As of mid-2026, fewer than 1 million bitcoin are left to mine -- roughly 950,000 BTC -- out of Bitcoin's hard cap of 21 million. About 20 million BTC (over 95% of the total supply) are already in circulation, according to CoinDesk and MEXC. Bitcoin crossed the 20 million mark in March 2026 -- CoinDesk counted 19,996,979 coins mined on March 3, 2026, with the milestone then about a week away at the current issuance rate.

Bitcoin's supply is capped in its code: no more than 21 million coins will ever exist, and new coins are released on a fixed, slowing schedule. Because that schedule halves the issuance rate every four years, the last coins will trickle out for more than a century. This page lays out exactly how much is left, when the last bitcoin gets mined, and why the remaining ~4.5% takes so long.

Roughly 950,000 BTC to just under 1 million remain to be mined, depending on the exact date within 2026. With about 20 million already circulating, the network has issued more than 95% of the entire supply that will ever exist -- and it did so in Bitcoin's first ~17 years. As a reference point, CoinDesk put the count at 19,996,979 BTC mined on March 3, 2026, with roughly 3,000 coins left before the 20 million milestone -- about a week of issuance away at the time.

The remaining coins come out far more slowly. At the current block reward of 3.125 BTC (set by the April 2024 halving), the network mines a block roughly every 10 minutes, adding about 450 new BTC per day, per LBank. That rate halves again at the next halving, and again after that -- so issuance decays toward zero rather than stopping abruptly.

Every 210,000 blocks -- roughly every four years -- the block reward is cut in half. This "halving" is the mechanism that stretches the final coins across more than a century. Here is the full schedule:

Source: Blockchain Council and MEXC. Each halving cuts the flow of new supply in half, which is why more than 95% of all bitcoin was mined in the first four eras, while the remaining ~4.5% will take over a hundred years.

The final bitcoin is expected to be mined around the year 2140. Even though under 1 million coins remain, the halving schedule means the last of them drips out for another ~114 years, according to CoinDesk.

The milestones along the way are lopsided:

• ~2035: roughly 99% of all bitcoin will have been mined (CoinDesk pegs this at January 2035).
• ~2105: the last whole bitcoin is issued, per CoinDesk -- after this point, block rewards are fractions of a coin.
• ~2140: the final satoshis are issued and the block reward effectively rounds to zero.

It is worth being precise here, because sources quote the "last bitcoin" date differently depending on what they mean. The last whole coin lands around 2105; the very last satoshi -- one hundred-millionth of a bitcoin -- is not mined until roughly 2140. Both are correct; they are measuring different things. The ~114-year figure often cited for "the final million" refers to the tail from the 20-million mark to full issuance.

After the last coin is mined, miners are no longer paid in newly issued bitcoin. Instead, they are compensated entirely by transaction fees, which is how the network is designed to stay secure once issuance ends, per The Block.

Bitcoin's supply curve is not a straight line -- it is a sharp early ramp that flattens into a long tail. Because each halving cuts new issuance by 50%, the amount of bitcoin created in each four-year era shrinks geometrically:

Each era adds exactly half of the previous era's coins. Add up that infinite-but-shrinking series and it converges just under 21 million -- the cap is a mathematical limit the curve approaches, not a wall it slams into. This is the "asymptotic" design that lets Bitcoin promise a hard cap while still paying miners for over a century.

The block reward -- the new bitcoin a miner earns for adding a block -- has been cut four times so far:

• 2009-2012: 50 BTC per block (the era that minted half of all bitcoin)
• 2012-2016: 25 BTC
• 2016-2020: 12.5 BTC
• 2020-2024: 6.25 BTC
• 2024-present: 3.125 BTC (LBank)
• ~2028: 1.5625 BTC (next halving)

Every cut has historically preceded major shifts in Bitcoin's price and mining economics, since the flow of new supply hitting the market is halved overnight while demand is unchanged.

"How many bitcoin are left" has three different answers depending on what you mean:

• Circulating (~20 million): coins that have been mined and technically exist on-chain.
• Remaining to mine (~950,000): coins not yet issued, releasing on the halving schedule through ~2140.
• Effectively available (far less): circulating supply minus the estimated 3 to 4 million BTC that are lost forever -- forgotten keys, dead drives, abandoned wallets -- which we cover in how many Bitcoin are lost.

Put together, the number of bitcoin that can actually be bought, sold, and spent today is meaningfully smaller than 20 million -- closer to 16 to 17 million once lost coins are stripped out. That gap between the nominal cap and the truly liquid float is central to Bitcoin's scarcity narrative, and it is why the people who own any Bitcoin at all are effectively competing for a real supply even scarcer than 21 million implies.

A capped, ever-scarcer supply is the reason many people hold bitcoin -- but holding and spending are different problems. Most merchants still do not accept BTC directly at checkout, so using your coins usually means converting them.

A crypto debit card bridges that gap: it converts bitcoin (or stablecoins) to fiat and loads it onto a Visa or Mastercard you can spend anywhere. SolCard lets you top up with crypto and spend at millions of merchants, so your share of that fixed 21 million supply is actually usable. For the practical side, see our guides on how to pay with crypto and whether you can spend Bitcoin like cash.

Fewer than 1 million -- roughly 950,000 BTC as of mid-2026 -- out of the 21 million cap, with about 20 million already in circulation, per CoinDesk and MEXC. That means over 95% of all bitcoin has already been mined.

The last bitcoin is expected to be mined around the year 2140. Roughly 99% will be mined by about 2035, but the halving schedule stretches the final ~1% across more than another century, per CoinDesk.

3.125 BTC per block, set by the April 2024 halving, per LBank. That adds about 450 new BTC per day. It will halve to 1.5625 BTC at the next halving around 2028.

Miners stop earning newly issued coins and are paid entirely through transaction fees, which is how the network stays secured after issuance ends, per The Block. No new bitcoin will ever be created beyond 21 million.

Because the block reward halves every ~4 years, the amount of new bitcoin created keeps shrinking. Each era issues exactly half of the previous one, so the remaining sub-1-million coins are released in ever-smaller increments -- a curve that approaches 21 million without reaching it until roughly 2140.

Fewer than the ~20 million circulating figure suggests. An estimated 3 to 4 million BTC are lost forever (how many Bitcoin are lost), leaving an effective liquid supply closer to 16 to 17 million.

• CoinDesk -- Bitcoin Supply Approaching 20 Million; Final Million Takes 114 Years
• MEXC -- How Many Bitcoins Are There in 2026?
• LBank -- Bitcoin Block Reward 2026: 3.125 BTC
• Blockchain Council -- How Many Bitcoin Are There and How Many Are Left to Mine?
• The Block -- What Happens When Bitcoin Reaches 21 Million Supply?