Bitcoin Hash Rate Hits New All-time High, How Are Miners Coping?

It is becoming increasingly difficult to mine blocks on the Bitcoin network. In other words, the security of the leading crypto network is rising by the day, and this is evident in the Bitcoin hash rate hitting a new high.

According to data from Blockchain.com, the metric reached an all-time high of 845 million on February 8, up more than 43% from a year ago. While this surge is a positive occurrence for the Bitcoin network because it increases its security and overall resistance to attack, miners now face more difficulty when producing blocks.

Bitcoin Hash Rate Hits ATH

The hash rate tells how difficult it is to mine a Bitcoin block by determining the estimated number of terahashes the network generates per second. This indicates how much computing power miners use to process transactions on the blockchain.

When the Bitcoin hashrate surges, mining new blocks becomes harder and more competitive, requiring more computing power and higher energy costs. The rise in hash rate also suggests that new miners are joining the network and/or existing entities are expanding their facilities.

Meanwhile, this surge in hash rate comes as the Bitcoin mining difficulty rises 5.61% over a week to 114.17 trillion. Data from CoinWarz shows that the Bitcoin mining difficulty, which adjusts every two weeks or 2,016 blocks, is currently at an all-time high. The latest spike occurred at block height 883,008, while the next adjustment is expected to be at 885,024 with an estimated 1.69%.

How Are Miners Coping?

Data from YCharts reveals that Bitcoin miner revenue per day has plunged a little, even amid the spikes in mining difficulty and hash rate. At the time of writing, Bitcoin mining revenue stood at $43.52 million, down 10.48% in the last 24 hours and 7.3% from a year ago. This means miners are not earning as much as they often do.

Bitcoin’s (BTC) current price also influences miners’ revenue. Due to several macroeconomic factors, the cryptocurrency has been struggling under $100,000 since the beginning of the month and has remained below $98,000 since Friday.

Low BTC prices and revenue could make it more difficult for miners to stay afloat and manage their operations properly.