Total Supply
Total supply is the number of token units that currently exist, including tokens that are locked or not yet tradable, but excluding units that have been verifiably burned.
What total supply includes
Think of three nested numbers. Circulating supply is what the market can trade now. Total supply adds everything that has already been created but is held back, such as team allocations in vesting contracts, treasury reserves or tokens set aside for future rewards. Maximum supply, if one exists, is the ceiling the total can never exceed.
Tokens sent to a burn address or destroyed by the contract are removed from total supply because they can never come back.
An example
Say a project has a 1 billion maximum supply. At launch it mints 600 million: 200 million go into circulation and 400 million sit in locked contracts for the team, investors and treasury. Later, 10 million are burned. The total supply is then 590 million, the circulating supply 200 million (until unlocks start), and the maximum 1 billion, of which 400 million have not yet been minted at all.
Why it matters
The gap between circulating and total supply shows how many already-existing tokens could still reach the market. That supply is often held by insiders, so knowing its size and unlock schedule helps you judge potential dilution.
For uncapped assets such as ETH, total supply is the only meaningful upper reference, and some data providers use it to calculate fully diluted valuation.
Things to watch out for
Data sites do not always agree on what to include, especially for tokens on multiple chains or with tokens held in the project's own wallets. Also check whether the contract allows new minting: a total supply can grow if an admin is able to create more units.
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Frequently asked questions
Can total supply increase?
Yes, if new units are minted or issued, for example through staking rewards or an admin mint function.
Is total supply the same as max supply?
Not usually. Total supply is what exists now; max supply is the most that can ever exist. They become equal only once everything has been issued and nothing burned.
Where can I check a token's total supply?
The token contract on a block explorer shows it directly; data aggregators show it too but may adjust it with their own rules.
Related terms
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