Bitcoin Halving Dates
Every Bitcoin halving from 2012 to 2028, with block heights, block rewards and the BTC500 buy and sell windows for each cycle.
The next Bitcoin halving is estimated for April 11, 2028, at block height 1,050,000 — about 526 days from today. Bitcoin has halved four times: 28 November 2012, 9 July 2016, 11 May 2020 and 20 April 2024. Each event cuts the block reward in half.
500 days before the next Bitcoin halving is November 28, 2026 — the BTC500 buy date for this cycle. The matching sell date is August 24, 2029. Add both dates to your calendar.
Bitcoin halving dates in order
| Halving | Date | Block | Block reward | BTC price | Buy (T-500) | Sell (T+500) | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 Halving | November 28, 2012 | 210,000 | 25 BTC | $13 | July 17, 2011 | April 12, 2014 | +2890% |
| 2016 Halving | July 09, 2016 | 420,000 | 12.5 BTC | $654 | February 25, 2015 | November 21, 2017 | +3318% |
| 2020 Halving | May 11, 2020 | 630,000 | 6.25 BTC | $8,605 | December 28, 2018 | September 23, 2021 | +1067% |
| 2024 Halving | April 20, 2024 | 840,000 | 3.125 BTC | $64,894 | December 07, 2022 | September 02, 2025 | +560% |
| 2028 Halving (estimated) Upcoming | April 11, 2028est. | 1,050,000 | 1.5625 BTC | — | November 28, 2026 | August 24, 2029 | — |
Historical dates and block heights are recorded facts. The 2028 row is an estimate derived from live block height and the recent average block interval, so its date moves. BTC prices are daily closes from the bundled Bitstamp archive.
What is a Bitcoin halving?
A Bitcoin halving is an event that cuts the block reward paid to miners in half. It happens automatically every 210,000 blocks — roughly every four years. This reduces the new supply of Bitcoin entering circulation, which has historically coincided with major multi-year price cycles.
The rule is enforced by the protocol, not by an organisation. Each block carries a coinbase transaction that pays the miner the current subsidy plus fees. At block height 210,000, 420,000, 630,000, 840,000 and so on, every node on the network independently halves the number it will accept. Nobody schedules the event and nobody can delay it.
The BTC500 strategy uses the halving as its anchor: buy exactly 500 days before each halving and sell exactly 500 days after. The table above shows those windows for every cycle.
The block reward after each halving
| Era | Block range | Subsidy per block | New BTC per day |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 – 2012 | 0 – 209,999 | 50 BTC | 7,200 BTC |
| 2012 – 2016 | 210,000 – 419,999 | 25 BTC | 3,600 BTC |
| 2016 – 2020 | 420,000 – 629,999 | 12.5 BTC | 1,800 BTC |
| 2020 – 2024 | 630,000 – 839,999 | 6.25 BTC | 900 BTC |
| 2024 – 2028 | 840,000 – 1,049,999 | 3.125 BTC | 450 BTC |
| 2028 – 2032 | 1,050,000 – 1,259,999 | 1.5625 BTC | 225 BTC |
New BTC per day assumes the protocol target of 144 blocks per day. Halvings continue until the subsidy rounds to zero, with the final bitcoin expected to be mined around 2140. After that, miners are paid by transaction fees alone.
Why the halving date moves
Bitcoin targets one block every ten minutes. Every 2,016 blocks the network re-targets difficulty so that the average holds, but the adjustment is slow and the hash rate keeps changing. A stretch of fast blocks pulls the next halving earlier; a stretch of slow blocks pushes it later.
The four completed halvings were 1,319, 1,402 and 1,440 days apart — all slightly longer than four calendar years. That drift is why this page estimates the next date from live block height and the recently observed block interval instead of printing a fixed calendar day.
If live network data is unavailable, the estimate falls back to the protocol ten-minute target and is labelled as a fallback rather than presented as a live reading.
Does the halving cause a Bitcoin bull market?
Every completed halving was followed by a higher price 500 days later, and the pre-halving stretch was positive in three of four cycles. The supply cut is real: daily issuance fell from 7,200 BTC in 2012 to roughly 450 BTC today.
But four observations is a very small sample, and the last two cycles produced much smaller multiples than the ones before them. The 2012 window returned around 2,890%, the 2016 window around 3,318%, the 2020 window around 1,067% and the 2024 window around 560%. A smaller multiple is not the same thing as a broken rule, but it is also not a promise that the next window repeats.
Run the same windows yourself on the simulator before treating any of this as a forecast.
Where the halving meets ETF demand
The halving controls how many new coins miners create. Spot Bitcoin ETFs control who absorbs them. Track both sides of that ledger on the Bitcoin ETF flows dashboard, which converts each session's dollar flows into BTC and stacks them against daily miner issuance.
Bitcoin halving dates — frequently asked questions
When is the next Bitcoin halving?
The next Bitcoin halving is estimated for around April 2028, when the block height reaches 1,050,000. Because the event is triggered by block height and not by a calendar date, the exact day moves as Bitcoin's average block time drifts above or below ten minutes. The live estimate is shown at the top of this page. The current estimate is April 11, 2028 at block 1,050,000.
When is 500 days before the next Bitcoin halving?
The BTC500 buy date is 500 calendar days before the estimated halving. That date moves whenever the halving estimate moves, so it is recomputed from live block height rather than fixed in advance. The buy and sell windows for every cycle are in the schedule table on this page, and the current pair can be downloaded as a calendar file. Right now that is November 28, 2026 (estimated), 500 days before the estimated halving on April 11, 2028. The matching sell date is August 24, 2029.
What are all the Bitcoin halving dates?
Bitcoin has halved four times: 28 November 2012 (block 210,000), 9 July 2016 (block 420,000), 11 May 2020 (block 630,000) and 20 April 2024 (block 840,000). The next halving is estimated for April 2028 at block 1,050,000.
How often does Bitcoin halve?
Bitcoin halves every 210,000 blocks. At the protocol's ten-minute target block time that works out to roughly four years, but the real gap varies: the four completed halvings arrived 1,319, 1,402 and 1,440 days apart, all slightly longer than four calendar years.
What is the block reward after each halving?
The subsidy started at 50 BTC per block. It fell to 25 BTC in 2012, 12.5 BTC in 2016, 6.25 BTC in 2020 and 3.125 BTC in 2024. After the 2028 halving it becomes 1.5625 BTC per block.
Why does the halving date move?
The halving fires at a fixed block height, not on a fixed date. Bitcoin targets one block every ten minutes, but hash rate growth makes blocks arrive faster on average, which pulls the halving earlier, while difficulty adjustments and hash rate declines pull it later. Any published date is an estimate until the block is mined.
Does the halving cause a Bitcoin bull market?
Every completed halving was followed by a higher price 500 days later, but four observations is a very small sample and the returns have shrunk each cycle. The supply cut is real and mechanical; the price response is not guaranteed. Treat the dates as a schedule, not a forecast.
What is the BTC500 strategy?
Buy Bitcoin exactly 500 days before each halving, hold through the event, and sell exactly 500 days after. It uses one calendar rule instead of indicators, so every historical window can be checked against the same price archive.
Historical prices from Bitstamp. Past performance does not guarantee future results.