CryptoPunks remains one of the earliest NFT collections to break into the mainstream. Launched on the Ethereum blockchain in 2017, the project consists of 10,000 pixel-art avatars created by Matt Hall and John Watkinson of Larva Labs. The collection includes humans, zombies, apes, and aliens, and it is widely treated as an early blueprint for avatar-based NFTs that later projects, including Bored Ape Yacht Club, would build on.
From free claim to billion-dollar collection value
CryptoPunks did not begin as a premium asset. In its early phase, users only had to cover Ethereum gas fees to receive and move the NFTs. That changed dramatically over time. By March 2024, the total value of the CryptoPunks collection had reached $1.5 billion. Separate market data cited from CoinMarketCap showed the broader NFT market capitalization had climbed above $3.697 billion as of July 4, 2024, with CryptoPunks still holding a central place in the sector.
The NFT market cooled in 2023, but activity did not disappear. The source notes that sales continued to hit the million-dollar range, a sign that major collections retained market attention even after the peak frenzy faded.
Three landmark sales shaped its price history
CryptoPunk #5822 stands as the highest-priced sale in the collection’s history cited in the source. It sold on February 13, 2022 for 8,000 ETH, worth about $23.7 million at the time. Its rarity matters: the NFT belongs to the “alien” category, and there are only nine alien punks in the full set of 10,000.
Another alien, CryptoPunk #7804, sold on March 20 for 4,850 ETH, equal to roughly $16.42 million. About two weeks earlier, CryptoPunk #3100 changed hands for 4,500 ETH, or around $16.03 million. Those transactions helped cement CryptoPunks as a pricing benchmark for tokenized avatar collections.
The floor is also far from cheap. According to the source, even the least expensive CryptoPunks listed on the market is priced at about 51 ETH, or roughly $177,000.
Where traders buy and track CryptoPunks
CryptoPunks can be bought and sold through several online marketplaces. The Larva Labs website remains a primary venue for listings, while OpenSea is identified in the source as the largest NFT marketplace globally and another major place for trading the collection. Buyers typically need to create an account, connect an Ethereum wallet such as MetaMask, place bids, and complete the purchase in ETH after a winning bid.
For price tracking and market data, the source points to both the Larva Labs website and CryptoSlam. CryptoPunks is notable not only for headline sales, but also for helping define how scarcity, collectibility, and wallet-based ownership would work in the NFT avatar market.