How the $373,000 solo miner bought their one‑in‑a‑million win
On July 26, 2025, a solo Bitcoin miner achieved an ultra-rare feat by mining block 907,283 by the Solo CKPool.
They overcame steep odds in a community dominated by industrial-scale operations to assert the complete block reward of three.125 Bitcoin (BTC), price about $372,700. The block included 4,038 transactions and $3,400 in charges.
Solo CK is a singular mining pool that enables people to mine independently whereas utilizing shared infrastructure. Not like conventional swimming pools, it doesn’t cut up rewards.
This uncommon success got here as Bitcoin’s community issue hovered close to all-time highs (round 26 trillion), which makes solo success more and more unlikely.
But the miner beat thousands and thousands of competing miners with sheer persistence and a little bit of luck. The block’s profitable addition to the blockchain served as a robust reminder that although the mining market has change into extremely corporatized and aggressive, small gamers nonetheless have a shot at glory — although the percentages is perhaps minuscule.
How the Solo CKPool works
Solo CKPool is primarily designed for miners who need to go solo with out working all the pieces themselves. Not like conventional swimming pools that cut up rewards based mostly on hash energy, Solo CK offers you your complete block reward — however provided that you discover the block. If not, you earn nothing.
It mimics true solo mining however runs on infrastructure maintained by the CKPool operator, which supplies you extra stability and higher connectivity than working a node by yourself.
The setup lets small-scale miners take a shot at full rewards, even when the percentages are lengthy. It’s a high-risk, high-reward play, best for individuals who perceive the low likelihood however need the potential payout of three.125 BTC in a single hit.
You’ll be able to monitor your mining stats and block standing by websites like solostats.ckpool.org and mempool.house. These instruments assist confirm whether or not your miner has submitted a sound block. Each every now and then, somebody does — just like the solo miner who cracked block 907,283 — proving it’s doable.
Do you know? Satoshi Nakamoto mined the primary Bitcoin block, the “Genesis Block,” on Jan. 3, 2009. It included a hidden message referencing a newspaper headline, proving it wasn’t pre-mined and marking the delivery of decentralized cash.
The percentages and rarity of solo mining
Solo Bitcoin mining is brutally tough in at this time’s hyper-competitive surroundings. The worldwide community hashrate now sits at round 902 exahashes per second (EH/s), and mining issue has crossed 127 trillion. Industrial-scale operations dominate the sphere.
A miner with 1 petahash per second (PH/s) has roughly a one-in-4.26 million probability of fixing a block on any given day. For perspective, you’re much more more likely to be struck by lightning than to mine a block solo at that charge.
This sheer statistical unlikelihood makes solo wins extremely uncommon in 2025. However they nonetheless occur. And once they do, they remind everybody that Bitcoin was constructed for decentralization, the place even the smallest participant can stroll away with the complete block reward and transaction charges.
Different solo Bitcoin miner wins in 2025
A handful of solo Bitcoin miners have crushed the percentages in 2025 to tug off wins that despatched ripples throughout the mining neighborhood.
In February, as an example, one miner solved block 883,181 and pocketed the complete 3.125 BTC reward (price round $300,000 on the time).
March and June introduced related success tales, together with one the place a miner used a modest 480 gigahash-per-second Bitaxe rig — a low-power, DIY gadget — to mine a full block. For context, giant mining corporations usually run {hardware} rated at over 230,000 GH/s.
On June 5, one other solo miner validated block 899,826 utilizing the Solo CKPool and earned a reward of $330,386, which included 3.125 BTC from the block subsidy and 0.026 BTC in charges. The block contained 3,680 transactions, and the community issue was 126.98 trillion.
Do you know? The well-known 10,000-BTC pizza buy in 2010 doubtless got here from early mining rewards. On the time, every block paid out 50 BTC, and cash had been typically traded or given away casually (lengthy earlier than that they had any actual market worth).
How these solo Bitcoin miners nonetheless gained
Solo Bitcoin miners proceed to show that environment friendly {hardware}, persistence and a little bit of luck nonetheless repay. Their wins preserve the spirit of decentralization alive.
- Software-specific built-in circuits (ASICs): ASICs are purpose-built machines that ship excessive computing energy with low power use. They provide small-scale miners a combating probability, particularly when paired with platforms like Solo CKPool. Nonetheless, solo mining carries excessive threat. Most makes an attempt go unrewarded, however every now and then, a miner solves a block and earns the complete payout. These uncommon wins proceed to encourage miners chasing that one huge success.
- Core ideas of Bitcoin: Solo mining victories do greater than reward persistence; they reveal Bitcoin’s foundational beliefs. These moments show that anybody, anyplace, may help safe the community with out permission. Every profitable block highlights Bitcoin’s open and decentralized design. Put merely, solo wins stand as reminders of the person’s energy in a worldwide community, in a system constructed for inclusion.
- Persistence and luck: Technical upgrades solely go up to now; persistence and luck nonetheless form the end result. Even with ASICs working nonstop, most solo miners know the percentages are stacked. But they preserve going, pushed by the assumption that one legitimate hash might change all the pieces. In that sense, each win is an element triumph, half testomony to endurance.
Platforms like Solo CKPool make it doable for people to mine Bitcoin with out becoming a member of a big company setup. Most solo makes an attempt don’t end in a payout, however typically, luck aligns and a miner walks away with the complete block reward.
Do you know? When Bitcoin launched in 2009, every block paid 50 BTC. The reward halves roughly each 4 years: 25 BTC in 2012, 12.5 BTC in 2016, 6.25 BTC in 2020 and three.125 BTC in 2024. This regular discount ensures shortage, capping the overall provide at 21 million.
The larger image: Trade pressures and shifts
Solo Bitcoin miners pulled off some uncommon wins in 2025 regardless of rising trade strain. With rising prices and fierce competitors forcing even giant operations to rethink their methods, these solo victories, typically powered by modest {hardware}, stood out. They captured the neighborhood’s consideration and reminded everybody that mining nonetheless leaves room for lengthy pictures and surprises.
- Rising prices and trade challenges: In Q2 2025, the common value to mine 1 BTC exceeded $70,000, pushed by a worldwide hashrate approaching 1,000 EH/s and a mining issue surpassing 126 trillion. Company miners face tight revenue margins, which immediate efforts to optimize power use and safe reasonably priced energy sources.
- Strategic trade shifts: Main mining corporations are diversifying into AI knowledge facilities and high-performance computing to counter declining profitability. These strikes profit from present infrastructure for extra secure returns, which displays a broader strategic transformation within the trade.
Regardless of these challenges, solo miners with modest rigs proceed to safe uncommon wins. These moments spotlight Bitcoin mining’s unpredictable nature and show that persistence and luck nonetheless matter.