There is no reliable current figure showing that a MacBook Pro makes a profit from cryptocurrency mining. The often-repeated “profitable, but only just” result was a November 2021 test of an M1 Pro, not a forecast for today’s MacBook Pros. Whether mining covers its electricity depends on the coin, the Mac’s measured performance and power use, and the miner’s electricity rate.
What the “profitable, but only just” result actually measured
On November 10, 2021, 9to5Mac reported that an M1 Pro achieved just over 5 MH/s while drawing 17 W in a specific mining test. Using the market and calculator assumptions available at the time, it estimated $12.82 per month in profit after electricity—about $0.42 per day. Those are historical figures, not current earnings estimates. 9to5Mac’s 2021 report also estimated a 17-year payback if someone bought a MacBook Pro solely to mine under those assumptions.
Mining economics change with coin prices, network difficulty, rewards, fees, and electricity costs. The 2021 result therefore cannot establish what a current MacBook Pro earns, or whether it covers its running costs.
Which cryptocurrencies can a MacBook Pro mine?
Bitcoin
Apple silicon can run mining software, but that does not mean it can mine Bitcoin mainnet profitably. The M1 Pro figures above were not a current Bitcoin earnings benchmark. A project-specific Bitcoin 09 Argon2id result is also not interchangeable with Bitcoin mainnet mining or with another coin’s algorithm.
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Ethereum
Ethereum proof-of-work mining is no longer available: Ethereum.org says mining has been switched off because proof-of-work is no longer the network’s consensus mechanism. Ethereum.org’s mining documentation explains the change.
Monero
Monero is a more relevant example for a laptop because its RandomX proof-of-work algorithm is designed for CPU mining. Monero says, “Monero can be mined on both CPUs and GPUs, but the former is much more efficient.” That describes the relative fit of CPUs and GPUs for Monero; it does not show that a particular MacBook Pro earns more than its electricity costs. See Monero’s mining overview.
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How to estimate net mining earnings on your own Mac
A credible estimate needs a recent hashrate for the exact Mac and miner, measured power draw at the outlet, current network and payout inputs, fees, and your electricity price. Apple’s chip, memory, battery, and power-adapter specifications are not mining benchmarks. The available sources do not establish a reproducible current RandomX hashrate and wall-power measurement for a named current MacBook Pro.
Use this framework for a reader-owned Mac:
net per day = mining payout value − (measured wall watts ÷ 1,000 × 24 × electricity price per kWh) − pool/developer fees
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The payout estimate must use current coin price, network difficulty and reward, and a realistic share of uptime. Monero’s guidance likewise points miners to compare hashrate against power costs. Monero’s mining guide discusses efficiency and mining arrangements.
Measure the Mac’s actual consumption while the miner is running; do not substitute a charger’s rated wattage. An outlet electricity meter can provide that input, but the result still will not account for hardware cost unless you include it separately. A Mac that covers electricity can still lose money after purchase cost and the value of using the laptop for something else are considered.
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Solo mining, pools, and P2Pool
The way you mine affects payout timing, fees, and who controls the process. For Monero, the broad trade-offs are:
| Method | Payout pattern | Fees and operator considerations | Control and decentralization |
|---|---|---|---|
| Solo mining | Less frequent, uncertain payouts; longer waits are possible. | No pool operator, though software or network costs may still apply. | You mine independently. |
| Conventional pool | More frequent payouts than solo mining, subject to the pool’s rules and minimum payout. | Pool fees, payout thresholds, and trust in the pool operator matter. | You rely on an operator to account for shares and pay out. |
| P2Pool | Payouts depend on the shares and blocks found through the peer-to-peer system. | Check the current setup and payout guidance; it avoids a conventional pool operator. | Peer-to-peer and non-custodial, supporting decentralization. |
These are structural differences, not guarantees about how often a particular Mac will earn a payout. Consult Monero’s pool-mining guide for current instructions and details.
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Should you buy a MacBook Pro for mining?
No—not on the strength of the 2021 M1 Pro result. Its estimated 17-year purchase payback was tied to the assumptions in that report and should not be treated as a current forecast. More importantly, there is no established current model-specific benchmark and cost calculation here that demonstrates a MacBook Pro will recover its purchase price through mining.
Apple lists current MacBook Pro configurations with M5 Pro and M5 Max chips, but specifications alone cannot predict sustained mining output or profitability. Apple’s MacBook Pro specifications describe the hardware, not mining performance.
Does High Power Mode make mining more profitable?
Apple says High Power Mode “allows the fans to run at higher speeds” and explains that added cooling may permit higher performance in intensive workloads. It is a cooling and performance setting, not a mining-profit feature. The available Apple guidance does not establish that enabling it improves mining returns or offsets its power use. See Apple’s High Power Mode support page.
Running a Mac mining setup
Monero’s documentation includes macOS instructions for XMRig, but installing a miner does not establish that the setup is profitable. Follow the project’s official instructions, obtain software from trusted official channels, and understand the permissions you grant before running it. Start by checking the benchmark and power-cost inputs described in Monero’s mining guide.
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