Mining for Bitcoin has become a less profitable venture in recent years, with more and more miners entering the market and the difficulty of the network rising. However, you can increase your chances of successfully earning a profit by finding the right mining pool. 

In this article, we’ll be sharing the 8 best Bitcoin mining pools from our experience. Whether you are a seasoned miner or just starting out, these pools offer the best combination of stability, security, and profitability for you.

Let’s get started!

1. Binance 

Binance is one of the biggest players in the world of crypto and one of our personal favorites for trading. It entered the Bitcoin mining market back in November of 2022 and has since averaged about 11-12% of the Bitcoin network’s total hash rate over the last year. 

With its low 2.5% commission fees and reliable daily payouts, it’s easy for us to understand why so many high-level Bitcoin miners have switched over.

In keeping with its large-scale compatibility, Binance also allows you to link several sub-accounts to your primary mining account. You can then use these sub accounts to manage proxy servers and monitor multiple mining farms.

2. F2Pool

F2Pool is one of the oldest with an initial launch date of 2013. Today, it’s the third largest mining pool in the world with a hash rate percentage hovering around 14%. Its relatively low payout fee of 2.5% and exceptional reliability makes it a solid choice for most Bitcoin miners, but this is not why F2Pool is so high up on our list. 

What makes F2Pool a standout for us is its ability to allow merged mining. Put simply, you can mine other cryptocurrencies alongside Bitcoin, without affecting your BTC hash rate in any way. For example, you can earn up to 120 Hathor (HTR) for each BTC mined.

3. Slush Pool (Braiins Pool)

Slush Pool (now Braiins Pool) holds the title of the first Bitcoin pool as it launched during the initial years of BTC in 2010. Today, it’s the personification of the term “Old is gold.” with its low 2% fee and just 0.001 BTC minimum payout threshold — enabling miners to earn more profit.

The best part about Slush Pool, however, is that you can get its commission fees down to zero. All you have to do is install the Braiins OS+ on your Bitcoin ASICs, which was a super straightforward process when we tried it on our machines.

4. BTC.com 

BTC.com caught our attention due to its above-average transparency and security. It shows each user’s hash rates, fee ratio, power consumption, daily profit, and 24-hour returns on the platform — allowing you to make swift, profitable decisions. 

The security of BTC.com is backed by a completely open-source code and Cloudflare DDoS protection. Plus, the $4 commission fee is also quite reasonable for most miners.

5. ViaBTC

ViaBTC is a part of the top-five mining pools with a total hash rate share of 8.094%. Its high position on the global BTC leaderboard makes sense as it operates at a blistering average pool hash rate of 22 EH/s. 

From our time using this pool, its hashing performance and BTC output were exceptionally consistent and on par with the top players in the market. 

Not to mention its low 2% commission fee if you choose the PPLNS payout system. Though, ViaBTC will take a 4% cut if you prefer PPS payments.

6. ECOS

ECOS is one of the most cost-efficient mining pools we’ve reviewed. This is because it’s actually a cloud mining service that allows you to mine BTC without having to own any hardware of your own. 

What separates ECOS from other cloud mining services for us, is just how easy it is to set up. All you have to do is choose your desired BTC forecast, contract duration, and price with three handy sliders and the site automatically creates the ideal contract for you. 

Plus, once you are mining, the 1 TH/s per day commission fee of ECOS allows you to maximize your profits even further.

7. Antpool

Antpool is the second largest Bitcoin mining pool in the world with its grasp over 21.043% of the total hash rate distribution. It is also one of the most efficient mining platforms with an average pool hash rate of 56 EH/s — allowing smart miners to make significant profits. 

For us, the best part of Antpool is its 0% commission fee with the PPLNS payout method. Though this fee does go up to 4% if you prefer PPS+.

8. Poolin

Poolin is an all-around solid Bitcoin mining pool with no major downsides. It provides complete transparency with the hash rate, price, power consumption, and profitability rank of each miner. While testing Poolin, this transparency allowed us to make informed decisions to maximize our profits from this mining platform.

Speaking of profits, Poolin also allows you to choose between several payout options including PPS, PPS+, Solo, PPLNS, and FPPS. Though, it is important to note that its commission fees range between 2.5% and 4% depending on the payout option, with FPPS being the lowest at 2.5%.

Conclusion 

Choosing the right mining pool can be the difference between success and failure in the world of Bitcoin mining. Fortunately, you cannot go wrong with any of the eight top-tier options we’ve discussed above.

Ultimately, the decision comes down to what you want. For instance, Braiins Pool is an ideal option if you want the lowest fee, while Binance offers one of the highest hash rates.