Bitcoin

Bitcoin was the world’s first cryptocurrency and is still the largest by market capitalization. You’ll find it listed on nearly every crypto trading platform. Although Bitcoin was designed as a digital currency for transactions, its technical limitations have made it function more as an investment asset. The main challenge is that a single Bitcoin is extremely expensive, putting it out of reach for most people. Fortunately, you don’t need to buy a whole Bitcoin because it can be split into smaller units called satoshis.

What is a satoshi?

A satoshi is the smallest denomination of Bitcoin. One satoshi equals one hundred millionth of a BTC (0.00000001 BTC), named after Satoshi Nakamoto, the mysterious creator of the Bitcoin protocol. To answer how many satoshis make up a Bitcoin: one BTC is exactly 100 million satoshis. When Bitcoin was first introduced, there was no need for such a small unit, as its price was measured in cents. But as Bitcoin’s value soared into the thousands of dollars per coin, dividing it into satoshis became essential.

Even with Bitcoin’s soaring price, satoshis remain highly affordable for crypto users. For example, even if BTC hit one million dollars, a single satoshi would cost just $0.01. Whether Bitcoin will reach that price remains uncertain, but the reality is that a full Bitcoin is still too expensive for most traders. That’s where satoshis come in—making it possible for anyone to own and use fractions of BTC. Otherwise, only wealthy individuals and institutional investors could afford Bitcoin.

History of satoshi

The story of the satoshi begins with Bitcoin and its protocol. In 2008, as the global financial crisis unfolded, the anonymous figure Satoshi Nakamoto introduced Bitcoin. To this day, no one knows if Nakamoto is a person, a group, a company, or something else.

On October 31, 2008, Nakamoto published the Bitcoin whitepaper, outlining a decentralized network powered by blockchain technology. The whitepaper introduced Bitcoin as a digital currency and specified all aspects of the project. On January 3, 2009, Nakamoto mined the first block—known as the Genesis Block—on the Bitcoin blockchain. BTC was designed to be divisible into much smaller units: the smallest being one hundred millionth of a BTC. So, one Bitcoin equals 100,000,000 satoshis. Later, this smallest unit was named “satoshi” in honor of Bitcoin’s creator.

The term "satoshi" was first suggested by ribuck, a member of the BitcoinTalk forum, on November 15, 2010. Ribuck originally proposed using it for one hundredth of a BTC, but later revised his suggestion to use it for the smallest possible unit. The forum community agreed, and the name stuck.

How does the satoshi work?

Because a satoshi is simply a minuscule portion of Bitcoin, it operates just like BTC. It’s used across the decentralized Bitcoin network for transactions, payments, trading, and more. Sometimes, people skip the term “satoshi” and just reference the amount in BTC.

For instance, when you buy BTC with a certain amount of money, you can express it either as a decimal fraction of BTC or as a number of satoshis. Knowing how many satoshis are in a Bitcoin helps investors precisely calculate their holdings, since each BTC consists of exactly 100 million satoshis.

FAQ

How many satoshis are in one Bitcoin?

One Bitcoin contains 100,000,000 satoshis. Each satoshi is equal to 0.00000001 BTC.

How much is 1 satoshi in US dollars?

In 2025, 1 satoshi is estimated to be worth about $0.0001. This value can change with market fluctuations.

How many hashes are in Bitcoin?

Bitcoin’s current hash rate is fifty exahashes per second, and this number keeps growing as more miners join the network.

How many satoshis exist?

Every Bitcoin is made up of 100,000,000 satoshis. The satoshi is Bitcoin’s smallest unit, named after its founder.