Bitcoin mining difficulty drops 2.43% to 135.59T

Bitcoin mining difficulty declined by 2.43% on April 17, 2026, reaching 135.59 trillion. This marks the fifth downward adjustment this year. At the same time, hashprice increased by 13.65%, providing temporary relief for miners. The development is significant as it highlights the balance between network load and mining profitability.

Source: CloverPool

Bitcoin mining difficulty drops after recent increase

The Bitcoin network recorded another difficulty adjustment. The metric dropped from 138.96 trillion to 135.59 trillion. This followed a previous increase of 3.87%.

Lower difficulty makes block production easier. However, total network hashrate remains above 1 ZH/s.

Average block time has accelerated to 9 minutes 35 seconds. This suggests a potential upward adjustment in the next cycle.

Why Bitcoin mining difficulty declined

The decline in difficulty reflects network dynamics and miner behavior. Activity slowed during 2025 but shows early signs of recovery in 2026.

Key drivers include:

• rising Bitcoin price
• 13.65% increase in hashprice
• shifting hashpower distribution

Hashprice represents daily revenue per PH/s. Its growth directly improves mining profitability.

Meanwhile, transaction fees remain low. Average fees are about 1 satoshi per byte. Fees account for only 0.45% of total miner revenue.

How lower difficulty affects miner profitability

Current conditions provide short-term relief for miners. Lower difficulty and higher revenue improve margins.

However, risks remain:

• sustained high hashrate
• faster block production
• likely difficulty increase

If trends continue, the next adjustment may reverse direction. This would reduce profitability and increase competition.

Current conditions for Bitcoin mining

The mining sector remains highly sensitive to network metrics. Even small shifts in difficulty and price impact profitability.

The current environment shows:

• short-term easing of mining conditions
• strong competitive pressure
• rapid market recalibration cycles

For the industry, this means operators must stay flexible. They need to track both hashprice and network performance. Long-term success depends on efficiency and energy costs.

Read also: Bitcoin mining faces pressure ahead of 2028 halving