SOPR

What is SOPR?

SOPR (Spent Output Profit Ratio) is an on-chain Bitcoin metric introduced by Renato Shirakashi in 2019. Every coin that moves on-chain carries two prices: the price when its output was created and the price when it was spent. SOPR divides the combined fiat value of all outputs moved that day, priced at the moment they were spent, by the same outputs' value priced at the moment they were created. A reading above 1 means the coins that moved changed hands above their acquisition price, realizing profit in aggregate; below 1 means realized loss; exactly 1 is break-even. The interpretation assumes on-chain movement is a reasonable proxy for selling, which is approximate.

The 1.0 line is the behavioral anchor. In bull regimes, dips to 1.0 have tended to hold, read as holders refusing to sell at break-even or a loss; in bear regimes, rallies to 1.0 have tended to reject, read as trapped buyers exiting flat. Common refinements filter out very young outputs (adjusted SOPR, commonly excluding outputs under an hour old) or split the metric into short-term and long-term holder cohorts. Like MVRV, it measures aggregate profit-and-loss behavior, not order-book flow, and its signals are regime-dependent rather than mechanical.

How traders use it

• As a regime read: sustained readings above 1 with shallow resets characterize bull phases where profit-taking is absorbed, while sustained readings below 1 with rejections at the line characterize bear phases.
• As an excess gauge: sharp spikes above 1 flag heavy profit realization that has often preceded local cooling, and deep flushes below 1 mark capitulation-style loss-taking that has clustered near notable lows. Often is not always; both patterns fail.
• As one input in a broader stack: SOPR is usually cross-checked against valuation and flow metrics (see the on-chain valuation suite) rather than traded on its own.