The payback of mining? Is it worth going into mining in 2026? Mining Farm Revenue [AMD / Nvidia]
GPU Mining: Is It Still Profitable? Is it worth building mining farms, or can you simply mine on a single graphics card in a PC?
How quickly will GPU mining pay off in 2026?
We will answer all these and other questions later in the article.
Test System
Next, we will analyze how long it takes for a single graphics card to pay for itself, as well as how long it takes for a standard rig of 6 graphics cards to break even.
BUT! In order to calculate the payback period of a farm, you must account not only for the cost of 6 graphics cards, but also for all the additional components, since they are also quite expensive!
Test system:
- Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-B250-FinTech Socket 1151v1 (up to 12 GPUs). Price ~ 68$. You can find motherboards from other manufacturers; the price will be either slightly cheaper or slightly more expensive. This is the average price for a mining motherboard.
- Processor: Intel Core i3-7100 OEM (new). Price ~ 21$
- CPU Cooler: ExeGate EE97378, Al + Copper. Price ~ 5$
- RAM: DDR4 Hynix 8GB 2400MHz. Price ~ 53$
- Risers: 8 units with reserve ~ 270 rubles (3$) * 8 = 26$
- SSD: Digma 256 GB. Price ~ 2 34$
- Mining frame: metal (can be purchased ready-made or assembled yourself). Price 31$
- Power supply*: for testing different cards, power supplies from 750 watts to 1200 watts are suitable (from 1 to 4 PSUs per farm). The average price of one PSU with a minimum 80 PLUS Gold certification is ~ 161$ (for a 750 W unit). The average price of a 1 kW PSU is ~ 285$.
*The power supply is the heart of your farm. Graphics cards are very expensive, so you should not save money on the PSU! You need to choose a high-quality unit from trusted manufacturers with a high certification. Also pay attention to the number of 6+2-pin PCI-E cables!
TOTAL: the cost of additional components ranges from 400$ to 969$. The price difference depends on the power consumption of the graphics cards and the number of power supplies per farm.
Mining Income on All Graphics Cards – Cost Calculation
Further in the article, in two separate tables, we will consider the payback of graphics cards from Nvidia and AMD, both new and used models.
The tables below calculate a farm of 6 graphics cards (a standard GPU farm) with full additional equipment.
In the calculations, we selected graphics cards from the same series, for example the 4060 series, with a good cooling system, but not the most expensive ones - that is, the mid-price segment.
The figures may vary slightly, since cryptocurrency exchange rates are very volatile. However, this does not change the essence of the matter: at the moment, mining is either completely unprofitable (depending on the price of your electricity) or has a payback period of 6 years or more!
The calculation was carried out with an electricity price of 0.08$ per kWh and a 1% fee.
Payback of Nvidia Graphics Cards in Mining 2026
Below in the tables, we will consider how quickly Nvidia graphics cards pay for themselves in mining!
Nvidia graphics card revenue (new hardware only – NOT used):
IMPORTANT! Even if your electricity price is only ~ 0.01$, even then the payback period for Nvidia graphics cards is ~ 5-8 years!
| Graphics Card Name | Total cost of a mining farm | Average Price of 1 GPU | Profit per year: without deduction / with deduction | Farm Payback (with deduction) | Farm Payback (without deduction) | Payback of 1 GPU (without deduction) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5090 | 23,677$ | 3,716$ | 1,674$ / 57.6$ | 408 years | 14 years | 13 years |
| 5080 | 10,471$ | 1,610$ | 1,162$ / 100$ | 104 years | 9 years | 8 years |
| 5070 TI | 8,043$ | 1,226$ | 921$ / 39$ | 206 years | 9 years | 8 years |
| 5070 | 5,442$ | 792$ | 777$ / 79$ (but almost all coins unprofitable) | 68 years | 7 years | 6 years |
| 5060 TI | 3,658$ | 495$ | 468$ / 54$ (but almost all coins unprofitable) | 68 years | 8 years | 6 years |
| 5060 | 3,621$ | 520$ | 356$ / completely unprofitable | Never | 8 years | 8 years |
| 5050 | 2,605$ | 346$ | 219$ / completely unprofitable | Never | 10 years | 9 years |
| 4090* (new, not used) | 30,825$ | 4,955$ | 1,080$ / 32$ (but almost all coins unprofitable) | 951 years | 29 years | 34 years |
And this is considering coins that have at least some trading volume, allowing for conversion on the exchange.
Of course, the return on investment was sometimes slightly better, judging by the calculators, but there were coins that traded literally up to $10,000 per day – this is very risky; there's a chance you simply won't be able to sell them due to very low trading volumes!
Income of Nvidia graphics cards (Used equipment)
Now let's look at how things are going with payback on Nvidia graphics cards (Used equipment):
| Graphics Card Name | Total cost of a mining farm | Average Price of 1 GPU | Profit per year: without deduction / with deduction | Farm Payback (with deduction) | Farm Payback (without deduction) | Payback of 1 GPU (without deduction) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4090 | 14,473$ | 2,229$ | 1,080$ / 32$ (but almost all coins unprofitable) | 452 years | 13 years | 13 years |
| 4080 Super | 6,916$ | 991$ | 835$ / all unprofitable | Never | 8 years | 7 years |
| 4080 | 6,544$ | 929$ | 982$ / 136$ (but almost all coins unprofitable) | 48 years | 7 years | 6 years |
| 4070 TI Super | 5,367$ | 780$ | 943$ / 97$ (but almost all coins unprofitable) | 55 years | 6 years | 5 years |
| 4070 TI | 4,624$ | 656$ | 662$ / all unprofitable | Never | 7 years | 6 years |
| 4070 Super | 4,104$ | 569$ | 658$ / 50$ (but almost all coins unprofitable) | 82 years | 6 years | 5 years |
| 4070 | 3,658$ | 495$ | 658$ / 25$ (but almost all coins unprofitable) | Never | 6 years | 5 years |
| 4060 TI | 2,914$ | 371$ | 471$ / 68$ (but almost all coins unprofitable) | 42 years | 6 years | 5 years |
| 4060 | 2,468$ | 297$ | 370$ / 72$ | 34 years | 7 years | 5 years |
| 3090 TI | 7,287$ | 1,052$ | 1,062$ / 115$ (but almost all coins unprofitable) | 63 years | 7 years | 6 years |
| 3090 | 5,429$ | 743$ | 986$ / all unprofitable | Never | 6 years | 5 years |
| 3080 TI | 3,794$ | 470$ | 828$ / all unprofitable | Never | 5 years | 4 years |
| 3080 | 3,038$ | 371$ | 972$ / 57$ (but almost all coins unprofitable) | 53 years | 3 years | 2 years |
| 3070 TI | 2,667$ | 309$ | 550$ / all unprofitable | Never | 5 years | 4 years |
| 3070 | 2,245$ | 260$ | 590$ / 72$ (but almost all coins unprofitable) | 31 years | 4 years | 3 years |
| 3060 TI | 2,097$ | 235$ | 522$ / 79$ (but almost all coins unprofitable) | 27 years | 4 years | 3 years |
| 3060 | 1,973$ | 235$ | 414$ / all unprofitable | Never | 5 years | 4 years |
| 3050 | 1,601$ | 173$ | 165$ / all unprofitable | Never | 10 years | 7 years |
| 2080 TI | 2,828$ | 309$ | 720$ / all unprofitable | Never | 4 years | 3 years |
| 2080 Super | 2,233$ | 210$ | 550$ / all unprofitable | Never | 4 years | 3 years |
| 2080 | 1,998$ | 198$ | 360$ / all unprofitable | Never | 6 years | 4 years |
| 2070 Super | 1,874$ | 198$ | 345$ / all unprofitable | Never | 6 years | 4 years |
| 2070 | 1,800$ | 185$ | 302$ / all unprofitable | Never | 6 years | 4 years |
| 2060 Super | 1,601$ | 173$ | 252$ / all unprofitable | Never | 7 years | 4 years |
| 2060 | 1,527$ | 161$ | 194$ / all unprofitable | Never | 8 years | 5 years |
| 1660 TI | 1,304$ | 123$ | 144$ / all unprofitable | Never | 9 years | 6 years |
| 1660 Super | 1,304$ | 123$ | 144$ / all unprofitable | Never | 9 years | 6 years |
| 1660 | 1,230$ | 111$ | 144$ / all unprofitable | Never | 9 years | 6 years |
| 1080 TI | 1,886$ | 173$ | 396$ / all unprofitable | Never | 5 years | 3 years |
| 1070 TI | 1,354$ | 111$ | 126$ / all unprofitable | Never | 11 years | 6 years |
| 1060 (6GB) | 932$ | 61$ | 90$ / all unprofitable | Never | 10 years | 5 years |
| 1050 TI | 771$ | 49$ | 54$ / all unprofitable | Never | 15 years | 7 years |
Nvidia Graphics Card Payback Summary
So, what we have is this: almost all graphics cards, even those with a cheap outlet, pay for themselves in 5 to 10+ years!
This is a very long time for graphics cards, especially considering they operate 24/7 at high temperatures.
However, cryptocurrency prices are very volatile and can rise by 100-1000% in just a couple of months. In this case, the payback could be as short as one year, as was previously the case (but this may not happen).
The problem is that there are almost no coins left for GPU mining: 99% of them are complete scams! There's simply nothing left to mine!
Many coins have daily trading volumes of less than $20,000 - this is very little, there is a risk that you will not be able to sell these coins!
Payback for AMD GPUs in Mining 2026
Now let's look at the same payback tables, but for AMD GPUs.
IMPORTANT! Even if your electricity costs are only ~$0.01, the payback for AMD GPUs is still ~3-10+ years!
AMD GPU Mining Profits: New Hardware Only
| Graphics Card Name | Total cost of a mining farm | Average Price of 1 GPU | Profit per year: without deduction / with deduction | Farm Payback (with deduction) | Farm Payback (without deduction) | Payback of 1 GPU (without deduction) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9070 XT | 6,544$ | 929$ | 864$ / all unprofitable | Never | 8 years | 7 years |
| 9070 | 5,132$ | 693$ | 1,080$ / 165$ (almost all coins unprofitable) | 31 years | 5 years | 4 years |
| 9060 XT | 3,286$ | 433$ | 360$ / all unprofitable | Never | 9 years | 8 years |
AMD GPU Mining Profits: Used Equipment
| Graphics Card Name | Total cost of a mining farm | Average Price of 1 GPU | Profit per year: without deduction / with deduction | Farm Payback (with deduction) | Farm Payback (without deduction) | Payback of 1 GPU (without deduction) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7900 XTX | 6,916$ | 991$ | 1,260$ / 180$ (almost all coins unprofitable) | 39 years | 6 years | 5 years |
| 7900 XT | 6,173$ | 867$ | 1,044$ / 72$ (almost all coins unprofitable) | 86 years | 6 years | 5 years |
| 7800 XT | 4,190$ | 557$ | 766$ / all unprofitable | Never | 6 years | 5 years |
| 7700 XT | 3,237$ | 408$ | 540$ / all unprofitable | Never | 6 years | 5 years |
| 7600 | 1,973$ | 222$ | 252$ / all unprofitable | Never | 8 years | 6 years |
| 6950 XT | 3,435$ | 445$ | 792$ / 72$ (almost all coins unprofitable) | 48 years | 4 years | 3 years |
| 6900 XT | 3,286$ | 433$ | 756$ / 126$ (almost all coins unprofitable) | 26 years | 5 years | 4 years |
| 6800 XT | 2,914$ | 371$ | 720$ / 93$ (almost all coins unprofitable) | 31 years | 4 years | 3 years |
| 6800 | 2,691$ | 334$ | 684$ / all unprofitable | Never | 4 years | 3 years |
| 6750 XT | 2,468$ | 284$ | 540$ / all unprofitable | Never | 5 years | 3 years |
| 6700 XT | 2,171$ | 235$ | 298$ / all unprofitable | Never | 7 years | 5 years |
| 6600 XT | 1,688$ | 198$ | 288$ / all unprofitable | Never | 6 years | 5 years |
| 6600 | 1,527$ | 173$ | 252$ / all unprofitable | Never | 6 years | 5 years |
| 6500 XT | 1,106$ | 111$ | 129$ / all unprofitable | Never | 9 years | 5 years |
| 5700 XT | 1,651$ | 161$ | 432$ / all unprofitable | Never | 4 years | 3 years |
| 5700 | 1,502$ | 136$ | 288$ / all unprofitable | Never | 6 years | 3 years |
| 5600 XT | 1,230$ | 111$ | 252$ / all unprofitable | Never | 5 years | 3 years |
| 5500 XT | 1,031$ | 99$ | 237$ / all unprofitable | Never | 5 years | 3 years |
| 590 | 883$ | 74$ | 144$ / all unprofitable | Never | 6 years | 4 years |
| 580 (8GB) | 808$ | 61$ | 100$ / all unprofitable | Never | 8 years | 4 years |
| 570 (8GB) | 734$ | 49$ | 100$ / all unprofitable | Never | 7 years | 4 years |
| 480 | 808$ | 61$ | 93$ / all unprofitable | Never | 9 years | 5 years |
| VEGA 64 | 1,230$ | 111$ | 324$ / all unprofitable | Never | 4 years | 2 years |
| VEGA 56 | 1,007$ | 74$ | 295$ / all unprofitable | Never | 4 years | 2 years |
AMD Graphics Card Payback Summary
AMD graphics cards, like Nvidia, offer a nearly infinite payback in mining.
Yes, of course, cryptocurrency prices are very volatile and can rise by 100-1000% in a couple of months, or they can plummet!
In this case, the payback could be as short as one year, as was previously the case, but this may not happen!
The problem is that there are almost no coins left for GPU mining. Or rather, there are many, but almost all of them are complete scams (99%).
They have very small daily trading volumes, literally up to $20,000, which means it will be difficult to sell this coin!
In general, the payback on AMD, even with very cheap electricity, is at least 4 years!
The best GPU for mining 2026
So, having calculated the payback of all video cards, you can select the best ones to enter mining.
Although, in fact, there are no better ones – GPU mining is now dead.
But still, here are the best graphics cards from Nvidia (new):
- 5070 TI
- 5070
Used:
- 4070 with all prefixes
- 3080 TI / 3080 / 3070 TI / 3070 / 3060 TI / 3060
- 2080 TI / 2070
The best AMD graphics cards (new):
- 9070
Used:
- 6950 XT
- 6900 XT
- 6800 XT
- 6800
- 6750 XT
- 5700 XT
- 5700
- 5600 XT
- 5500 XT
Conclusion
What can we conclude? Mining with GPUs has truly become unprofitable. It's better to consider ASIC mining; it's more profitable!
Yes, exchange rates are certainly volatile, and after a while they can rise sharply, and the payback may literally not be that great.
But it's also worth understanding that exchange rates can collapse, and you simply won't have time to lock in your profits during the hype.
Even if you have almost free electricity (or completely free), the payback period will still be, on average, 5-6 years! That's a long time for such GPUs.
YES, in the past, during the crypto winter, the payback period was very long, and then during the hype, we saw payback figures of 5 months for one rig!
BUT! The thing is, there used to be some really good coins for GPU mining. However, now they're all either ASIC-based or have switched to PoS!
Therefore, there are simply no decent GPU-minable coins left!
Furthermore, 80% of the remaining coins have daily trading volumes of less than $20,000. This means they'll be difficult to trade on an exchange!
And 90% of all available GPU-minable coins are complete garbage, which appeared just as quickly as they will die.
Conclusion: if you have a modern, powerful graphics card in your PC, then it's worth mining occasionally on it, but only reliable coins. They are also ranked 1-2 in terms of profitability in the online calculator.
Building a separate rig is possible, but the chances of not even breaking even are quite high!
Disclaimer: All information provided in this article should not be construed as financial advice! This article was created for informational and educational purposes.
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