Ranked: These are the 13 most expensive NFT purchases of all time

Yep, we’ve all heard of NFTs by now. Also yep, very few of us actually understand what they mean and why they get sold for millions of dollars. But alas here we are, and they’re currently all the rage, with some pieces like Beeple’s collage artwork going for more than a small country is probably worth. However, although they’re very much in right now, NFTs have actually been around for a while and there’s been plenty of sales that simply haven’t been as high profile.

So, although there is absolutely no value in the majority of the pieces themselves as artwork (as you can see by the fact that several of these are almost identical bits of art), here are the top 13 most expensive NFTs that have ever been sold anyway – note that some of the reported prices have fluctuated massively since purchase as they were bought with crypto.

13. Not Forgotten, But Gone – $1 Million

Monumental achievement for @WhIsBe reach $1M for his piece “Not forgotten,but gone”. Very well deserved. Congratulations pic.twitter.com/YzSbdWtVjz

— iv gallery (@ivgalleryla) March 17, 2021

The solid gold skeleton of a gummy bear rotating in video form is clearly a valuable asset, because it netted artist WhIsBe one million dollars and is the 13th most expensive NFT purchase of all time. It’s cool, I’ll give him that.

12. Cryptopunk #6487 – $1.3 million

The first of many Cryptopunk pieces on this list, number 6487 (of 10,000 pieces) sold for 550 ETH in February. That now equates to over $1,300,000, meaning its value has risen by over $200k since being sold.

11. Cryptopunk #2890 – $1.4 million

Only nine of the 10,000 punks are aliens.

The previous alien to change hands, CryptoPunk 2890, fetched 605 $ETH, or $762,000, in January of this year.

— The Finanz (@TheFinanz) March 11, 2021

If anything shows how crazy cryptocurrencies are right now, let it be this – Cryptopunk 2890 sold in January for 605ETH, which equated to $762k.

That same amount of Ethereum is now worth nearly $1.5 million.

10. Cryptopunk #4156 – $1.3 million

#cryptoPunk 4156 bought for 650 ETH ($1,245,633 USD)
I don't understand that. pic.twitter.com/3RCUcwKt5p

— Agama Point (@AgamaPoint) February 19, 2021

By now you’ll be wondering if all of the Cryptopunk pieces look the same – and the answer is yes, they all follow the same exact blueprint. Sold for the equivalent of $1.3 million earlier in the year, it’s now worth well over $1.5 million.

9. Auction Winner Picks Name – $1.33 Million

More info about the auction!
Auction winner chooses song name and receives full music video. The auction winner will receive edition #1 of the 9999$ open editions. After the auction has ended, the titles for both the 1/1 and and the OE will change to the title of your choosing. pic.twitter.com/CBBTyqG1Cy

— slimesunday (@slimesunday) March 12, 2021

Someone got to choose a name for the first edition NFT that they’d be purchasing, as well as the following open editions. For the small price of $1.33 million. Lucky them.

8. Axie Infinity Virtual Game “Genesis” Estate – $1.5 million

History has been made! I've just sold an @AxieInfinity genesis estate for 888.25 ETH (~$1.5M USD). This is the largest digital land sale ever recorded on the blockchain. Congratulations to the new owner – Flying Falcon 🔥 #NFTs pic.twitter.com/AoGydw9Cpv

— seedphrase (@seedphrase) February 8, 2021

If there is anything that is going to confuse people who don’t understand NFTs (hello!), this is likely it. A piece of digital land was sold from a game for $1.5 million. At the time. That land is now worth over two million.

7. Cryptopunk #6965 – $1.6 million

According to https://t.co/vitI1uA2xM, Cryptopunk #6965 sold for a record 800 (ETH) on 2/19/21 which at the time was equivalent to $1,544,656 (USD)! NFT's have been all the rage lately, with Cryptopunks topping the charts.#NFT #digitalart #bitcoin #ethereum #cryptopunks pic.twitter.com/7Lm0qi1Y6T

— NFTSigs (@NftSigs) March 8, 2021

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Okay seriously now who actually designed these? Is there one artist that is getting seriously minted? Are they all produced from thin air by some sophisticated AI? What is HAPPENING?

6. Rick and Morty “The Best I Could Do” – $1.65 million

https://twitter.com/zoescaman/status/1354178070903726084?s=20

Yes, everyone seems to be getting in on the NFT hype, including none other than Rick and Morty’s creator Justin Roiland. As you can see from above, he came out with a series of… strange drawings, that cumulatively netted him $1.65 million at the time.

5. Jack Dorsey tweet – $2.9 million

Jack Dorsey’s first tweet sold as an #NFT for an oddly specific $2,915,835.47 https://t.co/ZWahMduioX #TechJunkieNews #TechJunkieInvest pic.twitter.com/WcPb4Yg50r

— Tech Junkie (@techjunkiejh) April 11, 2021

A literal tweet. Sold for nearly three million dollars. I’m done.

4. CROSSROAD – $6.66 MILLION

This piece of digital art, Crossroad by @beeple, a 1 of 1 that first sold for $66K, has been resold for $6.6 million. @niftygateway confirms the sale has been completed pic.twitter.com/vKog9SN8R7

— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) February 25, 2021

Beeple is a well-known artist who has made plenty of NFTs in his time, including the above piece which he originally sold for $66k. Then it resold for 100 times that amount, but as we’ve seen above, he’s likely made an impressive amount on top of the original purchase price still.

3. Cryptopunk #7804 – $7.6 million

CryptoPunk #7804 was just sold for 4,200 ETH ($7.5 million) 👀 pic.twitter.com/Io2lPDNuvt

— Now Media (@nowmedia) March 11, 2021

Another day, another Cryptopunk. This one takes the third spot of most expensive NFT purchases at a touch below eight million dollars.

2. Cryptopunk #3100 – $8 million

https://twitter.com/SheldonCorey/status/1370192739879546886?s=20

The last of the Cryptopunk pieces on this list is number 3100, which sold for a ridiculous $8,000,000. You can’t deny they’re pretty cool though…

1. Everydays: The First 5000 Days – $69.3 million

Christie's is proud to offer "Everydays – The First 5000 Days" by @beeple as the first purely digital work of art ever offered by a major auction house. Bidding will be open from Feb 25-Mar 11.

Learn more here https://t.co/srx95HCE0o | NFT issued in partnership w/ @makersplaceco pic.twitter.com/zymq2DSjy7

— Christie's (@ChristiesInc) February 16, 2021

Aaand at the number one spot for most expensive NFT purchases, it’s Beeple’s “Everydays – The First 5000 days” – obviously. This made major headlines when it was sold in March for $69 million as the first piece to go under the hammer at a major auction house like Christie’s.

I wonder how much it will sell for when it eventually goes up for sale again?

Related stories recommended by this writer:

• Nathan ‘Doggface’ Apodaca is selling his Fleetwood Mac skating video for $500,000

• NFT explained: What is this new digital art selling craze that’s all over TikTok?

• We spoke to the UCL student who made £30,000 through cryptocurrency investments