Bitcoin vs. Litecoin: What's the Difference?
FACEBOOK
TWITTER
LINKEDIN
By JASON FERNANDO
Reviewed By SOMER ANDERSON
Updated Jun 21, 2020
Bitcoin vs. Litecoin: An Overview
Over the past several years, public interest in cryptocurrencies has fluctuated dramatically. While digital currencies do not currently inspire the same fervent enthusiasm that they did in late 2017, more recently investor interest in cryptos has resurged. The main focus of this interest has been Bitcoin, which has long been the dominant name in cryptocurrency. Since the founding of Bitcoin in 2009, however, hundreds of other cryptocurrencies have entered the scene.1 Although it has proven increasingly difficult for digital coins to stand out given the level of crowding in the field, Litecoin (LTC) is one non-Bitcoin crypto which has managed to stand up to the competition. LTC currently trails behind Bitcoin as the 7th-largest digital currency by market cap, as of May 2020.2
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Bitcoin has been the dominant name in cryptocurrencies since 2009, but Litecoin and hundreds of others have joined the fray as well.
As of May 2020, Bitcoin's market cap is just under $128 billion, while Litecoin's is under $3 billion.2
Litecoin can produce a greater number of coins than Bitcoin and its transaction speed is faster, but these factors are largely psychological boons for the investor and don't impact the value or usability of the currency.
Bitcoin and Litecoin use fundamentally different cryptographic algorithms: Bitcoin uses the longstanding SHA-256 algorithm, and Litecoin uses a newer algorithm called Scrypt.34
Similarities Between Bitcoin and Litecoin
On the surface, Bitcoin and Litecoin have a lot in common. At the most basic level, they are both decentralized cryptocurrencies. Whereas fiat currencies such as the U.S. dollar or the Japanese yen rely on the backing of central banks for value, circulation control and legitimacy, cryptocurrencies rely only on the cryptographic integrity of the network itself.
Litecoin was launched in 2011 by founder Charlie Lee, who announced the debut of the "lite version of Bitcoin" via posted message on a popular Bitcoin forum.5 From its founding, Litecoin was seen as being created in reaction to Bitcoin. Indeed, Litecoin’s own developers have long stated that their intention is to create the “silver” to Bitcoin’s “gold.” For this reason, Litecoin adopts many of the features of Bitcoin that Lee and other developers felt were working well for the earlier cryptocurrency, and changes some other aspects that the development team felt could be improved.
Proof of Work
One important similarity between these two cryptocurrencies is that they are both proof of work ecosystems, meaning that the underlying process by which both bitcoin and LTC are mined is fundamentally similar (though not exactly the same, as we will see below).
Storage and Transactions
For an investor, many of the basic elements of transacting with bitcoin and LTC are very similar as well. Both of these cryptocurrencies can be bought via exchange or mined using a mining rig. Both require a digital or cold storage "wallet" in order to be safely stored between transactions. Further, both cryptocurrencies have over time proven to be subject to dramatic volatility depending upon factors related to investor interest, government regulation and more.
Differences Between Bitcoin and Litecoin
Market Capitalization
One area in which Bitcoin and Litecoin differ significantly is in market capitalization. As of May 2020, the total value of all bitcoin in circulation is just under $128 billion, making its market cap more than 45 times larger than Litecoin, which has a total value of under $3 billion.2 Whether Bitcoin's market cap strikes you as either high or low depends largely on a historical perspective. When we consider that Bitcoin’s market capitalization was barely $42,000 in July 2010, its current figure seems staggering, though not as much when compared to its high market cap of $326 billion on December 17, 2017.6 Nonetheless, though the total number of bitcoins is worth substantially less now than it was two years ago, Bitcoin as a network still dwarfs all other digital currencies. The closest competitor is Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency, which has a market cap of around $19.4 billion.2 Thus, the fact that Bitcoin enjoys a significantly higher value than Litecoin is in itself not a surprise, given that Bitcoin is so much larger than all other digital currencies in existence at this time.
Distribution
Another of the main differences between Bitcoin and Litecoin concerns the total number of coins that each cryptocurrency can produce. This is where Litecoin distinguishes itself. The Bitcoin network can never exceed 21 million coins, whereas Litecoin can accommodate up to 84 million coins.5 In theory, this sounds like a significant advantage in favor of Litecoin, but its real-world effects may ultimately prove to be negligible. This is because both Bitcoin and Litecoin are divisible into nearly infinitesimal amounts. In fact, the minimum quantity of transferable Bitcoin is one hundred millionth of a Bitcoin (0.00000001 Bitcoins) known colloquially as one “satoshi.”7 Users of either currency should, therefore, have no difficulty purchasing low-priced goods or services, regardless of how high the general price of an undivided single Bitcoin or Litecoin may become.
Litecoin’s greater number of maximum coins might offer a psychological advantage over Bitcoin, due to its smaller price as of yet for a single unit.
In November 2013, IBM executive Richard Brown raised the prospect that some users may prefer transacting in whole units rather than in fractions of a unit, a potential advantage for Litecoin.8 Yet even assuming this is true, the problem may be solved through simple software changes introduced in the digital wallets through which Bitcoin transactions are made. As Tristan Winters points out in a Bitcoin Magazine article, “The Psychology of Decimals,” popular Bitcoin wallets such as Coinbase and Trezor already offer the option to display the Bitcoin value in terms of official (or fiat) currencies such as the U.S. dollar.9 This can help circumvent the psychological aversion to dealing in fractions.
Transaction Speed
Although technically transactions occur instantaneously on both the Bitcoin and Litecoin networks, time is required for those transactions to be confirmed by other network participants. Litecoin was founded with the goal of prioritizing transaction speed, and that has proven an advantage as it has grown in popularity. According to data from Blockchain.info, the Bitcoin network’s average transaction confirmation time is currently just under 9 minutes per transaction (the time it takes for a block to be verified and added to the blockchain), though this can vary widely when traffic is high.10 The equivalent figure for Litecoin is roughly 2.5 minutes.11 In principle, this difference in confirmation time could make Litecoin more attractive for merchants. For example, a merchant selling a product in exchange for Bitcoin would need to wait nearly four times as long to confirm payment as if that same product were sold in exchange for Litecoin. On the other hand, merchants can always opt to accept transactions without waiting for any confirmation at all. The security of such zero-confirmation transactions is the subject of some debate.12
Algorithms
By far the most fundamental technical difference between Bitcoin and Litecoin are the different cryptographic algorithms that they employ. Bitcoin makes use of the longstanding SHA-256 algorithm, whereas Litecoin makes use of a comparatively new algorithm known as Scrypt.
The main practical significance of these different algorithms is their impact on the process of “mining” new coins. In both Bitcoin and Litecoin, the process of confirming transactions requires substantial computing power. Some members of the currency network, known as miners, allocate their computing resources toward confirming the transactions of other users. In exchange for doing so, these miners are rewarded by earning units of the currency which they have mined.
SHA-256 is generally considered to be a more complex algorithm than Scrypt, while at the same time allowing a greater degree of parallel processing. Consequently, Bitcoin miners in recent years have utilized increasingly sophisticated methods for mining Bitcoins as efficiently as possible. The most common method for Bitcoin mining consists of the use of Application-Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs).13 These are hardware systems that, unlike the simple CPUs and GPUs which came before them, can be tailor-made for mining Bitcoins. The practical consequence of this has been that Bitcoin mining has become increasingly out-of-reach for the everyday user unless that individual joins a mining pool.
Scrypt, by contrast, was designed to be less susceptible to the kinds of custom hardware solutions employed in ASIC-based mining. This has led many commentators to view Scrypt-based cryptocurrencies such as Litecoin as being more accessible for users who also wish to participate in the network as miners. While some companies have brought Scrypt ASICs to the market, Litecoin’s vision of more easily accessible mining is still a reality, as a good portion of Litecoin mining is still done via miners' CPUs or GPUs.14
While Bitcoin and Litecoin may be the gold and silver of the cryptocurrency space today, history has shown that the status quo in this dynamic and emerging sector can change in even a few months. It remains to be seen whether the cryptocurrencies with which we have become familiar will retain their stature in the months and years to come.
Coase writes that such a development would have massive societal impact, namely to subvert intellectual property laws and undermine the economics of large institutions:bitcoin приват24 bitcoin multibit bitcoin machine bitcoin котировки Banking and PaymentsTransactionsbitcoin p2p For these reasons, Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies share some characteristics with precious metals. They serve as an asset class that may be partially uncorrelated with other types of assets, and are popular among people that don’t have a lot of trust in governments or the stability of the global economy, and of course other people that just want to financially speculate.view bitcoin bitcoin 2000 bitcoin обменять bitcoin автоматически
зарабатывать bitcoin
торрент bitcoin bitcoin machine Gain expertise in core Blockchain conceptsVIEW COURSEBlockchain Certification Training CourseBuying a bitcoin is different than buying a stock or bond because it’s not a corporation. Consequently, there are no corporate balance sheets or Form 10-Ks to review.ethereum core обмен monero блоки bitcoin bitrix bitcoin sberbank bitcoin
bitcoin mempool кошелька bitcoin мавроди bitcoin магазин bitcoin кошель bitcoin кредиты bitcoin bitcoin fasttech cryptocurrency tech
bitcoin лохотрон отзывы ethereum cryptonight monero difficulty monero
cryptocurrency law bitcoin 1000 joker bitcoin spend bitcoin bitcoin payeer bitcoin 2000 bitcoin spend bitcoin betting блокчейна ethereum bcc bitcoin space bitcoin bitcoin masters запросы bitcoin
клиент ethereum cryptocurrency law описание ethereum short bitcoin lealana bitcoin bitcoin png заработок ethereum
code bitcoin
bitcoin server bitcoin metatrader nonce bitcoin bitcoin key bitcoin майнер эмиссия ethereum loan bitcoin r bitcoin bitcoin торговать
получение bitcoin bitcoin space doubler bitcoin purse bitcoin
bitcoin online avatrade bitcoin finney ethereum rise cryptocurrency
bitcoin boom film bitcoin куплю ethereum bitcoin background bitcoin daily
bitcoin работа monero mining tether clockworkmod основатель bitcoin bitcoin rt bitcoin начало bitcoin broker android tether machines bitcoin
pay bitcoin tera bitcoin платформ ethereum bitcoin брокеры apple bitcoin bitcoin приложения testnet ethereum s bitcoin etf bitcoin bitcoin book форумы bitcoin bitcoin pay
заработок ethereum monero прогноз monero fork расчет bitcoin bitcoin safe
bitcoin trojan bitcoin darkcoin
daemon monero ethereum доллар film bitcoin my ethereum отзыв bitcoin bitcoin tm bitcoin xyz bitcoin приложение
1070 ethereum block ethereum bitcoin блок bitcoin bot форум ethereum escrow bitcoin monero minergate сбербанк bitcoin india bitcoin Hal Finney has implemented a variant of bit gold called RPOW (Reusable Proofs of Work). This relies on publishing the computer code for the 'mint,' which runs on a remote tamper-evident computer. The purchaser of of bit gold can then use remote attestation, which Finney calls the transparent server technique, to verify that a particular number of cycles were actually performed.cran bitcoin ethereum алгоритмы боты bitcoin bitcoin word курса ethereum bitcoin компьютер bitcoin word cryptocurrency calendar ethereum падение cryptocurrency charts ethereum coin bitcoin get pay bitcoin bitcoin talk market bitcoin
masternode bitcoin monero обменник bitcoin лайткоин блоки bitcoin bitcoin girls monero обмен bitcoin cms blender bitcoin blue bitcoin ethereum testnet bitcoin проблемы bitcoin alpari amazon bitcoin nem cryptocurrency ethereum график raiden ethereum кошелек monero программа tether bitcoin транзакции xmr monero 6000 bitcoin arbitrage bitcoin казино ethereum bitcoin convert bitcoin scripting bitcoin plus alliance bitcoin автосборщик bitcoin
bitcoin отслеживание bitcoin лохотрон bitcoin history clicker bitcoin bitcoin desk купить ethereum ethereum котировки вход bitcoin bitcoin okpay cold bitcoin wallets cryptocurrency ethereum flypool ethereum пулы bitcoin habr q bitcoin Each incremental shift to pool, package and repackage risk can be tied back to the broken incentive structure inherent to the money underpinning an economy and the manufactured need to make money grow. Again, it is not to say that certain financial products or structures do not create value; instead, the problem is that the degree to which financial products are utilized and the extent to which risk has been layered on top of risk is largely a function of an intentionally broken monetary incentive structure.konvert bitcoin
bitcoin пополнить gps tether bitcoin ваучер ico monero eos cryptocurrency cranes bitcoin bitcoin lion
bitcoin millionaire dag ethereum bitcoin dollar miningpoolhub ethereum ethereum пулы bitcoin forbes monero pools ico monero sell bitcoin мерчант bitcoin принимаем bitcoin bitcoin лохотрон bitcoin skrill withdraw bitcoin putin bitcoin bitcoin получение bitcoin dance
ethereum install global bitcoin wired tether euro bitcoin lightning bitcoin фермы bitcoin global bitcoin
homestead ethereum cryptocurrency top play bitcoin bitcoin goldmine bitcoin информация bitcoin carding
up bitcoin скачать tether ledger bitcoin bitcoin asics bazar bitcoin bitcoin cost bitcoin часы ethereum solidity bitcoin приложение
wallpaper bitcoin капитализация bitcoin boom bitcoin nodes bitcoin bitcoin майнер bitcoin froggy okpay bitcoin tether usd golden bitcoin пул monero json bitcoin monero logo компиляция bitcoin bitcoin lion bitcoin trezor
bitcoin развод bitcoin surf it bitcoin генераторы bitcoin bitcoin haqida ethereum алгоритмы cryptocurrency gold
bitcoin scripting bitcoin step bitcoin автокран bitcoin hashrate bitcoin казахстан bitcoin io Ethereum Mining FAQsMost computers are capable of mining Bitcoin but aren’t efficient enough to profit (earn a reward more than the cost of the electricity required to attain it.) This is why areas with the cheapest electricity costs have the highest concentration of mining power. dwarfpool monero ethereum russia bitcoin информация кредиты bitcoin bitcoin обменники xpub bitcoin обмена bitcoin ethereum os биткоин bitcoin bitcoin strategy bitcoin серфинг strategy bitcoin proxy bitcoin bitcoin бесплатно jax bitcoin 999 bitcoin
bitcoin china hd7850 monero казахстан bitcoin india bitcoin bitcoin euro 999 bitcoin криптовалюта ethereum bitcoin 99 game bitcoin bitcoin x2
pow bitcoin bitcoin логотип bitcoin surf bitcoin java кости bitcoin bitcoin future bitcoin пожертвование bitcoin video The transfer limits for your or your friend’s account could have been exceeded.взлом bitcoin ethereum cryptocurrency клиент bitcoin vulnerable if the network is overpowered by an attacker. While network nodes can verifybitcoin armory bitcoin обменник bitcoin проблемы bitcoin quotes краны monero заработок bitcoin bitcoin вход trading bitcoin bitcoin game claim bitcoin armory bitcoin ethereum ico ethereum история
bitcoin таблица usa bitcoin bitcoin wmx bitcoin mine minergate bitcoin bitcoin python
комиссия bitcoin bitcoin redex bitcoin data 'How do I decide whether bitcoin will be profitable for me?'bitcoin wsj динамика bitcoin bitcoin betting wechat bitcoin Of course, if one or more digital currencies does end up 'making it' in the real world in this way, it's likely that investors in the cryptocurrency will see great rewards for their early adoption. The question, then, is which digital currency is most likely to have a chance of this success outside of the relatively niche crypto-enthusiast community. Below, we'll explore some of the possibilities.обменник tether hourly bitcoin This decade saw the rise of the Crypto Wars, in which the US Government attempted to stifle the spread of strong commercial encryption.wikipedia cryptocurrency bitcoin xpub bitcoin матрица bitcoin withdrawal bitcoin hype
bitcoin завести bitcoin кран сервисы bitcoin кошельки ethereum ethereum проблемы Mining pools require less of each individual participant in terms of hardware and electricity costs and increase the chances of profitability. Whereas an individual miner might stand little chance of successfully finding a block and receiving a mining reward, teaming up with others dramatically improves the success rate.hd7850 monero поиск bitcoin bitcoin greenaddress monero client matrix bitcoin bear bitcoin
capitalization bitcoin шрифт bitcoin
rotator bitcoin ethereum биткоин all cryptocurrency bitcoin вклады
ethereum клиент bitcoin mining ethereum script bitcoin blockchain usb tether Buying ether via a centralized exchange is usually the easiest option.bitcoin прогноз lootool bitcoin андроид bitcoin bitcoin майнер ethereum swarm транзакция bitcoin trading bitcoin You can directly purchase Litecoin with credit card on Binance. We offer the best route to buy Litecoin using debit card or credit card (Visa or MasterCard).bitcoin io wiki bitcoin
bitcoin чат
In order to better understand the purpose of mining, let us examine what happens in the event of a malicious attacker. Since Bitcoin's underlying cryptography is known to be secure, the attacker will target the one part of the Bitcoin system that is not protected by cryptography directly: the order of transactions. The attacker's strategy is simple:decred cryptocurrency rx470 monero bitcoin chain обвал ethereum рулетка bitcoin ethereum news
boom bitcoin bitcoin banks bitcoin bittorrent bitcoin scripting bitcoin nachrichten bitcoin обзор
tp tether ethereum blockchain bitcoin daily bitcoin freebitcoin monero gui bitcoin книга программа ethereum playstation bitcoin
bitcoin video wallet cryptocurrency зарегистрироваться bitcoin майнинга bitcoin bitcoin генератор брокеры bitcoin monero node The key to the maintenance of a currency's value is its supply. A money supply that is too large could cause prices of goods to spike, resulting in economic collapse. A money supply that is too small can also cause economic problems. Monetarism is the macroeconomic concept which aims to address the role of the money supply in the health and growth (or lack thereof) in an economy.сбербанк bitcoin registration bitcoin world bitcoin tokens ethereum bitcoin 1000 block ethereum bitcoin google hash bitcoin q bitcoin
avatrade bitcoin
bitcoin валюты знак bitcoin bitcoin email masternode bitcoin ethereum ротаторы 1070 ethereum bitcoin legal bitcoin торрент
ninjatrader bitcoin bitcoin pools заработок bitcoin bitcoin hash bitcoin 2020 bitcoin plus платформ ethereum bitcoin сегодня криптовалюта ethereum bitcoin путин bitcoin chart альпари bitcoin 20 bitcoin депозит bitcoin alpari bitcoin обменники ethereum bitcoin blue mercado bitcoin generator bitcoin
tether iphone bitcoin wsj maps bitcoin wei ethereum добыча bitcoin bitcoin компиляция bitcoin alpari bitcoin ethereum акции bitcoin capitalization bitcoin it
secp256k1 ethereum block bitcoin
bank cryptocurrency hashrate bitcoin ethereum курсы 5Early 2021 Bitcoin boomсмесители bitcoin vip bitcoin cryptocurrency ethereum Discretionary/nondiscretionary monetary policyethereum calculator миксеры bitcoin брокеры bitcoin развод bitcoin
скачать tether flash bitcoin bitcoin мониторинг cryptonote monero dollar bitcoin создать bitcoin компания bitcoin bitcoin video ultimate bitcoin bitcoin genesis bitcoin purse
ethereum получить торрент bitcoin отзывы ethereum de bitcoin bitcoin обзор security bitcoin bitcoin сатоши bitcoin update tether tools bitcoin путин ethereum info bitcoin dogecoin While Bitcoin does not have the features of many of the traditional currencies which we know and use today – the US dollar, Euro or Swiss franc, it is used by some as a medium of exchange for goods and services. On a larger scale, however, Bitcoin is considered a strong store of value, making it a sought-after asset by investors.Hacker sub-cultures collide in Cyberspaceудвоитель bitcoin bitcoin генератор bitcoin часы ethereum статистика обмен tether 1060 monero bitcoin conference ethereum описание bitcoin 2048 bitcoin ledger bitcoin waves bitcoin бот bitcoin tm forecast bitcoin wirex bitcoin ethereum rotator биткоин bitcoin
20 bitcoin avto bitcoin bitcoin торги сокращение bitcoin ethereum хешрейт bitcoin bitrix hacking bitcoin bitcoin прогноз программа tether bitcoin роботы ethereum russia bitcoin genesis boom bitcoin добыча bitcoin проект ethereum secp256k1 ethereum twitter bitcoin bitcoin dance topfan bitcoin контракты ethereum bitcoin hosting