How can you actually make money using a bitcoin node? I heard there’s a way with the lightning node... but are there other options? I tried out Electrum, but ended up not seeing any profits.
Ways to Profit from Bitcoin Nodes
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Nah, that’s not how it works. You gotta mine to earn anything. Nodes don’t get paid. Lightning Network is a bit different, with tiny fees for relaying transactions but it’s not really profit, just pocket change.
chrisomegaFull Member
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#3Mar 9, 2019, 10:34 AM
Exactly! Running a node is more about keeping your privacy intact and helping decentralize the network. You don’t earn anything just for having a node up and running. And about Electrum, you didn’t actually run a node there it connects to third-party nodes.
Wait, how have you been around here since 2017?
You might be thinking of POS coins. Those allow you to stake and earn from fees or run masternodes. But Bitcoin’s different running a node doesn’t pay unless someone wants to rent it out. Lightning is an option too, but the fees are so low.
Running a full Bitcoin node mainly boosts your privacy and supports the network’s decentralization. It’s like normal money... you don’t just get paid for doing nothing. You gotta work for your bitcoin. Plus, as pooya87 mentioned, lightning fees are not a real income.
Electrum isn’t made for running nodes. It doesn’t even cover electricity costs. Lightning wallets pick routes based on the lowest fees.
Seriously, I don’t think anyone would pay you to connect to your node. The whole point of a full node is privacy, so why would anyone connect to a third party?
Exactly! Electrum won’t let you run a Bitcoin node, whether full or pruned. You’d need Bitcoin Core for that, but Bitcoin nodes don’t earn any bitcoin. It’s all about Proof of Work miners do the heavy lifting.
I actually offer a service for running nodes, and some people do it for fun. They’re not all about privacy. You can manage decent privacy without a full node, though it’s not perfect.
Totally agree! If you run a watchtower, you could maybe charge SPV users for that, but most folks do it out of goodwill. Not sure which wallet pays for watchtower services.
Variable factors really matter here. If you run lots of BTC nodes with low server costs and lots of channels, maybe you could profit. But routing fees are tiny, so it’s tough to make anything substantial.
Most people with Lightning nodes just earn small amounts. Plus, would you risk 20 BTC on an online device? If you get how Bitcoin works, you’d know running a full node isn’t gonna net you rewards. Transactions on Lightning aren’t even recorded on the Bitcoin blockchain.