How Long Does it Take to Mine One Bitcoin? (2021) - Decrypt (2024)

In brief

  • Bitcoin mining is a process that sees high-powered computers compete to discover a Bitcoin block and earn rewards for doing so.
  • Miners generally use specialized equipment such as ASIC mining rigs.
  • Going solo can be slightly more efficient for miners, but is also riskier since the rewards come less frequently.

Bitcoin (BTC) uses the Proof of Work (PoW) consensus algorithm as the basis of its security. This means that like many other cryptocurrencies, a network of cryptocurrency miners is used to discover blocks and add pending transactions to them, to render them irreversible.

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The block discovery process, which takes approximately 10 minutes per block, also results in the minting of a fixed number of new Bitcoin per block. This is currently set at 6.25 BTC per block, but halves approximately every four years (210,000 blocks), reducing the number of Bitcoin minted with each newly discovered block.

This BTC is provided as an incentive to the miner (or miners if using a mining pool) that discovered the block.

How long it takes to mine 1 BTC

Although it takes 10 minutes to discover each block and each block yields a 6.25 BTC reward for the miner that successfully discovered it, it's important to understand that the entire Bitcoin mining network is essentially competing in this block discovery process.

This means that only a single miner in the entire mining network will actually successfully discover the block—and since there are potentially tens of thousands of Bitcoin miners in operation, the odds of single-handedly discovering a block is quite low.

For this reason, the vast majority of Bitcoin miners work together as part of a mining pool, combining their hash rate to stand a better chance of discovering a block. Then, regardless of which miner in the pool actually discovers the block, the rewards are distributed evenly throughout the pool.

Consequently, a miner that contributes 1% of a pool's hash rate, will also receive 1% of the block rewards it accrues.

How Long Does it Take to Mine One Bitcoin? (2021) - Decrypt (1)

F2Pool is currently the largest pool by hash rate share, contributing around 26.73 EH/s of the total Bitcoin hash rate of 134.6 EH/s. This 19.9% hash rate share essentially means that around 19.9% of all newly minted BTC are mined by this pool—equivalent to 179.1 BTC per day (out of a total of 900 BTC distributed to all miners per day).

An individual miner that contributes 1% of the pool's hash rate (~267 PH/s) would earn approximately 1.79 BTC per day. This means a miner would need close to 149.2 PH/s of hash rate to mine an average of 1 BTC per day at current difficulty levels.

Before the decade is over, only 225 #BTC will be minted per day and enter the market as fresh supply. Compared to the start of 2020, when 1800 were created daily, this means a ~90% loss in new supply.

@ZubrExchange analysis covered by @decryptmedia https://t.co/8QbZp6GjJd

— f2pool (@f2pool_official) July 2, 2020

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To put this into perspective, this is the equivalent of running 2,331 of the latest 64TH/s Antminer S17e ASIC miners, which were released in November 2020. This setup would likely cost somewhere in the order of $1.86 million, assuming an average unit cost of $799/ea. This would also prove somewhat challenging, since the Antminer S17e is currently sold out (as of December 2020), and is only available at a markup via resellers.

For those with a smaller budget, it would take a single Antminer S19 Pro (an older generation, but widely available unit) a total of 1,356 days to generate 1 BTC in rewards when working with a mining pool—that's the equivalent of generating 0.00073 BTC/day in rewards, or around $13.28/day at current prices ($18,200/BTC).

To calculate how long it would take another mining rig to generate 1 BTC in rewards, you can simply plug its hash rate into the following equation: 1 / (hash rate (in PH/s)) * 0.0066. This result will produce the number of days it will take to generate 1 BTC in rewards at current difficulty levels.

Can Bitcoin miners go solo?

Although most Bitcoin miners tend to focus their efforts as part of a mining pool, it's also possible to go it alone.

Unlike Bitcoin mining pools, which essentially guarantee smaller regular payouts and eliminate most of the risks involved with Bitcoin mining, solo mining is more of a gamble—but can also be more rewarding. Since solo miners don't need to pay any mining pool fees, the overall mining profitability can be slightly higher than working with a pool, particularly for those running a sizeable mining operation.

Statistically speaking, a solo miner looking to generate 1 BTC per day would need to contribute just over 0.11% of the total Bitcoin hash rate. As we previously mentioned, this is equivalent to around 149.2PH/s or the combined output of 2,334 Antminer S17e mining units. On average this mining operation would discover a block yielding a 6.26 BTC reward every 6.25 days, which averages out to 1 BTC/day.

Because even gigantic mining operations with over 2,000 rigs would take almost a week to discover a single block, miners with just a few machines would likely go years without discovering a block, making the practice extremely risky in most cases.

Bitcoin mining in 2020 and beyond

Previously one of the largest Bitcoin mining pools by hash rate, the OKEx pool saw a 99.5% drop off in activity between October and November 2020, after the exchange halted withdrawals following reports that a crucial private key holder could not be reached.

The OKex pool has since seen its SHA256 hash rate recover considerably, and currently sits at 196.8 PH/s with over 3,400 active miners—a more than tenfold increase over its November lows.

With massive institutional investors like Grayscale, PayPal, and Cash App now buying up more than 100% of all newly-issued Bitcoin, and increasing sums of BTC locked up as wrapped tokens on other blockchains (such as Ethereum and Tron), demand for Bitcoin has increased considerably in 2020.

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As a result, the price of Bitcoin has been driven up by more than 150% since the start of the year, reaching new all-time highs value on some platforms.

Disclaimer

The views and opinions expressed by the author are for informational purposes only and do not constitute financial, investment, or other advice.

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How Long Does it Take to Mine One Bitcoin? (2021) - Decrypt (2024)

FAQs

How Long Does it Take to Mine One Bitcoin? (2021) - Decrypt? ›

As we previously mentioned, this is equivalent to around 149.2PH/s or the combined output of 2,334 Antminer S17e mining units. On average this mining operation would discover a block yielding a 6.26 BTC reward every 6.25 days, which averages out to 1 BTC/day.

How long does it take to mine 1 Bitcoin with one miner? ›

How Bitcoin Mining Works. Bitcoin is mined in blocks, rather than in a consistent stream. Roughly every ten minutes, a block is produced by a miner, earning that miner new bitcoin.

Is it possible to mine 1 Bitcoin a day? ›

Moreover, not only is it extremely expensive to mine 1 BTC per day —you're also competing against a network of miners. We're talking about tens of thousands of computers discovering a block every ten minutes. This is where BTC mining pools come into play.

What are the chances of mining 1 Bitcoin? ›

Issues With Bitcoin Mining

Between one in 16 trillion odds, scaling difficulty levels, and the massive network of users verifying transactions, one block of transactions is verified roughly every 10 minutes.11 But it's important to remember that 10 minutes is a goal, not a rule.

How much Bitcoin can you mine in a day with 1 GPU? ›

Nicehash estimates that you can use NVIDIA RTX 3080, NVIDIA CMP 90HX, NVIDIA RTX A5000, NVIDIA RTX 3090, and NVIDIA Tesla A100 to earn between 0.000125 BTC and 0.00022200 BTC in daily income mining Bitcoin with this hardware.

How much does 1 Bitcoin miner make a year? ›

As of Apr 30, 2023, the average annual pay for a Crypto Mining in the United States is $86,748 a year. Just in case you need a simple salary calculator, that works out to be approximately $41.71 an hour. This is the equivalent of $1,668/week or $7,229/month.

How much is 1 Bitcoin mining per day? ›

How many Bitcoin can you mine a day? Based the mining hardware inputs provided, 0.00036667 Bitcoin can be mined per day with a Bitcoin mining hashrate of 140.00 TH/s, a block reward of 6.25 BTC, and a Bitcoin difficulty of 48,005,534,313,579.00.

How long does it take to mine 1 Bitcoin with a regular computer? ›

How long does it take to mine one Bitcoin? It takes around 10 minutes to mine just one Bitcoin, though this is with ideal hardware and software, which isn't always affordable and only a few users can boast the luxury of. More commonly and reasonably, most users can mine a Bitcoin in 30 days.

How many computers needed to mine 1 Bitcoin? ›

The resources required for mining Bitcoin include: At least one specialized computer (called an Application-specific Integrated Circuit or ASIC miner), which is specifically designed to compete for and support a particular cryptocurrency. A reliable and inexpensive energy supply. A dependable internet connection.

What is the fastest Bitcoin miner? ›

#1) Antminer S19 Pro

The Antminer S19 Pro ASIC Bitcoin miner hardware is currently the best cryptocurrency mining hardware with which to mine Bitcoin and other SHA-256 cryptocurrencies. This is given the highest hash rate, efficiency, and power consumption.

What is the easiest Bitcoin to mine? ›

What is the easiest crypto to mine? Monero (XMR) is one of the easiest cryptocurrencies to mine if you're using a home computer and not a professional setup.

How much Bitcoin is left? ›

Why should you know how many bitcoins exist and how many are left to mine? As we already know, one of the key features of Bitcoin is its limited supply. The maximum number of bitcoins that can ever exist is 21 million, and as of March 2023, over 19 million bitcoins have already been mined.

What happens if no one is mining Bitcoin? ›

In the absence of miners, it would be nearly impossible to maintain the blockchain. Mining involves spending large amounts of computing power on algorithms to secure the network and order data. The algorithm relies on third-party participants to be decentralized and receive monetary rewards for their efforts.

What is the cheapest crypto to mine? ›

If you are looking for the cheapest crypto to mine, Monero and Ravencoin will be a good choice. Monero, for instance, can be mined on CPUs with normal computer hardware resources. Nevertheless, Bitcoin and Ethereum should be your top choice if looking for the most profitable cryptocurrencies to mine.

Can you make a living mining crypto? ›

Here's the short answer: Bitcoin mining can be profitable if you invest in the right tools and join a bitcoin mining pool. That said, there are a lot of variables, and a high profit isn't guaranteed. Mining isn't for everyone.

How much Bitcoin can rtx 3090 mine per day? ›

Past earnings of your setup on NiceHash
1 Day1 Month
💵 Income0.00002601 BTC 0.75 USD0.00085910 BTC 24.77 USD
⚡ El. costs0.00000000 BTC 0.00 USD0.00000000 BTC 0.00 USD
💰 Profit0.00002601 BTC 0.75 USD0.00085910 BTC 24.77 USD

How to make $1000 a month mining crypto? ›

By participating in staking, setting up a masternode, lending your cryptocurrency, investing in projects that offer dividends, or purchasing a cloud mining contract, you can potentially earn up to $1000 per month with cryptocurrency.

How many Bitcoin can 1 miner make? ›

If a miner is able to successfully add a block to the blockchain, they will receive 6.25 bitcoins as a reward. The reward amount is cut in half roughly every four years, or every 210,000 blocks. As of March 2023, Bitcoin traded at around $24,300, making 6.25 bitcoins worth $152,000.

How much Bitcoin can a miner make a day? ›

Most Bitcoin mining rigs make at least 2000 USD every day on average. Some can make up to as high as 5000 USD daily. We recommend buying more efficient and robust mining equipment to maximize your daily income from Bitcoin mining.

How much Bitcoin can you mine in 10 minutes? ›

Bitcoin miners are compensated for their effort automatically by the Bitcoin software, which releases new coins as a reward to the miner that creates a block. One block is created every ten minutes, equating to about 144 blocks created in a day.

How long does it take to mine 1 ethereum? ›

#1) Block time: This is the time within which a single block is created in Ethereum is about 10-19 seconds.

Can you mine Bitcoin on a phone? ›

Another well-liked cryptocurrency mining app, MinerGate enables users to mine different cryptocurrencies on their mobile devices. The program is an excellent alternative for individuals who want to start mining cryptocurrencies because it has a user-friendly design and offers a variety of mining choices.

Can a normal PC mine Bitcoin? ›

While mining bitcoin on an individual computer is no longer viable, there are other cryptocurrencies that you can still mine at home if you're prepared to put in the effort. Updated 17th March 2023.

How much electricity does mining Bitcoin use? ›

Cryptocurrency has an energy consumption problem. Bitcoin alone is estimated to consume 127 terawatt-hours (TWh) a year — more than many countries, including Norway.

How many people own 1 Bitcoin? ›

However, some estimates can be made based on blockchain data and surveys of Bitcoin holders. According to data from Bitinfocharts, as of March 2023, there are approximately 827,000 addresses that hold 1 bitcoin or more, representing around 4.5% of all addresses on the Bitcoin network.

What equipment is needed to mine 1 Bitcoin? ›

The Mining Requirements

Hardware GPU (graphics processing unit), SSD for crypto mining, or ASIC (application-specific integrated circuit) Mining software. A wallet. Preferred mining pool (if one chooses pool mining option instead of solo mining)

Which Bitcoin miner is most profitable? ›

Some of the most profitable and best ASIC Bitcoin miners include:
  • Bitmain Antminer S19 XP Hyd (255Th)
  • Bitmain Antminer S19 XP (140Th)
  • Canaan Avalon Made A1366.
  • MicroBT Whatsminer M50S.
  • MicroBT WhatsMiner M56S.
Mar 19, 2023

How much Bitcoin can you mine in 1 hour? ›

There are currently 6.25 bitcoins produced in each block, and a block is produced every 10 minutes. This means that there are 6.25 (Bitcoins per block) x 6 (blocks per hour) x 24 (hours per day) = 900 bitcoins produced each day.

How much does it cost to set up a Bitcoin mining rig? ›

The cost of building a crypto mining rig mainly depends on the cost of hardware. A typical crypto mining rig with six GPUs should cost anywhere from $1,000 to $4,000. Depending on the hardware and the hash rate desired, the price can be considerably less or more than this ballpark figure.

Can you do solo Bitcoin mining? ›

A solo Bitcoin miner has managed to mine the 780,112th block in the Bitcoin blockchain, receiving a 6.25 Bitcoin (BTC) block reward in return. The estimated value of the payout is over $150,000.

How to start Bitcoin mining without money? ›

Here's how to mining Bitcoin using an Android phone on the MinerGate application:
  1. Download the MinerGate application on the Play Store.
  2. Account Registration.
  3. Enter the app.
  4. Click the mining option.
  5. Choose the mining option you want.
  6. Start mining.
  7. Choose Bitcoin crypto.
Jan 3, 2023

Can you mine Bitcoin without buying it? ›

Key Takeaways. By mining, you can earn cryptocurrency without having to put down money for it. Bitcoin miners receive bitcoin as a reward for completing "blocks" of verified transactions, which are added to the blockchain.

What will $100 of Bitcoin be worth in 2030? ›

The research report put together by Ark Invest sees Bitcoin hitting price targets in 2030 of $258,500 in the bearish forecast, $682,000 in the average market and $1.48 million in a bullish market.

What happens when all BTC is mined? ›

When all bitcoin have been mined, miner revenue will depend entirely on transaction fees. The price and purchasing power of bitcoin will adjust to the lack of new supply. The scarcity of Bitcoin will make it more attractive to investors and users.

What happens when all 21 million bitcoins are mined? ›

What Happens to Mining Fees When Bitcoin's Supply Limit Is Reached? Bitcoin mining fees will disappear when the Bitcoin supply reaches 21 million. After that, miners will likely earn income only from transaction processing fees rather than a combination of block rewards and transaction fees.

Who pays Bitcoin miners? ›

The Bitcoin blockchain pays for Bitcoin mining. You can consider blockchain as an employer of the miners. As such, the 'employer' pays the rewards for Bitcoin mining itself. No person or organisation owns Bitcoin mining.

When Bitcoin mining will end? ›

This has continued over time as intended. In 2024, it is forecasted that miners will only earn 1.56 BTC for their role in verifying a block of transactions. This is the process that will continue until the very last Bitcoin is mined. This process means by definition that Bitcoin mining is coming to an inevitable end.

How long does it take to mine 1 Bitcoin for free? ›

In some cases, mining just a single bitcoin can take anywhere from 10 minutes to 30 days, depending on your hardware and software setup.

Which coin is still profitable to mine? ›

Monero (XMR), which has a market cap close to $3 billion, is still one of the most lucrative coins you can seek to mine. Mining The present payout for mining Monero is 2.15 XMR per block, and 2,272,762 blocks are anticipated to be produced.

Which crypto mining gives highest return? ›

Best Crypto To Mine
  • Bitcoin.
  • Ethereum.
  • Ravencoin.
  • LiteCoin.
  • ECOS.
  • Vertcoin.
  • ZCash.
Mar 2, 2023

Is mining still profitable 2023? ›

Cryptocurrency mining is still profitable in 2023, but it may not be as rewarding as in the past. That's accurate for a variety of factors, including the fact that cryptocurrency prices were significantly lower than their peaks for the majority of 2022 and into early 2023.

Is it hard to become a crypto miner? ›

Although mining is a competitive business, starting is still relatively easy. In the early years of Bitcoin, hobbyists could simply boot up some software on their computer and get started right away. Those days are long gone, but setting up a dedicated Bitcoin miner is not as hard as it may seem at first.

Is crypto mining hobby income? ›

Crypto mining as a hobby

Bitcoin, Ethereum, or other cryptocurrencies mined as a hobby are reported on your Form 1040 Schedule 1 on Line 8 as “Other Income.” It is taxed at your income bracket's tax rate. This approach to mining taxes is the simplest. However, hobby mining is not eligible for business deductions.

What is the most profitable GPU for mining? ›

The 6 Best GPUs for Mining in 2023
  1. NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 TI. Best All-Around Contender. ...
  2. NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER. Best Budget Card. ...
  3. NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070. Best Mid-Range Card. ...
  4. AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT. Not the Best, Not the Worst. ...
  5. NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090. For Those With Money to Burn. ...
  6. NVIDIA GeForce RTX 1080.
Apr 19, 2023

Can I run 2 miners at the same time? ›

Yes, it is possible to run two mining programs at once on a single computer. In fact, many miners use multiple mining programs simultaneously to increase their mining efficiency and profitability.

Which GPU is best for mining? ›

Here is the list of the most powerful graphics cards on the market for crypto mining:
  • Nvidia GeForce RTX 3090.
  • AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT.
  • Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080 Ti.
  • AMD Radeon VII.
  • Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 Ti.
  • Nvidia GTX 1660 Super.
  • AMD Radeon RX 580.
  • AMD RX 6800.
Mar 9, 2023

Can you mine Bitcoin with one miner? ›

Technically, it is not possible to mine 1 Bitcoin, especially if you are a solo miner. However, if you mine within a pool, your rewards will typically be in satoshis, which are denominations of the BTC coin that could equal 1 BTC over a period of mining.

How much can you make mining Bitcoin with one rig? ›

Generally speaking, if you're mining Bitcoin at home, you can make anywhere from $30 to $450 per mining machine each month.

Is there only 2 million Bitcoin left to mine? ›

The supply of bitcoins is replenished at a set rate of one block every ten minutes. The system design reduces the number of new bitcoins in each block by half every four years. There are only about 2 million bitcoins left. Experts predict that the last bitcoins will be mined by 2140.

What is the easiest crypto to mine? ›

What is the easiest coin to mine? 1. Monero (XMR) Monero (XMR) is one of the easiest cryptocurrencies to mine using a home computer. Monero is a privacy-focused crypto based on the CryptoNote protocol and utilizes the RandomX hash function to create increasingly complicated mathematical equations.

How much electricity is used in Bitcoin mining? ›

As of August 2022, published estimates of the total global electricity usage for crypto-assets are between 120 and 240 billion kilowatt-hours per year, a range that exceeds the total annual electricity usage of many individual countries, such as Argentina or Australia.

Are Bitcoin miners worth it? ›

Here's the short answer: Bitcoin mining can be profitable if you invest in the right tools and join a bitcoin mining pool. That said, there are a lot of variables, and a high profit isn't guaranteed. Mining isn't for everyone.

Can I mine Bitcoin on my phone? ›

Mobile Miner

The well-known cryptocurrency mining program MobileMiner enables users to mine different cryptocurrencies on their mobile devices. The program is simple to use and has a wide range of customization possibilities, making it a fantastic alternative for both novice and seasoned miners.

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