The way Bitcoin became so popular kind of shadowed many cryptocurrencies that followed, and one can almost forgive someone for thinking all cryptocurrency is Bitcoin. There are nearly 20 000 cryptocurrencies which have various coins, blockchains, networks and operational systems, different ownerships, levels of volatility and organizational structures. At the beginning of 2021 there were about 12 000 recognized cryptocurrencies, but the number keeps growing annually, with market analysts citing that this number more than doubled at the end of 2021 because the market was constantly adding over 1000 new cryptocurrencies per month. This sounds exciting because we all love crypto, right? Well, this isn't particularly all good news, as some of this cryptocurrency will never live up to the anticipation of reputable cryptocurrency like Ethereum and Bitcoin. Furthermore, there is no entry restriction to creating and owning your own cryptocurrency. Even people like you and me can have our own cryptocurrency by simply hiring a freelance developer to make it. In order to see what a currency is all about, read the currency's whitepaper, if you fail to understand it ask other people with the same interest for explanation, if you still don't get it you might want to look at other alternatives. It is important to know that cryptocurrencies fail and get delisted all the time, so be careful, some of these new currencies only serve the purpose of fattening the developer's pockets while emptying yours. 

How to choose the good ones

There are many strategies for picking the good ones, and here's some basic information on how to go about it. A good currency must have a readily available and easily accessible whitepaper to provide information on the purpose, goals and future potential of the currency. It must also have some kind of utility/ case use/ be adoptable for use, whether by individuals, businesses or organizations. This creates some kind of demand for the currency, therefore enabling it to stay in circulation. Demand is not only influenced by utility but also by limited supplies which sometimes has a price stablizing effect. The market cap of coin supply stated in the whitepaper tells how much of a particular coin will be put into circulation, for example there will only ever be 21 million BTC, so investigate how many coins are already in circulation and how many it is still possible to mine, this will have a direct impact on the future price of the coin. You can also find the good ones by researching on current market capitalizations that shows you which cryptocurrencies are ranked the highest right now and their curve of value. Furthermore be media savvy, be up-to-date with current news. That way you will stay on par with  events around the world that affect the prices of cryptocurrencies.In conclusion, it is important to be in a position to observe all these factors because a lot of the new cryptocurrencies operate like money making schemes which only enrich developers, while serving very little purpose for the investors. Don't be naive, research, investigate before wasting your money on that new shiny somewhat useless and quick to fail coin. Investigate, be vigilant because even experts warn that only a small portion of cryptocurrencies are worth learning about and potentially buying.

Sources 

Analytics Insight. Retrieved from https://www.analyticsinsight.net/guide-deciding-which-cryptocurrency-to-invest-in/