Best Utility Tokens for the Next Bull Run

In every bull run, hype coins grab the headlines—but the real long-term winners are the best utility tokens. 

These are the projects that go beyond speculation, offering real-world use cases in payments, supply chains, digital identity, and decentralized finance. 

While many of them still trade under $1, their true value comes from powering platforms, enabling adoption, and solving problems that traditional systems can’t. For investors looking past the noise, these utility tokens are the ones worth watching.

Also read: Top Altcoins for 2025: Best Cryptos To Watch

What Are Utility Tokens?

Utility tokens are not just speculative assets; they enable specific functions inside a blockchain network. 

They can pay transaction fees, grant voting rights, unlock services or represent data and assets. Their value is tied to demand for the underlying network rather than pure speculation. As more people use the platform, the token becomes more useful — driving organic demand.

Why Focus on Under‑$1 Tokens?

A low unit price does not automatically make a token a bargain, but psychology matters. 

Many retail investors find sub‑$1 tokens more approachable, and some high‑quality projects remain undervalued because they haven’t yet captured mainstream attention. 

Best Utility Tokens Under $1

Below we explore six under‑$1 utility tokens that deserve attention. Each section highlights the network’s purpose, adoption metrics and why it might shine in the next bull market.

The projects below combine low prices with strong fundamentals, real adoption and clear roadmaps, making them prime candidates for a sustained rally.

1. Cardano (ADA) – Research‑Driven Blockchain for Real‑World Applications

Cardano is known for its academic approach to blockchain design. It uses a peer‑reviewed proof‑of‑stake protocol designed for sustainability and scalability. The platform has been steadily building, with impressive real‑world adoption and technical progress.

Key Use Cases and Adoption

• Digital identity for millions: Cardano partnered with Ethiopia’s Ministry of Education to create a blockchain‑based national ID system. The initiative aims to provide digital identities to about 5 million students and 750,000 teachers, enabling secure verification of academic credentials. This project showcases Cardano’s ability to serve a national‑scale use case.

• Scaling innovations: The network’s Hydra scaling solution processes more than 100,000 microtransactions per second, while throughput on the main chain exceeds 400 transactions per second. Mithril light clients allow wallets to sync in under 10 seconds, and pipelining technologies deliver 20‑second finality.
  
• Growing ecosystem: Cardano hosts over 17,400 Plutus smart contracts, averages about 2.6 million transactions per day, and maintains more than 4.83 million wallets, with roughly 67 % of ADA staked across 3,200 pools. These metrics demonstrate a thriving and engaged community.

Why ADA Could Outperform in a Bull Run

Cardano’s combination of research‑driven development and real adoption (e.g., national IDs, DeFi, NFTs) makes it more than a speculative token. With the network still trading far below its all‑time high, strong fundamentals and upcoming upgrades may leave significant upside when market sentiment turns bullish.

Also read: Crypto Trends to Watch in 2026, According to Grok AI

2. VeChain (VET) – Enterprise‑Grade Supply‑Chain & ESG Platform

VeChain targets enterprise applications rather than retail speculation. Its dual‑token model (VET + VTHO) keeps transaction costs predictable, which is vital for supply‑chain partners. VET underpins a growing ecosystem of companies fighting counterfeiting, improving product transparency and tracking emissions.

Key Use Cases and Adoption

• Food and retail: VeChain’s traceability platform is used by Walmart China to monitor food products from farm to shelf. Sam’s Club China employs similar tech to ensure safety for premium products.
  
• Industrial partners: VeChain has partnered with major enterprises, including BMW Group, BYD Auto, PICC, Shanghai Gas, LVMH and Bayer China. These partnerships span industries such as automotive, pharmaceuticals, luxury goods and energy.
  
• Counterfeiting and carbon tracking: The network helps track luxury goods, wine and food to prevent counterfeiting, secures medical data and vaccine tracing, and powers BMW’s VerifyCar app for tamper‑proof maintenance records. Recent cross‑chain integrations allow payments to automatically trigger carbon‑tracking updates.
  

Why VET Could Outperform in a Bull Run

VeChain’s focus on real‑world supply chains, verified data and enterprise partnerships positions it as a compelling bet on blockchain’s practical adoption. As sustainability and anti‑counterfeiting become central to global trade, tokens powering trusted supply chains could gain significant traction.

Also read: Crypto Trading Psychology: Overcoming FOMO, Fear, and Loss Aversion

3. Basic Attention Token (BAT) – Reinventing Digital Advertising

BAT is the native currency of the Brave browser, a privacy‑first alternative to Chrome and Firefox. Brave flips the traditional advertising model: users control their data and get rewarded for viewing ads.

Key Use Cases and Adoption

• Massive user base: Brave has grown to over 97 million monthly active users and about 41 million daily active users. This mainstream adoption gives BAT a substantial real‑world audience.
  
• Rewards and tipping: Users can earn BAT for viewing privacy‑respecting ads and tip content creators across websites and social media.
  
• Advertiser momentum: As of an earlier company update, Brave Ads campaigns ran in nearly 200 countries, generating more than 2 billion ad confirmations across 2 800 campaigns from 465 advertisers including household brands like Amazon and Verizon. The average click‑through rate was roughly 9 %, beating industry norms.
  

Why BAT Could Outperform in a Bull Run

Digital advertising is a multi‑billion‑dollar industry. BAT aligns the incentives of users, advertisers and content creators, creating a self‑sustaining ecosystem. If privacy concerns continue to push users away from traditional ad platforms, BAT’s real utility and growing user base could translate into strong demand during a market surge.

4. Hedera (HBAR) – Enterprise‑Focused DLT with Trusted Governance

Hedera isn’t a traditional blockchain. Its Hashgraph consensus uses a directed acyclic graph to achieve high throughput (tens of thousands of transactions per second) with finality in seconds and predictable low fees.

Key Use Cases and Adoption

• Institutional governance: Hedera is governed by a council of global enterprises including Google, IBM, LG, Dell and Boeing. The council comprises large companies, web3 firms and universities with equal voting rights, ensuring no single entity controls the network.
  
• Stablecoin settlement: Shinhan Bank and Standard Bank demonstrated a stablecoin‑based cross‑border payment on Hedera to reduce reliance on intermediaries in the $702 billion remittance market. This pilot shows how Hedera can streamline global remittances.
  
• Tokenised assets: In the UK, Aberdeen Investments, Lloyds Banking Group and Archax completed the first settlement of tokenised assets on Hedera’s public network. These real‑world trials validate Hedera’s capacity to handle regulated financial products.
  

Why HBAR Could Outperform in a Bull Run

Hedera’s enterprise‑grade infrastructure, trusted governance and growing use cases in payments and tokenisation make it a serious contender among utility tokens. Its price remains well below past highs, and institutional adoption could drive demand as digital assets become mainstream.

5. Stellar (XLM) – Fast, Low‑Cost Global Payments

Stellar was built for cross‑border payments and financial inclusion. Its low fees and built‑in decentralised exchange allow users to send one currency and receive another in seconds, with XLM acting as a bridge asset.

Key Use Cases and Adoption

• Humanitarian aid: The UNHCR and Stellar Development Foundation partnered to distribute USDC aid to displaced people in Ukraine via digital wallets. Recipients can convert the funds to local currency at MoneyGram locations, ensuring transparent, rapid assistance.
  
• MoneyGram integration: Stellar’s partnership with MoneyGram has built the world’s largest cash on/off‑ramp network. The service has processed nearly $30 million in transactions across more than 170 countries, enabling people to move between digital assets and cash with ease. Organisations like UNHCR and the International Rescue Committee use this network to deliver aid.
  

Why XLM Could Outperform in a Bull Run

Stellar addresses real pain points in remittances and humanitarian finance. Its partnerships with major money transfer services and humanitarian organisations illustrate real‑world impact. In a market uptrend, tokens that underpin global payment rails and humanitarian programs could gain renewed attention, making them some of the best utility tokens.

Also read: Best Cryptos for Long-Term Investment

6. Algorand (ALGO) – High‑Performance Platform for Finance, Identity & Supply Chains

Algorand is a pure proof‑of‑stake network designed for speed, low fees and carbon‑neutral operation. Its performance and security have attracted governments, financial institutions and non‑profits.

Key Use Cases and Adoption

• Latin American remittances: Fintech firm Koibanx uses Algorand to digitise banking infrastructure in Latin America. By connecting directly to core banking systems, Koibanx’s platform lets financial institutions tokenize assets and integrate crypto functions like buy/sell/trade. It offers instant transfers from the U.S. to nine Latin American countries, bringing efficiency and trust to cross‑border settlements.
  
• Italian digital sureties: Italy’s “Fideiussioni Digitali” (Digital Sureties) initiative aims to issue bank and insurance guarantees on blockchain. Public authorities including the Bank of Italy selected Algorand as the sole public blockchain for the platform because of its security and sustainability. The project is part of Italy’s national economic recovery plan and is expected to process a significant share of bank guarantees.
  
• Supply‑chain traceability: Wholechain, a traceability platform, partners with soy ingredient manufacturers and sustainability firms to track deforestation‑free soy back to the farm. The platform records supply‑chain data on Algorand, offering item‑level traceability across food, cosmetics and manufacturing industries.
  
• Financial inclusion in India: After a successful pilot, the Mann Deshi Foundation and Algorand Foundation launched a decentralized identity and alternative credit‑score solution on Algorand’s mainnet. The system issues verified digital identities and credit scores to thousands of women entrepreneurs, replacing paper files with secure blockchain records and enabling them to access loans more easily.
  

Why ALGO Could Outperform in a Bull Run

Algorand’s versatility is evident in its global use cases: cross‑border banking, government guarantees, supply‑chain transparency and financial inclusion. The network remains undervalued relative to its adoption, making it a potential dark horse when sentiment shifts.

Conclusion: How to Spot Utility in a Bull Market

When the next bull market arrives, projects with genuine utility, diverse partnerships and active users are likely to shine. Cardano, VeChain, BAT, Hedera, Stellar and Algorand each have strong fundamentals and real‑world adoption yet remain priced under a dollar. They are not guaranteed winners, but their ability to solve real problems means they could offer more than just short‑term hype, making them some of the best utility tokens in the market.

As always, do your own research and manage risk. In crypto, the projects solving real problems today may be the ones leading the charge in the next bull run.

Disclaimer: The information provided by Ecoinimist is for educational and informational purposes only. It should not be considered financial or investment advice. Cryptocurrency investments carry significant risk, and you should always conduct your own research or consult a licensed financial advisor before making any investment decisions. Ecoinimist is not responsible for any losses that may result from reliance on the information presented.