About the Survey

Each month, 10x Research surveys its subscriber base, active traders, and sophisticated crypto investors to capture real-time sentiment, positioning, and forward expectations across Bitcoin, altcoins, and related asset classes. The May 2026 edition covered ten questions spanning near-term price outlook, year-end targets, allocation behavior, altcoin preferences, catalysts, risks, and relative performance expectations versus gold, equities, and crypto stocks. The results offer a rare ground-level view of how informed market participants are positioned.

Please find below the results from our 10 question survey capturing sentiment, positioning, views and expectations. We have prepared a downloadable pdf with all the charts, interpretations, and survey results.

Sentiment and Positioning: Constructive but Not Euphoric

The most important signal from this month's survey is the gap between sentiment and actual positioning. On the sentiment question, 45% of respondents describe themselves as bullish or strongly bullish, while only 26% lean bearish or strongly bearish, a net bullish reading of nearly +20 percentage points. Yet when asked about actual allocation changes over the past two months, the picture is more measured: 39% report their Bitcoin holdings are unchanged, 37% have slightly increased, and only 12% have significantly increased. The combination of positive sentiment with restrained allocation change is a classically constructive setup; the crowd believes in the trade but is not yet fully committed, suggesting there is still capital on the sidelines that could provide continued buying support on any dip or confirmation signal.

Monthly Return Expectations: A Positive but Grounded Tilt

On where Bitcoin finishes the month, the distribution skews firmly positive without reaching extremes. The single largest cohort, 40%, expects a return in the +5% to +10% range, with another 19% anticipating gains above +10%. On the downside, only 20% expect any negative return, and just 6% brace for losses worse than 10%. This is a market that expects a grind higher rather than a moonshot, which is arguably the more durable kind of bullish positioning. It also means a significant downside surprise, particularly a macro shock, would catch the majority off-guard, amplifying any potential selling pressure.