What is Siacoin?
Siacoin is the cryptocurrency used by the Sia network, a cloud storage provider and decentralized peer-to-peer network that allows buying and selling computer storage space.
Sia guarantees a high level of privacy compared to other cloud storage providers.
In addition, compared to other storage providers, Sia’s services are up to 10 times cheaper as it offers 1 TB of storage space for about $ 2 per month. On Amazon S3 the same is offered for $23 per month.
All users who rent space in Sia’s storage pay with the Siacoin cryptocurrency (SC).
How to mine Siacoin (SC)?
The supply of the Siacoin cryptocurrency is unlimited. This is because it matches the effectively unlimited amount of data that can be created and stored.
At the time of writing, there are 47,277,382,992 SC tokens in circulation and their price is $0.01877.
As we have seen, one way to earn Siacoin is by renting your excess storage space to the Sia network.
But, if you prefer, you can mine Siacoin and earn SC tokens to keep the Sia network safe and running.
Sia’s blockchain is protected using the Proof of Work consensus algorithm because, according to its founders, it is the best way to protect the network because it ties the ability of a malicious actor to attack the network to the huge power requirements and hardware overhead.
Siacoin, like other cryptocurrencies, distributes block rewards as an incentive to miners who contribute their computational power to the operation and maintenance of the network. When a block is successfully verified or solved, an amount of Siacoins is paid to the miners who mined the block.
In the following paragraphs we will see step by step how to mine Siacoin with your own PC.
How to mine Siacoin from my PC?
When it comes to mining Siacoin, you will need to choose the hardware to use and the corresponding software to get the maximum return on investment.
Below I will point you to the best hardware and software for mining Siacoin profitably.
SIACOIN MINING HARDWARE
While there are some cryptocurrencies that can be mined only with GPUs (graphics cards), Siacoin, like Bitcoin, makes use of specialized hardware devices, called ASIC.
So, if you want Siacoin mining to be profitable, I advise you to use an ASIC device.
In 2017, an Asic hardware was developed specifically for mining Siacoin, the Obelisk SC1, whose power can be compared to 100 GPUs.
Obelisk SC1 can mine Siacoin at a hash rate of 300 GH/s, runs on a Blake2b algorithm and consumes a maximum of 500W of electricity.
Another great advantage of Obelisk is that it does not require external cooling and has been optimized to operate at room temperature.
However, if you prefer GPU mining Siacoin, you can choose an Nvidia GPU such as the GTX1080.
SIACOIN MINING SOFTWARE
As you probably already know, when choosing a software for Siacoin mining, you will have to take into account what kind of hardware you are going to use.
Fortunately on the market there are many software to mine Siacoin. One of the best is surely Marlin Miner (from SiaMining) which is compatible with Nvidia or AMD GPUs.
Below you will find a complete list of the software used for GPU equipment according to their programming language.
For Nvidia Miners with CUDA language
- Sia-CUDA-Miner
- Sia-CUDA-Miner fork
- Ccminer
- Marlin
For AMD Miners with OpenCL language
- Sia-GPU-Miner
- gominer
- Marlin
MINING SIACOIN ALONE OR IN A MINING POOL?
When mining cryptocurrencies, the question arises as to whether to mine alone or with a mining pool.
Although mining Siacoin alone is possible, to make the mining activity more profitable it is more convenient to join a mining pool to pool resources with other users.
Note that if you join a mining pool, you will receive rewards based on the resources you have invested.
To mine Siacoin there are many mining pools and here is a list of the most popular ones:.
Which wallet to use to store Siacoin?
Once you have mined your SC tokens, you will need to store them in a wallet. Unfortunately as of today there are very few cryptocurrency wallets that support SiaCoin.
Among them, the best options are:
Wallet Sia-UI
It is the official Siacoin wallet, developed by the same developers as Sia and is the only Windows wallet available for Sia.
Being a GUI (Graphic User Interface), among other functionalities, it allows you to manage your Siacoin tokens and interact with a decentralized network. Sia-UI can be downloaded on Windows, Linux and macOS.
Sia Wallet App (for Android devices)
You can download the Sia Wallet App directly from Google Play.
Although it is not the official Siacoin wallet, it works quite well and allows you to send, receive and store Siacoin and also store your files on the Sia network.
Ledger Nano S
If you prefer a hardware wallet to avoid storing your funds online or on your computer, the best hardware wallet solution is probably Ledger Nano S. One of the advantages of using a hardware wallet is that your private keys are stored on the device and it is more difficult for them to be hacked or stolen.
Is Siacoin mining profitable?
At the time of the launch of the Sia network, the block reward was 300,000 Siacoins (SC). This decreases by one each block, at a block height of 30,000 – which was reached at block 270,000.
Unlike Bitcoin, Siacoin’s block reward never stops. This means that miners will always have an incentive to be part of the Sia network.
As I already told you, mining Siacoin now entitles you to a reward of 300,000 SC per block, which, according to its current price, is equivalent to about 5 euros.
Beyond its current price and reward, Siacoin’s value has remained fairly stable over time, if compared to most other cryptocurrencies. Moreover, thanks to its functionality, which allows renting storage in the cloud, it is an interesting asset that attracts the attention of many users.
This is why today Siacoin turns out to be a profitable asset to mine.
If you want to have an estimate of how much Siacoin you could earn with its mining and what is its profitability, you can use the SiaCoin Mining Calculator.
Where to buy Siacoin (SC)
Finally, if you think that mining Siacoin is not very profitable for you, you can always buy SC on a secure platform like Bitnovo.
If you do not know them, Bitnovo is the leading company in the buying and selling of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies and allows you to buy Siacoin online or in more than 40 thousand physical stores throughout Europe, easily, quickly, safely and cheaply.
Well, don’t wait any longer and get your Siacoin (SC) tokens in one click.
