Bitcoin recorded another mining difficulty reduction on May 1, lowering the metric by 2.3% after a 2.43% decline in the prior adjustment on April 17. The back-to-back cuts come as network hashrate continues to soften, with total computational power now sitting below the 1 zettahash per second (ZH/s) threshold.
According to the report, Bitcoin’s hashrate fluctuated between roughly 899 EH/s and 958 EH/s over the 24 hours ending May 3. Not long ago, the network had climbed above 1,000 EH/s, equivalent to 1 ZH/s, but the trend began to weaken after April 19. At block height 947520, when the latest adjustment took effect, hashrate was near 899 EH/s.
Following the latest change, Bitcoin difficulty now stands at 132.47 trillion. This marks the sixth downward adjustment in 2026 out of nine total epochs so far this year. If current conditions hold, that level is expected to remain in place until around May 17, when the next adjustment window is due.
Hashprice improves even as block production slows
One notable development is that miner economics improved despite the decline in network power. Hashprice, a key measure of mining revenue, rose from $34.39 per PH/s to $37.52 per PH/s. That increase suggests miners earned more per unit of computing power during the period, even though aggregate hashrate kept drifting lower from mid-April onward.
At the same time, block production has slowed. On May 3, the average Bitcoin block time was approximately 10 minutes and 28 seconds, slightly above the protocol’s target pace. If that slower tempo persists, another downward difficulty adjustment could emerge around May 17. Still, with more than 1,800 blocks left before the next retarget, the outlook remains fluid.
Mining pool concentration remains in focus
Mining distribution data from the past seven days shows that the Bitcoin network produced 987 blocks. Foundry USA mined 311 blocks, accounting for 31.51% of the total. Antpool followed with around 163 blocks, or 16.51%, while ViaBTC mined 102 blocks, representing 10.33%.
Taken together, those three mining pools controlled 58.35% of the network’s total hashrate over the period, underlining the sector’s continued concentration. Separately, data from miningpoolstats.stream indicates that 115 distinct entities or pools are currently contributing computing power to the Bitcoin network.
For now, Bitcoin mining sits in a narrow balance. Lower difficulty and a stronger hashprice offer near-term relief to miners, but weaker hashrate and slower block times add uncertainty ahead of the next adjustment. Market participants will be watching closely to see whether network power stabilizes or continues to retreat into mid-May.