Crypto Newbie / Fear & Greed Index
Fear & Greed Index
The Crypto Fear & Greed Index sums up market sentiment into a single number from 0 (Extreme Fear) to 100 (Extreme Greed). It's not a buy or sell signal on its own — but it's a useful sanity check before you DCA, and a contrarian indicator at the extremes.
Today
Fear
Sentiment is cautious. A reasonable time to DCA on schedule. Don't try to time a perfect dip from here — Fear can shift into Extreme Fear or back to Neutral over a few days. Stick to the plan.
Yesterday · May 31
A week ago · May 25
A month ago · May 3
Last 30 days
Data: alternative.me — updated daily.
Why look at the Fear & Greed Index?
Two reasons. First, it's a cheap behavioural sanity check: the index is high exactly when retail FOMO peaks, and low exactly when retail panic-sells. If you find yourself wanting to buy at Extreme Greed or sell at Extreme Fear, you're feeling exactly what the crowd is feeling — and the crowd is reliably wrong at extremes. Second, it's contrarian fuel for DCA. Most people instinctively pause DCA in red markets and add more in green ones — the index helps you do the opposite, which is what actually compounds.
How to use it as a beginner
- 1.Stick to your DCA schedule. The index is a sanity check, not a permission slip to time the market.
- 2.At Extreme Fear (0-24): if you have dry powder, this is when to deploy a tactical extra buy. Don't reduce your scheduled DCA.
- 3.At Greed/Extreme Greed (75+): do not increase position sizing. If anything, trim altcoins that have run hard. Bank some profit into stablecoin to deploy in the next Fear cycle.
- 4.Never use the index in isolation. It's one input out of many. Combine with your investor profile + portfolio allocation.
What is the Crypto Fear & Greed Index?
The Crypto Fear & Greed Index is a sentiment indicator that converts market mood into a single number from 0 to 100. 0 means Extreme Fear (capitulation, headlines screaming bear market), 100 means Extreme Greed (FOMO, headlines screaming new ATH). It's built from six inputs: price volatility, market momentum and volume, social media, surveys, Bitcoin dominance, and Google Trends searches. Used correctly, it's a contrarian sanity check: lean in at Extreme Fear, slow down at Extreme Greed, ignore in the middle. Used incorrectly, it's a recipe for chasing price.
Frequently asked questions
+Where does this data come from?
The free public API at alternative.me/fng/. It's updated once a day and combines volatility (25%), market momentum/volume (25%), social media (15%), surveys (15%), Bitcoin dominance (10%), and Google Trends (10%).
+Is it accurate enough to act on?
It's a sentiment gauge, not a price prediction. Historically the index has marked rough turning points at the extremes — but plenty of times the market kept moving in the prevailing direction for weeks before reverting. Use it as one input, never the only input.
+Why is the index always lagging the obvious top/bottom?
Because by the time everyone feels Extreme Greed, the price has already run. The index is a snapshot of feelings, not a leading indicator. Its value is contrarian use at extremes, not perfect timing.
+Should I sell everything at Extreme Greed?
No. Long-term holders sleep through both extremes. The right move at Extreme Greed for a DCA'er is usually to trim winners back to target allocation and stop adding new positions — not to dump core holdings.
+Is there a similar index for individual coins?
Not from the same source. Alternative.me publishes one for Bitcoin specifically that's used as a market-wide proxy. For altcoin-specific sentiment you'd need to track on-chain metrics (Coin Days Destroyed, exchange inflows) and social-volume tools.