Bitcoin's fixed supply of 21 million coins makes it fundamentally different from traditional currencies that governments can print endlessly. As of January 2025, approximately 19.94 million BitcoinBitcoin's fixed supply of 21 million coins makes it fundamentally different from traditional currencies that governments can print endlessly. As of January 2025, approximately 19.94 million Bitcoin
Bitcoin's fixed supply of 21 million coins makes it fundamentally different from traditional currencies that governments can print endlessly.
As of January 2025, approximately 19.94 million Bitcoin have been mined, representing 94.8% of the total supply.
This article explores how many Bitcoin have been mined so far, how much remains, and what happens when mining reaches its final limit.
Key Takeaways
Approximately 19.94 million Bitcoin have been mined as of late 2025, representing 94.8% of the total 21 million supply cap.
Only 1.06 million Bitcoin remain to be mined, which will take over a century due to the halving mechanism that occurs every four years.
Between 2.3 and 4 million BTC are permanently lost due to forgotten keys and inaccessible wallets, reducing the effective circulating supply to approximately 15.9-17.6 million coins.
Miners currently receive 3.125 BTC per block following the April 2024 halving, releasing approximately 450 new Bitcoin into circulation daily.
When all Bitcoin are mined around 2140, miners will rely entirely on transaction fees instead of block rewards to secure the network.
Bitcoin's programmatic scarcity and deflationary model make it fundamentally different from fiat currencies that can be printed endlessly.
These coins remain visible on the blockchain but can never be spent because their private keys have been lost forever.
Common causes include forgotten passwords, discarded hard drives from Bitcoin's early days when coins had little value, and deceased owners who never shared their wallet access.
The most famous case involves an individual who threw away a hard drive containing worth over $127 million in Bitcoin", now worth hundreds of millions of dollars.
This permanent loss effectively reduces Bitcoin's circulating supply to approximately 15.9 to 17.6 million coins, making it even scarcer than the 21 million cap suggests.
The final Bitcoin is expected to be mined around the year 2140, more than 115 years from now.
This extended timeline exists because each halving event cuts the mining reward in half, progressively slowing new supply issuance.
Currently, 900 Bitcoin are mined per day, but after the 2028 halving, this will drop to approximately 450 BTC daily.
By 2032, daily issuance will fall to around 225 Bitcoin, and by 2036, only 112.5 new coins will enter circulation each day.
The mathematics of repeated halving means 99% of all Bitcoin will be mined by approximately 2035, with the remaining 1% requiring another century.
This is because subsequent halvings will reduce block rewards to increasingly tiny fractions, eventually reaching less than one satoshi (the smallest Bitcoin unit) before dropping to zero.
When the last fraction of Bitcoin is mined in 2140, the network will have completed its predetermined supply schedule, cementing Bitcoin's position as the world's first provably scarce digital asset.
A common concern is whether transaction fees alone can sustain sufficient mining activity to keep the network secure.
Bitcoin's security depends on miners dedicating computational power to validate transactions and prevent attacks.
If fees prove insufficient, some miners might shut down operations, potentially reducing the network's hash rate and security.
However, several factors suggest this concern may be overblown, including continuous improvements in mining efficiency and the potential for Bitcoin's rising value to offset lower BTC-denominated rewards.
The Lightning Network and other layer-2 technologies will likely play a crucial role in Bitcoin's post-mining future.
These solutions enable fast, low-cost transactions off the main blockchain while still settling final balances on-chain periodically.
By reducing congestion on the base layer, these technologies help keep individual transaction fees manageable while still generating meaningful revenue for miners through high-value settlements.
This two-tier system allows Bitcoin to function both as a settlement layer for large transactions and a foundation for everyday payments.
The completion of Bitcoin mining will solidify its identity as a store of value rather than a medium of exchange for daily transactions.
With its supply permanently capped and no new coins entering circulation, Bitcoin will achieve maximum scarcity.
This deflationary characteristic mirrors gold's properties but with absolute mathematical certainty about the total supply.
Unlike gold, which continues to be mined and added to global supply, Bitcoin's 21 million limit cannot be changed without consensus from the entire network.
Bitcoin's mining journey has reached 94.8%, with 19.94 million of 21 million coins already in existence.
The remaining 1.06 million Bitcoin will take over a century to mine due to the programmed halving schedule.
When combined with the estimated 3-4 million permanently lost coins, Bitcoin's effective supply becomes even scarcer than its hard cap suggests.
Understanding how many Bitcoin have been mined provides essential context for evaluating its long-term value proposition as digital gold with mathematically guaranteed scarcity.