The components of effective hosting cost
When a hosting provider advertises a rate — say $0.065/kWh — that number describes how much you pay per kilowatt-hour of electricity consumed. But several other factors determine your actual monthly cost and cost per hashing hour:
Advertised electricity / hosting rate
The headline $/kWh figure. Rates may vary by facility, miner model, contract term, or tier. A provider with multiple facilities or products may not have a single universal rate.
Miner power draw
Hosting cost is proportional to wattage. A 3,500W miner at $0.070/kWh costs roughly 8% more per month to host than a 3,250W miner at the same rate — regardless of hashrate. More efficient miners reduce the wattage you're paying to host.
Uptime and the billing model
This is the most underappreciated variable. Whether your monthly cost falls when miners are offline depends entirely on how the provider bills — not on the advertised rate.
Repair downtime treatment
When a miner fails, hosting fees may or may not continue during the repair queue. Some providers stop billing hosting fees while a miner is in repair; others don't. Under fixed billing, repair downtime still costs you the full monthly rate.
Setup fees, deposits, and other fixed charges
Onboarding fees, deposits, and shipping are separate from the per-kWh rate. These affect the upfront cost and the cost basis if you move miners or exit a contract early.
How billing model changes the math
Two billing approaches exist across the industry. Understanding which one your provider uses matters more than comparing advertised rates alone.
Actual-consumption billing
You pay for the hours your miners are actively hashing. When miners are down — for any reason — your energy bill falls proportionally. Monthly cost = (kW) × ($/kWh) × (operating hours).
Simple Mining describes precision / actual-consumption billing in their sourced hosting documentation.
Fixed / prepaid billing
The monthly hosting cost is based on your miner's rated power draw for a full 720-hour month — regardless of actual uptime. Downtime does not automatically reduce your bill. Monthly cost = (kW) × ($/kWh) × 720.
Compass Mining's sourced billing FAQ describes a flat monthly fee structure prepaid in advance.
Formula
operating_hours = 720 × (uptime% ÷ 100)
Actual: monthly_cost = (watts ÷ 1000) × ($/kWh) × operating_hours
Fixed: monthly_cost = (watts ÷ 1000) × ($/kWh) × 720
effective_cost_per_op_hr = monthly_cost ÷ operating_hours
Modeled example: lower rate, higher cost
Illustrative modeled examples — not a specific provider quote. These numbers use the same formulas as the interactive calculator. Miner: 3,250W.
| Scenario | Rate | Model | Uptime | Op. hrs | Billed hrs | Mo. cost | Eff. $/op hr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A (actual) | $0.070 | Actual hours | 90% | 648 | 648 | $147.42 | $0.2275 |
| B (fixed) | $0.065 | Fixed basis | 90% | 648 | 720 | $152.10 | $0.2347 |
| A (actual) | $0.070 | Actual hours | 70% | 504 | 504 | $114.66 | $0.2275 |
| B (fixed) | $0.065 | Fixed basis | 70% | 504 | 720 | $152.10 | $0.3018 |
Models electricity/hosting energy cost only. Does not include setup fees, management fees, deposits, shipping, or repair costs. At 70% uptime, the fixed-billing scenario costs $37.44 more per month (33% more) despite the lower nominal rate.
These are illustrative estimates. Actual hosting contracts vary. Review your provider's billing terms to confirm exactly how downtime affects charges.
What “advertised uptime” actually means
A provider advertising 95% or 99% uptime is making a claim about their facility — not necessarily a claim about what your individual miner will deliver, or how uptime is actually measured.
Facility-level SLA
Covers whether the facility's power and network are available — not individual miner performance. Measured by ping or online-status in many cases.
Ping / online-status uptime
A miner may respond to pings but not be hashing at full capacity. Ping-based uptime measures connectivity, not hashrate delivery.
Provider-reported historical uptime
Historical figures reported by the provider. These are provider-stated claims, not independently verified measurements.
Pool-side observed uptime
What the mining pool actually records: worker online/offline state, submitted shares, and hashrate. This is the most direct measure of whether a miner was actually hashing — and it's independent of the hosting provider's own dashboard.
MineDocks is being developed to help hosted miners compare pool-side observed performance data against provider-stated uptime claims — using data you already have from your pool, without needing your hosting login.
Repair downtime and your hosting bill
ASIC miners fail. When they do, the miner typically enters a repair queue at the hosting facility. During that time, the miner is not hashing. Whether you continue paying hosting fees during the repair queue depends on the provider's policy.
Under actual-consumption billing, a miner in the repair queue may stop generating hosting charges automatically — since it isn't consuming power. Under fixed billing, the monthly fee may continue even if the miner is offline for repairs.
Simple Mining's sourced hosting page states that no hosting fees accrue while miners are in the repair queue. Review the specific terms of any provider you're considering.
Questions to ask a hosting provider before signing
- Is billing based on actual energy consumption or a fixed monthly rate?
- Does the monthly hosting fee continue if my miner is offline for repairs?
- What is the uptime SLA, and how is uptime measured — by facility ping, individual miner status, or hashrate?
- What happens if the provider misses the SLA — are credits issued, and do they cover lost mining rewards or only the hosting fee?
- Does the rate vary by facility or miner model, and what is the current rate for the specific facility/product I'm evaluating?
- What are the setup fees, deposit requirements, and shipping costs?
- What is the minimum contract term, and what are the costs to exit early?
- Can I choose my own mining pool, or is the pool assigned by the provider?
Compare sourced provider offers
Enter your miner's wattage and expected uptime to see modeled monthly cost across sourced offers, with billing model shown for each.
Compare scenarios with the interactive calculator
Enter your own wattage, rate, and uptime to model actual vs. fixed billing side-by-side.
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