Dogecoin
| Dogecoin | |
|---|---|
|
| |
| Denominations | |
| Symbol | Ð |
| Code | DOGE |
| Development | |
| Original author(s) | Billy Markus Jackson Palmer |
| Initial release | December 6, 2013 |
| Development status | Active |
| Operating system | Microsoft Windows Linux iOS Android |
| Developer(s) | Billy Markus ("Shibetoshi Nakamoto") Michi Lumin |
| Source model | Free and open-source software (FOSS) |
| License | MIT License |
| Ledger | |
| Timestamping scheme | Proof-of-work |
| Hash function | Scrypt-based |
| Block reward | Ð10,000 |
| Block time | 1 minute |
| Block explorer | dogechain.info |
| Supply limit | Unlimited (approximately Ð5 billion issued per year) |
| Valuation | |
| Exchange rate | Floating (highly volatile) |
| Website | dogecoin.com |
Dogecoin (/ˈdoʊ(d)ʒkɔɪn/ DOHJ-koyn or DOHZH-koyn; DOGE, Ð) is a cryptocurrency created in 2013 by Billy Markus and Jackson Palmer as a humorous payment system intended to satirize the speculative frenzy surrounding cryptocurrencies.1 It is widely recognized as the first “meme coin” and “dog coin,” featuring Kabosu from the popular “doge” internet meme, and is sometimes regarded as a legitimate investment despite its satirical origins.2
Dogecoin was introduced on December 6, 2013, and quickly developed a large and active online community. The cryptocurrency reached a peak market capitalization of over US$85 billion on May 5, 2021.3 On August 16, 2021, English football club Watford FC featured the Dogecoin logo on its shirts as part of a sponsorship deal valued at nearly US$1 million with Stake.com.4
The official website, dogecoin.com, promotes Dogecoin as a “fun and friendly Internet currency,” emphasizing its origins as a joke. Launched on December 6, 2013, by software engineers Billy Markus and Jackson Palmer to parody Bitcoin, Dogecoin gained early popularity on online platforms such as Reddit. Within two weeks of its launch, the project established a dedicated blog and forum and achieved a market value of approximately US$8 million.5
History
Dogecoin, initially created as a joke, was co-founded by IBM engineer Billy Markus and Adobe engineer Jackson Palmer to develop a peer-to-peer digital currency with broader appeal than Bitcoin, distancing it from controversies surrounding other cryptocurrencies.
Officially launched on December 6, 2013, Dogecoin attracted more than one million visitors to dogecoin.com within its first month.6
Jackson Palmer purchased the domain Dogecoin.com and created a splash screen featuring the coin’s logo with scattered Comic Sans text. After seeing the site, Billy Markus contacted Palmer and began developing the currency, designing Dogecoin’s protocol based on the existing cryptocurrencies Luckycoin and Litecoin. 8which use scrypt technology in their proof-of-work algorithm.9 scrypt is a memory-intensive key derivation function employed by cryptocurrencies like Litecoin, designed to resist ASIC-based mining and brute-force attacks, making mining accessible to general users, whereas anther cryptography is used known as, SHA-256, which is a hashing algorithm widely used in Bitcoin for mining and ensuring data integrity, offering fast computation and strong collision resistance.10
On June 24, 2013, Dogecoin surged over 300% in 24 hours, rising from $0.00026 to $0.00095, marking the largest increase among altcoins.11 The surge in Dogecoin’s value occurred while Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies were declining following China’s ban on bank investments in Bitcoin. Three days later, Dogecoin experienced its first major crash, falling 80% as large mining pools exploited the coin’s low computational requirements.12
On December 25, 2013, hackers stole 21 million Dogecoins, valued between $14,900 and $17,200, from Dogewallet. The meme-based cryptocurrency, popular for online tipping,
prompted Dogewallet to apologize and promise refunds to affected users. 13According to Dogewallet management, the hacker gained access to the platform and redirected all transactions to a single wallet address. 14After the Dogewallet hack, which resulted in the theft of 21 million Dogecoins, the Dogecoin community initiated “Save Dogemas” to reimburse victims. Led by Ben Doernberg, Diego Perini, and Brian Worley, the effort raised over 1.1 million Dogecoins, highlighting the cryptocurrency’s unique culture of generosity, optimism, and support for its users.15
In January 2014, Dogecoin’s trading volume temporarily exceeded that of Bitcoin and all other cryptocurrencies combined, although its market capitalization remained significantly lower than Bitcoin’s. Initially, Dogecoin employed a randomized reward for each mined block, which was changed to a static block reward in March 2014.16
Jackson Palmer officially stepped away from Dogecoin and its community in April 2015, citing the negative and toxic culture within the cryptocurrency space. In 2021, he reiterated on Twitter that he would not return, criticizing the industry as controlled by wealthy figures exploiting vulnerable individuals, a view acknowledged as valid by co-creator Billy Markus.17
On January 7, 2018, Dogecoin’s market capitalization exceeded $2 billion for the first time, coinciding with Ripple surpassing Ethereum as the second-largest cryptocurrency, creating significant wealth for its co-founders. 18On July 8, 2020, Dogecoin trading surged after a viral TikTok challenge encouraged viewers to buy the cryptocurrency, aiming to push its price to
$1 per coin. Its 24-hour trading volume rose 683% to over $878 million, and the price increased by up to 71%, prompting caution from Dogecoin’s official Twitter account.19
On December 20, 2020, Elon Musk posted a tweet about Dogecoin for the first time. Musk tweeted ‘One Word: Doge’. Shortly after, the value of Dogecoin rose by 20%.20
On May 10, 2021, SpaceX announced it would accept Dogecoin as payment and launch the "DOGE-1 Mission to the Moon" in 2022. The mission, funded by Dogecoin, aims to demonstrate cryptocurrency use beyond Earth orbit and promote interplanetary commerce.21 Geometric Energy Corporation announced the first-ever cryptocurrency-funded commercial payload, a Dogecoin-backed 40-kilogram satellite to be launched on Falcon 9, aiming to collect lunar data and demonstrate cryptocurrency use beyond Earth orbit.22
On August 16, 2021, the Dogecoin Foundation announced its re-establishment, aiming to support the Dogecoin ecosystem, community, and blockchain development. The Foundation focuses on accelerating Dogecoin Core development, onboarding new contributors, protecting the Dogecoin brand, and promoting global adoption. It also emphasizes collaboration, social impact, and securing sponsorships to fund a full-time development team. 23The Foundation was revitalized with the inclusion of prominent advisors on its Board, including Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin and Jared Birchall, enhancing its strategic guidance and credibility.24
1Binance Square, “Blog”, Achieved
2Cryptorank, “Price of Dogecoin”, Achieved
3The Sydney Morning Herald, “The rise and rise of dogecoin, the internet's hottest cryptocurrency”, Achieved, Retrieved January 2014
4Coindesk, “Watford FC Sports Dogecoin Logo in Sponsorship Deal Worth Almost $1M”, Achieved, Retrieved September 2021
5ABC News, “What is Dogecoin and what does it have to do with Elon Musk and Saturday Night Live?”, Achieved, Retrieved May 2021
6R&D Cell, CTC T&IT, “e-news letter”, Achieved, February 2021
7Business Insider, “The history of Dogecoin, the cryptocurrency that surged after Elon Musk tweeted about it but started as a joke on Reddit years ago”, Achieved, Retrieved February 2021
8International Business Times, “What is Dogecoin? The Meme that Became the Hot New Virtual Currency”, Achieved, Retrieved 2013
9Seattle Pi, Hearst Newspaper LLC, “Dogecoin: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know”, Achieved, Retrieved December 2013
10MojoAuth, “SHA-256 vs scrypt”, Achieved
11Digital Trends, “To the moon! Dogecoin fetches 300 percent jump in value in 24 hours”, Achieved, Retrieved June 2021
12Finance Magnets, “What is Dogecoin?”, Achieved, Retrieved March 2015
13Los Angeles Times, “Millions of Dogecoins, currency based on a meme, are reported stolen”, Achieved, Retrieved December 2013
14Tech Crunch, “Such Hack. Many Dogecoin. Very Disappear. So Gone. Wow”, Achieved, Retrieved December 2013
15Digital Trends, “Such generosity! After Dogewallet heist, Dogecoin community aims to reimburse victims”, Archived, Retrieved October 2020
16R&D Cell, CTC T&IT, “e-news letter”, Achieved, February 2021
17CNBC, “The co-creator of dogecoin explains why he doesn’t plan to return to crypto: It’s ‘controlled by a powerful cartel of wealthy figures’”, Achieved, Retrieved July 2021
18Investopedia, “Dogecoin Market Cap Hits $2 Billion: Launched as 'Joke Currency'”, Achieved, Retrieved June 2019
2021 boom
In January 2021, Dogecoin’s value surged 800% to $0.07, fueled by Reddit attention and the GameStop short squeeze. In February, endorsements from Elon Musk, Gene Simmons, and Snoop Dogg increased its price to $0.08, with Musk’s tweets further raising it approximately
40%. 25On 8 February 2021, Dogecoin surged to a record 8.2 cents, reaching a $10.5 billion market cap, following tweets from Elon Musk, Snoop Dogg, and Gene Simmons.26
On 8 March 2021, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban announced that the NBA team would accept Dogecoin for tickets and merchandise, becoming the largest Dogecoin merchant globally. Cuban described the move as fun and engaging, while experts warned against using the meme-based cryptocurrency. The decision followed Dogecoin’s surge in popularity, fueled by celebrity endorsements and social media attention.27
On April 14, 2021, cryptocurrency prices surged as Coinbase’s listing fueled retail interest. Bitcoin reached $64,829, Ether $2,400, and Dogecoin, despite not being listed, jumped to $0.14.28
On April 14, 2021, Dogecoin reached an all-time high of $0.13, with a market capitalization exceeding $16 billion. This surge, fueled by retail trader demand and online communities, made DOGE the tenth most valuable cryptocurrency, surpassing assets such as Chainlink, Bitcoin Cash, Stellar, and TRON. 29
On April 20, 2021, Dogecoin (DOGE) became the fifth most valuable cryptocurrency after its market capitalization surpassed $50 billion, overtaking Tether (USDT). DOGE rose nearly 25% within 24 hours, trading at approximately $0.41. 30 In April 2021, Dogecoin’s surge past $0.25 caused Robinhood’s crypto trading systems to fail temporarily, prompting outages and delays as unprecedented demand overwhelmed the platform during the cryptocurrency’s rapid
price rally.31 caused by "unprecedented demand", and prompted concerns from experts of an nearing speculative bubble in the cryptocurrency market.
In May 2021, Dogecoin’s price exceeded the symbolic $0.50 mark for the first time, reaching a significant milestone in its market valuation on May 4. 32On April 3, 2023, Dogecoin surged over 30% after Twitter CEO Elon Musk changed the platform’s logo to a Shiba Inu, the cryptocurrency’s mascot, triggering renewed market attention.33 On June 1, 2023, investors filed a proposed class action against Elon Musk, accusing him of insider trading in Dogecoin. They claimed Musk sold approximately $124 million of the cryptocurrency after changing Twitter’s logo to the Dogecoin Shiba Inu, triggering a 30% price surge and allegedly defrauding investors.34
On August 30, 2024, a U.S. District Judge dismissed a federal lawsuit against Elon Musk and Tesla, which alleged they defrauded investors and engaged in insider trading by promoting Dogecoin. Musk’s lawyers argued that his tweets were “innocuous” and no evidence linked him or Tesla to suspicious Dogecoin trades.35
19Business Insider, “Dogecoin volumes spike 683% after viral TikTok challenge urges buying spree”, Achieved, Retrieved July 2020
20Medium, “The History of Dogecoin: A “Joke” That Turned To Serious Investment”, Achieved, Retrieved August 2022
21BBC News, “Cryptocurrency: Musk's SpaceX to launch dogecoin moon mission”, Achieved, Retrieved May 2021
22Byjus, “Current Affairs”, Achieved, Retrieved
23Dogecoin Foundation,”Re-establishing the Dogecoin Foundation”, Achieved, Retrieved August 2021
24NASDAQ, “Dogecoin Foundation Returns With Ethereum’s Buterin as Adviser”, Achieved, Retrieved August 2021
25Medium, “The History of Dogecoin: A “Joke” That Turned To Serious Investment, Achieved, Retrieved August 2022
26AL Jazeera, “Dogecoin hits record after tweets from Elon Musk and Snoop Dogg”, Achieved, Retrieved February 2021
27Payments Drive, “Dallas Mavericks to accept crypto Dogecoin to buy tickets, merchandise”, Achieved, Retrieved March 2021
28The Wall Street Journal, “Bitcoin and Dogecoin Prices Soar to Records as Coinbase Lists”, Achieved, Retrieved April 2021
29Finance Magnatees, “Dogecoin Reaches All-Time High, DOGE Market Cap Crosses $16 Billion”, Achieved, Retrieved April 2021
30Finance Magnates, “Dogecoin Beats Tether, DOGE Enters Top 5 Cryptocurrencies”, Achieved, Retrieved April 2024
Use and exchanges
Dogecoin is an altcoin with a substantial user base and is exchanged for both fiat currencies and other cryptocurrencies on numerous reputable cryptocurrency exchanges and retail trading platforms.
The exchange of physical, tangible goods for Dogecoin occurs on online communities like Reddit and Twitter, where users regularly share information and updates related to cryptocurrencies.36
Instances of individuals using employer or university computers to mine Dogecoin have been reported, including at Harvard and Imperial College London. An anonymous Imperial College student, referred to as "Felix," reportedly mined Dogecoin using the university’s computer suite each night, earning cryptocurrency; the case mirrored a prior incident at Harvard, as documented by CoinDesk in 2014. 37In February 2014, an unnamed individual at Harvard University was discovered using the Odyssey supercomputing cluster to mine Dogecoin. The person was permanently banned from all research computing facilities, according to The Harvard Crimson.38
Dogecoin had been accepted as a payment method across retail, online services, gambling, and blockchain sectors, attracting tech-savvy customers and enabling convenient, low-fee cryptocurrency transactions for businesses.39
31CNN Business, “Dogecoin briefly broke Robinhood’s crypto trading systems”, Achieved, Retrieved April 2021
32Binance Square, “Blog”, Achieved
33CNBC, “Dogecoin jumps more than 30% after Musk changes Twitter logo to image of shiba inu”, Achieved, Retrieved, April 2023
34NDTV, “Elon Musk Accused Of Insider Trading By Investors In Dogecoin Lawsuit”, Achieved, Retrieved June 2023
35Economics Times, “Elon Musk, Tesla win dismissal of lawsuit claiming they rigged dogecoin”, Achieved, Retrieved August 2024
Online tipping
One notable commercial use of Dogecoin involved online tipping systems, where social media users rewarded others for sharing interesting or noteworthy content, promoting engagement and widespread adoption of the cryptocurrency.40
Dogetipbot
Dogetipbot was a cryptocurrency tipping platform primarily used on Reddit and Twitch, allowing users to send Dogecoin to others through simple commands in comments. In May 2017, its creator, Josh Mohland, announced bankruptcy, leading to the permanent shutdown of the service. As a result, many users lost access to their stored Dogecoin, causing significant financial loss.41
36Complex, “Move Over Bitcoin: Dogecoin is Here”, Achieved, Retrieved December 2013
37Coin Desk, “London Student Mines Dogecoin With University's Computers – T Pa Nila Alam”, Achieved, Retrieved September 2021
38Zero Security, “Harvard supercomputer taken over to mine Dogecoin”, Achieved, Retrieved February 2014
39OX Processing, “Who accepts Dogecoin as payment in 2025? A list of companies friendly to DOGE”, Achieved, Retrieved February 2025
40R&D Cell, CTC T&IT, “e-news letter”, Achieved, February 2021
Smart contracts
Dogecoin does not currently support smart contracts, limiting DeFi, NFTs, and dApps. A proposal exists to enable zero-knowledge proofs and Layer-2 chains, potentially allowing Ethereum-compatible smart contract execution.42
Currency supply
Dogecoin developers decided to maintain an annual inflation of 5 billion coins, keeping the code unchanged to stabilize circulation and counter deflationary pressure caused by lost wallets and destroyed coins. This approach aimed to support mining and long-term usability rather than hoarding.
The decision received mixed reactions. Some criticized the reduction in individual coin value, while others praised it for encouraging transactional use. Economists argued predictable inflation could enhance Dogecoin’s viability as a functional currency, contrasting with deflationary altcoins like Bitcoin that encourage hoarding and speculative behavior.43
Mining parameters
Dogecoin’s blockchain uses a 1-minute block time, with difficulty retargeting occurring once per block. Initially, rewards were random using a Mersenne Twister generator, later changed to fixed rewards of 250,000 coins per block until block 200,001, then 10,000 coins thereafter.
The Dogecoin client version 1.6 (March 12, 2014) introduced the DigiShield difficulty algorithm, preventing multipools from exploiting the network and ensuring fair mining for individual miners. Mining has occasionally involved unauthorized use of employer or university computers.44
41Gizmodo, “Reddit Users Lose Real Money After Meme Currency Bot Dies”, Achieved, Retrieved May 2017
42NASDAQ, “2 New Things That Investors Need to Know About Dogecoin”, Achieved, Retrieved September 2025
43Arc technica, “Dogecoin to allow annual inflation of 5 billion coins each year, forever”, Achieved, Retrieved February 2014
Fundraising
The Dogecoin community has engaged in philanthropy, funding the Jamaican bobsled team, NASCAR driver Josh Wise, and water projects in Kenya, reflecting its “Do Only Good Everyday” ethos.45
2014 Winter Olympics
The Dogecoin community actively promoted the cryptocurrency for charitable causes. On January 19, 2014, they launched a fundraiser to help the Jamaican Bobsled Team attend the Sochi Winter Olympics, raising $36,000 in two days and increasing Dogecoin’s value by 50%.
Additionally, the community supported Indian athlete Shiva Keshavan with 4.2 million Dogecoins (approximately $7,000) and donated $11,000 in Dogecoin to fund a water well in Kenya, aiding communities during a water crisis.46
Doge4Water
The Dogecoin Foundation, led by Eric Nakagawa in collaboration with the nonprofit Charity: Water, organized a campaign to raise 40,000,000 Dogecoins (valued at $30,000) to build a well in Kenya’s Tana River Basin before World Water Day on March 22.
The fundraiser succeeded, receiving contributions from over 4,000 donors, including an anonymous donor who gave 14,000,000 Dogecoins (approximately $11,000).47
NASCAR
On March 27, 2014, Reddit’s Dogecoin community raised 67 million Dogecoins (approximately $55,000) to sponsor NASCAR driver Josh Wise, enabling his #98 Moonrocket cars to compete at the Talladega Superspeedway. The eight-day fundraising campaign involved 1,200 donations, averaging $41 each, and used Moolah to convert Dogecoin to US dollars, covering the car’s Dogecoin-themed livery and full sponsorship.48
On May 16, 2014, Josh Wise won a place in the Sprint All-Star Race through an online fan vote, defeating Danica Patrick, largely thanks to support from the Dogecoin Reddit community. The Dogecoin-sponsored No. 98 car brought new fans to NASCAR and gained media attention.49
On March 2, 2021, Dogecoin returned to NASCAR, sponsoring Stefan Parsons’ No. 99 car for BJ McLeod Motorsports in the Xfinity Series at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The cryptocurrency had previously sponsored Josh Wise in 2014, whose fan-driven Reddit campaign gained widespread attention.50
Criticism
Dogecoin originated as a "joke," making it the first meme cryptocurrency, which has contributed to challenges in gaining recognition from mainstream media and financial analysts.51 The cryptocurrency has had a long and problematic history of scams.52 Similar to other cryptocurrencies, Dogecoin has been described by some commentators as a Ponzi-like scheme, with critics arguing that early investors benefit financially by encouraging additional purchases.53 Dogecoin differs from cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin as it lacks a maximum supply, whereas Bitcoin has a fixed cap of 21 million coins. 54
44Medium, “Dogecoin: Fast Initial Coin Production”, Achieved, Retrieved March 2022
45Binance Square, “Dogecoin's Community Impact”, Achieved, Retrieved January 2025
46Global Association of Economics and Education, “DOGECOIN: The Inception of a Meme Economy”, Achieved, Retrieved March 2021
47Dogezyme, “The Ultimate Profit Generator for Internet-Savvy Investors”, Achieved
48The Guardian, “Dogecoin raises $55,000 to sponsor Nascar driver”, Achieved, Retrieved March 2014
50USA Today, “Josh Wise wins fan vote, beats Danica Patrick”, Achieved, Retrieved May 2014
51Frontstretch Newsletter, “Much Wow: Dogecoin Returns to NASCAR on Stefan Parsons’ Car”, Achieved, Retrieved March 2021
52CNET, “Dogecoin: The origin story of the Elon Musk supported cryptocurrency”, Achieved, Retrieved May 2021
53News18, “Dogecoin Has A Warning For Everyone: Do Not Fall For Scams That Promise To Double Your Coins”, Achieved, Retrieved May 2021
Elon Musk and Dogecoin
Elon Musk has regularly shared his opinions on Dogecoin via X (formerly Twitter), prompting claims of market influence, as the cryptocurrency’s price often fluctuates sharply following his posts.55 However, since cryptocurrencies are largely unregulated compared to traditional stocks, such actions are not considered illegal.56 In May 2021, Jackson Palmer, co-creator of Dogecoin, publicly criticized Elon Musk, labeling him a “self-absorbed grifter” after Tesla stopped accepting Bitcoin. Palmer condemned Musk’s influence on cryptocurrency markets, citing the volatility triggered by his statements and public appearances, including on Saturday Night Live, while emphasizing his own detachment from Dogecoin wealth. 57
Elon Musk’s first Dogecoin-related tweet was posted on December 20, 2020, stating “One Word: Doge.” Following the tweet, Dogecoin’s value increased by approximately 20%. 58
In early February 2021, Elon Musk tweeted about Dogecoin, calling it “the people’s crypto” and adding “no highs, no lows, only Doge.” These posts caused Dogecoin’s value to rise by approximately 40%. In April 2021, Musk further influenced the cryptocurrency market by tweeting an image of Joan Miró’s Dog Barking at the Moon with the caption “Doge Barking at the Moon,” triggering a price surge of over 100%.59
On December 14, 2021, Dogecoin surged over 20% after Elon Musk announced Tesla would accept it for merchandise, reflecting his frequent promotion of the meme-inspired cryptocurrency on social media.60
On June 16, 2022, Elon Musk was named in a federal court complaint filed by Keith Johnson seeking $258 billion. The lawsuit alleged that Musk repeatedly used his social influence to promote Dogecoin, causing artificial price inflation and financial harm to investors who purchased the cryptocurrency based on his endorsements.61
Before Elon Musk’s acquisition of Twitter, he suggested that Dogecoin could be used for transactions on the platform, including payments for Twitter Blue subscriptions.62 In late October 2022, Dogecoin surged 35% as Elon Musk’s Twitter acquisition neared completion. The cryptocurrency’s price closely tracked Musk’s comments, including his Twitter bio change to “Chief Twit,” fueling renewed market interest. 63
In 2025, Elon Musk’s X partnered with Visa to launch the X Money Account, enabling peer-to-peer payments and bank transfers, marking X’s first step toward becoming an “everything app, cryptocurrencies were not supported”.64
In April 2023, Dogecoin experienced a significant price surge of over 30% after Twitter CEO Elon Musk temporarily replaced the platform’s bluebird logo with an image of Kabosu, the Shiba Inu dog. The memecoin’s value subsequently declined when Twitter restored its original logo, reflecting Musk’s influence on Dogecoin market movements.65
On November 12, 2024, President-elect Donald Trump announced Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy would lead the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency, aiming to streamline federal agencies and reduce government bureaucracy.66