Beyond $69K: What’s the Real Price Bitcoin Has to Reach to Beat Its All-Time High?

A single Bitcoin doesn’t buy what it used to. Here’s how the asset fares when measured up against inflation in the U.S. economy.

As Bitcoin climbs higher and higher, crypto watchers are furiously debating when the number-one cryptocurrency will meet and exceed its all-time high—but a lot has changed since November 2021.

Should the price of Bitcoin return to its high-water mark of $69,044 per coin, according to CoinGecko, it would do so in very different market conditions, including the rate of inflation that's struck the U.S. since then. Would the real target be closer to $75,000, then?

That's what the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation calculator says the price of a Bitcoin in November 2021 would be worth today.

After Bitcoin marked those stellar highs, it lost more than half its value in a steady decline as the crypto bear market set in. A year after reaching its all-time high, the price of Bitcoin was $17,586. Even so, inflation continued apace—ranging from 4% to 8% per year—while Bitcoin slowly climbed back above $30,000 last April, and above $40,000 in December, to reach its current levels.

Another factor: inflation grew faster than the available supply of Bitcoin during the same period. In December 2021, the total supply of Bitcoin was 18,915,566. This amount has since increased by 713,707, or about 3.8 percent, to 19,629,263 as of February 2024.

With Bitcoin frequently positioned as an “inflation hedge”—an investment made to protect against a decrease in the purchasing power of money—one might ask how the top crypto has performed over the current U.S. inflationary period. A recent r/Cryptocurrency post on Reddit sparked a robust debate over the question.

Such calculations also need to account for the upcoming Bitcoin halving, which will cut the amount of Bitcoin that miners are rewarded with in half, as the name suggests. This milestone's impact on BTC's future price is hotly debated.

Given all this, have the goalposts moved?

As Bitcoin climbs higher and higher, crypto watchers are furiously debating when the number-one cryptocurrency will meet and exceed its all-time high—but a lot has changed since November 2021.

Should the price of Bitcoin return to its high-water mark of $69,044 per coin, according to CoinGecko, it would do so in very different market conditions, including the rate of inflation that's struck the U.S. since then. Would the real target be closer to $75,000, then?

That's what the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation calculator says the price of a Bitcoin in November 2021 would be worth today.

After Bitcoin marked those stellar highs, it lost more than half its value in a steady decline as the crypto bear market set in. A year after reaching its all-time high, the price of Bitcoin was $17,586. Even so, inflation continued apace—ranging from 4% to 8% per year—while Bitcoin slowly climbed back above $30,000 last April, and above $40,000 in December, to reach its current levels.

Another factor: inflation grew faster than the available supply of Bitcoin during the same period. In December 2021, the total supply of Bitcoin was 18,915,566. This amount has since increased by 713,707, or about 3.8 percent, to 19,629,263 as of February 2024.

With Bitcoin frequently positioned as an “inflation hedge”—an investment made to protect against a decrease in the purchasing power of money—one might ask how the top crypto has performed over the current U.S. inflationary period. A recent r/Cryptocurrency post on Reddit sparked a robust debate over the question.

Such calculations also need to account for the upcoming Bitcoin halving, which will cut the amount of Bitcoin that miners are rewarded with in half, as the name suggests. This milestone's impact on BTC's future price is hotly debated.

Given all this, have the goalposts moved?

As Bitcoin climbs higher and higher, crypto watchers are furiously debating when the number-one cryptocurrency will meet and exceed its all-time high—but a lot has changed since November 2021.

Should the price of Bitcoin return to its high-water mark of $69,044 per coin, according to CoinGecko, it would do so in very different market conditions, including the rate of inflation that's struck the U.S. since then. Would the real target be closer to $75,000, then?

That's what the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation calculator says the price of a Bitcoin in November 2021 would be worth today.

After Bitcoin marked those stellar highs, it lost more than half its value in a steady decline as the crypto bear market set in. A year after reaching its all-time high, the price of Bitcoin was $17,586. Even so, inflation continued apace—ranging from 4% to 8% per year—while Bitcoin slowly climbed back above $30,000 last April, and above $40,000 in December, to reach its current levels.

Another factor: inflation grew faster than the available supply of Bitcoin during the same period. In December 2021, the total supply of Bitcoin was 18,915,566. This amount has since increased by 713,707, or about 3.8 percent, to 19,629,263 as of February 2024.

With Bitcoin frequently positioned as an “inflation hedge”—an investment made to protect against a decrease in the purchasing power of money—one might ask how the top crypto has performed over the current U.S. inflationary period. A recent r/Cryptocurrency post on Reddit sparked a robust debate over the question.

Such calculations also need to account for the upcoming Bitcoin halving, which will cut the amount of Bitcoin that miners are rewarded with in half, as the name suggests. This milestone's impact on BTC's future price is hotly debated.

Given all this, have the goalposts moved?

As Bitcoin climbs higher and higher, crypto watchers are furiously debating when the number-one cryptocurrency will meet and exceed its all-time high—but a lot has changed since November 2021.

Should the price of Bitcoin return to its high-water mark of $69,044 per coin, according to CoinGecko, it would do so in very different market conditions, including the rate of inflation that's struck the U.S. since then. Would the real target be closer to $75,000, then?

That's what the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation calculator says the price of a Bitcoin in November 2021 would be worth today.

After Bitcoin marked those stellar highs, it lost more than half its value in a steady decline as the crypto bear market set in. A year after reaching its all-time high, the price of Bitcoin was $17,586. Even so, inflation continued apace—ranging from 4% to 8% per year—while Bitcoin slowly climbed back above $30,000 last April, and above $40,000 in December, to reach its current levels.

Another factor: inflation grew faster than the available supply of Bitcoin during the same period. In December 2021, the total supply of Bitcoin was 18,915,566. This amount has since increased by 713,707, or about 3.8 percent, to 19,629,263 as of February 2024.

With Bitcoin frequently positioned as an “inflation hedge”—an investment made to protect against a decrease in the purchasing power of money—one might ask how the top crypto has performed over the current U.S. inflationary period. A recent r/Cryptocurrency post on Reddit sparked a robust debate over the question.

Such calculations also need to account for the upcoming Bitcoin halving, which will cut the amount of Bitcoin that miners are rewarded with in half, as the name suggests. This milestone's impact on BTC's future price is hotly debated.

Given all this, have the goalposts moved?

As Bitcoin climbs higher and higher, crypto watchers are furiously debating when the number-one cryptocurrency will meet and exceed its all-time high—but a lot has changed since November 2021.

Should the price of Bitcoin return to its high-water mark of $69,044 per coin, according to CoinGecko, it would do so in very different market conditions, including the rate of inflation that's struck the U.S. since then. Would the real target be closer to $75,000, then?

That's what the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation calculator says the price of a Bitcoin in November 2021 would be worth today.

After Bitcoin marked those stellar highs, it lost more than half its value in a steady decline as the crypto bear market set in. A year after reaching its all-time high, the price of Bitcoin was $17,586. Even so, inflation continued apace—ranging from 4% to 8% per year—while Bitcoin slowly climbed back above $30,000 last April, and above $40,000 in December, to reach its current levels.

Another factor: inflation grew faster than the available supply of Bitcoin during the same period. In December 2021, the total supply of Bitcoin was 18,915,566. This amount has since increased by 713,707, or about 3.8 percent, to 19,629,263 as of February 2024.

With Bitcoin frequently positioned as an “inflation hedge”—an investment made to protect against a decrease in the purchasing power of money—one might ask how the top crypto has performed over the current U.S. inflationary period. A recent r/Cryptocurrency post on Reddit sparked a robust debate over the question.

Such calculations also need to account for the upcoming Bitcoin halving, which will cut the amount of Bitcoin that miners are rewarded with in half, as the name suggests. This milestone's impact on BTC's future price is hotly debated.

Given all this, have the goalposts moved?