September 11, 2026
Zcash is a Bitcoin-like digital currency with additional privacy features. Both networks are secured by proof-of-work (PoW) mining, in which specialized computers solve computation challenges to earn rewards and update the blockchain. Due to strong token price performance, Zcash mining has become highly profitable, which in turn encourages more mining activity and reinforces network security.
The specific details differ, but both Zcash and Bitcoin PoW mining use the same basic structure: miners compete to solve a specific challenge, they produce hashes and compare the result to a target, and the target adjusts to maintain a roughly steady block time.1 The Bitcoin network is much larger and offers a higher aggregate miner reward: approximately $35 million per day versus roughly $2 million per day for Zcash.
However, Zcash mining is more profitable for an individual miner. We estimate that Zcash miner rewards are ~2x higher than Bitcoin rewards per mining rig per day, and ~4x higher per megawatt hour (MWh), although the machines themselves are not interoperable.2 Other sources suggest Zcash mining is currently more profitable per MWh than certain AI/high-performance computing (HPC) cloud services.3
More profitable mining encourages more mining activity. Using a standard measure of Zcash mining power, total activity has risen more than 2.5x this year (Exhibit 1). In a virtuous circle, higher token prices drive higher mining activity, which increases network security, and that may help sustain higher prices.
Key Takeaway: At current valuations, Zcash mining can be highly profitable. This is encouraging more mining activity which in turn supports network security.
Exhibit 1: Zcash mining activity is up ~2.5x this year
