Updated 17th May 2025.

One of Bitcoin’s appeals has always hinged on one immutable rule: only 21 million coins will ever exist. As of 2025, over 94% of that supply is already in circulation, and big-money players from Wall Street ETFs to corporates are scrambling for the remaining BTC. 

This isn’t hype; it’s the power of Bitcoin’s hard cap.

So what does this mean, and what will happen when all Bitcoins are mined? 

As Bitcoin adoption grows, the answers to this question become increasingly crucial for all stakeholders in the ecosystem.

We explore some of the answers in this article.

Key takeaways

• When the last Bitcoin is mined, no more Bitcoins will enter circulation. Consequently, miner incentives will shift to transaction fees.
•  The last Bitcoin is expected to be mined around the year 2140.
• Changing the 21 million cap would require a contentious hard fork and overwhelming community consensus, making change highly unlikely.

A quick overview of Bitcoin mining

Bitcoin relies on Proof of Work (PoW). Miners use specialized hardware to solve cryptographic puzzles and secure the network.

Back in the day, around 2009-2010, Bitcoin mining was a hobbyist’s dream. With a standard CPU or GPU and modest electricity costs, you could mine up to 100 BTC on a home computer daily. The block reward then? A hefty 50 BTC, paid out roughly every 10 minutes when a miner solved a block.

Fast forward to now, post-fourth halving in 2024, and that payout has dropped to 3.125 BTC per block. Those reductions happen every 210,000 blocks, or roughly every four years. It’s all part of the design, keeping Bitcoin scarce and, theoretically, valuable.

So, what is Bitcoin mining? 

Picture it less like digging and more like solving a complicated puzzle that takes serious computing power. 

Miners compete to solve these puzzles, and when one gets it right, a new block is added to the blockchain. In return, they earn the block reward (3.125 BTC) plus transaction fees, which average $1–$5 per transaction but can spike during network congestion. 

The block reward will shrink every four years until it eventually hits zero after 32 halvings.

That’s the long game, and it’s already in motion.

Bitcoin’s Supply: How Much Is Left in 2025?

In early 2025, the numbers tell a pretty straightforward story: more than 19.8 million Bitcoins have already been mined, leaving fewer than 1.14 million still out there waiting to be discovered. 

By 2032, it’s estimated that 98% of Bitcoin will have been mined.

This shrinking supply is part of the appeal. In an era of money printing and inflation headlines, Bitcoin stands out as a deflationary asset with a fixed limit that can’t be tampered with. 

Now, once the last Bitcoin is mined, which isn’t expected until around 2140, things change a bit for miners. The block rewards will be gone. But that doesn’t mean the network shuts down. 

The hard cap isn’t just a technical feature; it’s a core part of the system that communities watch closely. 

If someone ever tried to change it, they’d have to rewrite the rules and launch a new coin version, and this is not without risk. 

One infamous example: In 2010, a bug in Bitcoin’s code created 184 billion BTC out of thin air. Thankfully, Satoshi Nakamoto patched it quickly, but it’s a reminder that code matters, especially when it sets the supply rules.

What happens when the Bitcoin supply runs out?

This might be a thrilling event for all the Bitcoin enthusiasts out there. Once miners have generated all coins, no more BTC will be available for mining. An additional supply will only be possible if Bitcoin’s protocol is altered to allow a more abundant supply. But after many years of being in the crypto market’s limelight, there weren’t any confirmed plans to increase Bitcoin’s maximum cap. With that, it’s safe to assume that its supply limit will remain 21 million BTC.

Bitcoin’s supply is nearing its limit, so what possible effects can users face? Here are some notable implications of reaching Bitcoin’s supply cap.

1. For miners: No more block rewards, just transaction fees

Once the last of the 21 million Bitcoins is mined, which will happen around 2140, miners will no longer earn block rewards if all goes according to plan. The faucet will shut off. Then, transaction fees will be the only incentive for every confirmed transaction.

Fortunately, those fees are already a significant piece of the puzzle. In early 2025, for example, average Bitcoin transaction fees varied depending on network traffic, spiking even higher during network congestion. Think NFT hype waves or DeFi traffic surges. 

If demand for block space continues to grow, so will the fees. This is what keeps miners motivated to stay.

Still, relying solely on transaction fees comes with challenges. The long-term health of the network depends heavily on how efficiently transactions can be processed and how valuable people find that block space. In other words, it’s going to take some innovation.

With block rewards gone, mining becomes all about the margins. Staying profitable will depend on a few key factors:

• Energy-efficient hardware:  The industry is already shifting toward low-power ASICs and renewables. In places like Canada and the Netherlands are encouraging clean-energy mining with subsidies, while other nations are tightening the screws on fossil-fueled operations.
• High transaction volume: More network activity means more fees per block..
• Layer 2 scaling: Solutions like the Lightning Network reduce strain on the main chain, enable fast, cheap transactions, and generate enough volume to keep miners paid.

Creative Innovations.

Miners aren’t just sitting back. Some are exploring ways to turn mining’s massive energy footprint into a secondary income stream. 

One idea? Repurposing heat from mining rigs to warm greenhouses or even entire apartment buildings. 

It’s a win-win, cost-saving, eco-friendly, and potentially profitable. Think of it like digital gold miners discovering copper on the side.

Transaction fees will be the backbone of post-reward mining. And if those fees are high enough, or creatively supplemented, mining will stick around as a viable business long after the last coin is mined.

2. For Investors, scarcity means higher prices

Bitcoin’s fixed supply is one of its most significant selling points. As coins become harder, many expect demand and prices to rise. Whether that pans out depends on adoption, regulation, and sentiment, but the scarcity narrative remains powerful.

In 2025, it’s not just crypto diehards buying BTC. Institutional players like BlackRock and Fidelity now offer spot Bitcoin ETFs, pulling billions of dollars from traditional markets. 

Meanwhile, AI-powered tools are helping everyday investors make sense of the volatility, scanning market trends, flagging sentiment shifts, and even executing trades automatically.

So while no one can say what Bitcoin will be worth in 2140, one thing’s clear: the game isn’t ending with the last coin. If anything, that’s when a new phase begins.

When will the last Bitcoin be mined?

The math hasn’t changed even with faster computers and more efficient mining rigs: the final Bitcoin is still expected to be mined around 2140. 

That’s more than a century from now. Most of us won’t be around to see it, but the extended timeline isn’t a bug; it’s a feature. It allows the system to adapt gradually while reinforcing that Bitcoin was built for the long haul.

Can Bitcoin’s 21 million limit be changed?

Technically? Yes. Practically? Almost impossible.

Bitcoin’s hard cap isn’t hardcoded in a single place; it emerges from the halving cycle built into the protocol. 

The supply limit could be changed if the code were rewritten and enough people agreed. But “enough” isn’t a small number. 

For a change like that to stick, the vast majority of nodes, miners, developers, and users would have to get on board. And Bitcoin’s community is famously stubborn about altering the core rules. That resistance is part of the appeal: the protocol doesn’t bend to whims.

Trying to pass a supply cap increase would almost certainly result in a hard fork, a split in which a new version of Bitcoin is created separate from the original. 

That’s happened before with projects like Bitcoin Cash. However, whether a forked coin can maintain value or trust is another entirely different story.

FAQs

How many Bitcoins are lost as of 2025?

It’s estimated that between 3 and 4 million bitcoins are permanently lost. These losses come from early adopters who lost private keys, threw away hard drives, or otherwise made their BTC inaccessible. 

How many Bitcoins are mined per day?

As of 2025, after the fourth halving event, the current block reward is 3.125 BTC per block. Since one block is mined approximately every 10 minutes, this results in about 144 blocks per day.
So: 3.125 BTC × 144 blocks ≈ 450 new bitcoins mined per day.

How long does it take to mine 1 Bitcoin?

It depends on your mining setup. Since miners now receive 3.125 BTC every ~10 minutes, the total reward is shared across the entire Bitcoin network, not just one miner

👉Additional readings:

1. Who Holds the Most Bitcoin in 2025?
2. What you should know about the Bitcoin halving cycle

Important note: These materials are for general informational purposes only and do not constitute financial, investment, or professional advice. Cryptocurrency investments involve significant risks, including potential substantial financial loss, and we do not endorse specific investments, tokens, or projects. Always conduct your own research and consult qualified financial or legal professionals before investing, as Paxful disclaims liability for any losses arising from reliance on these materials, to the fullest extent permitted by law.