Estimate your GPU mining profitability — daily profit, electricity break-even rate, and 24-month ROI timeline
GPU mining profitability is one of the most searched topics in the cryptocurrency space, and for good reason: the difference between a profitable mining operation and a money-losing one often comes down to a few inputs — your hashrate, your power draw, and most critically, your electricity rate. Our free GPU Mining Calculator takes all of these variables into account to give you a comprehensive picture of what you can realistically earn from GPU mining in 2026. Graphics card mining remains relevant despite the shift of many coins to proof-of-stake. Several major mineable cryptocurrencies still rely on GPU-friendly algorithms that are deliberately ASIC-resistant. Ravencoin (RVN) uses the KawPow algorithm, Ergo (ERGO) uses Autolykos2, Ethereum Classic (ETC) uses Ethash, Kaspa (KAS) uses KHeavyHash, Zcash (ZEC) uses Equihash, and Monero (XMR) uses RandomX. Each algorithm is designed to keep mining accessible to consumer GPUs rather than specialized mining hardware. This calculator includes a pre-populated database of over 20 popular GPU models from NVIDIA and AMD, including the RTX 4090, RTX 3090, RTX 3080, RTX 3070, RTX 3060, RX 7900 XTX, RX 6800 XT, RX 5700 XT, and many more. When you select a GPU, the hashrate and power consumption fields are automatically populated with real-world benchmark data, giving you an accurate starting point. You can override these values with your actual overclocked or undervolted figures for even more precise results. Beyond the basic daily profit calculation, this tool covers everything serious miners need to evaluate an opportunity. The electricity break-even rate tells you the maximum cost per kilowatt-hour at which mining remains profitable — a critical number when comparing electricity contracts or evaluating different mining locations. The power sensitivity table shows your projected daily profit at six different electricity rates from $0.05 to $0.20 per kWh, helping you visualize exactly how sensitive your operation is to energy costs. The hardware ROI timeline chart plots cumulative profit against your initial hardware investment over 24 months, giving you a clear visual of when your mining rig pays for itself. You can also apply an expected monthly difficulty increase percentage to model how rising network difficulty will erode profitability over time — an important consideration since network difficulty typically increases as more miners join the network. Farm scaling is supported through the number of GPUs input. Whether you are running a single card or a multi-GPU rig, all calculations scale proportionally, including total power draw and combined revenue. The efficiency metrics — watts per megahash (W/MH) and profit per watt — help you compare different GPUs and configurations on an apples-to-apples basis. All calculations run entirely in your browser. No data is sent to any server. Coin price, network difficulty, and block reward data are representative values based on 2026 averages. Because these values fluctuate significantly with market conditions, we recommend cross-checking with real-time tools like WhatToMine for live data before making large hardware purchases.
Understanding GPU Mining Profitability
GPU mining profitability depends on four core factors: your hashrate, your power consumption, your electricity rate, and the current market price and network difficulty of the coin you are mining.
How GPU Mining Revenue Is Calculated
Mining revenue is determined by your share of the total network hashrate. If you control 0.001% of the total network hashrate for a given coin, you will earn approximately 0.001% of all block rewards produced per day. The formula is: Daily Coins = (Your Hashrate × 86,400 seconds × Block Reward) ÷ (Network Hashrate × Block Time). Multiplying daily coins by the current coin price gives you gross daily revenue. This is before electricity costs and pool fees are deducted. Because network hashrate and coin price are constantly changing, actual results will vary from these estimates.
The Role of Electricity Costs
Electricity is almost always the largest operating cost in GPU mining. A GPU drawing 200 watts and running 24 hours per day consumes 4.8 kWh per day. At $0.10 per kWh, that is $0.48 per day, or about $14.40 per month per GPU. At $0.15 per kWh, the same GPU costs $0.72 per day or $21.60 per month. For a 6-GPU rig, these costs multiply to $86 or $130 per month respectively. The electricity break-even rate — the maximum cost per kWh at which mining breaks even — is a key metric for evaluating whether mining is viable in your region. In areas with electricity above $0.12-0.15 per kWh, most GPU mining operations struggle to be profitable.
GPU Selection and Efficiency Metrics
Not all GPUs are equally efficient for mining. The efficiency metric W/MH (watts per megahash) tells you how much power you spend to produce each unit of hashrate. Lower W/MH is better. For example, the RTX 3070 achieves approximately 28 MH/s at 180W (6.4 W/MH), while the RTX 3080 achieves 37 MH/s at 240W (6.5 W/MH) — nearly identical efficiency despite the higher hashrate. The RX 5700 XT achieves 27 MH/s at 165W (6.1 W/MH), making it one of the more efficient AMD options. Profit per watt takes efficiency a step further by measuring net profit per watt of power consumed, directly showing you the value you get from each watt of electricity.
Network Difficulty and Long-Term Profitability
Mining difficulty adjusts dynamically based on how much total hashrate is on the network. When prices rise and more miners join, difficulty increases, reducing each miner's share of rewards. When prices fall and miners leave, difficulty decreases. This means that early in a bull market, mining can be very profitable, but as difficulty catches up to price appreciation, margins compress. The difficulty adjustment input in this calculator lets you model a monthly difficulty increase percentage to project how profitability might change over a 24-month period. Historical averages for difficulty growth on popular GPU-mined coins range from 2-8% per month during periods of price appreciation.
Fórmulas
Your share of the total network hashrate determines your proportional share of all block rewards produced per day. 86,400 is the number of seconds in 24 hours.
Gross revenue from mined coins minus pool fees and 24-hour electricity cost. This is the core profitability equation for any mining operation.
The maximum electricity cost per kWh at which mining produces zero profit. Any rate above this means you are losing money.
Number of days of mining required to fully recover your initial GPU purchase price from net daily profits.
Reference Tables
Popular GPU Mining Performance (KawPow / Ravencoin)
| GPU Model | Hashrate (MH/s) | Potencia (W) | Efficiency (W/MH) |
|---|---|---|---|
| RTX 4090 | 58 | 320 | 5.5 |
| RTX 3090 | 41 | 285 | 6.95 |
| RTX 3080 | 37 | 240 | 6.49 |
| RTX 3070 | 28 | 180 | 6.43 |
| RTX 3060 Ti | 25 | 165 | 6.60 |
| RX 7900 XTX | 45 | 280 | 6.22 |
| RX 6800 XT | 32 | 230 | 7.19 |
| RX 5700 XT | 27 | 165 | 6.11 |
GPU-Mineable Coins and Algorithms (2026)
| Coin | Algorithm | ASIC Resistant? | Typical GPU Revenue Tier |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ravencoin (RVN) | KawPow | Sí | Mid |
| Ergo (ERGO) | Autolykos2 | Sí | Mid |
| Ethereum Classic (ETC) | Etchash | Parcial | Alto |
| Kaspa (KAS) | KHeavyHash | Parcial | Alto |
| Zcash (ZEC) | Equihash | Parcial | Mid |
| Monero (XMR) | RandomX (CPU) | Yes (CPU-optimized) | Low (GPU) |
Worked Examples
RTX 3070 Mining Ravencoin at $0.10/kWh
Daily Coins = (28,000,000 / 7,000,000,000,000) × (86,400 / 60) × 2,500 = 0.000004 × 1,440 × 2,500 = 14.4 RVN
Daily Revenue = 14.4 × $0.025 = $0.36
Pool Fee = $0.36 × 0.01 = $0.0036
Daily Electricity = (180 / 1,000) × 24 × $0.10 = $0.432
Daily Net Profit = $0.36 − $0.0036 − $0.432 = −$0.076
6-GPU RTX 3080 Rig — Monthly Projection
Total daily revenue = 6 × $0.55 = $3.30
Pool fees = $3.30 × 0.01 = $0.033
Daily electricity = 6 × (240 / 1,000) × 24 × $0.06 = $1.244
Daily net profit = $3.30 − $0.033 − $1.244 = $2.023
Monthly net profit = $2.023 × 30 = $60.69
Hardware ROI — RTX 4090 at $1,400
Break-Even Days = $1,400 / $1.20 = 1,167 days
Convert to months = 1,167 / 30 ≈ 38.9 months
How to Use the GPU Mining Calculator
Select Your GPU and Coin
Choose your GPU model from the dropdown — the hashrate and power consumption fields will auto-populate with benchmark data for that card. Then select the cryptocurrency you want to mine. Ravencoin (RVN) with KawPow is the default as it remains the most accessible GPU-only coin in 2026.
Ingresa Tu Costo de Electricidad
Find your electricity rate on your utility bill and enter it in the electricity cost field. This is the single most important input — even small differences in electricity rate (e.g., $0.08 vs $0.12/kWh) can mean the difference between profitable and unprofitable mining. The break-even rate output tells you the maximum $/kWh at which you can still profit.
Adjust for Your Actual Setup
If you have overclocked your GPU or reduced its power limit, override the hashrate and power fields with your real-world figures. Add the number of GPUs to scale results for a multi-card rig. Expand Advanced Options to enter your hardware purchase cost for ROI and break-even calculations, and a monthly difficulty increase to model long-term profitability.
Analyze Results and Sensitivity
Review your daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly profit projections. Check the electricity sensitivity table to understand how profit changes at different energy rates. If you entered a hardware cost, the ROI timeline chart shows when your investment pays back. Export to CSV for spreadsheet analysis or use Print to save a formatted summary.
Preguntas Frecuentes
Which GPU is most profitable for mining in 2026?
Profitability depends heavily on your electricity rate. In general, the RTX 4090 produces the highest absolute daily profit due to its 58 MH/s KawPow hashrate, but it also draws 320 watts and costs $1,200-$1,600 new. For efficiency-focused miners, the RTX 3070 (28 MH/s at 180W) and GTX 1660 Super (20 MH/s at 125W) offer excellent profit-per-watt ratios. AMD's RX 5700 XT and RX 6700 XT are strong performers. Use the W/MH metric to compare efficiency across cards — lower is better. At electricity rates above $0.12/kWh, only the most efficient GPUs remain profitable.
Why does my actual mining revenue differ from the calculator?
Several factors cause variance between estimated and actual results. Network difficulty changes every few blocks, and if many miners join after you start, your share of rewards decreases. Coin price fluctuates constantly — a 20% price drop directly cuts revenue by 20%. Pool luck also affects earnings; some pools have variance in block finding that smooths out over weeks. Additionally, your GPU's actual hashrate may differ from our benchmark database, especially after applying specific overclocking or undervolting profiles. We use representative 2026 average data for coin prices and network difficulty. For real-time calculations, cross-reference with WhatToMine.
What electricity rate is needed to make GPU mining profitable?
The break-even electricity rate depends on your GPU's hashrate, the coin you mine, and the current market price. Our calculator shows your maximum break-even electricity rate in the Efficiency and Metrics section. As a rough 2026 benchmark using RVN/KawPow with an RTX 3070 at typical hashrates, mining becomes marginal around $0.08-0.10/kWh and unprofitable above $0.12-0.15/kWh. GPUs with better efficiency (lower W/MH) tolerate higher electricity rates before going unprofitable. Miners with access to cheap renewable energy or subsidized industrial electricity below $0.06/kWh have a significant advantage.
How does mining pool selection affect my earnings?
Mining pool fees directly reduce your gross revenue. A 1% fee means 1% less revenue than zero-fee mining; a 2% fee means 2% less. Beyond fees, pool payout methods matter: PPLNS (Pay Per Last N Shares) pools have more variance but pay more over time, while PPS (Pay Per Share) pools offer predictable, stable payouts but typically have higher fees. Pool luck, server location (latency), and uptime also affect earnings. For KawPow coins like Ravencoin, popular pools include Mining Pool Hub, 2Miners, and Flypool. Most reputable pools charge 0.5-2% fees. Our calculator defaults to 1% — adjust this to match your chosen pool.
What is the electricity break-even rate and how do I use it?
The electricity break-even rate is the maximum cost per kilowatt-hour at which your mining setup produces zero profit — exactly covering electricity costs after pool fees. Any electricity rate above this number means you are losing money mining. For example, if your break-even rate is $0.09/kWh and your electricity costs $0.08/kWh, you are profitable by $0.01/kWh margin. This metric is especially useful when comparing electricity contracts, evaluating colocation data centers, or assessing profitability in different countries. It also tells you how much headroom you have against rising electricity prices or falling coin prices.
Should I mine directly or sell my hashrate on NiceHash?
Direct mining means you mine a specific coin and hold or sell it on an exchange. NiceHash and similar hashrate marketplaces let you sell your GPU's computing power to buyers for Bitcoin payouts, which simplifies earnings into a single currency. NiceHash typically pays slightly less than optimally-timed direct mining but offers convenience, automatic algorithm switching, and no coin exposure. The best choice depends on your goals: if you want to accumulate a specific altcoin, mine directly; if you want predictable Bitcoin payouts without coin selection complexity, NiceHash is simpler. NiceHash profitability fluctuates with demand from buyers and is not covered in this calculator's current version.