> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.cryptoquant.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# OP Return Count
> The total amount of OP Return codes in Bitcoin transactions
## What it measures
Total daily count of OP\_RETURN codes embedded in Bitcoin transactions — used by protocols (RUNES, Ordinals, OMNI/Tether) to write data on-chain
## How to interpret it
High OP\_RETURN activity = strong secondary protocol demand → more transaction competition → higher fees → more miner revenue. Sudden collapses drag down transaction count, block utilization, fees, and cause Metcalfe bands to shift downward.
## Key thresholds
802K/day (Apr 2024) = all-time high at RUNES launch; 508K (Nov 2024) = still elevated; \~10K (Feb 2025) = collapsed 98%+ causing network activity one-year low; 81M total in 2024 = record annual inscriptions
## How to use it
Primary indicator for network demand and fee-pressure. Monitor for sustained collapses as an early warning of falling miner revenue, lower transaction fees, and downward pressure on Metcalfe valuation bands.
## OpenAPI
````yaml openapi/v2.json GET /community/bitcoin-op-return-count
openapi: 3.0.0
info:
version: 2.0.0-beta
title: CryptoQuant Data API v2
description: >-
The CryptoQuant Data API v2 serves curated, research-grade indicators built
on the v1 conventions — the `status`/`result` response envelope, Bearer
token authentication, and the `window`/`from`/`to` time parameters. Each
metric ships with an interpretation guide covering what it measures, key
thresholds, and how to combine it with other metrics.
termsOfService: https://cryptoquant.com/terms-of-service
contact:
name: API Support
email: contact@cryptoquant.com
servers:
- url: https://api.cryptoquant.com/v2
description: Default server
security: []
tags:
- name: Community-built Indicators
paths:
/community/bitcoin-op-return-count:
get:
tags:
- Community-built Indicators
summary: OP Return Count
description: The total amount of OP Return codes in Bitcoin transactions
operationId: V2getOpReturnCount
parameters:
- name: window
in: query
required: false
description: Time interval for aggregation.
schema:
type: string
default: day
example: day
- name: from
in: query
required: false
description: >-
Starting time, formatted as YYYYMMDDTHHMMSS (UTC). If `window=day`,
YYYYMMDD is also accepted.
schema:
type: string
- name: to
in: query
required: false
description: >-
Ending time, formatted as YYYYMMDDTHHMMSS (UTC). If `window=day`,
YYYYMMDD is also accepted.
schema:
type: string
- name: limit
in: query
required: false
description: Maximum number of data rows to return. Ranges from 1 to 10,000.
schema:
type: integer
default: 100
minimum: 1
maximum: 10000
responses:
'200':
description: network activity
content:
application/json:
schema:
type: object
required:
- status
- result
properties:
status:
$ref: '#/components/schemas/Status'
result:
type: object
properties:
window:
type: string
data:
type: array
items:
type: object
properties:
datetime:
type: string
description: >-
The datetime, formatted as YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS
(UTC).
example: '2026-06-14 00:00:00'
amount_null_data:
type: number
example: 516648
security:
- AccessToken: []
x-codeSamples:
- lang: Shell
source: >-
curl -X GET
"https://api.cryptoquant.com/v2/community/bitcoin-op-return-count?window=day"
\
-H "Authorization: Bearer "
- lang: JavaScript
source: >-
fetch("https://api.cryptoquant.com/v2/community/bitcoin-op-return-count?window=day",
{ headers: { "Authorization": "Bearer "} })
.then(response => response.json())
.then(data => console.log(data))
- lang: NodeJS
source: |-
require('axios')
.get("https://api.cryptoquant.com/v2/community/bitcoin-op-return-count?window=day", { headers: { Authorization: 'Bearer ' } })
.then(response => console.log(response))
- lang: Ruby
source: >-
require 'net/http'
uri =
URI("https://api.cryptoquant.com/v2/community/bitcoin-op-return-count?window=day")
req = Net::HTTP::Get.new(uri)
req["Authorization"] = "Bearer "
res = Net::HTTP.start(uri.hostname, uri.port, use_ssl: true) {
|http| http.request(req) }
puts res.body
- lang: Python
source: >-
import requests
headers = {'Authorization': 'Bearer '}
url =
"https://api.cryptoquant.com/v2/community/bitcoin-op-return-count?window=day"
print(requests.get(url, headers=headers).json())
components:
schemas:
Status:
type: object
description: >-
Returned with every response; indicates whether the request was
successful.
example:
code: 200
message: success
required:
- code
- message
properties:
code:
type: integer
format: int32
description: HTTP status code.
example: 200
message:
type: string
description: Text description of the error or success.
example: success
securitySchemes:
AccessToken:
type: http
scheme: bearer
bearerFormat: JWT
x-default: Bearer
description: >-
For each API request, include the `Authorization` HTTP header with
`Bearer `.
````