Rise of Industrial-Scale Operations
In the early days of Bitcoin, anyone with a basic computer could mine coins from the comfort of their home. A standard CPU or GPU was enough to compete for block rewards. Fast forward to 2025, and the Bitcoin network’s hash rate has skyrocketed beyond anything those early miners could have imagined — effectively killing home mining as a viable option for the average user.
The Hash Rate Explosion
Back in 2009, Bitcoin’s total network hash rate was measured in kilohashes per second (kH/s), roughly what a CPU like the Intel Core 2 Duo could handle. In 2010–2011, GPU mining took over, with graphics cards like the AMD Radeon HD 5970 achieving up to 700 MH/s (megahashes per second). This was a big leap at the time, but it pales in comparison to today.
As of mid-2025, the global Bitcoin hash rate exceeds 650 EH/s (exahashes per second) — that’s 650 million terahashes per second. In the padt three years alone hashrate has tripled. The scale is mind-blowing, a million times higher than in the early days and illustrates just how far the arms race in mining hardware has gone.
Mining Hardware Comparison
To understand the current landscape, here’s a quick comparison of different levels of mining hardware: Even the Bitaxe Ultra — an open-source, ultra-efficient miner for hobbyists with a hash rate of 500 GH/s— is orders of magnitude behind modern commercial machines. The Antminer S21 does hash about 200 TH/s which is 400x faster. A Bitaxe is useful for learning, but it won’t make a profit unless electricity is nearly free.
Mining as a Corporate Game
Bitcoin mining has transformed from a hobbyist pursuit into an industrial-scale business model. Major companies like Mara or Riot now operate huge mining farms, deploying thousands of Antminer S21 or equivalent ASIC units in cooled, optimized facilities. These farms benefit from Economies of scale, Wholesale electricity rates or access to specialized hardware at volume discounts.
In contrast, home miners face retail electricity rates, heat dissipation challenges, and equipment that becomes obsolete within 12–18 months.
A New Era of Mining
The era of profitable home Bitcoin mining is over. The network hash rate has grown so fast and so high that only industrial-scale miners can compete. While hobbyist tools like the Bitaxe keep the spirit alive for educational purposes, real mining is now the domain of corporations.
For most individuals, the only way to participate economically in Bitcoin today is by buying or earning it — not mining it.
~~
Have you made any mining experience back in the early days?
Habe es mal versucht, das rentiert sich in Deutschland ned so. Außer du siehst es auf 20 Jahre oder so. Cloudmining habe ich auch probiert.. dauert Jahre bis du Roi bist.
Schwierig.
Ja glaub ich. Die Zeiten wo sich das gelohnt hat sind vorbei 👍🏻
Times have changed, so things have to be modern. If you want to mine Bitcoin or do any other computer work, it has become mandatory to use modern things.
These days, home mining feels more like a nostalgic memory or a learning experience using tools like Bitaxe.
I wanted to start mining BtC a few days ago but after looking at the hash rate, it was absurd
It was not profitable at all in any way