The insights presented here are based on an online survey conducted in February 2013, gathering 1,000 valid responses from the Bitcoin community.
The findings shed light on the early adopters of Bitcoin, their motivations, and the platforms they utilized to engage with the ecosystem. Here’s a deeper dive into the data:
Key Highlights from the Survey
- The Average Bitcoin User
- Male (95.2%).
- 32.1 years old.
- Libertarian or anarcho-capitalist (44.3%).
- Non-religious (61.8%).
- In a relationship (55.6%).
- Employed full-time (44.7%).
- Behavioral Insights
- 36.7% of users abstain from drinking, smoking, gambling, or drug use.
- Donations were more common than illegal transactions, with 35% using Bitcoin for gifts/donations compared to only 10.6% for narcotics.
- Learning about cryptography was intellectually rewarding for 67.8% of respondents, while only 18.9% reported making new friends within the community.
Diverse Community Profiles
While the data paints a picture of the “average user,” the community is more diverse than it seems.
- Religion: 20.6% identified as Christian.
- Relationship Status: 38.8% were single.
- Political Spectrum: Although libertarian ideologies dominated, 38.5% identified as left-of-center when broader categories like environmentalism were included.
Motivations Behind Bitcoin Adoption
Participants cited various reasons for their interest in Bitcoin, ranked as follows (out of 5):
- Curiosity: 4.3/5
- Profit: 3.7/5
- Politics: 3.6/5
- Practical Concerns: 3.1/5
- Challenge: 2.8/5
- Community: 2.7/5
Curiosity was the strongest driver, indicating that Bitcoin’s novel technology piqued interest more than financial or ideological incentives.
Age Distribution
The age distribution deviated from a typical bell curve, showcasing two peaks:
- Ages 26 and 30 were the most common.
- A substantial tail extended into the 30s and 40s.
- The standard deviation was 10.6 years, emphasizing a broad range of ages within the community.
Mining Activity
- Participation: Over half of the users had mined Bitcoin, primarily through mining pools.
- Performance: The average hash rate was 399 MH/s, with a median of 200 MH/s.
- Spending on Equipment:
- Average spend: $3,013.
- Median spend: $300.
- 37% spent nothing, while 8% invested $10,000 or more.
Interestingly, 8.5% of respondents mined using someone else’s hardware, demonstrating resourcefulness among early adopters.
Community Engagement
Bitcoin enthusiasts gathered on various platforms, with Bitcointalk.org leading the way:
- Bitcointalk.org: 54.1%.
- Reddit: 38.5%.
- Facebook: 25.5%.
- IRC: 19.6%.
- Other platforms like Twitter, Google+, and Bitcoin.it Wiki had smaller but notable followings.
Challenges and Fears
Respondents highlighted concerns about Bitcoin’s future:
- Regulatory/Legal Intervention: 31.2%.
- Reputation Problems: 17.6%.
- Other Concerns: Many noted that Bitcoin’s technical complexity hindered mainstream adoption.
Hedonism vs. Pragmatism
Contrary to Bitcoin’s association with hedonistic behaviors, a significant portion of users lived relatively conservative lifestyles:
- 36.7% abstained from vices like drinking, smoking, gambling, or drug use.
Moreover, Bitcoin was used more for practical purposes, such as donations (35%) and purchasing computer services (25.6%), rather than illicit activities.
Conclusion
This survey offers a unique glimpse into the early Bitcoin community, revealing its diverse demographics, motivations, and usage patterns. From curiosity-driven individuals to ideologically motivated libertarians, the findings underscore the multifaceted nature of Bitcoin’s adoption during its formative years.
As the ecosystem continues to evolve, these insights serve as a foundation for understanding the trajectory of Bitcoin’s adoption and the challenges it must overcome to achieve broader acceptance.
Note: These findings reflect a specific moment in Bitcoin’s history and may not represent the current community. For more details or to analyze the raw data, refer to the original survey source.
In early 2013, I conducted a survey to understand the Bitcoin community’s demographics, motivations, and usage patterns. The survey was created on February 12, 2013, using Google Docs and shared across platforms like Bitcointalk.org, Reddit, Twitter, and Google+. This broad dissemination led to its reposting on various Bitcoin-related sites, significantly increasing its reach.
As responses accumulated, I shared preliminary findings on my blog after receiving 102 and 533 responses, respectively. These updates generated further interest, encouraging more participation. The survey was closed on April 4, 2013, after collecting 1,087 responses. At this point, I cleaned the data to ensure accuracy, removing incomplete or inconsistent entries, resulting in a dataset of 1,000 responses for analysis.
Key Findings:
- Demographics:
- Age: Predominantly individuals in their 20s and 30s.
- Gender: Approximately 90-95% male respondents.
- Geography: Majority from North America and Europe, indicating limited global reach at the time.
- Motivations for Adoption:
- Interest in decentralization and financial privacy.
- Philosophical alignment with libertarian values.
- Speculative investment, anticipating future value appreciation.
- Usage Patterns:
- Utilization for peer-to-peer transactions and online purchases, especially for niche services and digital goods.
- A tendency to hold (HODL) Bitcoin, expecting its value to increase over time.
- Challenges Faced:
- Technical complexities in using Bitcoin wallets and conducting transactions.
- Lack of widespread awareness and understanding of Bitcoin.
- Price volatility causing uncertainty among users and merchants.
- Security concerns, including risks of hacking and wallet theft.
This survey provides a snapshot of the early Bitcoin community, highlighting the enthusiasm and challenges during its nascent stage. The insights gained can inform future studies and the ongoing development of the cryptocurrency ecosystem.
- For more on this survey see the overview page.
