How do crypto portfolio trackers work?

A crypto portfolio tracker is an app or spreadsheet that gathers your holdings from different exchanges and wallets and shows their combined value. It does not hold your crypto. It reads balances from places you connect, then multiplies them by current prices from a market data source.

How does a crypto portfolio tracker app collect your balances?

Most trackers use two methods:

• Exchange connections. You create an API key on the exchange and paste it into the tracker. The tracker then asks the exchange for your balances, trades and deposits.
• Wallet addresses. For self-custody wallets, you paste a public address. Because blockchains are public, the tracker can read balances and history without any key. This works much like a watch-only wallet.

Some apps also accept file uploads of transaction history, which is useful when an exchange has no API or has closed. See how to download your crypto transaction history.

The tracker then pulls prices from a data provider and calculates totals, gains and allocation. A missing deposit, an unsupported token or a wrong price feed can make the totals look off.

What is a read-only API key for a portfolio tracker?

An API key is a pair of codes that lets software access your exchange account. Exchanges split access into separate permissions. Kraken's documentation lists permissions such as querying funds, querying ledger entries, trading, depositing and withdrawing. It advises granting only what a use case needs, and says a read-only key with query permissions is enough for monitoring. Kraken also recommends separate keys for separate jobs and IP address restrictions where possible.

Coinbase's developer API reports three flags for each key, covering whether it can view account data, trade, or transfer funds. A tracker only needs the view permission.

Keeping trade and withdraw switched off means a leaked key cannot move your money, though it can still reveal your balances and history. Treat keys like passwords and delete ones you no longer use. Our guide to securing an exchange account covers related steps.

Can you use a free crypto portfolio tracker?

Many trackers offer free tiers with limits on how many accounts, wallets or transactions you can connect, and charge for extra features. Before connecting anything, check who runs the service, what data it stores and whether it sells or shares that data.

Portfolio trackers are different from tax tools, although they overlap. Tax software focuses on cost basis and reportable events, as explained in how crypto tax software works.

How do you build a crypto portfolio tracker in Google Sheets?

A spreadsheet tracker is manual but private. You list each holding and quantity, then pull in prices with a formula. CoinGecko publishes a Google Sheets add-on that adds a COINGECKO formula for current and historical prices, market data and top-coin lists. As of October 2026, its listing says the add-on is free to install but uses a CoinGecko API key, with a free tier and paid plans with higher limits. You update quantities yourself when you buy, sell or move coins.