YouTube Crypto Content Views Plummet to Lowest Since 2021

YouTube crypto content views hit lowest since 2021, says ITC Crypto's Cowen.

Views of cryptocurrency content on YouTube have fallen to their lowest level since January 2021, according to ITC Crypto founder Benjamin Cowen.

Here is a 30 day moving average of views to a lot of different crypto youtube channels.

So it’s not just X and an algorithm change.

Viewership to crypto has been dropping across platforms. pic.twitter.com/zkowe3nb3L

— Benjamin Cowen (@intocryptoverse) January 11, 2026

“And it’s not just about X and algorithm changes,” Cowen wrote.

Blogger Tom Crown noted that the sharp decline began in October, when the market faced a steep drop with daily liquidation volumes exceeding a record $19 billion.

“Essentially, since 2021, crypto content has been in a ‘bear market’ and hasn’t come close to previous peak levels,” he noted.

Another YouTube content creator, Jesus Martinez, agreed with Crown’s view. None of his materials have been able to replicate the success of a few videos created during the 2021 hype.

A Bitcoin investor known as polaris_xbt described current levels of social interest as characteristic of a prolonged downward trend.

This is literally bear market levels of social interest.

What if we were in bear market for altcoins for over a year now… Altcoins bottom ~350 days after they peak.

We peaked in December 2024, so the bottom was very likely in December of 2025. pic.twitter.com/tKVDWpsl4U

— polaris_xbt (@polaris_xbt) January 11, 2026

“What if we’ve been in a bear market for altcoins for over a year… Altcoins typically bottom about 350 days after their peak. We peaked in December 2024, so the bottom was likely in December 2025,” he added.

Challenges for X

A similar decline in engagement has been observed on Elon Musk’s social network. Recently, CryptoQuant founder Ki Young Ju criticized the platform for limiting the reach of content related to digital assets.

This is why “crypto” posts are getting banned by the X algorithm. Bots generated 7,754,367 posts yesterday, up 1,224%. pic.twitter.com/xhnlhE1V8D

— Ki Young Ju (@ki_young_ju) January 10, 2026

He emphasized that X effectively punishes real users by ignoring the core issue—the inability to distinguish between a human and a bot.

According to Ju’s observations, 7.7 million posts were created in just one day, exceeding the usual level by 1200%. In his view, the flood of low-quality content triggers algorithmic suppression mechanisms, which also limit visibility for genuine crypto accounts.

“With the development of AI, bots have become inevitable. […] But it’s absurd that X is more willing to block crypto topics than improve its bot detection systems,” said the expert.

Previously, X’s product director Nikita Bier explained the visibility issues of cryptocurrency content on the platform as being due to excessive activity, which sparked debates. He later deleted his post following a wave of criticism.

Traders Are Weary

Experts believe the decline in engagement is due to retail investors’ exhaustion, who are tired of Pump & Dump schemes and scam altcoins.

Stop the scam pump n dumps, every “altcoin” is pretty much a ponzi, without X/yt/tiktok shills there is zero reasons for any of the tokens to exist

Retail is tired of getting rekt —

Invest in quality assets, buy index funds if u too busy, buy gold

Enough of this crypto Bs

— Cloud9 Markets (@cloud9markets) January 12, 2026

“Retail investors are just tired of constant losses. […] Enough of this crypto nonsense,” commented a user under the nickname Cloud9 Markets.

Another Bitcoin enthusiast, under the pseudonym Dear Bitcoiner, noted the high politicization of X and other social networks. He emphasized that recently “his entire feed has become about politics, not markets.”

Another expert, known as MSB Intel, suggested a shift of investors towards precious metals and other assets:

“People want returns, not stories about when they might appear. 2025 was tough. Bitcoin fell by 7%, while palladium, rhodium, cobalt, silver, and gold outperformed it.”

In late December, Google search queries for the word “cryptocurrency” plummeted to a yearly low.