Cardano vs USDC

General

Description

Cardano Logo
Cardano
 (ADA)

Cardano, similar to Ethereum, is a blockchain platform designed for running smart contracts. It operates on a proof-of-stake consensus mechanism, making it particularly energy-efficient. The technology is developed and rigorously reviewed by a network of academics and researchers, following a peer-review process.

What is Cardano?
USDC Logo
USDC
 (USDC)

USDC is a regulated stablecoin pegged 1:1 to the US dollar. Issued by Circle, it is backed by reserves held in short-term US Treasuries and cash. A significant portion of these reserves is held via a BlackRock-managed fund and custodied at BNY Mellon. USDC is the second-largest stablecoin and is widely seen as the more compliance-focused alternative to USDT.

What is USDC?

Purpose and goals

Cardano Logo
Cardano
 (ADA)
  • Smart contract platform
  • Decentralized finance (DeFi)
  • Decentralized applications
USDC Logo
USDC
 (USDC)
  • Digital dollar
  • MiCA-friendly access in the EU
  • Trading & liquidity

Price and market data

Price chart

Cardano
 (ADA)

$0.390

-0.16%
USDC
 (USDC)

$1.00

+0.0035%
Market data
CardanoUSDC
Market cap
$14.35B
$75.52B
Market share
0.43%
2.28%
Current price

$0.39

-$0.017-4.36%

$1.0

+$0.000024+0.0024%
ADA converterUSDC converter
All-time high
$3.09
Sep 02, 2021-87.36%
Crypto all-time highs
Cycle low
$0.23
+66.81%Jun 10, 2023
Prediction for 2026
Powered by AI
$1.73
+343.75%
ADA prediction
Price trend
Negative
(20/30 days)
Momentum
Negative
NegativePositive
Negative
Relative Strength Index
Neutral
BuySell
Neutral (50.05)
News sentiment
Positive
NegativePositive
Positive (97/100)

Last 7 days

Neutral
NegativePositive
Neutral (64/100)

Last 30 days

ADA newsUSDC news
Price performance
-63.31%
-0.0032%
Price performance
-30.88%
-0.0065%
Price performance
+2.54%
-0.016%
Price performance
-0.16%
+0.0035%
Price performance
-4.36%
+0.0024%
Price performance
-0.31%
-0.0081%
Annual return
+12.14%
-0.0063%
Annual return
-59.17%
-0.046%
Annual return
+42.81%
+0.068%
ADA returns
Total return
+1,366.10%
2017 – 2026
-0.64%
2018 – 2026
Average annual return
+345.79%
+16,436.31%
Transaction volume
$526.16M
24h
$12.61B
24h
Max supply
45B
Circulating supply
36.76B
75.53B
Inflation
2.28%
Year
63.27%
Year
Crypto inflation

On-chain data

Market data
CardanoUSDC
Total Value Locked (TVL)
$180.4M
What is Total Value Locked?
Market cap/TVL (ratio)
79.57
Transactions (24h)
28,040
8.45M
Active addresses (24h)
20,371
2.59M

Our rating

Our rating
CardanoUSDC
Our overall rating
Cardano
USDC
How we evaluate cryptocurrencies

Our individual ratings

Risk
Cardano: 5 of 10
Risk (Cardano)
USDC: 9 of 10
Risk (USDC)
Cardano Logo
USDC Logo
riskyless risky
Community
Cardano: 8 of 10
Community (Cardano)
USDC: 7 of 10
Community (USDC)
Cardano Logo
USDC Logo
smalllarge
Hype & momentum
Cardano: 7 of 10
Hype & momentum (Cardano)
USDC: 8 of 10
Hype & momentum (USDC)
Cardano Logo
USDC Logo
weakstrong
Active usage
Cardano: 3 of 10
Active usage (Cardano)
USDC: 7 of 10
Active usage (USDC)
Cardano Logo
USDC Logo
lowhigh
Network effect
Cardano: 2 of 10
Network effect (Cardano)
USDC: 7 of 10
Network effect (USDC)
Cardano Logo
USDC Logo
weakstrong
Decentralization
Cardano: 5 of 10
Decentralization (Cardano)
USDC: 0 of 10
Decentralization (USDC)
Cardano Logo
USDC Logo
centralizeddecentralized

Our opinion

Cardano Logo
Cardano
 (ADA)
Cardano has solid technical foundations and an intriguing scientific approach. The problem: development is often too slow for the fast-moving crypto space, and this shows in its lack of real adoption. While competitors like Solana or Avalanche rapidly ship features and attract developers, Cardano has relatively little Total Value Locked (TVL) and few active projects despite having smart contracts since 2021. The DeFi ecosystem exists on paper, but most developers are still building elsewhere. The scientific approach may be theoretically superior — but without genuine adoption, it remains an academic exercise.
What is Cardano?
USDC Logo
USDC
 (USDC)
For us, USDC is the best stablecoin when transparency and regulation are the priority. Circle publishes weekly reserve updates and has the backing attested monthly by a Big Four accounting firm. That is still unusual in the stablecoin market. For EU users, there is an additional practical benefit: since MiCA, many platforms have restricted or delisted USDT spot pairs, making USDC the more reliably available USD alternative on regulated exchanges. Availability can still vary by platform. That said, USDC is not risk-free. The brief depeg in 2023 was a reminder that even cash reserves can carry counterparty risk. At the time, Circle had $3.3 billion of USDC reserves at Silicon Valley Bank. Our takeaway: USDC is the clean choice for users who want to stay within a regulated framework. If you need maximum global liquidity above all else, USDT is often still the better tool.
What is USDC?

Details

Info
CardanoUSDC
Founder
Charles Hoskinson
Circle, Coinbase (CENTRE Consortium)
Developer
Cardano Foundation, IOHK, Emurgo
Circle Internet Group
Published
2017
2018
Open source
Yes
No
Sector
Smart Contracts
Stablecoin
Key feature
Scientific Approach
Price stability (USD peg)
Blockchain
Cardano Blockchain
Multi-chain
Staking
Yes
No
Consensus mechanism
Proof of Stake (Ouroboros)
Network-dependent (multi-chain)
Energy consumption
Low
Low
Transactions per second
250 TPS
Institutional investors
  • Cognitive Blockchain Capital
  • BlackRock
  • Fidelity Investments
  • Accel
  • Coinbase
  • Breyer Capital
  • Marshall Wace LLP
Community
840,187 followers
64,410 followers
Website
cardano.org
www.usdc.com
Whitepaper
Whitepaper
Whitepaper
Cardano vs USDC

Cardano or USDC

Market data comparison of ADA versus USDC

The current price of Cardano is $0.39 and has decreased by in the last 24 hours. USDC is currently trading at $1.0, with a gain of over the same period. Cardano has a market cap of $14.35B and ranks 12th. USDC follows with a market cap of $75.52B, ranking 7th — meaning it is valued higher.

We automatically update all market data every 15 minutes, so you always have the latest figures for your comparison.

Should I buy Cardano or USDC?

You should be aware that investing in cryptocurrencies carries risks, and we are neither allowed nor intending to provide investment advice. Still, we'd like to offer some food for thought: consider the opportunities and risks associated with both Cardano and USDC. What target markets and problems are these two projects aiming to address?

If you're still unsure whether to invest in Cardano or USDC, you can take a look at some additional market data to help with your decision:

Cardano currently has a 95.83% lower 24h transaction volume of $526.16M compared to USDC with $12.61B.
Over the past year, Cardano achieved a total return of , while USDC returned . Keep in mind, however, that past performance rarely guarantees future results.

Additional criteria for comparing cryptocurrencies:

  • What problem does the project aim to solve, and is a decentralized network meaningful and necessary for it?
  • How actively is the network being used?
  • Does the project have a large and active community?
  • How strong is the development activity? (e.g., on GitHub)
  • How decentralized is the underlying blockchain and the project itself?

How we evaluate cryptocurrencies

These are just a few indicators you can use to better evaluate and compare cryptocurrencies like Cardano and USDC. Cryptocurrencies and their underlying technologies are often difficult to compare — even for professionals. So don’t stress yourself out, and never let emotions or fear of missing out drive your investment decisions.

Where can I buy Cardano or USDC?

Today, there are many reputable and secure exchanges that make it easy to invest in Cardano and USDC. We're happy to help you choose the right one: simply use our exchange comparison tool to find the platform that best suits your needs. Both Cardano and USDC are well-known and in high demand, which means they're available on most major exchanges.

Crypto exchanges comparison

Which crypto wallet is best for Cardano and USDC?

If you want to store cryptocurrencies like Cardano or USDC yourself, choosing the right wallet is essential. Consider your personal preferences when deciding: Is ease of use important to you? Do you prefer maximum security with a hardware wallet (USB device), or is a software wallet sufficient for your needs? Our crypto wallet comparison helps you find the best wallet for Cardano, USDC, and many other cryptocurrencies.

Crypto wallets comparison

How does our comparison work?

Data & Interfaces

Our market data is automatically updated every 15 minutes. This means you can always use the latest data for your comparisons. We obtain the data through web interfaces (API) from CoinGecko, DefiLlama, CoinCodex and many more

Research & Deepdive

We regularly sift through a jungle of technical whitepapers, websites, social media and forums for you. In doing so, we filter out essential and relevant information in order to present it to you clearly and comprehensibly in our comparison

Analysis & Valuation

We research and use analysis tools for blockchains and their networks, to form a fact-based foundation for our valuation. Please note that this is not an investment recommendation, but merely our personal opinion.

Community & Feedback

We check our information every 1-2 months to ensure it is up to date and correct. With the help of our community, we can find outdated or incorrect data even faster. Of course, we also welcome your feedback or suggestions for improvement!

Our data on cryptocurrencies was last updated on 2026-01-16T13:35:23.794414+00:00. Sources: CoinGecko, defillama.com, coincodex.com.

The content on this website is provided for general informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, investment, legal, or tax advice. It should not be interpreted as a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold cryptocurrencies, nor as a guarantee of future price developments. You are responsible for independently verifying any information before using a listed service. Trading cryptocurrencies involves significant risk and can result in the total loss of your capital. Past performance is not indicative of future results. We do not accept any liability for the timeliness, accuracy, or completeness of the information provided, including content from external or third-party sources. All actions are taken at your own risk. Some links on this website are affiliate links. If you purchase a product or use a service through these links, we may receive a commission at no additional cost to you. Our content, comparisons, and rankings remain editorially independent. This helps us provide free content and continue developing the platform. Thank you for your support.