Bitcoin Mining Difficulty Stays Below Record High for 374 Days, Longest Such Stretch Ever

Bitcoin mining difficulty has remained below its record high for 374 consecutive days, marking the longest such stretch on record.

Bitcoin.com said on November 7 that mining difficulty has stayed below the all-time high of 155.97T set on October 29 last year for 374 days. That tops the previous record of 364 days set after Bitcoin's 2011 crash. Following China's mining ban in 2021, it took 253 days for difficulty to return to a record high.

Mining difficulty is a gauge of how much computational work is required to create a new block on the Bitcoin network. It is adjusted about every two weeks and varies with the amount of computing power participating in mining.

In mid-June, mining difficulty fell to 124.93T, roughly 20% below the record high. It later recovered to 148.36T on October 29, but still remained below the peak.

A return to the all-time high appears unlikely for the time being. Mempool.space projects the next difficulty adjustment, scheduled for November 13, will bring a further decline of about 3.7%.

Deteriorating profitability in the mining industry is cited as the main reason. With Bitcoin prices remaining weak and operating costs rising, more miners are selling their Bitcoin holdings or shifting to AI data center businesses.