Lately Ergo (ERG) is gaining a lot of momentum. This coin has been slowly climbing up the profitability charts and it started to popup on miners radar. According to WTM ERG is currently the top most profitable coin to mine. Not for all cards but for certain GPUs, especially AMD graphic cards. Even the older cards like RX470 and RX570s do well on mining Ergo. The best part is Ergo uses an unique hashing algorithm known as Autolykos which uses less power and it runs way cooler.
So what are you waiting for? If you are mining ETH or mining Ravencoin, swap your mining rigs to Ergo. Here let’s see how to mine Ergo cryptocurrency. First we’ll list all the miners for Autolykos and mining pools available for Ergo. Then we’ll guide you through the step by step process on mining ERG Autolykos algorithm on Windows / Linux using both NVIDIA and AMD GPUs. Now before you stop your rigs and switch over to Ergo mining be sure to check the profitability first.
Checking Ergo mining profitability
Depending on your mining rig hardware and electricity costs the profitability will vary. Its always good to estimate the profits before you get started with mining any cryptocurrency. Head to What To Mine and input your GPU numbers.
At the bottom you’ll find the expected hashrate for Autolykos algorithm. Click calculate to find out what’s more profitable for your hardware. This calculator will show you how much ERG you can mine in 24 hours and how profitable it is in comparison to Ethereum mining.
If you are wondering here are the GPUs that seem to work best.
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070, RTX 3080, RTX 3090, 3060 Ti, RTX 2080 Ti and GTX 1080 Ti.
AMD Radeon VI, VII, 5600 XT, 6700XT, 6800 and RX Vega 64. Also the previous gen Radeon RX 470, 480, 570 and Radeon RX 580.
These are arguably, the best graphics cards for Ergo mining in 2021. In general AMD GPUs outperform NVIDIA when it comes to mining Autolykos algorithm. So if you own any old gen NVIDIA graphic cards then better stick to mining Ethereum.
ERG is not an replacement to ETH but in current scenario you can mine this coin profitably. Whether you wish to hold it, sell or convert it to another currency of your choice is completely up to you.
Now before we see how to mine Ergo here is a quick overview of the project and its algorithm.
Not interested? Jump straight to mining guide.
What is Ergo (ERG)?
Ergo describes it as a self-amendable protocol that is designed to absorb new ideas and improve itself in a decentralized manner.
Today DeFi (Decentralized Finance) is one of the most widely used application of blockchain technology. Ergo’s primary focus is to provide a secure, efficient and easy way to implement financial contracts.
Ergo is not just a currency but a resilient platform for contractual money. It is a platform designed for developing decentralized applications. This blockchain based platform has been developed using Scala programming language and is not a fork of another coin. Also this project operates an open contributor model (open source) where anyone is welcome to contribute.
Similar to Bitcoin; Ergo is a UTXO (Unspent Transaction Output) blockchain with Proof-of-Work consensus. It implements standard Elliptic-curve cryptography (ECC) and uses the same curve as Bitcoin (Secp256k1). However unlike Bitcoin it uses “extended-UTXO model” which is similar to Cardano that has the ability to contain arbitrary data and sophisticated scripts. As a result Ergo blockchain supports advanced financial contracts similar to that of Ethereum’s account based model.
Ergo Features:
To achieve various technical and economic improvements that are a problem with existing blockchains Ergo uses its own smart contract language known as ErgoScript. Every coin in Ergo blockchain is protected by a program called ErgoScript which is protocol friendly and a powerful scripting language based on Σ-protocols.
Using ErgoScript users can specify conditions under which the coins can be spend: who can spend the coins, when, under what conditions, to whom and so on.
Ergo builds radically new DeFi functionality and advanced cryptographic features with focus on long-term survivability approach. The main intention of Ergo is to provide an easy way to use smart financial contracts by ordinary people in a decentralized manner and without any trust. Thanks to ErgoScript and support of light nodes that makes Ergo more user friendly. Users can now implement and run complex smart contracts even from common devices like mobile phones.
One of the unique feature of Ergo is the concept of storage rent. It solves the missing bitcoin problem by re-distributing the coins directly back to miners that have not been touched for 4 or more years. Plus it has something called ERGO Mixer that provides functionalities that can be seen with privacy coins.
In addition to this there are several other unique features. The potential of Ergo is huge. Ergo has smart contracts. The team is working on Ergo Dex which is built on Ergo script and is similar to Uniswap. Few more decentralized exchanges will be live soon. Ledger support is on its way. They have NFT platforms up and running. The team is also working on side chains and interoperability with (ADA) Cardano Blockchain. Some say Ergo is the Cardano’s Chainlink and even Charles Hoskinson (Founder of Cardano) endorsed this project. Soon we can expect countess decentralized applications on Ergo blockchain.
Now that we know enough about Ergo lets see how to mine this coin.
Mining Ergo (ERG) – Prerequisite
First of all before we get into this guide we are assuming that you are familiar with Proof of Work blockchains and crypto wallets. Also here we’ll not go through the basics like setting up the OS and configuring the mining rig. We hope you have all of that ready. This guide will only assist you on how to start mining Ergo on GPU.
Anyways here are few checklist you need to ensure first:
Make sure to get Your GPU drivers installed and updated to the latest version:
NVIDIA GeForce drivers: https://www.geforce.com/
For AMD GPUs: https://www.amd.com/
Download, install the drivers and reboot your mining RIG. Then go to device manager and check if all of your GPU’s are recognized correctly. Next turn off Windows updates. Also increase virtual memory (swap file) to at least 16 GB which is required for mining Ergo.
Getting started with Ergo mining is simple and is same as mining any other altcoins. All you need is a PC with a GPU. Ergo uses Autolykos algorithm which can be mined using both AMD and NVIDIA GPUs. The GPU must have a minimum of 6 GB memory. We are going to assume that your mining rig is running on Windows / Linux and the GPU meets the minimum memory requirements. You can also mine Ergo on HIVEOS which we’ll cover in this article.
Ergo emission – ERG Coin supply
The native token of Ergo is ERG. Ergo strictly has a limited supply and it follows the most decentralized way of emission. There was no ICO, No Premine and no VC Funding.
The max supply of ERG will be 97,739,925. Started with zero coins the emission will slowly decline over the period of 8 years reaching its max supply. So the entire supply will be minted during the initial eight years. All tokens are mined through an original ASIC resistant Proof‐of‐Work (“PoW”) algorithm known as Autolykos.
The block interval of Ergo is 2 minutes for the first 2 years. Each block will release a total of 75 ERG which will be shared between the miners and treasury. After 2 years the rate of emission will become 3 ERG and further declining every 3 months.
After the max supply is reached there will be no additional inflation as the Ergo’s monetary base is fixed.
Learn more about Ergo treasury and Ergo’s emission schedule here: https://ergoplatform.org/en/blog/2019_05_20-curve/
Autolykos v2 Algorithm
To provide more efficient mining solution Ergo utilizes a unique and novel mining algorithm called Autolykos. Autolykos is a memory hard hashing algorithm that is both ASIC resistant and is easy on your GPUs. The best part is low power consumption and low memory temps. Compared to Ethash, KawPoW and other PoW algorithms Autolykos runs way cooler and is less stressing on your GPUs.
Earlier ERGO’s Autolykos v1 algorithm de-incentivized pool mining allowing only solo miners to participate. But this didn’t seem to work out. For this reason Ergo had a protocol upgrade at block height #417,792 where they introduced a new PoW algorithm called Autolykos v2.0 which allows pool mining. Now ordinary people can participate in mining to secure the Ergo network and receive the reward.
You can use your computer graphics card to mine Ergo but do note that not all cards are efficient and profitable. Similar to Ethash, Autolykos is also memory bound algorithm. In order to solve blocks miners need to perform memory-hard computations. For this atleast 4 GB of memory is required. But 8 GB cards are recommended for maximum efficiency.
Alright! Let’s now get into mining Ergo.
How to mine Ergo?
Just like mining any other coin to start mining Ergo you’ll need the following things: 1. Wallet / ERG address to receive your mining rewards. 2. Miner for Autolykos algorithm and 3. Mining pool where you can contribute your hashing power.
1. Ergo Wallet
Since most of you know how to setup a wallet we’ll not get into the setup process. Anyways if you need a guide for Ergo wallet then do let us know in the comments below. If you already have an Ergo address then jump to the next step.
Currently there are only two wallets available for Ergo: 1. Full node Ergo wallet and 2. Browser based Yoroi wallet. Setting up full node Ergo wallet takes time and you’ll only need that if you are going to solo mine. For pool mining you don’t need that. So go with Yoroi wallet which is a browser based light wallet for Cardano and Ergo.
Go to https://yoroi-wallet.com/#/, drop down download and choose your browser where you wish to install this wallet. Then add the Yoroi wallet extension to your browser.
Once installed click the Yoroi icon at the top right corner which will open the Yoroi wallet.
Choose your wallet language and agree to terms of use. Then choose simple wallet, click create wallet and select Ergo.
Next name your wallet, setup password and click create personal wallet.
Then you’ll be provided with the recovery phrase. Make sure you write them down and keep it safely. On the next screen confirm the recovery phrase.
That’s it. Your Ergo wallet is created. Go to receive tab and copy your ERG address. You now have the Ergo address to receive your mining reward.
Other than setting up a wallet to obtain Ergo address some miners use exchange deposit address. If you are mining directly to exchange address then first make sure the particular exchange allows small deposits or deposits from pools. Even if they allow we do not recommend this.
Mining ERGO to an exchange address causes dust to build up which can break the exchange wallet. It could mess up their systems. The only benefit of mining directly to exchange is to avoid fees. Transaction fees on Ergo network is low. So it is better to mine to your custodial wallet like Yoroi (ADA and ERG) and then transfer it to the exchange.
2. Miner for Autolykos
Currently there are four mining softwares that are capable of mining Ergo Autolykos v2 algorithm.
Nano Miner: https://github.com/nanopool/nanominer/releases
Supports both NVIDIA and AMD. Closed source miner with 2.5% dev fee. Compatible with Windows and Linux.
NBMiner: https://github.com/NebuTech/NBMiner/releases
Supports NVIDIA / AMD. Closed source miner with 2% dev fee. Available for both Windows and Linux.
SRB-Miner Multi: https://github.com/doktor83/SRBMiner-Multi/releases
AMD Only. 2% dev fee.
Team Red Miner: https://github.com/todxx/teamredminer/releases/
AMD Only. Majority of the mining operating systems like Hive OS, SMOS, Rave OS, Awesome Miner supports this software. Contains 2% dev fee.
So which mining software should I use?
All these 4 miners are compatible with Windows and Linux. They are available on Hive OS as well.
If you own NVIDIA GPUs then choose NBMiner. The miner is made by Chinese developers and is targeted at Chinese markets. It supports both NVIDIA and AMD and compared to Nano Miner it has a low fee of 2%. This software is stable and provides a higher hash rate.
Nano miner is developed by same people who operate Nanopool. Both Nanominer and NBMiner are close enough in terms of performance and they are tested thoroughly. With Nano Miner you can merge mine Ergo and Zilliqa.
For AMD either go with SRB Miner or Team Red Miner. Similar to Nano Miner, SRBMiner also does support dual mining of ZIL + ERGO.
Choose any miner of your choice depending on your hardware. Below you can find the miner configuration for all four miners.
Note: While downloading the miner your browser might block the file download. Add exception to the file and continue with the download. Similarly while installing the software your Windows defender / Antivirus will flag your miner as virus. It’s false positive.
Now that you’ve the miner ready next step is to choose a mining pool.
3. Ergo mining pools
Do I need to mine to a pool? In order to further decentralize mining the original Autolykos v1 algorithm did not support pool mining, forcing only solo miners to participate. But the thing is only miners who owned huge mining farms were able to profitably mine Ergo. Since this did not work out well in practice the developers later turned on pool mining support with their Autolykos v2 algorithm. This increased the participation among small miners.
Mining pools are designed to allow group of miners to contribute their hashing power so that they can increase the chances of finding a block. If you are a hobby miner and if you do not have enough hashing power then find a mining pool. Because solo mining won’t yield you any results.
How to find Ergo mining pools?
On Mining Pools Stats: https://miningpoolstats.stream/ergo you can find the list of all Ergo pools. Currently the top pool is Nano pool which has more than 60% of the hashrate. This is bad. To avoid mining centralization we recommend the 2nd top pool or select one of the smaller pools. Here we’ll be using Hero Miners pool. The pool fee of Hero Miners is 0.9%.
Mining Ergo
To connect your miner to the pool and to start mining Ergo you’ll need to find the address and port of the mining pool. Go to https://ergo.herominers.com/. On the main page you’ll find the address and port. Choose the server that is close to your location. For example if you are located in Canada then choose ca.ergo.herominers.com.
Now to configure the miner.
Whether you are on Windows or Linux the procedure is same. Unzip the miner that you’ve downloaded and configure as follows.
NBMiner:
Create a new .bat file or edit start_ergo.bat file and copy / paste the code below.
nbminer -a ergo -o stratum+tcp://ergo.herominers.com:10250 -u YOUR_ERGO_WALLET_ADDRESS.x pause
Make sure to replace the highlighted YOUR_ERGO_WALLET_ADDRESS with your Yoroi ERG address.
Nano Miner:
On Nanominer open config.ini and add the following.
pool1= ergo.herominers.com:10250 wallet = YOUR_ERG_ADDRESS rigname = X coin= ergo
Team Red Miner:
Create a new .bat file or edit start_ergo.bat file and add the following config.
@echo off set GPU_MAX_ALLOC_PERCENT=100 set GPU_SINGLE_ALLOC_PERCENT=100 set GPU_MAX_HEAP_SIZE=100 set GPU_USE_SYNC_OBJECTS=1 teamredminer.exe -a autolykos2 -o stratum+tcp://ergo.herominers.com:10250 -u YOUR_ERG_ADDRESS -p X pause
SRBMiner:
On SRBMiner edit start-mining-ergo.bat file and copy paste the below settings.
setx GPU_MAX_HEAP_SIZE 100 setx GPU_MAX_USE_SYNC_OBJECTS 1 setx GPU_SINGLE_ALLOC_PERCENT 100 setx GPU_MAX_ALLOC_PERCENT 100 setx GPU_MAX_SINGLE_ALLOC_PERCENT 100 setx GPU_ENABLE_LARGE_ALLOCATION 100 setx GPU_MAX_WORKGROUP_SIZE 1024 @echo off cd %~dp0 cls SRBMiner-MULTI.exe --disable-cpu --algorithm autolykos2 --pool ca.ergo.herominers.com:10250 --wallet ERG_ADDRESS --password RIG_NAME pause
Note: On all these miners you’ll find the sample .bat file. After unzipping the miner file if you do not find the .bat file then the virus program on your computer might have deleted it. Either disable the Antivirus or add exception to the miner. Also on all the above config make sure to replace the wallet address with your ERG address.
Save the file and run the .bat file to start mining Ergo.
Mining Ergo on Hive OS
If you are currently mining on Hive OS then you know how to setup. Add new flight sheet, choose coin as ERG, add your Yoroi ERG wallet and select the mining pool.
Then choose the miner and setup miner config.
Once everything is configured start the miner. Now that you’ve started mining Ergo its time to track your mining progress.
Track Ergo mining rewards
Go to the pool website where you are mining Ergo. If it is HeroMiners then go to https://ergo.herominers.com/. At the bottom you’ll find a field called Your Stats & Payment History. Enter your ERG address and click lookup. The pool will display your mining stats, estimated mining profits and the rewards earned. You can track this stats anytime.
On Hero Miners the minimum payout is 1 ERG and the payment interval is every 1 hour. Once you’ve reached the minimum payout the pool will automatically transfer the amount to your destination address.
Once you get to know the hashrate of your mining rigs use the calculator at the bottom of this page: https://ergoplatform.org/en/mining/ to calculate your daily revenue.
ERGO’s Autolykos loves POLARIS and VEGA architectures. It feels like this mining algorithm has been developed exclusively based on these GPU. Especially the 4GB RX470-570-580 cards does well on this algo.
Also as we said Older NVIDIA GPUs aren’t that great at mining Ergo. If you still wish to acquire Ergo through mining then mine ETH and buy ERGO with your returns.
For comparison here are the performance results shared by the Ergo miners.
- Rx570 4gb does 68 Mhash @75w
- RX470 4G – 58MH/s
- Nvidia Quadro M4000 – 20 MH/s
- Nvidia T4 – 50 MH/s
- RTX 3070 – 170 MH/s
- GTX 1080 – 60 MH/s
For best results use the same overclock settings you use for ETH. But please don’t compare the Ergo hashrates to Ethereum as it is a completely different mining algorithm.
Common errors and fixes:
After starting the miner is your miner displaying “Detecting OpenCL devices. No suitable GPU devices found” error?. If so then make sure your drivers are up to date and the OS is recognizing all your GPUs. If this did not work then rolling back the driver should fix this error.
Another common error is: login error timeout. Try disabling your Windows firewall. Also make sure your time and date on windows is correct.
Alright! Now that you’ve started mining Ergo you should know how to trade or sell your mined Ergo?
Ergo Markets:
In order to cash out your mining profits you need to find an exchange. Ergo is currently not available on Binance or Coinbase. It is only available on few small exchanges. On CoinMarketCap you can find the list of exchanges where you can trade Ergo.
To cash out transfer the Ergo from your wallet to exchange. Convert it to BTC or stable coins. Then transfer it to your desired exchange and cash out the profits.
That’s it! We hope this tutorial helped you with mining Ergo. If you run into any issues or if your mining is not stable then seek community help.
For all your mining related queries visit Ergo mining forum: https://www.ergoforum.org/c/mining/5
To do your own research and to learn more about Ergo use the following links.
- Wiki: https://github.com/ergoplatform/ergo/wiki
- Ergo usecases: https://ergoplatform.org/en/use_cases/
- Official Website: https://ergoplatform.org/
- Basics (breakdown): https://ergoplatform.org/en/basics/
- Wallets: https://ergoplatform.org/en/wallets/
- Block explorer: https://explorer.ergoplatform.com/en/
- DApps based on Ergo platform: https://sigmaverse.io/ SIGMAVERSE Your portal to the Ergo universe.
See you in next guide.
