Ethereum had its worst year since 2018: 9 red months in 2025

Ethereum posted nine losing months in 2025, matching the depth of the 2018 bear market in terms of persistence.

Ethereum (ETH) has recorded its worst year in price performance since the lows of the 2018 bear market, with monthly losses in nine of the 12 months through 2025.

The prolonged decline has some market observers questioning the sustainability of crypto’s traditional four-year boom and bust cycle, even if the underlying network activity tells a different story.

A year of continued decline

Data from CoinGlass shared by market commentator Ted Pillows shows that in 2025, ETH fell every month from February to April and again from September to December. The most severe decline in one month occurred in February, when the asset lost 32%. Other major monthly setbacks included a 22% decline in November and an 18.7% decline in March.

The few positive months provided limited relief, with the biggest gain being a 48.8% increase in July, followed by an 18.8% increase in August. Still, the balance tilted heavily negative, making 2025 Ethereum its weakest year since 2018, as repeated double-digit losses, including a 53.8% crash in March of that year, defined a deep market reset after the ICO boom.

Currently, ETH is trying to stabilize and is trading around $3,020 in early January 2026. This represents a small increase of 1.6% over 24 hours, but the cryptocurrency remains down 11.2% over the past year.

The price is hovering at a critical technical crossroads, just above the 200-period daily moving average and a key horizontal support zone. According to analyst Daan Crypto Trades, the graph has become high compressedThis suggests that an important move could be imminent.

A sustained daily close above the $3,000 level is viewed as necessary for upside momentum, while a decline below would likely extend the recent period of sideways trading.

You might also like:

Building through the recession

Despite the gloom of last year, on-chain metrics and developer activity paint a picture of strong health and growth, with Ethereum setting a new record by deploying 8.7 million smart contracts in a single quarter, breaking the previous record set in the second quarter of 2021.

Analysts believe that the consistent growth in deployments over several quarters shows real demand, mainly due to the growth of Layer 2 rollups, real-world asset projects, stablecoins and wallet infrastructure.

Network usage is also increasing, with Ethereum recently processing a record 2.2 million transactions in a single day, while average fees have fallen to around $0.17, a stark contrast to the $200 during peak periods in 2022.

For traders, however, the focus remains on the key price levels, with a major resistance zone around $4,800. Some chart patterns suggest that a breakout above that level could open a path to $8,500. In the short term, however, the market is looking forward to a confirmed break from the current compressed state, with large holders continuing to accumulate ETH even as the price struggles to find lasting positive momentum.