SHA256 Strikes Back: Bitcoin’s Mining Algorithm Reclaims the Throne in 2025

When 2024 wrapped up, the SHA256 consensus algorithm used by Bitcoin ranked third in profitability, but now, as we kick off June 2025, it shares the top spot, matched up with Litecoin’s Scrypt.

SHA256 and Scrypt Tie for Top Mining Profits in June 2025

Dec. 29, 2024 saw Scrypt, the mining method for litecoin ( LTC) and dogecoin ( DOGE), sitting pretty as the leading mining algorithm. Fast forward to June 2025, and the tables have turned; SHA256 now claims the crown, though just by a hair, thanks to Bitmain’s Antminer S21e XP hydro 3U unit packing a punch of 860 terahash per second (TH/s).

Using a median of $0.10 per kilowatt hour (kWh), the Antminer S21e XP hydro 3U churns out an estimated $18.24 daily based on the existing hashprice. Essentially, hashprice is the calculated value of 1 terahash or petahash per second (TH/s and PH/s)—in this instance, TH/s—of the daily hashpower. Trailing the Antminer, which boasts 860 TH/s, sits the Volcminer D1 Hydro, a creation of Teckvia Limited.

At the same $0.10 per kWh rate, the Volcminer D1 Hydro pulls in about $17.55 daily with 30 gigahash per second (GH/s). Following SHA256 and Scrypt, Zksnark emerges as the next top earner for mining the digital asset ALEO. Figures reveal that 300 megahash per second (MH/s) of Zksnark hashpower translates to approximately $10.07 per day. RandomX mining is also turning a profit, with monero (XMR) prices faring nicely in 2025; roughly 212 kilohash per second (KH/s) of hashrate generates an estimated $9.70 per day.

Below the Zksnark and RandomX algorithms, you’ll find kaspa’s (KAS) Kheavyhash consensus algorithm and ethereum classic’s ( ETC) Ethash. The mining sector’s hierarchy has shifted dramatically since 2022 when Kadena and Scrypt dominated, and Ethereum’s proof-of-stake (PoS) transition upended the market. By 2025, relentless ASIC advancements—like Bitmain’s hydro-cooled S21e XP—have propelled SHA256 back to the top.

Concurrent with this evolution, Scrypt, Zksnark, and RandomX have established a formidable second tier. Operational effectiveness, not merely the worth of the digital currency, presently governs profitability; minute enhancements in computational power and electricity utilization distinguish successful ventures from outdated equipment. Instability alone persists: techniques like Kheavyhash and Eaglesong, previously preeminent in 2023, have declined, whereas veteran adversaries (SHA256) have bounced back owing to innovative technological leaps in hardware.