Bitcoin Halving Date History & Prices
What is the Bitcoin (BTC) halving ?
The first point I’d like to clarify is that the term “Bitcoin halving” does not indicate a bitcoin halve in value, or that the price will be cut in half.
In crypto, halving (sometimes referred to as “halvening”) refers to the number of tokens or coins that a miner receives for adding new transactions to the blockchain (i.e. reward for mining new blocks) being cut in half.
While there are many cryptos that experience a halving event, including Bitcoin Cash, Horizen & Litecoin, not all do. However, the most discussed halving in the media is that of the Bitcoin block reward halving.
In the case of Bitcoin (BTC), halvings occur once every 210,000 blocks. Currently, one block on the Bitcoin blockchain takes approximately 10 minutes to complete. Therefore Bitcoin halvings will happen roughly every four years. These halvings are built into the Bitcoin code and will continue until the network has generated the maximum supply of 21 million Bitcoins.
The current BTC block reward, after the last halving, which occurred in 2024, is 3.125 Bitcoins per block (i.e. 3.125 new Bitcoins per block, paid to the miners for mining Bitcoin).
Bitcoin halving dates and price – History & Future
Below is a table of historic and future Bitcoin halving dates, block number and block reward changes.
| wdt_ID | Halving # (BTC) | Date | Block Number | Block Reward | BTC % Mined | Price on Halving Day (USD) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 (Bitcoin launch) | 3rd Jan 2009 | 0 (Genesis Block) | 50 BTC | 50% | N/A |
| 2 | 1st halving | 28th Nov 2012 | 210,000 | 25 BTC | 75% | $12.35 |
| 3 | 2nd halving | 9th Jul 2016 | 420,000 | 12.5 BTC | 87.5% | $650.53 |
| 4 | 3rd halving | 11th May 2020 | 630,000 | 6.25 BTC | 93.75% | $8,571.67 |
| 5 | 4th halving | 19th April 2024 | 840,000 | 3.125 BTC | 96.875% | $63,842.56 |
| 6 | 5th halving | approx. Q2 2028 | 1,050,000 | 1.5625 BTC | 98.4375% | ? |
| 7 | 6th halving | approx. 2032 | 1,260,000 | 0.78125 BTC | 99.21875% | ? |
| 8 | 7th halving | approx. 2036 | 1,470,000 | 0.390625 BTC | 99.609375% | ? |
| 9 | 8th halving | approx. 2040 | 1,680,000 | 0.1953125 BTC | 99.8046875% | ? |
First eight halving dates for Bitcoin (BTC) – Please note this is not an exhaustive list.
As discussed above, Bitcoin halvings happen every 210,000 blocks until approximately the year 2140, when all 21 million bitcoins will have been mined. However, as you can see from the table above, over 98% will be mined and in circulation by 2028.
When is the next Bitcoin halving? (Hint: 2028)
As at the time of writing, the next bitcoin halving date, the fifth, will occur on BTC block number 1,050,000. This halving is expected to occur around March 2028. However, we are several years away from the next halving, so this estimation will become more accurate as the next one gets closer.
At this time, Bitcoin miners will see their rewards for processing transactions and securing the Bitcoin network reduced to 1.5625 Bitcoins per block. This reduction in new Bitcoins supplied to miners sounds like a bad proposition. However, the alternative side is that supply is increasing at a lower rate at a time when demand is, on average, increasing over the four-year halving cycle as the technology progresses closer to mainstream adoption.
The net effect during prior halving cycles has been an increase in the Bitcoin price (see chart below). This is of course never a guarantee and past results may not be indicative of future results, especially given how volatile the Cryptocurrency market/prices are.
BTC halving price prediction
Historically there has been a significant increase in the price of Bitcoin (BTC) between each Bitcoin halving event (around a four year period give or take a little).
- BTC price was US$12.35 on the day of the first halving in 2012
- BTC price was US$650.53 on the day of the second halving in 2016
- BTC price was US$8,571.67 on the day of the third halving in 2020
- BTC price was US$63,842.56 on the day of the fourth halving in 2024 (Currently the last Bitcoin halving)
- Where will Bitcoin’s price be on the day of the fifth halving in 2028?
The 2028 Bitcoin halving countdown has begun, so please leave your Bitcoin price predictions for the next halving in 2028. We will update this article after the next halving of Bitcoin with the winner who is closest 🙂
Return on investment (ROI) based on halvings
| wdt_ID | BTC Halving | Halving Date | Price at Prior Halving (USD) | Price on Halving Day (USD) | Number Days | Price Change (USD) | ROI / Halving (%) | Ave ROI / Year (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | November 28, 2012 | 0.0008 | 12.35 | 1,425 | 12.35 | 1,543,650 | 395,391 |
| 3 | 2 | July 9, 2016 | 12.3500 | 650.53 | 1,320 | 638.18 | 5,167 | 1,429 |
| 4 | 3 | May 11, 2020 | 650.5300 | 8,571.67 | 1,403 | 7,921.14 | 1,218 | 317 |
| 5 | 4 | April 19, 2024 | 8,571.6700 | 63,842.56 | 1,440 | 55,270.89 | 645 | 163 |
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