When most people think about retirement, they probably aren't thinking about Bitcoin (BTC 0.91%). Historically, Bitcoin has been a risky, speculative, and volatile asset -- exactly the sort of asset you don't want to have in a retirement account.
But, for many investors who have not saved nearly enough for retirement and are now playing catch-up, Bitcoin could offer a potential lifeline. After all, it's arguably the only asset capable of churning out triple-digit returns with any regularity. But can it really help you retire as a millionaire?
Bitcoin's path to $1 million
A growing number of high-profile investors now think that Bitcoin could hit a price of $1 million or higher sometime within the next decade. For example, Cathie Wood of Ark Invest thinks Bitcoin will hit a price of $1.48 million by the year 2030. And there are still others who think Bitcoin will hit a price of $1 million by the end of 2028.
These $1 million price forecasts are based on one primary factor: the growing adoption of Bitcoin by Wall Street financial institutions, corporations, institutional investors, and sovereign governments.
Mainstream adoption sped up in 2024, when Wall Street launched new spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs). And it has only accelerated in 2025, with the launch of new Bitcoin-related initiatives by the Trump administration, such as the decision to create the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve.
Millionaire-maker math
If you buy into these bullish future price predictions for Bitcoin, then all it takes is holding a single Bitcoin in your retirement portfolio, and you will eventually be a millionaire.
Of course, that's easier said than done. The current cost of a single Bitcoin is about $105,000. Unless you're already a millionaire, you likely won't be able to buy a single Bitcoin immediately. You would need to dollar-cost average (DCA) into Bitcoin, buying steadily each month or each week.
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Theoretically, if you invest $1,000 in Bitcoin each month, like clockwork, for the next decade, you would eventually have $120,000 invested into Bitcoin. That would be enough to buy a single Bitcoin at today's prices.
However, if you think that Bitcoin is going to hit $1 million by 2030, then you would need to speed up your timeline considerably. Instead of investing $1,000 in Bitcoin each month, you would need to invest $2,000 each month.
The longer you wait to build your Bitcoin position, the more expensive this DCA strategy becomes. Right now, you "only" need $105,000 to buy a single Bitcoin. In a year or two, you might need double that amount to buy a single Bitcoin. In three years, you might need triple that amount of money to buy a single Bitcoin. At some point, a DCA strategy may no longer be feasible, unless your monthly income is growing at an extraordinary clip.
Of course, all of this assumes that the future price trajectory of Bitcoin will be up for the next five years. For Bitcoin to soar in price from $100,000 to $1 million in just five years, it must grow at an annualized rate of 60%.
But, if history is any guide, this is highly unlikely. That's because Bitcoin tends to have very steep declines every few years. For example, just consider what happened during the previous Bitcoin bull market rally. In 2021, Bitcoin hit a (then) all-time high of $69,000. By the end of 2022, it was trading for less than $17,000, a decline of 75%. While Bitcoin eventually recovered, it's a cautionary tale for anyone who thinks that becoming a millionaire is fast or easy.
Do people really want Bitcoin in their retirement account?
According to the Motley Fool Money 2025 Cryptocurrency Investor Trends Survey, investors still have numerous concerns about Bitcoin for retirement. Only 40% of those surveyed were interested in crypto for retirement. And the percentage has been falling over time. In 2024, that percentage was 44%. And in 2022, that percentage was 52%.
This suggests that investors still have concerns about Bitcoin beyond just its volatility. For example, there are also questions about the safety and security of Bitcoin.
If you decide to trust your Bitcoin to a cryptocurrency exchange, then you are at risk of hackers, criminals, or malicious corporate executives running off with your crypto. And if you decide to hold the Bitcoin yourself, then you are at risk of forgetting your cryptographic keys (without which you will never be able to access your Bitcoin), or even worse, the dreaded "wrench attack," involving threats of physical harm to a crypto holder.
How much should you be allocating to Bitcoin?
As a general rule of thumb, you should only be allocating a relatively small percentage of your retirement portfolio to Bitcoin. Depending on your overall risk appetite and how many years you have until retirement, this allocation could range between 1% and 5%.
While this is the prudent thing to do, it also implies that investing thousands of dollars per month in Bitcoin via a DCA strategy might be out of reach for most investors. At some point, the math simply becomes overwhelming.
So, if you are thinking about a potential DCA strategy for Bitcoin, just be aware of the risks and pitfalls involved. Becoming a Bitcoin millionaire might be more challenging than you originally imagined.
