Crypto glossary
Mining hosting
Mining hosting means paying a data-centre operator to house, power and maintain mining machines you own, usually at an all-in price per kilowatt-hour.
Instead of running ASICs at home or building a facility, a miner ships their machines to a hosting provider. The provider supplies the electricity, cooling, internet connection, security and on-site technicians, and charges a rate per kilowatt-hour that bundles power and services. The customer keeps ownership of the hardware and chooses the pool and wallet where rewards go.
Hosting lets individuals and smaller funds access industrial power prices and professional operations, and lets hosting firms monetise their sites. Contracts specify the rate, uptime guarantees, curtailment rules, setup fees and minimum terms. Large hosting providers often run their own mining fleets alongside clients' machines.
The customer takes on counterparty risk. Hosting companies have gone bankrupt or had disputes with clients, as when a major US host filed for bankruptcy in 2022 and customers struggled to recover machines. Rates can rise, curtailment can reduce uptime, and machines held overseas are hard to reach. Checking contracts, audits and the provider's track record is essential.
Example
A miner sends 20 ASICs to a hosting site in Paraguay that charges $0.07 per kWh all-in; the provider runs and repairs them while rewards go directly to the miner's pool account.