CPU for mining is one of the main topics related to cryptocurrency mining. Why is CPU mining important? Because it lets users get exposure to the crypto market without having to purchase large and expensive equipment. While most blockchain networks nowadays require unique hardware equipment, in the past CPU mining was a very common thing for those users that were involved in the cryptocurrency market.Â
Thus, what’s the CPU mining landscape nowadays? Is CPU for mining a possible and real thing to perform on the Bitcoin (BTC) or Ethereum (ETH) networks? In the next sections, we are going to discuss how CPU for mining works, how it has evolved over time and how the mining market operates.
What is Cryptocurrency Mining?
Cryptocurrency mining is one of the most important economic activities in the cryptocurrency market. Mining is the process of creating new virtual currencies by solving cryptographic problems. In order to do that, it is necessary to use computing power. Thus, CPUs have been one of the main ways in which users could mine digital currencies in the market.
However, not all cryptocurrency networks require mining to operate. Bitcoin certainly does, Ethereum as of yet, and Litecoin, among others. These are known as Proof-of-Work (PoW) networks, which require energy and effort to process transactions.
Proof-of-Stake (PoS) networks do not require mining to process transactions. Cardano (ADA) is an example of a PoS digital asset and ETH 2.0 is expected to be released as a PoS network.
Miners basically use the transactions that are approved by the network and add them to blocks. Each network has different block times, Bitcoin has 10 minutes blocks and Litecoin 2.5 minute blocks. Everything depends on the cryptocurrency and the blockchain network.
Due to the fact that miners process transactions, purchase specialized equipment and help the network become more secure, they are rewarded with virtual currencies. Bitcoin miners are currently rewarded with 6.25 BTC every time they solve a block. Meanwhile, Litecoin miners receive 12.5 LTC per block.
The rewards for conducting mining activities are different depending on the blockchain network. Moreover, there are many other things that would have an impact on your profitability while mining virtual currencies.
Some things you should also take into consideration include the mining device that you use, the blockchain network’s difficulty, the price of the electricity sources you use and many other things. If you want to use CPU for mining, it might be profitable but it would also not give you as many rewards as using ASICs or GPU mining devices.
You should also take into consideration that the largest mining farms require employees and contracts with other companies. Thus, the expenditures would be much larger for larger investors.
What is CPU Mining?
CPU for mining is a cryptocurrency activity in which you will be able to mine virtual currencies using your CPU. This was something very profitable at the beginning of the crypto expansion when Bitcoin (BTC) was worth less than a dollar. These times were very popular to mine Bitcoin using just a simple CPU.
CPU for mining is just one of the different methods by which users can mine digital assets. Nowadays, with the growth of blockchain networks, it is almost impossible to mine cryptocurrencies using a CPU. Thus, CPU for mining became a thing that can only be done in small and almost unknown virtual currencies in the cryptocurrency market.
In the beginning, when Bitcoin was just a simple digital currency used by cryptographers, CPU mining was very popular. People were able to get 50 BTC just by using faucets and providing their mining power (through CPU). This was possible thanks to the fact that CPU mining provided enough hashes to process the transactions that were currently handled by the Bitcoin network (few transactions).
As Bitcoin started to expand, CPU for mining became something of the past. Users realized that it was faster and easier to mine Bitcoin using GPUs rather than CPUs. Thus, the whole Bitcoin mining industry became more specialized and the Bitcoin network more secure. Now, it was possible to onboard a larger number of users without the risk of experiencing a double-spending attack.
The larger the hash rate of the network, the more secure it becomes. Nowadays, Bitcoin is the most secure blockchain network in the world. This is expected to continue in this way as Ethereum is now moving towards a PoS consensus algorithm.
Again, with the expansion of Bitcoin, it was necessary to create a specialized device that would be able to produce more hashes and in a more efficient way. This is why ASIC miners were created. ASIC miners are much more powerful than CPU for mining or GPU devices.
Nonetheless, these devices are also much more expensive and difficult to run than CPU for mining. For example, ASIC miners need a lot of energy, they are noisy and they also require the correct temperature to operate. Thus, it becomes something less convenient for small investors.
CPU Mining Profitability
So, where is CPU for mining profitability nowadays? We need to know that there are few cryptocurrency networks that let you mine with your CPU, but none of them is expected to offer you the returns you expect.
If you are planning to mine Bitcoin in the current landscape with a CPU, you might end up burning it and not being able to earn even 0.0001 BTC. The best thing you can do if you want to mine cryptocurrencies is to purchase the correct equipment and hardware.
CPU mining profitability was very high when Bitcoin was launched to the market. Back then in 2009, 2010 and even 2011, it was still profitable to mine Bitcoin using a simple CPU. Nowadays, it is definitely an impossible thing to do that could damage your CPU rather than give you any type of benefit.
Many consider that it might be better to buy Bitcoin rather than start using a CPU for mining. This is because it could be much more expensive to process the hashing power the network needs using a CPU than the actual rewards you will get by doing so.
Another thing that is worth mentioning is that investors that want to start mining Bitcoin should spend large amounts of money on ASIC hardware and the necessary installations for the whole mining process to take place.
This is a very competitive industry that requires investors to reduce their costs to the minimum and also to be at the forefront of the market with the newest and most powerful devices available. Otherwise, they risk not being profitable and losing their initial investment.
We have seen many times how ASIC miners have been sold out to the secondary market for very low prices. Thus, it is definitely important to create a good business plan and avoid CPU for mining.
Best CPU For Mining
There are different CPUs available in the market that would let users mine other types of digital currencies like Bytecoin or even ZCash (ZEC). But this is not the case for Bitcoin or Ethereum. We have already explained that investors would need to invest large sums of money if they want to start Bitcoin mining.
It is also worth taking into account that the mining industry is heavily reliant on international markets. If microprocessing chips are in high demand, then you should patiently wait for producers to start accelerating their production. Additionally, you will also see price fluctuations as miners tend to sell their GPUs as soon as the cryptocurrency market falls.
Thus, this is not only a very cyclic industry but it is also a very difficult industry to manage, as you will find very high prices for GPUs or CPUs that were cheaper just weeks ago and in days they skyrocket in price.
Despite that, it is possible to buy and use different CPUs for mining, including the AMD Ryzen Thread Ripper 3970X, the AMD Ryzen 9 3950X, an Intel Pentium Gold G-6400 and AMD Ryzen 5, 3600X. There are many other CPU miners in the market, but you should make an analysis on which is the best of them to mine.
The most powerful is going to give you better results, but they might not be a power-efficient solution. You should find something that would let you earn and mine virtual currencies without destroying your CPU and that would give you some benefits in the long term.
As we have already mentioned, if you want to seriously start mining virtual currencies, you should definitely search for ASIC miners and get access to the Bitcoin network. If you have a lower budget, GPU mining could be a great solution if you want to mine Ethereum, for example.
Why is GPU Better than CPU For Bitcoin Mining?
There are many reasons why GPU mining is better than CPU for mining. The first thing that we need to take into consideration is that they are more energy-efficient. Basically, if you care about energy, then you should focus on GPUs rather than CPUs. Thus, it would be a great option if you want to start mining virtual currencies.
When you participate in a blockchain network through mining, you do not want to overpay for the hash power that you offer to the network. This is something that you can do by making your operations more efficient.
GPUs are also efficient as they do not require to spend large amounts of money as other types of miners such as ASICs. Thus, GPUs can be very useful if you want to be a small miner with a stake in the cryptocurrency market without having to spend large amounts of money but with good hashing power provided by GPUs.
It will be much more profitable to use a GPU mining rig than a CPU mining structure. This is because it is now only possible to mine a few digital currencies using CPUs rather than GPUs. The larger the blockchain network, the larger the mining power required in order to process transactions and get rewarded with the currency of that network.
Finally, if you want to mine Bitcoin, you might struggle to do so with CPUs and GPUs. Thus, the only viable way to mine Bitcoin would be by using specialized mining hardware rather than other alternatives. If you are serious about mining Bitcoin, then, this is the right way to go.
CPU Mining Calculator
If we now talk about CPU mining calculators, then we should analyse the options available on the internet. A CPU mining calculator would let you understand whether it is profitable or not to mine virtual currencies using a CPU.
CPU for mining is not the first option for mining experts, but if you want to start mining with a CPU, then you should definitely analyse the possible rewards with a CPU mining calculator.
These sites will request information about your hash power (the CPU that you have), the energy consumption of your device and the price of the electricity you use. In this way, the CPU mining calculator would let you know whether you will be profitable and how much you are expected to earn if you start using a CPU for mining.
You will realize that the earnings proposed by CPU mining are quite small and might not be even enough to cover up the losses. In the worst-case scenario, your CPU could stop working as it might be heavily used.
Final Words on CPU Mining
CPU for mining has been very popular in the last years, but mostly when Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies were just starting to grow. Nowadays, it might only be possible to perform profitable mining activities if we use GPUs or ASIC miners. This is because network requirements have surpassed the power that a simple CPU could generate.
You can check an online CPU mining calculator if you want to know which is the profitability of mining digital currencies using your CPU machine. It is highly possible that you might not be able to earn anything with CPU mining. If you want to be a real miner, you should invest in GPUs or ASIC miners and start protecting some of the largest networks in the cryptocurrency market.
