How Long Should You Hold XRP for the Best Return?

Sam Daodu

Tue, May 19, 2026 at 1:41 PM EDT 6 min read

Quick Read

• XRP’s historical price cycles show that investors who held through volatility and avoided panic selling were the ones who captured the token’s biggest long-term gains.

• The most credible long-term opportunity for XRP may lie in the 2028–2030 cycle, as XRP has historically delivered its strongest rallies 12 to 18 months after Bitcoin halving events.

• While regulatory clarity has strengthened XRP’s long-term outlook, risks tied to Ripple’s token supply control and the growing adoption of RLUSD could still influence future demand and price growth.

• The analyst who called NVIDIA in 2010 just named his top 10 AI stocks. Get them here FREE.

Imagine buying XRP (CRYPTO: XRP) at $1.20 in early 2024, watching it run to $3.65 by July 2025, then watching it fall back to $1.38 by May 2026. Did you win or lose? The answer depends entirely on one thing: when you sell.

Most XRP debates focus on price targets, but the one that actually matters is the timing. So, how long should you hold XRP for the best returns? See what the data actually says about when XRP has rewarded patience and when it hasn't.

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XRP's Long-Term Market Cycle And Historical Performance

Understanding how the XRP price moves is the foundation of every serious token holding decision. The clearest example is the 2017–2018 cycle when XRP surged from fractions of a cent to $3.84 in January 2018, then spent the next two years losing nearly 96% of that value.

Investors who bought at the peak and sold in panic locked in devastating losses. Those who held through the collapse and into the next cycle—buying more on the way down—were the ones who eventually came out ahead.

The 2020–2021 cycle followed the same rhythm. XRP climbed high, then got hit by the SEC lawsuit in December 2020, crashed, recovered partially, and then exploded again in late 2024 when regulatory clarity finally arrived. By July 2025, it had reached a new all-time high of $3.65.

The pattern across every cycle is consistent: XRP rewards those who understand its rhythm and leaves those who react to short-term price movement without a plan holding the worst of the losses. Notably, XRP's biggest rallies have historically followed Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) halving events by 12 to 18 months. The last halving was April 2024. The next one is April 2028. That context matters when deciding how long to stay in.

Key Factors That Influence XRP Price Growth Over Time

XRP's price doesn't move on sentiment alone. Several concrete, trackable factors have historically driven its biggest moves and understanding them is what separates a savvy investor from someone just hoping for the best.