Algorithms

SHA-256

The cryptographic hash function securing Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash — the most ASIC-industrialised mining algorithm in existence.

SHA-256 (Secure Hash Algorithm, 256-bit) is a NSA-designed hash function standardised in 2001 and chosen by Satoshi Nakamoto for Bitcoin. Mining applies it twice to the block header (double-SHA-256). Its simplicity in silicon made it the first and most heavily ASIC-optimised algorithm.

Today SHA-256 hashrate is measured in hundreds of exahashes per second, supplied exclusively by ASICs from a handful of manufacturers. Because Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash share the algorithm, hashrate flows freely between them, keeping per-terahash profitability in near-perfect parity.

Go Deeper on MiningReturns

→ SHA-256 algorithm page
→ Bitcoin Mining Guide

Related Terms

ASIC (Application-Specific Integrated Circuit)
Scrypt

See it in numbers

Model real profitability with live network data.

Open Calculator →