After dropping by 7.76% in the previous difficulty epoch, Bitcoin difficulty increased by 3.87% at block height 943488. This latest correction represents the third increase recorded so far this year.
Important points:
- In block 943488, the hashrate decreased by 60.45 EH/s, which increased Bitcoin difficulty by 3.87%. A reduction of 15.73% is expected.
- Miners face hash price of 30.67 PH/s and 0.56% fees, encouraging companies to move towards AI $BTC mining.
- As the Bitcoin network nears April 19, 2026, the slowing of the 11:51 block signals a correction that will ease future difficulties.
Bitcoin mining becomes tougher
The Bitcoin network has recorded seven corrections this year, with three increases and four decreases. The most recent drop two weeks ago was significant, arriving after consecutive gains of 14.73% and 0.45% in the previous two epochs.
After the latest adjustment, the difficulty rating has increased by 3.87%, making blocks extremely difficult to find and 138.97 trillion times more difficult than Bitcoin’s launch.
As of 4:00 PM ET, 181 of the 2,016 blocks of the current epoch have been mined, and the network is approximately 9% of the way to the next correction expected on April 19, 2026. Although the adjustment is still in its early stages and the situation could change significantly between now and then, current estimates predict a reduction of 14.27%.
This outlook stems from a notable drop in block intervals over the past day, with the average block time at 11 minutes and 39 seconds, well above the expected 10-minute pace, according to data from hashrateindex.com.
What’s behind this change? Decrease in hashrate. Bitcoin.com News reported on March 28 that the total computing power of the Bitcoin network has exceeded 1,000 exahashes per second (EH/s), or 1 zettahash per second (ZH/s). On that day, the hashpower reached 1,022 EH/s, but currently it is 60.45 EH/s lower at 961.55 EH/s.
Tightening tightens due to revenue compression
Revenue compression is likely to be a key factor in the economic downturn, along with mining operations choosing to allocate resources to artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure rather than mining. $BTC Pursue stronger returns. Infrastructure providers that deploy megawatts to AI rather than Bitcoin mining can realize significantly higher returns. This dynamic is persuading many operators today to change their focus.
The daily hash price of $30.67 per petahash per second (PH/s) ranks among the lowest profit levels Bitcoin miners have faced since the network’s early days, when Bitcoin’s valuation was much lower. With 106,335 blocks left until the next halving, things could get even tougher.
Adding to the pressure, miners can no longer rely on fees, which make up just 0.56% of block rewards. In effect, the system appears to be nearing breaking point. However, Bitcoin difficulty adjustment is designed for exactly this scenario. As miners withdraw and the hashrate drops, the difficulty is adjusted downward to lure participants back to more accessible conditions.
