What is Difficulty?
Difficulty is a network-wide value that determines the target a valid block hash must fall below. Bitcoin adjusts difficulty every 2,016 blocks (roughly two weeks) to keep block production near a ten-minute average regardless of total mining power.
Why Difficulty matters
Understanding Difficulty is part of building a solid mental model of how Bitcoin, blockchain and Web3 systems actually work. Concepts in the Bitcoin category sit at the foundation of the broader stack — get them right and the rest is far easier.
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Related terms
- Mining — Producing new blocks by performing Proof of Work.
- Proof of Work — A consensus mechanism that requires computational work to add blocks.
- Nonce — The number miners change while searching for a valid hash.
More bitcoin terms
- Address (Bitcoin / Crypto Address) — A public destination for receiving cryptocurrency.
- Block Header — The metadata at the top of each block.
- Block Reward — New coins paid to the miner of a block.
- Double Spend — Attempting to spend the same coin twice.
- Halving — The scheduled 50% cut in Bitcoin's block subsidy.
- Hash Rate — The total computational power securing the network.
- Nakamoto Consensus — Bitcoin's consensus rule: follow the chain with the most work.
- Confirmation — A block built on top of the block containing a transaction.
Keep exploring
Continue with the full blockchain glossary — 136 terms in total — or read the developer blog and FAQ for deeper context.