Mining Calculator: Solo vs Pool Earnings
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Important: Bitcoin mining is highly competitive. Solo mining has extremely low odds of earning a block reward (see article for details). Pool mining provides consistent daily income but requires sharing rewards.
When you start mining Bitcoin, the first big decision isn’t about which ASIC to buy-it’s whether to go it alone or join a group. Solo mining means you’re the only one solving the math problems. Pool mining means you team up with hundreds or thousands of others. One offers the dream of a full block reward. The other gives you a steady paycheck. But which one actually makes sense in 2025?
What Solo Mining Really Means
Solo mining is exactly what it sounds like: you run your own hardware, connect directly to the Bitcoin network, and try to find a block by yourself. No middlemen. No sharing. If you win, you get the whole 3.125 BTC plus transaction fees. That’s over $200,000 at current prices. But here’s the catch: you have to actually find that block first. As of late 2025, the Bitcoin network hash rate is over 700 EH/s. That’s 700 quintillion calculations per second. For a single miner with a typical 100 TH/s rig, the odds of finding a block are roughly 1 in 5.7 years. That’s not a guess. That’s math. Even with a 1 PH/s setup-equivalent to about 30 Antminer S21 units-you’re looking at an average wait of 18 months just to see one block reward. Most solo miners aren’t hobbyists. They’re institutional operators with multi-megawatt farms. Foundry USA, for example, controls over 13% of the network’s hash power. They mine solo because they can afford the risk. They have the power, the cooling, the uptime, and the capital to weather long dry spells. For everyone else? It’s a financial gamble with no payout in sight. One Reddit user ran 200 TH/s for 14 months and found zero blocks. He switched to a pool and started earning $5 a day. That’s not luck. That’s probability.How Pool Mining Works (And Why It’s So Popular)
Pool mining is like buying lottery tickets as a group. Everyone chips in their hash power. When the group wins, the prize is split based on how much work each person contributed. You don’t need to be a tech wizard to join. Most pools-like Slush Pool, F2Pool, or AntPool-have simple web dashboards. Plug in your miner’s IP, enter your wallet address, and you’re done. Setup takes under 15 minutes. No full node. No config files. No syncing the entire blockchain. In return for convenience, you pay a fee. Most pools charge between 0.5% and 3%. F2Pool uses a PPLNS model (Pay Per Last N Shares), which smooths out rewards over time. Slush Pool sticks with a flat 2% fee. That’s it. The payout? Consistent. A 100 TH/s miner in a pool earns about $12-$15 per day after fees. That’s enough to cover electricity in most regions. No waiting. No stress. Just daily deposits into your wallet. And that’s why 87% of miners with under $50,000 in equipment choose pools. It’s not about being lazy. It’s about survival.Hardware Requirements: Solo vs Pool
The hardware you need is where the two paths split wide open. For solo mining, you need serious power. To have even a 50% chance of finding a block in a year, you need to control about 0.6 EH/s-that’s 600,000 GH/s. That’s roughly 1,800 Antminer S21 units. At $7,000 per unit? You’re looking at $12.6 million in equipment alone. Add electricity, cooling, space, and maintenance, and you’re spending over $2 million a year just to stay alive. For pool mining, you can start with one Antminer S19. That’s $4,000. You plug it in. You connect to a pool. You start earning. You don’t even need a dedicated server. A Raspberry Pi can handle the pool connection. Even GPU miners can join pools for altcoins like Ravencoin or Ergo. You don’t need ASICs to mine profitably in a pool. But you absolutely need them to even dream of solo mining Bitcoin.
Costs, Fees, and Hidden Risks
Pool mining sounds too good to be true? It’s not. But it has downsides. First, you’re trusting the pool operator. In 2014, the Eligius pool went offline for days. Miners lost income. In 2023, ViaBTC raised fees without warning. Some users lost 40% of their daily earnings overnight. Second, you don’t control your own node. You’re dependent on the pool’s infrastructure. If their servers crash, your shares stop counting. Some pools have 99.9% uptime. Others? Not so much. Solo mining has its own risks. You need 99.9% uptime on your hardware and internet. One power outage? You lose your chance at that block. One network glitch? Your node desyncs. You miss rewards. And if you’re not running a full node, you’re not even truly solo mining-you’re just mining on a third-party node, which defeats the whole point. Then there’s the emotional cost. Waiting months-or years-for a reward is psychologically brutal. Most people can’t handle it. They quit. They switch. And they never go back.Who Should Mine Solo?
The answer is simple: almost no one. If you have less than 1 EH/s, solo mining is a fantasy. You’re not a miner-you’re a lottery ticket buyer. And the odds are worse than Powerball. The only people who should mine solo are:- Large mining farms with over 1 EH/s hash rate
- Operators who own their own power plants or have access to near-zero-cost electricity
- Those who believe deeply in Bitcoin decentralization and want to avoid pool centralization
- People with deep technical skills and zero tolerance for third-party dependency
Who Should Mine in a Pool?
If you’re reading this, you’re probably in this group. Pool mining is for:- Beginners who want to learn without risking their savings
- People with under $50,000 in mining equipment
- Anyone who needs consistent income to cover electricity bills
- Miners using GPUs for altcoins
- Anyone who doesn’t want to manage servers, nodes, or uptime
The Future: Will Solo Mining Ever Come Back?
Some say transaction fees will save solo mining. When block rewards drop to 1.56 BTC in 2028, fees might make up the difference. But that’s a long shot. Even then, you’d still need massive hash power to compete. Others point to new ASICs like the Antminer S25, which delivers 400 TH/s at 14 J/TH. That’s more efficient. But efficiency doesn’t fix the math. The network difficulty keeps rising. Every two weeks, it adjusts upward. The bar gets higher. The odds get worse. CoinBureau predicts that by 2025, pool mining will account for 92% of individual miner participation. That’s not a trend. That’s a law of economics. Solo mining won’t disappear. But it will become a niche for institutions, not individuals.Final Decision: What Should You Do?
Ask yourself these questions:- Do you have over $1 million in mining equipment?
- Do you have access to electricity under $0.03/kWh?
- Can you handle months or years without income?
- Do you enjoy configuring Linux servers and debugging node sync errors?
Is solo mining worth it for beginners?
No. Solo mining requires massive hash power, technical expertise, and the ability to go months without income. Beginners should start with a pool to learn the basics, cover electricity costs, and avoid financial burnout.
How much money do you need to start solo mining?
To have a realistic shot at mining a Bitcoin block within a year, you need at least 1 EH/s of hash power. That’s roughly $12 million in Antminer S21 units, plus $1.5 million annually in electricity and cooling. Most individuals don’t have this capital.
Do pool mining fees eat into profits?
Yes, but not significantly. Most pools charge 0.5%-3%. For a 100 TH/s miner, that’s about $0.50-$1.50 per day on a $12-$15 payout. That’s a small price for consistent income and zero risk of long dry spells.
Can I mine Ethereum solo now?
No. Ethereum switched to proof-of-stake in 2022. Solo mining only applies to proof-of-work coins like Bitcoin, Litecoin, and some altcoins like Ravencoin. You cannot mine Ethereum with ASICs or GPUs anymore.
What’s the best pool for Bitcoin mining?
Slush Pool is the oldest and most reliable, with 24/7 support and a 2% fee. F2Pool offers lower effective fees with its PPLNS model and high uptime. AntPool and Foundry USA are good for larger miners. Choose based on location, fee structure, and payout frequency.
How often do pool miners get paid?
Most pools pay daily or when you reach a minimum threshold (like 0.001 BTC). Some, like Slush Pool, pay daily regardless of balance. Others wait until you hit a higher amount. Check your pool’s payout settings.
Can I switch from solo to pool mining later?
Yes. Many miners start solo, realize the financial strain, and switch to a pool within months. There’s no penalty. Your hardware works the same. Just disconnect from your solo node and connect to a pool’s server.
Does pool mining make Bitcoin less decentralized?
It can, if a few pools control too much hash power. But the network has safeguards: miners can switch pools instantly. If a pool gets too big, miners leave. That’s why no single pool has ever held more than 25% of Bitcoin’s hash rate. Decentralization is maintained by choice, not structure.
Tejas Kansara
November 26, 2025 AT 13:20Just got my S19 plugged in. Pool mining. $14/day. Pays for the juice. No stress. Done.
jocelyn cortez
November 28, 2025 AT 04:56I tried solo for 8 months with a 100 TH rig. Zero blocks. Switched to Slush Pool and now I get paid every morning like clockwork. No more anxiety. Just quiet earnings.
It’s not sexy. But it’s sustainable.
Jenny Charland
November 29, 2025 AT 12:04Anyone who still mines solo is either rich or delusional. 😂
Soham Kulkarni
November 30, 2025 AT 05:39in india we dont even have cheap power. pool mining is the only way. even 1 s19 is a big deal for us. but still better than nothing. i earn 200 rs/day. not much but enough for chai and samosa.
no drama. no waiting. just coins in wallet.
Abhishek Anand
December 1, 2025 AT 09:16You're all missing the point. The entire premise is a neoliberal trap. Pool mining centralizes hash power under corporate entities like F2Pool and Foundry USA. You're not mining Bitcoin-you're leasing computational labor to oligopolistic mining cartels.
True decentralization requires sovereignty over your own node, your own validation, your own risk. The math may be against you-but the philosophy is not.
What you call 'survival' is surrender. What you call 'profit' is wage labor in the digital age. The block reward isn't just money-it's ideological autonomy. And you're trading it for a daily stipend.
When you plug into a pool, you're not contributing to the network. You're outsourcing your cryptographic conscience.
John Borwick
December 2, 2025 AT 12:28I get where Abhishek is coming from, but let’s be real. Most of us aren’t building a new monetary system-we’re trying to pay our rent.
I ran solo for 11 months. Lost $3k in electricity. Got nothing. Switched to a pool. Made back the loss in 4 months. Now I’m saving up for a second miner.
Philosophy is great. But when your lights are about to get shut off, you choose the paycheck.
Decentralization doesn’t mean suffering in silence. It means having the freedom to choose what works for you. And for 99% of us? That’s a pool.
Emily Michaelson
December 2, 2025 AT 19:17For anyone thinking about starting out-don’t overthink it. Buy one S19. Set up a Slush Pool account. Plug it in. That’s it.
Don’t worry about node configs, uptime, or whether you’re ‘true’ to Bitcoin. Learn the basics first. Earn a little. See how it feels.
Then if you still want to go solo after 6 months of steady pool income? Go for it. But you’ll be coming from a place of strength, not fantasy.
Lara Ross
December 3, 2025 AT 08:43While I respect the philosophical stance, I must emphasize that the economic reality of Bitcoin mining is not compatible with amateur solo operations. The network difficulty curve is exponential, and individual miners without institutional backing are not merely at a disadvantage-they are statistically irrelevant.
Pool mining is not capitulation. It is strategic participation. It enables microeconomic sustainability for the average participant while preserving network security through distributed hash power.
Those who romanticize solo mining as 'purity' are ignoring the fact that decentralization is preserved through voluntary participation, not through individual martyrdom.
Anne Jackson
December 3, 2025 AT 18:53Only Americans think they can mine Bitcoin like it’s a side hustle. In China they had state-run farms. In Russia they stole power. In Iran they use subsidized electricity. But here? You wanna mine with your 100 TH rig and call it 'freedom'? LOL.
You’re not a miner. You’re a consumer of hype. Get a job. Or at least join a pool and stop pretending you’re Satoshi.
Tyler Boyle
December 5, 2025 AT 14:22Let’s not forget that even pool mining isn’t as safe as people think. Pools can be hacked. They can change payout algorithms. They can vanish overnight. I had a friend whose entire balance disappeared when ViaBTC suddenly switched from PPS to PPLNS without notice. No warning. No refund.
And then there’s the fact that most pools are hosted on AWS or Google Cloud. So you’re not even mining on a decentralized network-you’re mining on corporate servers, under corporate rules.
Solo mining isn’t ideal, but at least you’re running your own node. You control your own validation. You’re not trusting a third party to tell you what your hash rate is worth.
It’s not about money. It’s about trust. And right now, the entire system is built on blind faith in corporations.
Leisa Mason
December 7, 2025 AT 14:04John Borwick is right, but he’s also being naive. Even solo miners rarely run their own full nodes. Most use pool nodes or public RPC endpoints. So they’re not even achieving the decentralization they claim to want.
And let’s be honest-how many people who 'go solo' actually have the bandwidth, cooling, or power infrastructure to keep a 1 EH farm running 24/7? Zero. It’s all Instagram mining fantasies.
The real winners? The people who sell ASICs. The pool operators. The electricity providers.
You? You’re the product.
Lisa Hubbard
December 9, 2025 AT 12:25I just read this whole thing and now I’m confused. I thought Bitcoin was supposed to be for the people. But now it sounds like you need to be a billionaire to even play. So why am I still here?
Maybe I’m just addicted to the glow of the ASIC lights. Or the hope that one day, I’ll wake up and find a 3.125 BTC reward.
Either way, I’m staying in the pool. At least I can afford my coffee.
Also, why does everyone act like solo mining is a noble cause? It’s just gambling with electricity.
preet kaur
December 11, 2025 AT 07:14From India, I want to say-this is beautiful. The math doesn’t lie. The pool gives me stability. My brother in Canada runs solo. He’s waiting for his first block since 2022. He says it’s spiritual. I say he’s broke.
But I respect both paths. One feeds the body. One feeds the soul. We need both.
Just don’t tell me I’m weak for choosing food over faith.
vinay kumar
December 12, 2025 AT 22:24Why are you even talking about solo mining? It's dead. The network is too big. The ASICs are too expensive. The power too costly. The only people doing it are those who already own a data center and a nuclear reactor.
Stop pretending. Just join a pool. Stop wasting your time and money. Your wife is tired of you talking about Bitcoin at dinner. Just give her the $15 a day and shut up.
Amanda Cheyne
December 13, 2025 AT 05:47Have you ever wondered who really owns the pools? F2Pool is linked to a Chinese state-owned entity. Slush Pool? Backed by a crypto hedge fund in Luxembourg. AntPool? Owned by Bitmain, which has ties to the PLA.
Solo mining might be mathematically impossible-but pool mining is a Trojan horse for global surveillance and control.
They want you to think you’re earning Bitcoin. But you’re actually feeding data to a centralized ledger that can be frozen, taxed, or seized.
Next thing you know, your wallet gets flagged because you mined from 'high-risk jurisdiction'-like your basement in Ohio.
Think about it. Why does every pool require KYC now?
Gus Mitchener
December 14, 2025 AT 20:30Let’s not conflate economic pragmatism with ideological surrender. Pool mining is not antithetical to decentralization-it is its emergent form under conditions of asymmetric capital concentration.
The network’s security is maintained not by the purity of individual actors, but by the aggregate distribution of hash power across heterogeneous participants-even if those participants are aggregated via pools.
True decentralization is systemic, not performative. The block reward is not a prize for ideological purity. It is a subsidy for computational labor. And labor, under late-stage capitalism, is always mediated.
So yes, mine in a pool. But do so with eyes open. Understand that you are participating in a distributed consensus mechanism that is structurally optimized for scalability, not romantic individualism.
The myth of the lone miner was always just that-a myth. The blockchain was never meant for solitary prophets. It was built for networks.