Bitcoin difficulty jumps 15% largest increase since 2021, despite price slump
Analysis
Price Impact
HighA significant 15% jump in bitcoin mining difficulty, the largest since 2021, coupled with a recovery in hashrate to 1 zh/s despite multi-year low hashprice, signals strong miner confidence and network resilience. this fundamental strength indicates a robust and secure network, which can underpin long-term price appreciation.
Trustworthiness
HighThe information is sourced from coindesk, a reputable crypto news outlet, and refers to verifiable on-chain metrics like mining difficulty and hashrate, providing a solid basis for analysis.
Price Direction
BullishThe substantial increase in mining difficulty and hashrate recovery suggests strong long-term conviction among miners, indicating a healthy and secure network. this fundamental strength is a bullish signal for bitcoin's long-term value, even if short-term price action remains volatile due to market sentiment and geopolitical events.
Time Effect
LongThe mining difficulty adjustment reflects fundamental network health and miner commitment, which are long-term drivers for bitcoin's value rather than immediate, short-term price catalysts. miners are showing long-term confidence despite current profitability squeeze.
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Markets Share Share this article Copy link X icon X (Twitter) LinkedIn Facebook Email Bitcoin difficulty jumps 15% largest increase since 2021, despite price slump Bitcoin difficulty rebounds to 144.4T as hashrate recovers to 1 ZH/s despite multi year low hashprice. By James Van Straten | Edited by Sam Reynolds Feb 20, 2026, 6:43 a.m. Make us preferred on Google BTC (Difficulty Adjustment Percentage Change (Glassnode) What to know : Bitcoin mining difficulty rose to 144.4T, jumped 15%, the biggest percentage increase since 2021. Hashrate has recovered to 1 ZH/s from 826 EH/s, even as hashprice sits at multi year lows around $23.9 per PH/s. Bitcoin mining difficulty has climbed to 144.4 trillion (T), up 15%, the largest percentage increase since 2021, when the China mining ban led to a major disruption, which followed a 22% upward adjustment as the network stabilized. Difficulty adjustments measure how hard it is to mine a new block on the network. It recalibrates every 2,016 blocks, roughly every two weeks, to ensure blocks continue to be produced about every 10 minutes, regardless of changes in the hashrate. STORY CONTINUES BELOW Don't miss another story. Subscribe to the Crypto Daybook Americas Newsletter today . See all newsletters Sign me up By signing up, you will receive emails about CoinDesk products and you agree to our terms & conditions and privacy policy . The adjustment follows a 12% decline in difficulty after a drop in the bitcoin hashrate, which is the total computational power securing the network. Mining activity suffered its sharpest setback since late 2021 after a severe winter storm in the United States forced several major operators to scale back operations. In October, when bitcoin reached an all-time high of around $126,500, the hashrate also peaked at 1.1 zettahash per second (ZH/s). As prices fell to as low as $60,000 in February, the hashrate dropped to 826 exahash per second (EH/s). Since then, the hashrate has recovered to 1 ZH/s while the price has rebounded to around $67,000. At the same time, hashprice, the estimated daily revenue miners earn per unit of hashrate, remains at multi-year lows ($23.9 PH/s), squeezing profitability. Despite this profitability pressure, large-scale operators with access to low-cost energy continue to mine aggressively. The United Arab Emirates , for example, is sitting on roughly $344 million in unrealized profit from its mining operations. Well-capitalized entities that can mine efficiently are helping keep the hashrate elevated and resilient, even amid subdued bitcoin prices. Bitcoin News Hashrate Mining Difficulty More For You Zoomex: Precise Systems of Fairness and Transparency by Design By CoinDesk Jan 31, 2026 Commissioned by Zoomex Read full story More For You Bitcoin nears $68,000, gold jumps as US-Iran tensions return By Shaurya Malwa 35 minutes ago Geopolitical tensions and a cautious tone in U.S. stocks are keeping risk appetite in check, and some strategists warn of a potential retest of 2024 lows before a more sustained recovery. What to know : Bitcoin climbed toward $68,000 in Asia trading in a broad crypto bounce, though ether lagged below the closely watched $2,000 level. Analysts say the move looks more like a fragile relief rally than a durable trend, with big holders sending record bitcoin inflows to Binance that could signal selling into strength. Geopolitical tensions and a cautious tone in U.S. stocks are keeping risk appetite in check, and some strategists warn of a potential retest of 2024 lows before a more sustained recovery. Read full story Latest Crypto News Bitcoin nears $68,000, gold jumps as US-Iran tensions return 35 minutes ago Bitcoin logs worst first 50-day start to a year on record 58 minutes ago Metaplanet CEO rebuts critics over bitcoin strategy and transparency 1 hour ago Inside the meeting: White House favors some stablecoin rewards, tells banks it's time to move 8 hours ago Bitcoin steadies near $67,000 as traders pay for crash protection 9 hours ago Latest White House talks on stablecoin yield make 'progress' with banks, no deal yet 11 hours ago Top Stories Susquehanna-backed Blockfills up for sale after $75 million lending loss 13 hours ago Eric Trump reitrates claim bitcoin is just getting started on its road to $1 million 12 hours ago Fed's Neel Kashkari calls crypto 'utterly useless,' dismisses stablecoins as 'buzzword salad' 14 hours ago Robinhood vs. Vitalik: Why the trading app is building it own L2 while Ethereum founder cools on them 14 hours ago U.S. Federal Reserve researchers sing praises of prediction markets 13 hours ago Trump-linked World Liberty taps BlackRock-backed Securitize for hotel tokenization 14 hours ago