When you think of earning cryptocurrency, one of the first things to come to mind is likely crypto mining. You know you can mine on your computer, but what about on a phone? Learn everything you need to know about mining cryptocurrency on phone, including how to do it and why you are better off choosing another way to earn crypto.
What Is Crypto Mining?
Before getting into mining Bitcoins with mobile, you need to understand what mining is. It is the process of validating transactions on the blockchain. Miners solve complex puzzles of cryptographic hashes to verify blocks. The miner that solves a puzzle verifies the specific transaction and earns the transaction fees. Importantly, you need an excessive amount of computing power to solve these puzzles.
Most people mine cryptocurrency on computers, but you can also technically do it on your phone. Many people who mine on their phones join a mining pool that distributes payouts proportional to the input. So, the comparatively small processing power of your smartphone means you will get a comparatively lower payout than those using powerful computers.
Does Crypto Mobile Mining Work?
Like with mining cryptocurrency on a computer, you need some equipment to start mining bitcoins with mobile. The basic requirements are a smartphone, a relevant app, and a stable internet connection.
How to Mine Cryptocurrency on an Android Smartphone
You can try mining cryptocurrency yourself as a solo miner or join a mining pool. That being said, few mobile users will go solo as the high level of computational power required means you are unlikely to see results.
When you join a mining pool, you receive a proportion of any rewards the pool mines based on your contribution. Always pay attention to payout schedules before joining a pool, as they vary.
The process is as simple as downloading a mining pool application for your Android device. Some popular pools with apps include ViaBTC, F2Pool, Poolin, MinerGate Mobile Miner, and AntPool.
How to Mine Cryptocurrency on an iPhone
The process of mining cryptocurrency on an iPhone is the same as doing so on an Android device. You just download the relevant app, sign up, and give it all the permissions it needs. Of course, the available mining apps will vary slightly based on whether you have an Android or iPhone.
Cloud Mining Using a Smartphone
Because smartphones have such little computational power, many people choose to use their smartphones for cloud mining instead. With cloud mining, you essentially rent the necessary hardware from someone else. You don’t have to provide your own software or hardware – or rely on your phone’s underpowered processor – because you rent one via the cloud.
Whether you use cloud mining on your smartphone or computer, the process is very similar and there are no hardware requirements on your end. Some popular options include Binance, KuCoin, Hashing24, and StormGain.
Is Mobile Crypto Mining Profitable?
Given that there are so many options for mining cryptocurrency on phone, you may assume it is a profitable venture. In reality, few people make a profit from it. It is incredibly unlikely that you will make a profit from mining on your smartphone.
It is simply too underpowered to compete with high-powered computers or other advanced devices. Companies dedicated to mining cryptocurrency have far more advanced hardware than your computers or smartphones. Your phone simply can’t compete.
As mentioned, if you try to mine solo, you are unlikely to be the one to solve a puzzle, so you will likely just waste electricity and the internet without seeing results.
If you join a mining pool and use your smartphone, the amount of power you add to the mining pool will be a very small fraction of the other miners’ contributions. As such, your earned rewards will be tiny and likely not worth it.
Damage to Your Phone
You aren’t likely to earn much of anything from mining cryptocurrency on your phone, but will you lose money? Yes. In addition to having to pay for internet and electricity to charge your phone, you will also damage your phone, leading to the cost of replacement.
Simply put, any smartphone used to mine will likely overheat and have its battery drain excessively. Your phone will become permanently damaged fairly quickly and require a replacement. Given the current price of smartphones, this is not a minor expense.
This damage also means that your phone will run more slowly. If you want to use your phone for daily activities while mining, you will notice a significant drop in its performance.
Mobile Security and Mining Considerations
Yet another problem with using your smartphone to mine cryptocurrency is security. To start, malware is a major risk. Remember that every method of mining crypto on your smartphone requires downloading an application. But the application may come with malware, especially if you don’t get a reputable app directly from the source.
That malware can use your phone’s power output to mine additional cryptocurrencies without your knowledge. Or it may interfere with how other applications work.
Even if your chosen mining app doesn’t directly install malware, it can be fraudulent or part of a scam. Maybe you’ll enter vulnerable personal information that will put you at risk. Or maybe you’ll enter your crypto account information and have it drained – remember that all crypto transactions are final, so there is no recourse against crypto theft.
Conclusion & An Alternative to Crypto Mining on Your Phone
Technically, you can mine cryptocurrency on your smartphone. However, it is not worth doing. Your profits will be minimal if any and you will shorten the lifespan of your phone. On top of that, you may accidentally download malware or fall victim to a scam when you try to mine.
Given the concerns about security, profitability, and damaging your device when mining crypto on your phone, you may want to consider a different option for growing your crypto. Investing or staking your crypto tends to be a safer alternative, especially if you do so with a reputable company. Start earning with Haru Invest.