What is market cap?
Market cap is the total market value of a company or asset, calculated as price multiplied by circulating shares or supply.
The short version
Market cap means market capitalization. For stocks, it is share price multiplied by shares outstanding. For crypto, it is usually token price multiplied by circulating supply. It shows market value, not how much cash the company or project has.
Why it matters
Market cap helps compare size. A company with a lower share price can still be larger than a company with a higher share price if it has many more shares outstanding.
Market cap is not valuation by itself
A high market cap does not automatically mean expensive, and a low market cap does not automatically mean cheap. Investors compare market cap with revenue, earnings, growth, debt, cash flow, assets, and risk.
Crypto difference
Crypto market cap depends heavily on circulating supply definitions. Fully diluted value can be much higher if many tokens are still locked and scheduled for future release.
What to compare
Use market cap with trading volume, liquidity, float, debt, earnings, revenue, and sector peers. The useful question is not just size, but what the market is paying for future results.