Bitcoin’s network hashrate has moved back above the 1 ZH/s threshold, but miner profitability remains strained. As of March 28, the network was running at 1.02 ZH/s, or about 1,022 EH/s, while the seven-day average stood at 1,007 EH/s. That compares with a seven-day simple moving average of 931 EH/s on March 18, implying that miners added roughly 76 EH/s of computing power within ten days.
Rising hashrate brings fresh difficulty pressure
The rebound in hashrate has also pushed block production above Bitcoin’s 10-minute target. Over the past 24 hours, the average block interval was about 9 minutes and 23 seconds. As a result, the next difficulty adjustment, expected on April 2, 2026, is projected to increase by around 6.43%. The previous adjustment had reduced difficulty by 7.76%. At the time of reporting, about 1,200 of the 2,016 blocks needed for the next retarget had already been mined.
Even as network power rises, miner revenue per unit of hash has weakened. Hashprice reached a March high of $33.85 per PH/s per day on March 25, then fell to $31.60 per PH/s per day, a decline of 6.65% or $2.25 in three days. Those levels remain near historically depressed ranges, underscoring how tight mining economics have become despite stronger network participation.
Low fees leave miners with limited relief
Miners are currently earning about 3.14 BTC per block, including transaction fees. However, fees are contributing very little to total rewards. In the past 24 hours, on-chain fees accounted for only 0.43% of block rewards, with fee rates around 2.4 sats/vB. Data cited from bitinfocharts.com showed the average transaction fee at roughly 0.000004 BTC, or about $0.27 per transfer.
The combination of stronger hashrate, falling hashprice, and weak fee income suggests miners are still choosing to keep machines online despite shrinking margins. That may indicate a bet that market conditions will improve before financial pressure forces a broader pullback. If difficulty rises as expected in early April and fee activity remains muted, miner profitability could face another round of compression.