It is well known that cryptocurrency mining requires quite powerful equipment such as video cards, central processors, video card rigs, or special devices such as ASIC (Application-Specific Integrated Circuit) or FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Arrays are semiconductor devices used for a dedicated purpose). This is only partly true because cryptocurrency mining on a smartphone alone is also possible.
Modern mobile gadgets have a graphics core and central processing unit comparable in power to desktop computers ten years ago. But to mine on today’s smartphones, you do not need a flagship model, a strong mid-range unit is sufficient.
How it works? How powerful a device is needed? Is there a difference between Android and iOS in terms of mining efficiency? And most importantly, which programs are best to use, and what income do they bring? In this article, the Traders Union experts answer all these questions and will tell you everything about mining for money via your smartphone.
Start trading cryptocurrencies now with Binance!Before talking about mining on your Android or IOS phone, you should understand the cryptocurrency mining mechanism. So, let's start with the basics. All cryptocurrencies exist inside a database called a blockchain. A blockchain is a sequential chain of blocks of information. The emergence of a new block in the chain leads to a unit of cryptocurrency because actually, any coin is a block of data.
For a new block to appear in the blockchain, mathematical calculations must be performed by hardware (i.e., a physical device). Blockchain is unique since it can be accessed by anyone with the hardware and software to do so (software means specialized mining software). Thus, you can provide the power of your desktop PC, laptop, smartphone, or tablet for computing.
Any blockchain is designed in such a way that the person providing equipment to perform calculations gets a reward for doing so. Remuneration is calculated in units of the cryptocurrency that exists in a given blockchain. For example, for Bitcoin, the minimum unit is a satoshi, a name derived from the semi-mythical creator of the first successful cryptocurrency.
Accordingly, "mining cryptocurrency" means that you allow the blockchain to use your hardware to perform the necessary complex calculations, and the blockchain rewards you with coins. The more powerful your hardware is, the more calculations you do and the higher the reward.
Based on the direct correlation between the power of the equipment and the reward, it is obvious that miners want to use the best graphics cores and processors. This partly leads to the increased prices of computer hardware, especially graphics cards.
If you have decided to mine Bitcoin or any altcoin today, there are five options on how to organize the mining process.
To do this, you can use:
Graphics core of an nVidia or AMD video card (mining GPU).
The computer's central processing unit (CPU mining).
Rigs (a group of combined video cards).
Special equipment for mining such as ASIC or FPGA).
Cloud mining on rented equipment.
Tens of thousands of people around the world use mining applications and earn money in one of these ways. The algorithm is as follows: you install a special program on your PC (usually for free), set the settings, and the software begins to mine cryptocurrency in automatic mode. If you use mining rigs or an ASIC chip, they are also connected to a desktop computer. Many modern ASICs use a standard USB connection.
In practice, mining cryptocurrency is not difficult. There are plenty of guides on the internet about how to mine using various devices and setups. If you use cloud mining, all you have to do is rent the equipment that does the mining, and the rest happens without your involvement.
Cryptocurrency mining using your phone is not technically different from mining on a PC or a specialized device. Any modern smartphone has a graphics core and a central processor. They aren’t comparable in power to the actual computer equipment, and yet they can perform complex calculations.
In most cases, the phone will use the graphics core to mine for money, because due to its architecture it can perform more calculations per unit of time than the CPU. It looks the same as on a PC. You install the mining software on the device, set the settings, and mine the cryptocurrency. Since these applications are free, and you already have the hardware (which is the phone itself), there will only be two types of costs:
payment for electricity; and
internet fees.
As you can see, mining cryptocurrency on your phone is possible and easy. Many people use this method. There are even cases when miners assembled full-fledged cryptocurrency farms using smartphones. This is also quite realistic, but not financially feasible if you have to buy a phone just to mine. If you already have a couple of dozen unnecessary smartphones, and there is extremely cheap electricity and internet in the region, then you can try to implement such a venture. The pragmatism of this method is discussed further below.
It is possible to mine cryptocurrency on Android and iOS. Note that in the case of Apple it is technically impossible to use 32-bit systems for mining. Therefore, old iPhones will not work. In general, due to the specificity of components and increased power consumption, even the current 64-bit versions of iOS are unprofitable. The vast majority of mobile miners use Android devices.
Cryptocurrency mining via a smartphone can bring a stable passive income. However, before focusing on this idea and searching on the internet for a special application, it is necessary to determine the pros and cons of using the smartphone method. This will give you an objective idea of its feasibility for your situation.
You don't need a desktop computer, laptop, rigs, or special equipment. The smartphone that you currently use or an old gadget, currently just lying on a closet shelf, is enough.
You don't need a flagship model to mine via your phone. Of course, the more powerful the phone, the higher the earning potential, but this is a non-critical indicator. You can mine on any more or less modern device.
No special skills are required. Most applications are intuitive and have a straightforward interface. There are many tutorial videos and guides on the internet on this subject.
There are only two kinds of costs – electricity to charge your phone, and internet fees. In that sense, it is wise to use your home WI-FI, which you already use for other tasks, and is commonly used in almost every house.
It is estimated that if you charge your iPhone 11 for three hours every day, it will cost you $0.2 per year in terms of the cost of electricity consumed. Of course, much depends on regional tariffs, but generally, it is an insignificant cost.
Mining on your Android/iOS phone doesn’t require a lot of attention. You install the app, set it up once, and you can go weeks without touching your device. This is not time-consuming.
The main disadvantage of this method is economic feasibility. You can't earn over $10-15 per month if you work 24/7 on a non-top, but fairly productive device.
The second nuance is the increased wear and tear of the device. Modern smartphones, even the leading brands, aren’t designed for such loads, so they can fail quite quickly.
The relative disadvantage is that you need the internet. It is unprofitable to use mobile phones. If you don’t have a fixed WI-FI point, mining cryptocurrency on the phone will bring minimal income.
In general, there are more advantages than disadvantages. But, as you can see, a lot depends on the nuances. What kind of phone do you use exactly? How much does electricity cost in your area? Is there WI-FI in the house? Conceptually, it's the software that matters, but we'll talk about that later.
The first nuance we have already mentioned, which is mining on an Android phone is profitable, especially if it is some Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 with a really powerful battery and confident performance. IOS has a lot of advantages, it is a reliable and stable system. But it is extremely demanding in terms of resources, so iPhones critically quickly run down. In the case of mining on the phone, it increases energy costs and accelerates technical resources consumption. And it is more difficult to install special software on the iPhone than on an Android device.
The second point is also the increased wear and tear of the smartphone’s hardware, which is also mentioned above. Android is also affected, though to a lesser extent. As we have already said, the graphics core and the CPU of any smartphone are designed for continuous operation, but not for extreme loads. And the software for mining on the phone automatically overclocks the device. Therefore, during mining, the phone’s CPU will work at its performance limit or even exceed that limit. Otherwise, it will not be able to make even $10 per month. But, functioning in such a mode, the gadget will hardly work for an entire year. Most likely, it will fail much sooner than that.
This is why experts don’t recommend mining via a phone that is used for common tasks. It is better to take an old one that you don’t use any longer. But when it fails, it is not economically feasible to repair it to continue mining. It is even more impractical to buy a new one or even a used one.
The third is a technical upgrade of the device. People's masters replace the components on old smartphones as needed, and they mine them non-stop. If you have a phone repair shop or pawn shop, there are a lot of mobile gadgets that just lie on the shelves, so you can read a couple of guides and try to mine without interruption. But this will already require special knowledge such as the ability to work with mobile technology.
Finally, the fourth nuance. We talked about it above when we listed the disadvantages of mining cryptocurrency on your phone. It can never become your main source of income. It can only be considered as a small bonus, and only if you already have everything - an old smartphone (or preferably several), cheap electricity, and WI-FI. If you don't have any of that, mining money on your phone won't bring any meaningful income, but rather you'll be breaking even, or losing money.
Step 1 – Find an appropriate device. If you don’t have an old phone, it does not make sense to buy a new one for this purpose. It is also unprofitable to mine on a currently in-demand phone unless you plan to change it shortly.
Step 2 – Download special software. There are quite a lot of programs for mining cryptocurrency on your phone. The top solutions are listed below. They are the easiest and most profitable with which to work.
Step 3 – Register. Many phone mining programs require registration on the website or in the app itself (verification may be required, such as e-mail confirmation).
Step 4 – Perform basic settings. After you have installed the software on your phone, configure how it is to work, determine what kind of cryptocurrency you will mine, and how much power you are willing to allocate for it. You may also need to set it up in your user account on the website.
Step 5 – Provide a power supply. Mining money on your phone is reasonable only in 24/7 mode. Therefore, the smartphone must be connected to the power grid always.
Step 6 – Provide access to the internet. Usually, it's a WI-FI network that you use at home. Maybe you have free mobile internet for some reason; if you do, use it. The main thing is to make sure that the connection is maintained at all times.
Step 7 – Start the mining software. The smartphone will mine the cryptocurrency automatically. You just need to periodically check if it is switched off, if the network is not lost, and if the software is stable.
Cryptocurrency mining via a smartphone is popular, so a wide range of software for mobile crypto mining has been developed. Some pools and platforms additionally adapt their solutions that were originally developed for PCs and ASICs, for smartphones.
It is important to choose the right software because apart from the performance of the device, the software influences the intensity of crypto mining. To save time on analyzing existing programs, we have already compared several, and here is a brief roundup of the top three.
It is one of the most popular and potentially promising cryptocurrency miners. MinerGate has its pools for mining Bitcoin, Bitcoin Gold, Litecoin, Ethereum, Ethereum Classic, Monero, Grin, Zcash, EOS, TRX, and ICX. The standard version of the program is designed for Windows 7 and above (64-bit only). But there is a mobile version called MinerGate Mobile. This app has been distributed via Google Play for a long time, but now it is banned from the digital marketplace. While the situation is being resolved, MinerGate Mobile can be freely downloaded as a .apk file on the internet and installed manually.
The application has a simple, intuitive interface. You can register directly in it, it is not necessary to register on the site. There is an English version of instructions on how to mine money on a smartphone because the settings are minimal. The key features of the software are low mining hashrate, but also low resource consumption. MinerGate Mobile almost does not accelerate the wear and tear of the equipment, but it only mines a little crypto.
It is not possible to optimize the mining process. But note that the app has other features besides mobile mining. For example, it allows you to manage mining on your PC if you use a standard MinerGate version, as well as to make transactions with the multicurrency wallet on the site.
Compared to MinerGate, this application is more powerful and has more cryptocurrency mining capabilities. The software supports Neoscrypt, Script, SHA256, X11, X11EVO, X13, X14, X15, Quark, Qubit, Axiom, Lyra2RE, Lyra2REv2 (Vertcoin), ScryptJaneNf16, CryptoNight, Cryptolight, M7M, and Yescrypt. This means you can mine Bitcoin, Litecoin, Feathercoin, and the most popular coins on your phone.
Note:
MinerGate Mobile is cross-functional, it uses both GPU-mining and CPU-mining. NeoNeonMiner will work only with the CPU of your device, without affecting the graphics core. In this case, the CPU is loaded to the limit. Therefore, during operation, the smartphone will be very hot and the wear and tear of the CPU will increase. It is recommended to provide quality cooling.
Algorithms like NeoScrypt, Lyra2RE, and Lyra2REv2 in NeoNeonMiner are optimized for CPUs with ARM-NEON support, which is relevant for most modern Android devices. Partly due to the quality optimization, this app mines more cryptocurrency than many analogs. But, as we said, the resource and power consumption are higher.
The application contains ads that cannot be disabled, so antivirus systems may determine the software to be unsafe. If the program was downloaded from a verified site, there is no real danger.
This is another popular program for mining cryptocurrency on your smartphone. It has a simple interface, but quite powerful functionality. For example, the user determines how many processor cores will be used for mining. This allows you to install the software on smartphones, which you also use daily.
ARM Miner allows you to mine many popular cryptocurrencies, such as Monero and Ethereum. But the program doesn’t work with SHA-256 and Scrypt algorithms. This means that you can't mine Bitcoin, Litecoin, Dogecoin, and some other advanced coins with it on your phone. The phone remains quite warm while the application is running, but a lot depends on the number of cores involved.
If you use the smartphone to the fullest extent, turning on the maximum resources, it is possible to mine coins at the level of leading competitors. The depreciation of the technical resource using ARM Miner is much lower than for NeoNeonMiner. This is due to the limitation on algorithms since ARM Miner uses "lighter" protocols.
Alas, no. In most cases, if you don't go deep into setup and optimization, your earnings will barely cover the cost of electricity. If you try and meticulously optimize your device, and if your smartphone works 24/7 (and assuming it doesn't break down because that's very likely), you can earn the same $10-15 a month. But this is an idealized view.
It is much more profitable to earn from buying and selling cryptocurrency through cryptocurrency exchanges. Many top sites also provide staking which is an alternative to mining, and that doesn’t require using equipment for calculations to get the reward. You only need to hold a certain amount of relevant cryptocurrency on a special deposit. The more and longer you hold it, the higher the reward.
With cryptocurrency exchanges, just like with mining apps on your phone, it is important to choose a proven and reliable service. The Traders Union has analyzed the most popular cryptocurrency exchanges and offers the top sites with which you may wish to cooperate.
The exchange offers cryptocurrency spot and margin trading (leverage is up to x10). Crypto-crypto and crypto-fiat pairs are represented. Also, derivatives (futures) are traded. The minimum deposit is $1, and there is a welcome bonus of $100. The exchange has launched an integrated peer-to-peer P2P exchange service, with no commission for the maker.
The website has a training system for novice and advanced users, and it is translated into several languages. Binance has implemented a lot of services, starting from its own cryptocurrency wallet to a blockchain incubator. NFT-projects are available. Trading terms are favorable and include all deposit and withdrawal options (including bank cards). The commission is minimal. For novice traders, it is 0.1% (you can get a 25% discount for holding a BNB token).
The exchange offers several passive income options, including staking using popular cryptocurrencies. There are simple cryptocurrency deposits and Binance Earn solutions with flexible investment portfolio customization.
The platform offers spot and margin trading with leverage up to x5; also indices, futures (leverage up to x50), and OTC trading. Sell and purchase are carried out on crypto-crypto and crypto-fiat (50 integrated instruments in total). The minimum deposit is $10.
It is one of the oldest cryptocurrency exchanges and is widely known for its impeccable stability and the highest transaction speed. The most popular deposit and withdrawal options are available, including bank cards and transfers, wallets, and e-payment systems.
Commissions are generally lower than average, depending on the asset and type of trade. For example, when trading Bitcoin on margin, the fee is 0.02%. The platform doesn’t offer passive income options, it is focused on active trading. For this purpose, Kraken has a proprietary Cryptowatch solution that allows you to monitor several markets simultaneously.
Here, cryptocurrencies can be traded on the exchange with a margin of up to x500. In addition to the coins themselves, there is trade in tokenized assets such as securities, indices, and commodities. The minimum deposit is $1, and each user gets $20 at the start. Trade through the browser (proprietary terminal based on the standard TradingView platform) or through a mobile application.
There are over 2,000 tokenized assets on the site. Commissions are low compared to most competitors. For example, for BTC/USD, BTC/EUR, ETH/USD, ETH/EUR pairs the fee is 0.06%. Deposits and withdrawals are made by all major methods, including Visa and MC cards (the withdrawal fee is fixed at 3.5%).
There are no options for passive earnings. The exchange has a high-quality training system and regular analytics. The website operates according to AML and KYC standards, under the umbrella of FINTRAC and FinCEN, which guarantees transparency and reliability.
Now you know what mining is and how mining apps work on your phone. It can be a stable passive income, but it will not provide a significant income. Ideally, you will earn $10-15 per month using this method, but you need a fairly powerful smartphone that functions 24/7 and is not used for other tasks. You will also need stable WI-FI/mobile internet connectivity and inexpensive electricity.
In all respects, trading cryptocurrency on an exchange is a much more profitable option. If you are interested in passive income, we recommend that you consider staking. That is a profitable alternative to mining, where you get remuneration not for providing computing power, but for keeping the coins you already have on a special deposit.
To mine a cryptocurrency means to provide the blockchain system with its computing power to perform complex mathematical operations. This can be a video card, a CPU, a Rig, or an ASIC. And you are rewarded for this in the form of coins.
You need to download a special application (sometimes you need to register on the site or in the application itself). After setup, you just launch the application and mine the selected coin. For other purposes, it is better not to use the same smartphone at the same time.
The main advantage is that if you have an unnecessary smartphone, a stable WI-FI, and inexpensive electricity, you can start mining crypto within minutes. The main disadvantages are very small earnings, and the smartphone will quickly fall into disrepair.
Staking is another method of cryptocurrency mining. In the case of staking, the blockchain rewards you not for providing hardware, but for keeping some of the cryptos you have in a special deposit to develop the system. It's simple and profitable.
Andrey Mastykin is an experienced author, editor, and content strategist who has been with Traders Union since 2020. As an editor, he is meticulous about fact-checking and ensuring the accuracy of all information published on the Traders Union platform. Andrey focuses on educating readers about the potential rewards and risks involved in trading financial markets.
He firmly believes that passive investing is a more suitable strategy for most individuals. Andrey's conservative approach and focus on risk management resonate with many readers, making him a trusted source of financial information.
Olga Shendetskaya has been a part of the Traders Union team as an author, editor and proofreader since 2017. Since 2020, Shendetskaya has been the assistant chief editor of the website of Traders Union, an international association of traders. She has over 10 years of experience of working with economic and financial texts. In the period of 2017-2020, Olga has worked as a journalist and editor of laftNews news agency, economic and financial news sections. At the moment, Olga is a part of the team of top industry experts involved in creation of educational articles in finance and investment, overseeing their writing and publication on the Traders Union website.
Olga has extensive experience in writing and editing articles about the specifics of working in the Forex market, cryptocurrency market, stock exchanges and also in the segment of financial investment in general. This level of expertise allows Olga to create unique and comprehensive articles, describing complex investment mechanisms in a simple and accessible way for traders of any level.
Olga’s motto: Do well and you’ll be well!
Mirjan Hipolito is a journalist and news editor at Traders Union. She is an expert crypto writer with five years of experience in the financial markets. Her specialties are daily market news, price predictions, and Initial Coin Offerings (ICO). Mirjan is a cryptocurrency and stock trader. This deep understanding of the finance sector allows her to create informative and engaging content that helps readers easily navigate the complexities of the crypto world.
