Crypto glossary
ETH/BTC ratio
The ETH/BTC ratio is the price of one ether expressed in bitcoin, watched as a gauge of Ethereum's relative strength and of risk appetite.
The ETH/BTC ratio divides the price of ether by the price of bitcoin, or simply reads the ETH/BTC trading pair on an exchange. A rising ratio means ether is outperforming bitcoin, whatever happens to their dollar prices; a falling one means bitcoin is gaining ground. Because both assets trade around the clock on deep markets, the ratio is one of the cleanest relative-value charts in crypto.
Traders use it as a rough barometer of risk appetite. Ether and most altcoins tend to behave like higher-beta bets on the same market, so a strong ETH/BTC often coincides with rotation into smaller tokens, while a weak ratio usually accompanies rising bitcoin dominance. Fund managers also use it to decide how to weight the two largest assets.
The ratio is descriptive, not predictive. It reflects flows such as ETF demand, staking yields, token unlocks or narrative shifts, and long trends can persist far longer than chart patterns suggest. Reading it as proof that an altcoin season is starting, or treating it as a valuation model, is a common mistake.
Example
During a month when bitcoin rises 10% in dollars but ether rises 20%, the ETH/BTC chart climbs and analysts start asking whether capital is rotating into altcoins.