Litecoin vs. Ethereum

The current drop in the Bitcoin price has alarmed many investors. Since its launch in 2009, Bitcoin (BTC) has dominated much of the crypto market. However, concerns over the future of Bitcoin have motivated investors to consider other cryptocurrencies to keep the value of their investments. True, almost all altcoins are experiencing significant drops too. But are there some coins that could recover faster? Which altcoin should you invest in this year?

To help answer these questions, we have decided to compare a couple of well-established cryptocurrencies: Litecoin and Ethereum. Both coins have a significant part of the total market capitalization and have been around for several years. How do they compare with each other? Let us discuss it in detail in the following Litecoin vs Ethereum comparison. After reading this article, you will be able to decide whether to invest in one of these cryptocurrencies.

Litecoin Overview

Charlie Lee, a former Google employee, created Litecoin (LTC) in 2011. Technically, Litecoin is quite similar to Bitcoin. Initially, it used the same codebase as Bitcoin. However, Lee added several improvements to his new cryptocurrency to create a “lite version of Bitcoin.” As a result, Litecoin transactions are much faster. Moreover, the Scrypt hashing algorithm that Litecoin uses is less energy-demanding.

Litecoin is much more suitable for micro-transactions and daily payments like buying a cup of coffee. Many online merchants accept Litecoin as payment for goods and services.

Ethereum Overview

Vitalik Buterin described the idea of Ethereum in a white paper published in 2013. Two years later, Ethereum was launched as a decentralized open-source blockchain system. Ethereum is a platform for the creation of other cryptocurrencies. But what makes Ethereum particularly special is its support for smart contracts. This platform features its own cryptocurrency, Ether (ETH), which fuels smart contracts and other decentralized applications (DApps).

Litecoin vs. Ethereum: Price

Litecoin reached its all-time high price on May 10, 2021, when it traded at $412.96 per coin. It reached its all-time low on January 14, 2015, selling at $1.11. As of June 19, 2022, each LTC coin sold at $53.86, which is approximately 87.68% below its all-time high and 4,744.98% above its all-time low. According to CoinMarketCap, Litecoin is currently the 18th most valuable cryptocurrency by market capitalization.

On its side, Ethereum reached its all-time high price on November 16, 2021, when it traded at $4,891.70 per coin. It reached its all-time low on October 21, 2015, at $ $0.4209. As of June 19, 2022, each ETH coin sold at $1,058.42, approximately 78.36% below its all-time high and 251,367.69% above the all-time low. According to CoinMarketCap, Ethereum is currently the second most valuable cryptocurrency by market capitalization.

Compared to their corresponding all-time highs, the current prices of these cryptocurrencies indicate that Litecoin has depreciated more significantly during the current bearish market.

Litecoin vs. Ethereum: Security

Regarding security, both cryptocurrencies utilize a proof-of-work (PoW) consensus mechanism. Hence, Litecoin and Ethereum offer similar security levels in their networks. However, Ethereum is moving from PoW to proof-of-stake (PoS) because it is more secure, less energy-consuming, and allows for better scalability.

Litecoin vs. Ethereum: Total Supply

Litecoin is a capped cryptocurrency with a maximum supply of 84 million LTC coins. In contrast, there is an unlimited supply of ETH coins.

What Are the Differences between Litecoin and Ethereum?

For a more comprehensive Ethereum vs Litecoin comparison, let us summarize the key differences between these two cryptocurrencies:

Supply. Litecoin is a capped cryptocurrency with a maximum supply of 84 million LTC coins, whereas Ethereum does not have a capped supply limit.
Purpose. Litecoin was created as a transactional currency and a store of value. Ethereum can also be used as a transactional currency. But because it is uncapped, its primary function is not as a store of value. The primary purpose of ETH is to fuel smart contracts and DApps.
Mining. Although both cryptocurrencies utilize PoW, Ethereum has plans to adopt PoS.
Transaction Fees. Litecoin and Ethereum have different fee structures. Litecoin charges a fee for each transaction put into a newly mined block. In contrast, Ethereum uses gas fees. The gas fee entails the computational effort necessary for executing a smart transaction on the Ethereum blockchain. As a result, a Litecoin transaction is usually much cheaper.

What Are the Similarities between Litecoin and Ethereum?

Despite their differences, Litecoin and Ethereum have several similarities:

Availability on Exchanges. Litecoin and Ethereum are well-known in the crypto-space. Many transactions involving these digital coins take place every day. Hence, most crypto exchanges list them for trading. LetsExchange.io allows transacting with Litecoin and Ethereum at very competitive rates. Our platform supports more than 4000 cryptocurrencies, and you can trade them without registration.
Open Source. Litecoin and Ethereum operate open-source networks, granting access to developers interested in improving the functionality of these coins.
Low Energy Consumption. Compared to Bitcoin, both Litecoin and Ethereum require less energy for mining.
Confirmation Time. On average, the time needed to confirm transactions on both networks is less than a minute.

Conclusion

Litecoin and Ethereum address several shortcomings of Bitcoin. However, they serve different purposes. Litecoin is primarily a transactional cryptocurrency. Litecoin is often regarded as a cheaper alternative to Bitcoin transactions. Also, investors view Litecoin as a safe investment to store value.

On the other hand, Ethereum is a platform for creating other cryptocurrencies and executing smart contracts. Also, Ethereum has become the preferred platform for developing non-fungible tokens (NFTs). In general, Ethereum is a more popular cryptocurrency with a larger market capitalization, indicating investors' trust in this platform.

So, which of these two cryptocurrencies should you invest in? It depends on what you plan to do with your cryptocurrency. However, if you are looking for options to diversify your investment portfolio, why not invest in both?

FAQ

Is Litecoin a Good Investment?

Possibly. Many investors regard Litecoin as a safe investment to store value. But some critics point to Litecoin having depreciated in the last months. However, over the years, Litecoin has demonstrated to regain and even increase its value when the market recovers.

Which Has More Potential, Litecoin or Ethereum?

Because of its unique platform and its strong community of developers, Ethereum has more potential to innovate in the coming years. Innovation will be decisive in the speedy recovery of this coin.

Which Crypto Will Explode in 2023?

Most analysts and investors regard Ethereum as a sustainable project that will survive the current market downtrend and might even explode in 2023. Some optimistic forecasts indicate that the ETH price could reach its 2022 highs before this year ends.

Disclaimer

Please keep in mind that the above information is based exclusively on our observations and is provided for informational purposes only. It doesn’t constitute any kind of financial advice nor represents an official forecast. Cryptocurrency is a highly volatile asset, and you are investing in it at your own risk.

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