Paper P/L
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Crypto Dollar-Cost Averaging (DCA) Return Estimator
Average cost and paper P/L from equal buys over N periods at a start and end price path.
Page updated 2026-09-04.
Calculator
Calculated Results
Average cost / coin
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Coins accumulated
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Total spent
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Buying on a schedule through a rising price
Twelve $200 buys, spaced evenly as price moves linearly from $42,000 to $51,000, with a 0.5% fee per buy, accumulate 0.05155 coins for $2,400.00 total spent, at an average cost of $46,560.75 per coin. Valued at the ending $51,000 price, that position is worth $2,628.82 -- a paper profit of $228.82.
Because DCA buys spread across the whole price move, the average cost ($46,560.75) lands between the start and end prices, closer to the middle than to either extreme -- this is the core benefit of dollar-cost averaging into a rising asset: you don't pay the full end price for every coin, but you also don't get the full benefit of the lowest starting price either.
The 0.5% fee on each of the 12 buys is a real, cumulative drag: $12.00 total in fees on $2,400 spent, which is small in this profitable scenario but becomes a larger relative drag in a flat or declining price scenario where there's no price gain to absorb it.
The assumption doing the heavy lifting
Linear price path between start and end. Fees are a single percent on each buy. Real crypto prices never move in a straight line between two points -- they're volatile in both directions along the way, which means the actual average cost from real DCA buys over the same period would likely differ from this simplified straight-line model, sometimes significantly.
This models one linear scenario as a planning reference, not a backtest of actual historical price data -- run it with different start/end price assumptions to stress-test a range of outcomes rather than trusting one path.
Buys, size, and both prices must be valid positive numbers, and buys must be greater than 1 for the schedule to have more than a single purchase to average.
Related crypto return questions
For a single buy-and-sell trade rather than a recurring schedule, the Crypto Profit/Loss Calculator handles that simpler one-lot case.
Once this position is sold, tax treatment depends on the holding period and cost basis method used -- see the Crypto Tax & Capital Gains Calculator.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
How is the $46,560.75 average cost per coin calculated?
Average cost = total spent / total coins accumulated = $2,400.00 / 0.05155 = $46,560.75. Each of the 12 buys happens at a different simulated price point along the linear path from $42,000 to $51,000, and the fee-adjusted coin amounts from each buy are summed.
Why is the average cost closer to the middle of the price range rather than the starting price?
Because buys are spread evenly across the entire linear price path from $42,000 to $51,000, not weighted toward the beginning. With a linear path and even dollar amounts per buy, the average lands roughly around the path's midpoint, adjusted slightly by how coin quantity per dollar changes as price rises.
Does this model real historical price volatility?
No. Linear price path between start and end. Fees are a single percent on each buy. It assumes a smooth, straight-line move between two prices you set -- real prices fluctuate along the way, so actual DCA results from the same start and end price would typically differ from this simplified estimate.
How much did fees affect the total return?
Fees totaled $12.00 (0.5% x $2,400 spent), a modest drag in this profitable scenario. In a flat or falling price scenario with no price gain to offset it, the same percentage fee would represent a larger share of the overall return.
What happens if I set the end price lower than the start price?
The calculator still runs the same linear-path logic, simulating a declining price instead of a rising one -- useful for stress-testing what a DCA strategy would have produced during a downtrend rather than only an uptrend.
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