The Evolution of Ethereum Mining: From PoW to PoS

The world of cryptocurrencies changed forever when traditional mining of Ethereum became impossible on September 15, 2022. This historic event, known as "The Merge", marked the definitive transition of Ethereum from a Proof of Work (PoW) consensus mechanism to a Proof of Stake (PoS) system.

The End of the Mining Era in Ethereum

If you are looking for how to mine Ethereum in 2025, it is essential to understand that traditional mining with hardware is no longer possible on the Ethereum mainnet. This fundamental change represents one of the most significant technical advances in the history of cryptocurrencies, reducing the network's energy consumption by approximately 99.95%.

Alternatives to Traditional Mining

Although it is no longer possible to mine Ethereum with GPUs or ASICs, there are several notable applications that were used during the PoW era:

• ETHminer: An open-source tool that was widely used by experienced miners.
• Claymore Miner: Known for its high performance and advanced features for professional mining.
• MinerGate: Particularly popular among Mac users, it allowed mining Ethereum with an accessible interface.

The New Paradigm: Participation and Validation

Currently, the way to participate in the Ethereum network is through staking (participation). This process requires depositing 32 ETH to become a full validator, although there are options for pooled staking or through exchange platforms that allow participation with smaller amounts.

Monitoring applications like ETH Cloud Miner allow you to track the performance of staking, providing a convenient way to visualize statistics and activity in real-time from mobile devices, without mining on the phone itself.

Implications of the Change to PoS

The transition to Proof of Stake has brought multiple benefits:

• Higher energy efficiency by eliminating the need for specialized hardware that constantly consumes electricity
• Reduction of entry barriers to participate in the network
• Improvement in the security and decentralization of the Ethereum ecosystem
• Greater scalability paving the way for future upgrades

This fundamental change has completely redefined what it means to contribute and earn rewards on the Ethereum network, marking a new chapter in the evolution of this important blockchain.