Cost Basis Distribution Heatmap
Two-dimensional heatmap of time by cost basis bucket, intensity encoding aggregated realized value - exposes persistent clusters of cost basis across cycles.
What is it?
This heatmap materialises the temporal evolution of the USD cost basis distribution. Each column is a date, each row a cost basis price bucket, and intensity encodes the realized value (supply × cost basis) at that level on that date. Unlike URPD Heatmap Supply (intensity = BTC), this version weights by capital value. It reveals the geography of capital rather than the geography of units.
How to read
Horizontal axis = time (weekly sampling). Vertical axis = USD cost basis bucket (log). Continuous sequential palette (e.g. magma-like) where dark zones = little capital and bright zones = concentrated capital. Persistent bright horizontal bands = institutional capital anchors at specific cost basis levels. Bright vertical bands = punctual capital concentration events (often around price spikes). The Trinity rendering uses a unified architecture: BTC price in the top panel (log scale + date marker), aggregated URPD distribution in the bottom panel (bars + `% cumulative` line on the inner right axis), vertical spot marker on the X axis, and on-canvas statistics panel.
Key zones
Persistent bright low bands = historical retail capital at low cost basis. Recent bright high bands = institutional capital acquired at high cost basis post-spot-launch. Ascending diagonal migration = capital rotation to higher cost basis across cycles (secular market growth). Dark zones = levels where little capital is locked (transition zones).
What to observe
Patterns: (1) Formation of a new bright cluster at a high cost basis level = recent institutional inflow. (2) Preservation of an old bright cluster at low cost basis = unaltered primitive retail HODL. (3) Slow translation of a cluster upward = gradual holder rotation between buckets. To explore this chart in institutional mode : the default **Minimal** mode maximises data legibility (compact stats + period presets 1D/7D/1M/3M/6M/1Y/Now + precise date picker). The **⚙️ Expert** button reveals advanced tools : **🎯 Highlight profit** toggle (dims loss BTC to emphasise the support profit zone), **🔍 Hide outliers** toggle (hides the top 1% extreme spikes to zoom on the main distribution), and the clickable historical events bar with badges (▲ cycle tops, ▼ bottoms, ⚡ macro shocks). The **📊 Compare** button opens a second date picker and renders a delta summary card between the 2 snapshots (supply change, profit zone, top accumulation and top distribution per price bucket). The **📥 Export** button offers PNG (all tiers, with trinityinsights.io watermark + logo + copyright) and CSV (Performance+ only, with traceability metadata : slug, date, spot, mode, locale, generation timestamp). Keyboard shortcuts : A/D navigate dates, W/S toggle BTC↔USD, 1-7 select presets, R returns to latest snapshot, ? opens full help. The X axis carries the **acquisition price (USD)** and the inner right line shows the **% BTC cumulative** (cumulative share of BTC below each price level). The URL retains full state for sharing (`?date=YYYY-MM-DD&w=BTC|USD&expert=1&compare=YYYY-MM-DD`).
Historical context
Over the long Bitcoin history, two capital strata coexist: the historical retail base at very low cost basis (legacy from 2010-2020 cycles) and the more recent institutional layer at high cost basis (post-spot-launch). This bifurcation is the most important structural evolution of the last decade observed by this heatmap.
Expert notes
The combination cost-basis-distribution-heatmap + urpd-heatmap-supply provides the most complete available view of the Bitcoin market structure: capital (USD) + units (BTC) side by side. Cautious institutionals focus primarily on the first, structural analysts on the second.
Common mistakes to avoid
High intensity is not a guarantee of inertia: a bright cluster at high cost basis (recent institutional capital) can redistribute quickly if funds rebalance or redeem shares. Cross-read with etf-flows for spot ETFs and with corporate-treasury-net-flows for corporates.
Programmatic access
REST API
curl -sS \
'https://api.trinityinsights.io/api/v1/onchain/cost-basis-distribution-heatmap/history?days=90' \
-H 'X-API-Key: $TRINITY_API_KEY'MCP server
{
"tool": "get_chart_value",
"metric_id": "cost-basis-distribution-heatmap",
"timeframe": "1y"
}Required tier: performance. See the pricing grid for the tier list and the MCP documentation for multi-client configuration.
Related metrics
Institutional disclaimer
Trinity Insights is an educational and analytical tool. The metric above does not constitute investment advice. Trinity Insights is not a Crypto-Asset Service Provider (CASP) registered under MiCA Regulation (EU) 2023/1114. See the full disclaimer.