As the total network hash rate of Bitcoin first surpassed 1 Zetta hashes per second (ZH/s) in August 2025, and by December stabilized around 1.1 ZH/s, it means that the global mining power has reached a scale of 110 quintillion hashes per second. The question is—despite the record high hash rate, miners are finding it even harder to make a profit.

How cheap can Bitmain's mining machines now be? The answer is the "fire sale price" of just $3 per terahash. The underlying reason is quite straightforward: the core metric for measuring mining profitability, the "hash price," has fallen to only $35 to $38 per PH/s per day, far below the industry-recognized breakeven line of $40.

This is the most ironic aspect of Bitcoin mining industry at the end of 2025. On one hand, it's the most competitive period—total network hash rate hitting a new high, meaning more and more competitors are entering and becoming stronger. On the other hand, it's the least profitable period—miners' hash price in December has been hovering between $38 and $39.4, gradually squeezing their survival space.

What’s even more heartbreaking is that Bitcoin's price remains stable around $90,000, neither surging to bring surprises to miners nor dropping sharply to trigger market clearing. The "lukewarm" attitude of the coin price instead highlights the harsh reality of declining mining returns. Miners are caught between the dual pressures of intense hash rate competition and shrinking profits. This dilemma of "high hash rate, low returns" tests the survival will of the entire industry.