New figures reveal that mining the privacy coin zcash (ZEC) has become a serious money-maker after the digital asset’s price rocketed more than 200% this month. The rally lit a fire under miners, blasting the network’s hashrate straight into uncharted territory.
ZEC Miners Reap Big Rewards as Equihash Outshines SHA256
While most of the chatter has focused on ZEC’s price rally over the past 30 days, the network’s soaring hashrate has slipped under the radar.
As a proof-of-work (PoW) crypto, the Zcash network runs on the same grind as Bitcoin—miners race to uncover new blocks, and the protocol throws in a difficulty adjustment to keep them on their toes.
ZEC runs on an algorithm known as Equihash, targeting a new block roughly every 75 seconds—lightning-fast compared to Bitcoin’s ten-minute (600-second) wait. The network fine-tunes its difficulty with each block, constantly recalibrating based on how quickly miners are discovering blocks.
Bitcoin’s algorithm is basically a brute-force dice roll—keep hashing until you hit the jackpot. Equihash, on the other hand, makes miners work for it, demanding they solve a distinctive mathematical puzzle rather than just tossing hashes until luck strikes.
A ZEC miner’s hashrate is measured in Giga Solutions per second (GS/s), tallying up how many billion potential answers their rig can crunch through every second. One GS/s cranks out a cool 1,000,000,000 (one billion) solutions every second. Right now, the Zcash network is cruising at an all-time high (ATH) of 12.53 GS/s.
As of today, Equihash currently tops Bitcoin’s SHA256 as the most profitable mining algorithm, with Bitmain’s Antminer Z15 Pro ASIC pulling in about $39.56 a day—after factoring in $0.04 per kWh for electricity. That’s 43.33% more profitable than Bitmain’s S21e XP Hydro 3U, which churns out 860 terahash per second (TH/s).
Miners are well aware of the action. Right now, ViaBTC—best known as the third-largest bitcoin mining pool by hashrate—reigns supreme in the zcash (ZEC) mining arena, controlling 3.99 GS/s, or about 31.84% of the network’s hash power. F2pool trails with 1.56 GS/s, claiming 12.45%. To put ViaBTC’s might into perspective, that’s the muscle of roughly 4,750 Antminer Z15 Pros grinding away in sync.
Following ViaBTC and F2pool is 2miners, Antpool, Luxor, and Binance, each contributing their slice of hashing power to keep ZEC’s block production humming. Growth-wise, these pools have been on a tear since the first week of September 2025, and ZEC’s price rally is finally cashing in for the miners.
For now, the explosive growth in zcash (ZEC) mining profitability has shifted the landscape for proof-of-work cryptocurrencies. With Equihash now leading the pack in profitability, miners are clearly deploying massive resources.
FAQ ❓
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What is driving Zcash’s hashrate to new highs?
ZEC’s 200% price jump in October 2025 has sparked major mining activity worldwide. -
Which regions are benefiting most from Zcash mining?
Miners across North America, Asia, and Europe are capitalizing on Equihash’s profitability. -
How does Zcash mining compare to Bitcoin mining?
Equihash currently delivers higher daily returns than Bitcoin’s SHA256 algorithm. -
Who dominates Zcash’s mining pools today?
ViaBTC leads the pack, followed by F2pool, 2miners, Antpool, Luxor, and Binance.
