Block Reward
mining · distribution
The subsidy and transaction fees a proof-of-work block is permitted to assign to its miner.
- Also known as
- mining reward
In a Bitcoin-family proof-of-work chain, the block reward is the value an accepted block assigns to its miner: newly issued coins from the block subsidy plus transaction fees from the included transactions. The coinbase transaction creates and assigns this reward.
Consensus sets the maximum subsidy and prevents the coinbase from claiming more than the subsidy plus available fees. A miner may claim less. Coinbase outputs also have a maturity period before they can be spent, limiting problems if the block becomes stale or is reorganized out.
Subsidy schedules differ by network and may decline over time, while fee revenue changes with transaction demand and miner selection. A lower subsidy does not guarantee that fees, price, or hash rate will replace the lost revenue; security-budget outcomes depend on all of those variables.
Related terms
Coinbase Transaction
→The first transaction in a block, used to assign the block subsidy and collected transaction fees.
mining · transaction · issuance
Mining
→Proof-of-work block production in which miners build candidate blocks and search for a header hash below the network target.
mining · proof-of-work
Halving
→A scheduled reduction in block subsidy that cuts new coin issuance, often by half, at predetermined block heights.
mining · event
Transaction Fee
→The amount paid to miners or validators for including a transaction and consuming scarce block space or execution resources.
blockchain · technical · basics