Ranking (Cryptoasset, Market Pair, Exchange)

1. Transparency Policy

CoinMarketCap provides general guidance but does not disclose proprietary ranking algorithm details. This safeguards system integrity and deters manipulation. 

This is congruent with trade secret norms across industries:

• Food & Beverage: Brands list ingredients, not the recipe.

• Education: Schools share syllabi, not exam answers.

• Search Engines: Platforms publish guidelines, not ranking weights. 

2a. Exchange & Market Pair Rank

CMC uses a multi-factor approach combining quantitative and qualitative variables such as: 

1. Traffic
2. Liquidity
3. Trading volumes & Confidence Indicator.
4. Reported volume legitimacy
5. Qualitative factors (e.g. longevity, reputation, Proof-of-Reserves audits, licenses, user feedback)

These inputs feed a dynamically weighted machine learning model, making rankings resistant to gaming and valuable for traders. Exchanges reporting suspicious volumes are penalized.

2b. Web Traffic Factor 

The Web Traffic Factor gauges an exchange’s web traffic on a relative point scale, updated monthly. For more info, click here.

2c. Liquidity Score

Liquidity Scores average the top trading pairs on an exchange, excluding stablecoin-to-stablecoin pairs. Averaging top pairs—rather than summing total exchange liquidity—prevents inflating scores for venues simply listing hundreds of low-depth pairs, prioritizing exchanges with deep liquidity where users need it most.

2d. Qualitative Factors

Longevity, reputation, Proof-of-Reserves audits, regulatory licenses, and user feedback are considered. For FAQs on Exchange Rankings, please click here for more info.

3. Cryptoasset Rank

Under CoinMarketCap indices (administered by Solactive in compliance with IOSCO Principles for Financial Benchmarks), eligibility for a Top 200 Cryptoasset Rank depends on market capitalization alongside these factors:

1. Verified Supply: Ability to verify the project’s supply information with no incongruities and double counting of market cap (e.g. wrapped or staked assets) 

2. Evaluation Criteria: Strengths across Section C (Evaluation Framework of the Listings Review Criteria.

3. Market Depth: Significant liquidity and tight bid-ask spreads across reliable market data sources.

4. Profile Score: Meeting the minimum threshold.

5. Price Consistency: Minimal price variance across supported exchanges.

6. Exchange Quality: Trading on credible venues exhibiting strengths across:

   1. Minimal data irregularities
   2. Publishes granular API endpoints
   3. Active product development and communication from the team
   4. Active/engaged community of a considerable size
   5. Accredited/Audited by a reputable 3rd-party
   6. DATA Partner
   7. Regulated/Licensed

Diverse monetary models make supply verification complex. Assessing circulating supply or Top 200 eligibility (especially privacy coins) occurs on a best-efforts basis. Consequently, rank eligibility falls into four distinct tiers:

• Top 200: Requires a verified market capitalization and full compliance with items 1–5 above.

• Top 201+: Requires a verified market capitalization; items 1–5 are optional.

• Unranked: Cryptoassets without verified market capitalization, sorted by 24-hour trading volume.

• Rehypothecated crypto: Ranked in a separate tier to prevent clutter and double-counting market capitalization.