Bitwork
The proof of work prefix requirement that gates Atomicals mints, what it costs, and what it does not promise.
Protocol behavior Verified 2026-08-31
Describes the Atomicals protocol itself at the pinned reference revision. It does not promise that any product exposes it.
- Page ID
-
protocol/core/bitwork - Normative authority
- Atomicals reference implementation
- Networks
- mainnet
- Documentation version
- 2026.08
- Audience
- everyone, creator, developer
- Owner
- bitcoin-universe-docs
- Sources
-
- Atomicals ElectrumX
at
v1.5.2.0 - Atomicals protocol guide
at
unversioned
- Atomicals ElectrumX
at
- Known limitations
-
- Estimates are probabilistic. No amount of work guarantees a result in any particular time, and nothing here is a profitability statement.
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Bitwork requires a transaction id to begin with a chosen prefix. Because a transaction id is a hash, the only way to satisfy it is to change the transaction and hash again until the prefix appears.
Where it applies
Section titled “Where it applies”| Requirement | Applies to |
|---|---|
bitworkc |
The commit transaction id |
bitworkr |
The reveal transaction id |
mint_bitworkc |
The commit transaction id of every claim against a deployment |
mint_bitworkr |
The reveal transaction id of every claim against a deployment |
A deployment can require Bitwork from its claimants even when the deployment itself required little. Read the deployment, not the deployer’s transaction.
What it costs
Section titled “What it costs”Each additional hexadecimal character of prefix multiplies the expected attempts by sixteen.
| Prefix length | Expected attempts |
|---|---|
| 2 | about 256 |
| 3 | about 4 096 |
| 4 | about 65 536 |
| 5 | about 1 048 576 |
| 6 | about 16 777 216 |
| 7 | about 268 435 456 |
These are expectations, not schedules. Attempts are independent, so a run can finish far under or far over the expected count.
Extensions
Section titled “Extensions”Some configurations allow a partial next character, which sits between two whole-character levels in difficulty. Perpetual deployments progress their requirement over time. Read the exact deployment parameters rather than assuming a fixed level. See perpetual DFT.
Practical notes
Section titled “Practical notes”- Grinding changes the transaction, so any fee estimate must be recomputed after a successful grind.
- Grinding the commit and the reveal are two separate searches.
- The reference CLI exposes
--bitworkc,--bitworkr,--mintbitworkr, and--disablechalkon the relevant commands. See the CLI reference.