Ethereum recently switched to the PoS model following the merge in September. Now, the network does not support any mining. However, some alternatives may be quite interesting to people who want to mine ETH.
Projects similar to ETH
While Ethereum mining is no longer on the table, there is a long list of alternatives. Currently, several projects can interest miners who want to use their graphic cards to make money:
- Monero is the biggest competitor of ETH in terms of GPU mining. XMR is quite valuable and can be a good source of passive income for miners.
- Ethereum Classic is a fork of the mainnet of ETH. ETC is less valuable than ETH, but it still supports the proof of work consensus mechanism and allows mining.
- Ravencoin is the network that many experts predicted to be the next haven for GPU miners, but it is still a relatively small project with a coin that does not have a high enough value to justify investments in a mining facility.
How to start mining ETC
First, you need to determine whether you want to start mining on your own or join a mining pool. If you have a powerful machine with the latest graphic card or multiple rigs, you can certainly do it solo. However, if you are afraid of investing too much in mining, choosing a pool is a good idea. Pools have their entry fees, but give you a cut of what they are rewarded for mining.
If you want to start your farm, here are the steps that you need to make:
- Get yourself an Ethereum wallet from an official provider. MetaMask is the go-to option for millions.
- Download the latest ETH or ETC-mining software from an official source.
- Connect to the network and start mining tokens.
The mining software package comes with a detailed tutorial. If you do not want to use a separate operating system, you can simply join a pool of miners with your hardware which is also a good option for many people who do not have the technical know-how to start their farm.
How much do miners make?
The profitability of a mining operation depends on a myriad of factors. However, you should mostly factor in three components:
- The initial cost of investment (the price of hardware);
- The price of electricity;
- The reward is denominated in your local currency.
You have to pay for electricity and consider the maintenance. Rewards differ from one network to another. ETC miners using a rig with 400 MH/s living in an area where a KW of electricity costs about 10 cents will make $0.37 in ETC per day which is less than impressive. Ravencoin miners make even less.
This situation will unlikely change in the nearest future. However, you can continue making ETH if you have a large enough capital.
Ethereum staking
While you cannot mine ETH anymore, you can still get rewards by staking. People who stake ETH become validators. You can run your node or join a pool of validators to receive a cut of all rewards. You will need to stake at least 32 ETH to become a validator. It is a hefty investment considering the current price of ETH ($1,555) which translates to $49,760.
It is a big sum of money to pay to just become a validator. However, the return could be quite handsome. You will receive rewards in ETH meaning that your portfolio will appreciate over time if nothing bad happens to the token. Currently, ETH is still the second biggest digital asset in the crypto industry with over $190 Billion market cap.
Conclusion
Mining ETH is no longer possible due to the shift to the PoS model by network developers. You can still earn by Ethereum trading, staking, or trying mining alternatives like Ethereum Classic, Ravencoin, and Monero. GPU mining may not be profitable right now, but it may return if any of the projects listed above take off in the nearest future!
