Bitcoin mining difficulty falls 10% as hashprice climbs above $30
Bitcoin's mining difficulty dropped 10.09% on Sunday, offering miners some relief on costs after a pullback in network hashrate. Galaxy Research said difficulty declined to 124.93 trillion from 138.96 trillion at block 953,568, ranking as the 11th-largest decrease on record.
The reset comes during a difficult month for miners. Galaxy estimates Bitcoin's price is down about 15% in June, a move it said has tightened miner margins. The latest adjustment period also stretched to 15.6 days versus the usual 14 days, a sign that some capacity went offline during the window and amplified the size of the cut.
Galaxy described the shift as the second-biggest difficulty decline of 2026 so far. Difficulty now sits roughly 20% below its November peak, pointing to a broader normalization in mining conditions rather than a single, isolated disruption.
Network hashrate, which drives how competitive mining is in practice, has also been trending lower. Data referenced from Blockchain.com puts hashrate around 886 exahashes per second (EH/s), down about 12% since the start of June and 23% below the October high. Crypto trader Merlijn Enkelaar said the remaining miners are earning about 9% more per machine, reflecting the combination of lower difficulty and reduced competition.
A key profitability gauge, hashprice, rose after the difficulty drop. Hashrate Index data shows hashprice up 13% to about $33 per PH/s/day. Energy Mag reported that the move pushes more efficient fleets toward gross breakeven, improving the odds that well-run operators can stay profitable even in a soft market. It also noted that older, less efficient machines—often facing higher power and operating costs—are more likely to be switched off when hashprice fails to cover expenses.
Large difficulty declines have occurred before, typically when hashrate falls faster than expected or mining economics deteriorate quickly. The report pointed to an over-11% decline in February tied to storm-related curtailments and a separate 25% BTC price drop, and cited the steepest drop in July 2021 after China's mining ban.
Looking ahead, the next difficulty adjustment is expected around June 27. Coinwarz projections call for a modest 1.69% increase to roughly 127 trillion, suggesting a smaller move unless hashrate weakens again. Miners and investors will be watching whether hashrate continues to drift lower and whether hashprice can stay above the $30 level long enough to keep less efficient equipment online.
