Bitcoin is facing a potentially important resistance area near $87,700, where investors who bought during the latter part of 2025 may be waiting to sell at breakeven, according to research from onchain analytics firm Glassnode reported by Cointelegraph. At the same time, demand linked to US spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds is helping establish support around $80,000 to $81,500.
The analysis highlights a market caught between several cost-basis levels. A cost basis is the average price at which a group of investors acquired its Bitcoin. When holders are sitting on losses, a return to that price can encourage them to sell and exit without a loss. That selling can create resistance, while concentrated buying interest at lower levels can provide support.
Why $87,000 has become a resistance zone
Glassnode estimates that Bitcoin holders who bought six to 12 months ago have an aggregate cost basis of about $87,700. Because this group is currently below its breakeven level, a move back toward that price could bring additional selling from investors seeking to recover their original outlay.
The level is not isolated. Bitcoin’s 2026 opening price is identified at $87,490, while its 20-month simple moving average stands at $87,165. Together, these markers create a cluster of potential resistance immediately above $87,000.
Glassnode’s research points to earlier examples of cost-basis levels acting in a similar way. In November 2025, Bitcoin lost the cost basis of holders who had acquired the asset six to 12 months earlier, then estimated at $94,000. When the market later approached a trendline at $97,100 in January 2026, that area acted as resistance and was followed by a decline of more than one-third.
A separate group of holders who purchased Bitcoin one to two years earlier saw its cost basis fall into an aggregate loss in February, when Bitcoin moved below $76,900. That level later helped stop a rebound at slightly above $82,000 in May. Glassnode said the decline after that rejection was about one-quarter, and also noted that these one-to-two-year holders increased selling during the rally at the start of October.
The current cost basis for that older cohort is approximately $99,500. This leaves two significant holder breakeven levels above the market: around $87,700 for the six-to-12-month group and $99,500 for those who bought one to two years ago.
ETF demand points to support near $80,000
The research also identifies a series of support levels below the current Bitcoin price. Glassnode places the cost basis of US spot Bitcoin ETFs at $81,500. The true market mean, representing the cost basis of Bitcoin acquired on secondary markets, is estimated at $77,500.
Another level is the $74,600 breakeven point for short-term holders. In Glassnode’s framework, these are wallet entities that have held a given amount of Bitcoin for up to six months without selling.
For the near term, the area between $80,000 and $81,500 is particularly significant because it combines exchange order-book demand with onchain support linked to ETF holders. Glassnode described $80,000 as a psychological price level that is attracting bid liquidity across exchange order books.
The firm said a break below that area could expose a liquidation cluster just under $80,000, followed by the true market mean near $78,000. A liquidation cluster refers to a concentration of leveraged positions that may be forcibly closed if prices reach certain levels; the source material does not indicate that such a move will occur.
Current Bitcoin market picture
Moneyiar market data recorded at 10:59 a.m. on October 21, 2026, shows Bitcoin at $83,308.916078756. The cryptocurrency was up 2.31% over the previous 24 hours, while its seven-day change was -0.09%.
At that price, Bitcoin remained below the $87,165-$87,700 resistance area identified by Glassnode and above the $80,000-$81,500 support zone. The figures describe the market level at the stated time; they do not establish whether either zone will hold or be broken.
The gap between current prices and the resistance cluster means investors who bought in late 2025 remain central to the analysis. If Bitcoin advances toward their breakeven level, their decisions may influence the amount of supply available for sale. Conversely, the ETF cost basis and nearby order-book liquidity provide reference points below the market that analysts are watching for evidence of support.
