Altcoins Rally in October as Ethereum Upgrade and Solana Ecosystem Drive Momentum
The cryptocurrency market is showing signs of life in October 2026, with altcoins looking to capitalize on the current momentum. Bitcoin has been steady, spot ETFs are seeing inflows, and the soft September jobs report has removed the threat of an October Fed hike. This is the perfect backdrop for altcoins to shine, and several assets are already showing promise.
Ethereum (ETH) is one of the top altcoins to buy in October, with a scheduled upgrade, Glamsterdam, set to go live on the Sepolia testnet on October 6. This upgrade will bring significant changes to the Ethereum protocol, including enshrined proposer-builder separation and Block-Level Access Lists. With a growing tokenization pipeline and spot ETH ETFs absorbing supply, Ethereum is looking strong.
Another top altcoin is Solana (SOL), which has seen a 60% discount from its all-time high. Despite this, Solana's ecosystem has continued to grow, with DEX volumes remaining high and consumer apps launching. The asset's price action is being driven by its strong on-chain activity, making it a top pick for a broad altcoin recovery.
Chainlink (LINK) is also worth considering, with a strong institutional story and a growing tokenization pipeline. However, its price action has been weak, making it a contrarian pick. The asset's network has seen significant adoption, with data providers such as the US Department of Commerce and S&P Global Ratings on board.
Sui (SUI) is the momentum pick, with a strong rally in the past month. The asset's catalyst is the upcoming Sui Basecamp conference, which will showcase its capabilities in global payments, stablecoins, and AI-agent transactions. However, the asset's chart is stretched, and it has a habit of selling off after conferences.
Aave (AAVE) is the DeFi pick, with strong on-chain signals and a hard-capped supply. The asset's price action has been driven by renewed DeFi borrowing activity, and its weighted sentiment has turned positive. However, correlation with Bitcoin is a risk, and a sharp pullback could trigger liquidations.