Bitcoin Mining Difficulty Climbs 5.54% to 148.36T, But Miner Revenue Plummets

04 November 2026

On October 29, 2026, Bitcoin's mining difficulty increased by 5.54% to an all-time high of 148.36 trillion, the latest adjustment that brings the network within striking distance of its previous peak. The 148.36 trillion difficulty figure, which took effect at block height 973,728 at 19:14 UTC, now requires the network to perform approximately 637 sextillion hashes to solve each block.

However, the difficulty hike has come at a cost to miners, as daily BTC mining revenue per unit of computational power, or "hashprice," has dropped to around $33 per petahash per second (PH/s) per day. This marks the lowest average hashprice since August 2026.

The revenue crunch is constraining bitcoin mining profitability, even as the network's collective hashing power and security soar to record heights.

What the 148.36T Difficulty Number Means

Bitcoin's mining difficulty, automatically readjusted roughly every two weeks, ensures that new blocks are mined about every ten minutes, regardless of fluctuations in network hashrate. But difficulty has also steadily risen over time. Since the network’s inception, it has climbed from 1 on December 31, 2009 to around 148 trillion by the end of 2025. Today, fully about 148 trillion times as much work is involved in finding a new block, compared to the network's genesis.

The Bitcoin protocol recalculates difficulty every 2,016 blocks, or around every 14 days. The 148.36 trillion figure marks the second major difficulty spike within October 2026, following a 5.92% increase to 140.58 trillion on October 16. That brings the combined difficulty increase for the month to 11.8%, one of the largest monthly surges in the asset's history.

The latest difficulty hike came after a 30-day block time average of 9.88 minutes, slightly faster than the long-term 10 minute target.

"Difficulty rising this much in a single adjustment is quite substantial, but the Northern Hemisphere winter months where colder weather makes mining more efficient may have contributed," said mining analyst Michael Green. "That stronger hashrate, combined with the cryptocurrency’s solid price performance over the past quarter, has brought Bitcoin’s difficulty back within 4-5% of its all-time high set in late 2025."

Higher Difficulty, Lower Returns

While difficulty reaches new heights, Bitcoin’s mining revenues are near a critical point. As of late October 2026, the hashprice sits at approximately $33.35 per PH/s per day, a steep decline from its September 2026 level of $40.

For illustration, a 25 joules per terahash (J/TH) miner drawing electricity at $0.06 per kWh would now lose about $3.32 per day in net power costs per PH/s, given the current hashprice function. That same rig would break even on power costs if electricity priced $0.0545 per kWh or cheaper.

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However, a more efficient 20 J/TH rig could still turn a modest daily profit of around $0.23 per PH/s before other costs, assuming the same power and hashprice conditions. Simulating this rig, analysts estimate today’s average 635 EH/s hashprice yields an operating margin of $1.11 per day per standardized petahash unit.

Even at deeper break-even electricity prices, the revenue compression is further reducing miners' profit margins when BTC mining rewards drop about 2% in January 2027 with the next block reward halving. For new, inefficient rigs, many miners may not have much room to survive further revenue declines at current difficulty levels.

Indeed, as the difficulty increases, the expected BTC revenue for each unit of unchanging hashing power declines. Estimates show that the 5.54% difficulty hike alone amounts to roughly a 5.24% decline in earnings per unit of fixed hashrate. Taking the full October 2026 gain into account, earnings per unit of unaltered hashrate would be reduced around 10.5%, before factoring in costs.

Not All Is Lost for Mining

Despite the squeeze, mining firms have reason for optimism. Bitcoin’s hashpower rapidly recovered following the May 2026 halving, despite some firms removing equipment to deploy in other applications. Hashpower currently sits near an all-time high, driving the difficulty to levels that were unimaginable just six months prior.

At these hashrate levels, the confirmation times and security of the Bitcoin ledger now rival major payment systems used by governments. The network's proof-of-work mechanism contrasts with alternatives like Ethereum, which confirms transactions slower despite handling fewer transactions per second.

For skilled operators with access to low-cost power, today’s hashrate levels mean a more secure network, even if individual profits decline. The difficulty has rebounded before and could do so again, offering long-term potential for those who remain.

However, as November arrives, upcoming months present an open question: will miners continue to flock to BTC mining with record interest, driving hashprice further down? Or were recent adjustments temporary reactions to market conditions? The coming months will reveal whether this is part of a longer trend or a temporary market response.