Cryptocurrency mining has exploded in popularity—spurring debates spanning everything from its role in the ongoing global scrap shortage to the potential environmental effects. Nonetheless, there’s absolutely no dubiety that mining can be profitable, and fifty-fifty more than and then if washed at scale. So can anyone turn a profit from cryptocurrency mining, and what does one need to get started?



In this article, let’s explore how much you can expect to earn from cryptocurrency mining and if doing so is even worth information technology anymore.



What Practise You Need to Start Mining Crypto?


graphic card


The first thing you lot’ll need to mine cryptocurrency is a powerful calculator. The amount of money you lot earn scales linearly with the computational ability you contribute to the network. This is why you’ll also discover individuals renting unabridged warehouses and filling them to the brim with computers, solely for cryptocurrency mining.


On a more reasonable level though, you lot will need a computer with a relatively recent graphics card. PC gamers are probable familiar with the role of a graphics card. But in a nutshell, it is a specialized piece of hardware designed specifically for certain applications, including graphics rendering and crunching numbers for cryptocurrency mining.


Assuming your PC is already outfitted with a mid to high-end GPU though, yous have everything needed to start mining.




Computing Potential Profits From Crypto Mining

For a while now, Ethereum has reigned supreme in terms of profitability—far outshining any other mine-able cryptocurrency on the market. In the by, notwithstanding, other cryptocurrencies proved equally profitable to mine. Well-nigh notably, in 2017, tokens such as ZCash were a viable choice.

Still, in 2021, there’southward little doubt that Ethereum is the virtually assisting cryptocurrency to mine on a consumer-grade calculator. A handful of other cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin and Litecoin, can only exist mined on specialized hardware called ASICs—which are hard to come past compared to calculator hardware.




If you own i of the latest generation graphics cards, such as Nvidia’south RTX 3060 Ti or 3080, there’s significant money to be made. According to WhatToMine, a website that keeps track of cryptocurrency mining profitability, you can expect to earn as much equally $7 per solar day with an RTX 3080.


However, yous must besides retrieve to account for the electricity used to power the card. Bold the global average electric toll of ten cents per kilowatt-hour, you would lose around $0.60 to your electricity company each day—around ten% of your revenue. Over the course of a calendar month though, a single RTX 3080 should deliver effectually $180 in pure turn a profit.



Profitability of RTX 3080

Estimated profitability for a unmarried RTX 3080 in May 2021


It’s worth noting that these numbers are calculated based on a myriad of factors and variables, including luck, mining difficulty, prevailing transaction fees, and the price of Ethereum itself. On the day the higher up calculation was performed, Ethereum was trading at roughly $2,300. If its valuation were to modify significantly, however, yous can expect your revenue to change as well.

The corporeality of coin you earn also depends on how busy the Ethereum network currently is. During times of network congestion, for instance, miners will earn more than as users are forced to pay higher fees for their transactions to complete.




How to Become Started With Crypto Mining

If you lot’d like to avoid dealing with the hassles of picking and configuring various mining software, Nicehash is among the near convenient tools out there.


Using Nicehash is as unproblematic as downloading the miner and running it. Information technology is designed to automatically detect the hardware in your system and may even be able to optimize it for maximum performance. The but downside is that it tin can be a impact less profitable as compared to setting everything upwardly from scratch.


Having said that though, you volition likely get much meliorate results if you enquiry the all-time overclocking and undervolting settings for your graphics card. Applying an overclock is fairly straightforward these days, and the adventure of damaging your GPU is slim to none, but more on that later.


Since electricity is the biggest cost you need to offset, your goal should be to maximize the performance per watt of your system. In instance you’re in a hurry though, utilize WhatToMine’s suggested overclock and power limits (TDP) for your carte du jour as a baseline. Since every GPU is different, fine-melody the settings to reach your own sweet spot. Call back, the goal is to maximize performance while keeping the power draw as low as possible.


suggested settings

WhatToMine’s suggested settings for an Nvidia RTX 2060




Does Crypto Mining Wear Out Your Hardware Faster?

A misconception prevalent amidst those new to crypto mining is that the process has the potential to wear out your hardware faster. However, the truth is far more nuanced than that. Have an culling use-case for graphics cards such as gaming, for instance.


While gaming, your GPU is constantly forced to ramp up and downwardly the amount of ability it draws depending on the scene it is rendering. This results in the GPU chip experiencing thermal spikes and the fans on the card ramping upwardly or down depending on the workload.


Mining, on the other mitt, applies a consistent load on your hardware. This keeps the GPU at a consistent temperature. Furthermore, since you will likely undervolt or power limit the card, the chances are that it will produce less estrus than while gaming.




Is It Also Tardily to Get-go Cryptocurrency Mining?

If you lot already own a capable estimator today, cryptocurrency mining offers a relatively easy and hands-free passive earning opportunity. The primary affair to be cautious about is the toll of electricity in your area.


Without a graphics menu already in your easily though, it’s likely that you won’t be able to mine cryptocurrencies anytime before long. As you may have heard, demand for GPUs has sent prices soaring—making the profitability equation far more complicated.



Before you pull the trigger on an overpriced GPU purchase though, recall that Ethereum is currently in the midst of doing away with mining birthday. Beyond a year or 2, nobody knows whether cryptocurrency mining will be as lucrative as it is today.


Paradigm Credit: Dmitry Demidko/Unsplash