The reward for mining Bitcoin’s first block in 2009 was 50 bitcoins.
Satoshi Nakamoto mined the first block, called the genesis block, on 3 January 2009. The block established the Bitcoin blockchain and included a hidden message referencing a newspaper headline about a bank bailout, emphasizing the project’s response to centralized financial systems.
The genesis block’s 50-bitcoin reward is technically unspendable because of how the first block was constructed. Later Bitcoin blocks initially awarded miners 50 bitcoins that could be spent after the required confirmation period. The protocol halves the block subsidy approximately every 210,000 blocks.
The subsidy fell to 25 bitcoins in 2012, 12.5 in 2016, 6.25 in 2020, and 3.125 in 2024. The reward is separate from transaction fees, which can also compensate miners. Bitcoin’s total programmed supply is capped at 21 million coins.