The most popular meme coins in the crypto market are Dogecoin ($DOGE) and Shiba Inu ($SHIB). Dogecoin ranks seventh in the top 100 cryptocurrencies, and Shiba Inu ranks fifteenth.

Dogecoin gained its place in the crypto limelight in 2021 because of the celebrity endorsements and social media hype it got.

Although the price of $DOGE sharply declined later that year, many investors still believed it was destined for greater prices.

On the other hand, Shiba Inu entered the crypto ecosystem in 2020 as the “Dogecoin Killer.” This crypto asset became prominent through its continuous growth during the stagnation periods of other altcoins.

Since entering the crypto space, these meme coins have achieved impressive feats, making them rivals. Many crypto communities have debated which crypto meme giant stands taller.

Hence, this article will explore Dogecoin vs Shiba Inu, their key differences, and which is best to invest in for the 2025 bull run.

What is Dogecoin ($DOGE)?

Dogecoin entered the crypto landscape at the end of 2013. It capitalized on the popularity of BTC at that time and meme internet culture to break into the crypto space.

Doge did not start as a legitimate cryptocurrency; it began as a satirical commentary on dog memes and the 2013 Bitcoin boom.

Jackson Palmer and Billy Markus created Dogecoin. The software engineers used a Shiba Inu dog as the symbol of the Doge meme cryptocurrency.

Their method of introducing Doge’s blockchain allowed more individual miners to access the token, fostering a more decentralized and inclusive blockchain network.

Brief History of Dogecoin: Key Moments

2013: On December 6, 2013, Dogecoin’s creator launched the coin, which attracted over 1 million visitors to its website in one month.
2018: Dogecoin’s market cap reached nearly $2 billion.
2021: Elon Musk announced that Dogecoin would fully fund SpaceX’s rideshare mission in May.
In August 2021, Dogecoin re-established its Dogecoin Foundation, which focused on its community, ecosystem support, and promoting Dogecoin’s future.
2023: Elon Musk temporarily changed the X (formerly Twitter) logo to the Doge logo.
In June 2023, investors accused Elon Musk of insider trading of $DOGE.
2024: Elon Musk and Tesla won the federal lawsuit that accused them of insider trading.

Significance and Use Cases of Dogecoin

Dogecoin is the father of crypto meme culture. It is the first cryptocurrency to combine the playful nature of internet memes with the real-world use of digital currencies.

$DOGE is primarily used for online payments and small tips. In addition, some major companies accept $DOGE as a means of payment for goods purchased or services rendered.

What is Shiba Inu ($SHIB)?

Shiba Inu is a memecoin based on the Ethereum blockchain. In 2021, an anonymous creator named Ryoshi created it as an alternative to Dogecoin, hence its popular name, “Doge Killer.”

Ryoshi aimed to create a decentralized cryptocurrency ecosystem that values community governance. The design of Shiba Inu capitalized on the growing popularity of memecoins and the success of Dogecoin.

Shiba Inu’s iconography shows that the cryptocurrency drew inspiration from the roots of Dogecoin’s meme culture. The logo of the Shiba Inu cryptocurrency is also a Shiba Inu dog.

Since its inception in 2021, the cryptocurrency has become a major brand in the meme crypto ecosystem. Its rise in popularity shows how internet cultures can significantly affect digital assets.

Shiba Inu utilizes two consensus mechanisms, PoS (Proof-of-Stake) and PoA (Proof-of-Authority), for transaction validation on the Ethereum network.

Even while running on the Ethereum blockchain network, the two consensus mechanisms show great versatility in Shiba Inu’s technology. By combining these two mechanisms, its ecosystem offers better decentralized and scalable features.

A Brief History of Shiba Inu: Key Moments

2020: Ryoshi created Shiba Inu as the “Dogecoin Killer” and the Shib Army.
2021: In May 2021, Vitalik Buterin burned a significant amount of $SHIB and donated $1 billion worth of $SHIB to the India COVID Relief Fund.
Ryoshi left social media, leaving the Shiba Inu ecosystem in the hands of its community, the SHIB Army.
In July 2021, Shytoshi Kusama, the leader of the SHIB Army, launched the Shiba Swap, a decentralized exchange, after Ryoshi left social media.
In October 2021, the SHIB Army, led by Shytoshi Kusama, launched the Shiboshi NFT collection, which sold out in 34 minutes.
2022: In February, Shiba Inu formed and named its governance model “Doggy DAO” (Doggy Decentralized Autonomous Community). In April, it was listed on Robinhood, a popular crypto exchange.
2023: In March, Shiba Inu launched the Shibarium PuppyNet. The PuppyNet was Shiba Inu’s blockchain testnet. By August, the ecosystem launched the blockchain’s mainnet (Shibarium) following the success of its testnet.

Significance and Use Case of Shiba Inu

Shiba Inu was pivotal in the explosion of the meme-themed crypto ecosystem. Riding on Dogecoin’s popularity, it has grown to become one of the path forgers in the crypto meme landscape.

The crypto company aims to develop a complete ecosystem comprising NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens) and DeFi (Decentralized Finance) applications.

Differences Between Dogecoin and Shiba Inu

While Dogecoin and Shiba Inu are meme coins, they have major differences that set them on unique paths. The list below shows five major ways Dogecoin differs from Shiba Inu.

1. Supply Cap

Dogecoin: When Dogecoin entered the crypto space, it had a hard supply cap of 100 billion tokens. Later, the team removed the hard cap limit to prevent people from hoarding the tokens. Now, $DOGE has an unlimited supply with an annual release of 5 billion tokens.
Shiba Inu: Shiba Inu had an original hard supply cap of 1 quadrillion $SHIB. The crypto asset has undergone various periodic burns to reduce the total supply. This action is geared towards increasing its scarcity, demand, and price. Currently, its total supply is 598 trillion $SHIB tokens.

2. Technology

Dogecoin: Like Bitcoin and Ethereum, Dogecoin started with the PoW (Proof-of-Work) consensus mechanism. However, the cryptocurrency plans to change its consensus mechanism to PoS using the Scrypt hashing algorithm.
Shiba Inu: Shiba Inu combines Ethereum’s PoS and PoA consensus mechanisms to improve its decentralization and scalability.

3. Permanent Block Reward

Dogecoin: Miners and validators on the blockchain get 10,000 $DOGE tokens for every block they mine.
Shiba Inu: Initially, Shiba Inu had a permanent block reward, but the project moved from Dogecoin’s model. Now, the dynamics of its supply do not adhere to Dogecoin's traditional block reward method.

4. Block Confirmation Time

Dogecoin: Dogecoin’s block confirmation time is around a minute.
Shiba Inu: Its block confirmation time is approximately 15 seconds.

5. Transactions Per Second

Dogecoin: The Dogecoin blockchain can run 33 transactions every second.
Shiba Inu: Shiba Inu can process between 14 to 30 transactions per second.

The table below summarises the major differences between Dogecoin and Shiba Inu.

$DOGE vs $SHIB: Historical Price Trends and Market Capitalization

The historical price trends of the two crypto meme giants show how dynamic the crypto market has always been. In addition, it provides investors with relevant details to make informed investment decisions.

Dogecoin’s Historical Price Trend

Before 2021, Dogecoin traded below $0.10. However, the cryptocurrency witnessed a remarkable ATH (All-Time High) of $0.73 in May. That is a staggering 700% increase from 10 cents.

After this great feat, Dogecoin experienced other price fluctuations. However, these fluctuations did not affect its continuous positive trajectory regarding market cap. On October 19th, 2023, Dogecoin’s market cap crossed the $8 billion mark.

Currently, Dogecoin is trading at $0.38. It has 147 billion tokens in circulation and a market cap of $56 billion.

Shiba Inu Historical Price Trend

Shiba Inu started trading in the market at $0.000000000056. In May 2021, Shiba Inu’s price surged to $0.00003791. Later that year (October), the asset witnessed its ATH of $0.00008845

These price increases show the extreme volatility of Shiba Inu and how it rides on the waves and hype of social media. As of December 27th, 2024, Shiba Inu traded at $0.00002217.

$SHIB is currently trading at $0.00002381. It has 589 trillion tokens in circulation and a market cap of $14 billion.

Factors Influencing the Prices of Dogecoin and Shiba Inu

Like other cryptocurrencies, Dogecoin and Shiba Inu's prices are affected by certain general and unique factors. Some factors affect other digital assets, while others are peculiar to them because they are meme coins.

In this section, we will explore major factors that affect the prices of $SHIB and $DOGE.

Market Sentiment

The prices of $DOGE and $SHIB depend heavily on crypto investors' market sentiments. They increase with positive news, such as celebrity endorsements, new exchange listings, etc.

On the other hand, when the news is negative, you should expect a price decline. News around the crypto market informs investors about when to buy and sell. Good news comes with many BUYs, and bad news comes with many SELLs.

Social Media Hype

While social media hype may not be a central factor affecting the prices of crypto assets in other ecosystems, it heavily affects $SHIB, $DOGE, and other meme coins.

Memecoins are built on the playful and social nature of internet meme cultures. Hence, they ride on social media waves.

When there is much hype around these tokens within their communities and other crypto communities on social media, they will witness increased prices. The reverse happens when the hypes begin to die down.

Performance of Bitcoin

Bitcoin drives the market as the forerunner of every other cryptocurrency. Hence, its performance will be reflected in the prices of other cryptocurrencies. If Bitcoin's price increases, the $DOGE and SHIBA prices will increase and vice versa.

Increased Utility and Adoption

Cryptocurrencies with real-world use cases do well because they appeal to individual and institutional investors. The crypto asset witnessed a price surge when $DOGE decided to move to the PoS mechanism using the Scrypt hashing algorithm.

Similarly, the ATH that $SHIB saw in 2021 cannot be separated from the innovative utilities that came into its ecosystem. Some of these included the Shiba Swap and the Shiba NFT collection.

Crypto Regulations

Economic and financial regulations in various countries generally affect the prices of cryptocurrencies. $SHIB and $DOGE are not exceptions.

When countries with large numbers of crypto users impose financial regulations that do not favor crypto, the prices of these assets will naturally decline. The opposite happens when such regulations are changed or altered in favor of the crypto market.

Community Ecosystem of Dogecoin and Shiba Inu

Due to their active communities, Shiba Inu and Dogecoin have soared in the crypto space. Although they have built vibrant and active communities over the years, their ecosystems have slightly different populations.

Dogecoin: Dogecoin has spent more time in the space. Its ecosystem comprises early Bitcoin investors and crypto adopters. In addition, Dogecoin has many celebrities as members, including Elon Musk.
Shiba Inu: Shiba Inu has only been in the space for 5 years. Compared to Dogecoin’s presence, it is a latecomer in the crypto world. In a short period, $SHIB gathered vibrant and youthful investors into its ecosystem (Shib Army).

These people have become the drivers of some of the ecosystem's projects. They are also known for actively promoting initiatives that will further develop the SHIB ecosystem and drive the growth of the cryptocurrency.

Advantages of Dogecoin

Below are some advantages Dogecoin offers its investors and community members.

Its inflation model is unique.
Low transaction costs when compared to Bitcoin and Ethereum.
It has the solid backing of its community members.
You can use the cryptocurrency for tipping, donations, and online payments.

Disadvantages of Dogecoin

Here are some disadvantages of Dogecoin that you should consider before investing in the cryptocurrency.

Its development scope and focus are limited.
It lacks technological innovation when compared to newer crypto meme projects.
Its supply is unlimited.

Advantages of Shiba Inu

Below are the major advantages of Shiba Inu that make it stand out in the crypto meme world.
Despite being a ‘latecomer’ in the memecoin ecosystem, it has strong community support.
Its token supply has been transparent since its inception.
Shiba Inu’s entry price is still low and very affordable.
Its transaction fee is low.
Users can pay for goods and services with $SHIB.

Disadvantages of Shiba Inu

Here are some disadvantages you should consider before buying into the project.

Shiba Inu is a highly volatile asset, which makes it a high-risk investment.
Compared to Dogecoin, Shiba Inu’s liquidity is still very low.
It has not been in the crypto space long enough to establish a good and solid long-term track record.

Conclusion

Out of internet meme culture and humor, Dogecoin and Shiba Inu have grown to become major players and rivals in the crypto ecosystem. Although they are both meme coins, they have unique differences.

This article has explored the two crypto assets, their differences, advantages, disadvantages, community members, and historical price trends.

Choosing the right investment option depends on your sentiments about its significance in crypto, risk tolerance, and investment objectives.

Dogecoin’s application as a payment method makes it a stable choice, especially if it continues to gain adoption from more traditional online payment platforms.

In addition, it has a solid community, endorsements from major celebrities, and good brand recognition. Hence, Dogecoin might be safer if you seek a stable long-term investment with lower risks.

Shiba Inu is a very volatile cryptocurrency. It is a good option if you are looking to invest in a high-risk, high-reward cryptocurrency.

In addition, its presence in the DeFi and NFT worlds makes it a good choice for investors seeking an ecosystem with diverse use cases.

We have written this article for educational purposes only. Please do not take it as financial advice.

If you want to compare other major cryptocurrencies to find the best investment, read our latest article on BTC vs ETH: Key Differences and Which One to Invest In 2025.

Dogecoin vs Shiba Inu: Key Differences & Which is Better?