Self-Host Mining vs Cloud Mining: Which One Actually Earns More?
Updated May 2026
Every prospective miner eventually asks the same question: do I buy an ASIC and plug it in at home (or co-host it somewhere), or do I skip the hardware and buy a cloud-mining contract from BitFuFu / Binance Pool / Bitdeer? The marketing for both sides is loud. The economics are not subtle — one of these usually wins by a wide margin, and the answer depends on exactly three things: your electricity rate, your capital, and whether you want to own or rent your hashpower.
This guide compares the two honestly with live numbers from MiningBoard. If you're at zero and just want the shortest path to mining, skip to the Starting Miner wizard — it walks you through picking the right rig and pool in under a minute.
The two models in one table
| Self-host ASIC | Cloud-mining contract | |
|---|---|---|
| Upfront cost | $3k–$10k hardware | $100–∞ contract size |
| You own… | Hardware (resale value) | A contract (expires) |
| Electricity cost | Your rate | Bundled in price (usually $0.06–0.08/kWh equivalent) |
| Maintenance fee | You pay $0 | ~$0.01–0.02/TH/day |
| Hashrate cliff risk | Unit dies → you replace it | Contract unprofitable → provider shuts it down |
| BTC price downside | You eat it | You eat it + contract can auto-terminate |
| Effort | Noise, heat, firmware, pool setup | Sign up, pay, wait |
| Typical yield | Higher at low-rate power | Lower (fees built in) |
Live example — a flagship ASIC today
Antminer S23 Hyd 3U is currently one of the top-earning ASICs on MiningBoard. At the default $0.07/kWh electricity assumption:
| Hashrate | 1.16 PH/s · Sha256 |
| Power | 11020 W |
| Revenue / day | $44.88 |
| Power cost / day | $26.45 |
| Net profit / day | $37.43 |
A cloud-mining contract priced to earn you the same daily net usually charges upfront enough to be roughly break-even vs buying the rig — before the provider's maintenance fee. After fees, cloud contracts typically return ~70-85% of the self-host net, which is the provider's margin.
When self-host wins
- Electricity under $0.08/kWh. Below this line the cost advantage vs a bundled contract rate is decisive.
- You have $3k+ in capital. Enough to buy a current-gen ASIC outright without financing.
- You can tolerate noise + heat or have a dedicated room/garage/colo.
- You plan to mine > 12 months. Long enough to depreciate the hardware past contract break-even.
- You care about resale. An ASIC retains ~40-60% of its value for 1-2 years; a contract is worth $0 the day after expiry.
When cloud mining wins
- Electricity over $0.15/kWh. Residential power in many regions. Self-hosting often goes unprofitable.
- No space / noise tolerance. Apartment dwellers mostly can't self-host at scale.
- Short-term exposure only. Want 3-6 months of mining exposure without a hardware commitment? A contract delivers that.
- You already trust the provider. Stick to the short list: BitFuFu, Binance Pool Cloud Mining, Bitdeer. Not no-name yield sites.
The third option most miners miss: hashpower marketplaces
Between buying a rig and buying a contract, there's a middle lane: rent out your own hashpower on NiceHash or Mining Rig Rentals. You own the hardware; the marketplace finds buyers and pays you in BTC. This gets you self-host economics without having to pick and manage a pool. See what is a hashpower marketplace for the full picture.
How to decide in 60 seconds
Use the Starting Miner wizard: enter your electricity rate and budget, it walks you through picking a rig, a pool, and whether to point at a hashpower marketplace or a direct pool. The output is a working setup you can start mining from today.
If you've decided cloud is the better fit, our Cloud Mining directory lists the providers we track along with their affiliate links.