On October 16, 2026, at block 971,712, Bitcoin's mining difficulty rose 5.92%, from 132.72 to 140.58 trillion. It is the third-largest increase of the year and the highest level since March 5, 2026. The network's computing power (hashrate) has passed 1 zettahash per second, or about 1,025 exahashes per second, while hashprice, the estimated revenue a miner earns per unit of computing power, stands at around 36.75 dollars per petahash per second per day.
Difficulty is recalculated automatically every 2,016 blocks, roughly every two weeks, so that the network produces one block every ten minutes on average. When new machines join, blocks arrive faster and difficulty goes up; when miners switch off, it goes down. This mechanism, in place since Bitcoin launched in 2009, keeps the issuance of new bitcoin predictable regardless of how much computing power is deployed.
Higher difficulty means each miner earns fewer bitcoin for the same computing power: in practice a pay cut, especially for operators with expensive electricity. The increase reflects computing power returning after mining revenue improved earlier in the month, when hashprice briefly topped 41 dollars. For users, a high hashrate strengthens network security, because an attack becomes more expensive.
The next adjustment is expected around October 28, 2026. Early estimates point to another increase of about 14%, a provisional figure that can still change significantly depending on how fast blocks are found until then.
