coin, an amount and how often you'd buy. The backtester replays real daily closing prices over the period you choose and compares buying regularly (dollar-cost averaging) with investing everything on day one.
Your plan
Every buy on the price line
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How the backtest works
Dollar-cost averaging (DCA) means buying a fixed dollar amount on a schedule, whatever the price. The backtester uses each day's closing price from CoinGecko. On every buy day it spends your amount minus the trading fee, and adds the coins bought to your total. The lump-sum line invests the same total on the first day of the period at that day's price, minus one fee.
Reading the result
DCA usually wins when the price falls and then recovers during the period, because later buys are cheaper. A lump sum usually wins in a steady uptrend, because all of the money is exposed from the start. Look at the drawdown too: it shows the deepest paper loss you'd have had to sit through, which matters as much as the final number.
Limits
- Past prices don't predict future returns. This is a historical simulation, not a forecast or advice.
- It ignores taxes, withdrawal and network fees, and slippage on large orders.
- Daily closes smooth out intraday swings; your real fills would differ slightly.
Want to plan future buys instead? Use the average-cost and break-even calculators, or read how to track a portfolio.