U.S. cryptocurrency ownership has fallen from last year’s high, according to a Gallup survey released Monday. Eleven percent of U.S. investors now say they own cryptocurrency, down from 17% in 2025, while ownership among U.S. adults overall slipped to 9% from 14% a year earlier.
Ownership Still Tops Earlier Years
The latest readings remain well above where Gallup’s trend began. In 2018, just 2% of investors said they owned bitcoin, and the share reached 6% by 2021 before climbing to last year’s peak. The new results are based on a June 1-15 survey of 2,043 U.S. adults, with a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points, and a sample of 1,048 investors holding at least $10,000 in investable assets, with a 4-point margin.
Younger Men and Upper-Income Investors Still Lead
The decline was broad but sharpest among the groups most likely to hold crypto. Younger men aged 18 to 49 remain the most likely investors to own cryptocurrency at 24%, though that is down from 33% in 2025 and still more than double any other age-and-gender group. Upper-income investors report ownership of 15%, compared with 7% for middle-income and 4% for lower-income investors, and upper-income owners saw the smallest drop at four percentage points.
Most Investors Call Crypto Very Risky
Despite wider familiarity, 63% of investors describe cryptocurrency as a very risky investment and another 31% call it somewhat risky. The very-risky share is down from 71% in 2018 but has never fallen below six in ten across Gallup’s four readings. Even among current owners, 47% call the asset class very risky.
Cooling After Last Year’s Run-Up
The pullback follows a stretch in which bitcoin climbed past $100,000 in 2025 before losing nearly half of its value, and it matches other signs that some investors are stepping back from the market. Expanding ownership beyond early adopters remains an open question.
