Zcash

Zcash (ZEC) Price Today

Price & Performance
Current Price
$654.13
24h Change
+3.52%
7d Change
-14.94%
30d Change
+113.42%
1y Change
+1166.60%
24h High / Low
$686.24 / $625.65
Market Stats
Market Cap$10,923,835,450
24h Volume$1,089,824,631
Volume / Market Cap+9.98%
Rank#13
Fully Diluted Valuation$10,923,835,450
All-Time High$3,191.93 (-79.51%)
All-Time Low$16.08 (+3967.94%)
Supply
Circulating17M
Total17M
Max21M
Circulating / Max+79.47%
Sentiment
Bullish
68.75%
Bearish
31.25%
Recent Prices (1y sample)
DatePrice (USD)
5/12/2026$555.228817
5/13/2026$570.234708
5/14/2026$523.981414
5/15/2026$560.83305
5/16/2026$515.158491
5/17/2026$511.301396

What is Zcash?

Zcash (ZEC) is a digital currency. Its main purpose is to let people send and receive value over the internet. The ticker symbol used for the asset is ZEC. Zcash is best known as a privacy-focused cryptocurrency that gives users a choice about how much transaction information becomes public.

In plain language, Zcash offers two types of addresses and transactions. One type is transparent and works like many other cryptocurrencies where the sender, recipient, and amount are visible on the public record. The other type is shielded and hides those details so only chosen parties can see them. The project’s official materials describe Zcash as a privacy-protecting digital currency; rephrased simply, that means Zcash is built to let people make private transfers when they want privacy, while still allowing public transfers when privacy is not needed.

Zcash is not primarily a platform for complex smart contracts or a token used only inside a single exchange. It is mainly a currency that runs on its own blockchain and is used in wallets and exchanges that support ZEC. Market watchers and traders sometimes use a crypto pump detector when tracking sudden price moves in ZEC, but that is a tool for monitoring markets and not part of how the protocol itself works.

What does Zcash actually do?

Zcash’s primary role is to enable peer-to-peer transfers with an option for strong privacy. At the base level, ZEC moves on its own blockchain, like other cryptocurrencies, and the chain is secured by network participants who validate blocks. Where Zcash differs is in offering shielded transactions that hide sender, receiver, and amount details. The technical method behind shielded transactions is a form of privacy-preserving cryptography; explained simply, this method proves a payment is valid without showing the private details of the payment.

The main functions Zcash enables are private and public transfers of value, wallet-to-wallet payments, and listing on exchanges for trading. Typical users include people who want extra privacy for some payments, developers and researchers interested in privacy technology, custodial and non-custodial wallet providers that implement shielded features, and exchanges that list ZEC for trading. Some traders may use a trading bot to automate orders involving ZEC on supported markets. Others use an ai scalping bot for short-term strategies; those are tools used off-chain and are not part of Zcash’s protocol.

Important practical points are that privacy features work only when users choose shielded transactions, and not all wallets or services support the shielded option. Zcash also includes mechanisms for sharing transaction view access with specific parties, which can be useful for audits or regulatory checks if a user allows it. The project has undergone upgrades to improve speed and reduce computing demands for shielded transactions, which made it easier to use on mobile devices. I do not have current network usage numbers or exact adoption figures here, so I cannot state how many transactions use shielded mode versus transparent mode.

Disclaimer

This page is for educational purposes only and is not financial advice.

Where to buy Zcash?

Below is a curated list of supported exchanges.

ExchangePrice (USD)Link
Binance logoBinance$653.82Trade on Binance
Bitget logoBitget$654.58Trade on Bitget
KuCoin logoKuCoin$654.59Trade on KuCoin
OKX logoOKX$654.35Trade on OKX
Phemex logoPhemex$654.84Trade on Phemex

Frequently Asked Questions