Sales of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) dropped greatly in the very first quarter of 2025, plunging 63% year-over-year. Still, a couple of standout collections defied the recession and published gains.
NFTs tape-recorded $1.5 billion in overall sales from January to March 2025, below $4.1 billion throughout the exact same duration in 2024, according to information from aggregator CryptoSlam. March represented the steepest decrease, with sales falling 76% to $373 million compared to $1.6 billion in 2015.
Regardless of the downturn, collections consisting of Doodles, Milady Maker and Pudgy Penguins exceeded expectations, revealing strength amidst the recession.
Pudgy Penguins, Doodles, Milady defy NFT recession in Q1
Amongst the biggest NFT collections, CryptoPunks tape-recorded $60 million in Q1 2025 sales, down 47% from $114 million in the very first quarter of 2024.
The Bored Ape Private Yacht Club (BAYC) had an even larger drop of 61%. The monkey-themed NFT collection had a sales volume of just $29.8 million in Q1 2025, below $78 million in Q1 2024.
Amongst the popular collections examined by Cointelegraph, Pudgy Penguins tape-recorded the greatest sales volume in Q1 2025. The collection tape-recorded $72 million for the quarter, a 13% boost on its $63.5 million in Q1 2024.
Doodles likewise defied the wider market recession, with sales leaping to $32 million in Q1 2025 from $22.6 million in Q1 2024, potentially driven by its growing mainstream existence and a current collaboration with McDonald’s.
On The Other Hand, Milady Maker tape-recorded the greatest portion boost amongst leading collections. The Ethereum-based NFT collection had a sales volume boost of 58%. The anime-themed task, backed by Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin, has actually continued to acquire attention throughout social networks platforms.
The collection consists of 10,000 anime-inspired avatars and it has actually gotten traction from promo by questionable 3 Arrows Capital co-founder Su Zhu.
Related: Sony’s Soneium blockchain, Animoca Brands bring anime to Web3
Bitcoin NFTs typical rate increased in Q1 2025
While the total NFT market decreased, NFTs developed on Bitcoin saw an increase in typical rate, even as overall sales volume diminished considerably.
In the very first quarter of 2025, NFTs on Bitcoin saw their typical worth boost to $633.24. According to information aggregator DappRadar, the typical rate of Bitcoin NFTs climbed up from $63.45 in 2023 to $559.05 in 2024 before reaching its existing average.
Nevertheless, Bitcoin-based NFT sales decreased greatly to $291 million in 2025, a 79% drop. In the very first quarter of 2024, Bitcoin NFTs had a sales volume of $1.4 billion.
In a previous interview with Cointelegraph, Bitlayer co-founder Charlie Hu stated that Bitcoin Ordinals are among the most overhyped stories in the Bitcoin environment. The executive informed Cointelegraph that while the possession class went to the moon, that age is “entirely gone.”
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