Bitcoin Mining Weekly Recap: May 18-24, 2026

This week in Bitcoin mining presented moderate activity across major mining pools, with network hashrate maintaining steady levels around 680-690 EH/s. The week saw typical seasonal patterns with no major difficulty adjustments anticipated before the next epoch.

Hashrate Trends

Pool hashrate distribution remained relatively stable throughout week 20, with leading pools maintaining their market positions. Antpool continued to lead with approximately 22% of network hashrate, followed by Foundry USA and AntPool's secondary operations. Smaller pools showed consistent participation, indicating healthy network decentralization.

Difficulty Analysis

Network difficulty held steady at approximately 84.7 trillion, with no significant adjustments during this period. Mining profitability remained consistent for efficient operations, though electricity costs continued to be the primary variable affecting miner margins across different geographic regions.

Payout Efficiency

Major pools reported stable payout efficiency rates between 98.5-99.2%, with minimal variance week-over-week. Transaction fees contributed approximately 3-4% to block rewards, providing supplementary income for miners during this period of moderate network activity.

Notable Events

Week 20 saw routine mining operations with no major network events or protocol changes. Bitcoin price volatility remained moderate, supporting steady mining operations. Several pools reported minor infrastructure updates to optimize block propagation times.

Outlook

Looking ahead to week 21, miners should monitor the upcoming difficulty adjustment scheduled for late May. Network conditions appear favorable for continued mining operations, with no anticipated major disruptions to hashrate distribution or profitability metrics.