Z15K vs Z15 Pro: which Zcash miner should you buy in 2026?
Choosing between the Z15 Pro and Z15K comes down to three things: what you can afford, how quickly you need to start, and whether you’re scaling or just starting out.
On paper, the Z15 Pro is better. In reality, you can buy a Z15K this week at nearly launch pricing. Both machines come and ship in batches. Whereas the earlier batch is more expensive and the later batches are more affordable. The question is how long can you afford to wait and where is ZEC trading six months from now?
Here’s how we’d think about it.
What's the difference between the Z15K and the Z15 Pro?
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Antminer Z15K
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Z15 Pro
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Released
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August 2026
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2023
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Hashrate
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€525 kSol/s
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840 kSol/s
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Power
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2,483W
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2,780W
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Efficiency
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4.73 J/kSol
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~3.15 J/kSol
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Noise
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72 to 75 dB
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~75 dB
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Availability
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Pre-order: September-March
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Pre-order: December-February
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price
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€3100-€5700
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€6000-€7000
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The Z15 Pro does 60% more hashrate for 7% more power. That’s the whole story of the efficiency column: per unit of work, the Z15K burns about 50% more electricity.
The Z15K’s answer is price and availability. It’s roughly 25% cheaper per kilosol and it ships now. Pro batches sell out; the current Bitmain sales batch is listed on bitmain.com and resellers are quoting delivery windows measured in months.
How do the numbers compare at different power prices?
Snapshot, 10 September 2026. ZEC around €1,030, network difficulty as of today. Every figure below will be different next month; the point is the relationship between the two machines, not the absolute numbers.
Daily ZEC output (estimated): Z15K ~0.0238, Z15 Pro ~0.0381.
Gross revenue per day: Z15K ~€24.50, Z15 Pro ~€39.20.
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Power price
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Z15K power/day
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Z15K net/day
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Z15 Pro power/day
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Z15 Pro net/day
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€0.06 (hosted)
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€3.58
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~€20.90
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€3.82
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~€35.40
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€0.12
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€7.15
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~€17.35
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€7.63
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~€31.60
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€0.25 (EU residential)
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€14.90
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~€9.60
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€15.90
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~€23.30
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Two things to notice.
First, at hosted power the Z15K keeps 85% of its gross revenue. At €0.25 it keeps under 40%. The Pro keeps 90% and 60% respectively. Efficiency matters a lot more the more you pay for power, which is not news, but it’s the whole reason hosting exists. Our ASIC hosting guide explains the mechanics if you’re new to it.
Second, the Pro earns about 1.7 times what the Z15K earns, but costs about 2.1 times as much. On simple payback the Z15K wins at every power price in the table. That’s the launch-pricing advantage.
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Wait to buy a Z15 Pro or buy a Z15K now?
Good question, because the Z15 Pro isn’t “available or not”. It’s “available in 2-3 months”. So the honest comparison is a Z15K hashing from next week versus a Pro hashing from, say, December. The Z15 Pros are sold out at Bitmain’s official website but can be purchased through authorized resellers at a price of around €7,000 per unit in December, or release batch in January/February for €6,000 per unit.
Take €0.06/kWh hosted and today’s snapshot. A Z15K bought now at €3,000 earns roughly €21 a day. By the time a Pro arrived three months later, the Z15K has already produced about €1,900. The Pro then earns ~€35 a day against the Z15K’s ~€21, a €14 daily gap. It takes the Pro roughly 135 more days to close that head start on earnings alone, and it still costs €3,000 more to buy.
Under those assumptions, the Z15K is ahead on cash for around seven to eight months from today, and only then does the Pro’s efficiency start paying back the wait and the premium.
Now change one assumption. If difficulty doubles over that period (it has roughly doubled in the last four months), both machines’ daily output halves, the Pro’s efficiency edge matters more, and the crossover moves earlier. If ZEC drops 40%, same direction. If ZEC keeps climbing, the Z15K’s head start gets more valuable and the crossover moves later.
So the rule of thumb: the Z15K wins if you expect the next six months to be as good as or better than today. The Pro wins if you expect things to get tighter. Nobody knows which, so the decision is really about which risk you’d rather hold.
Which one should you buy?
Either way: decide on Zcash before you decide on hardware. Both machines are useless if you don’t want ZEC. Our how to start mining Zcash guide walks through the coin side, and z.cash is the project’s own site if you want the background.
Buy the Z15K if:
- You want ZEC exposure as soon as possible and at an affordable price.
- Your budget is under €3,500 per machine
- You're hosting or have power at €0.08/kWh or below
- You'd rather spread one Pro's worth of capital across two Z15Ks
Wait for the Z15 Pro if:
- You can leave capital idle for the delivery window
- Your power is above €0.12/kWh and you're not hosting
- You plan to run the machine for two years or more; efficiency compounds
- You're buying in volume and per-kSol power cost dominates your model
What about running two Z15Ks instead of one Pro?
It’s worth considering, because it’s the option people overlook.
Two Z15Ks: 1,050 kSol/s, 4,966W, ~€5,200 to €6,600. One Pro: 840 kSol/s, 2,650W, ~€5,900 to €6,300. So for roughly the same money, two Z15Ks give you 25% more hashrate and burn 87% more power. At €0.06/kWh the extra power costs about €3.35 a day; the extra hashrate earns about €9.80. Net, two Z15Ks earn around €6.40 a day more than one Pro at today’s prices, and they’re in stock.
The catch is the same as always: that gap shrinks as power gets dearer and as difficulty rises. At €0.25/kWh it flips. And two machines means two hosting slots, two warranty claims and two points of failure.
Hosting either machine
We host individual Z15K and Z15 Pro units at our Norway facility on hydro power at €0.059/kWh. You ship the unit, we rack it, you point it at your pool, payouts go to your wallet. There’s no minimum order. Details and the current rate are on our miner hosting page.
Request a quote for ZEC miners
We don’t sell hardware. We do work with a handful of suppliers we’ve bought from ourselves and whose machines have turned up on time and as described. If you’ve decided between the Z15K and the Pro, or want help deciding, we can get a quote for you from our trusted suppliers.
Purchase Through Our Partners — Get Our Best Hosting Rates
If you purchase your miners through our trusted partners, you’ll get access to our best hosting price tier. We work with resellers who understand mining operations, they handle the logistics and warranty, we handle the hosting. It’s a simpler path from purchase to profitability, and you save on the hosting side while you’re at it.
That means you get access to our best rates: an ultra-low kWh plan at €0.059 per unit, or an all-in package at €0.085 that covers hosting, power, and maintenance. No minimums, no lock-in periods.
Start with one miner if you want.
Questions? Don’t hesitate to contact us.
FAQ
the New Z15K vs Z15 Pro
Your question isn’t here? Send us a message and our team will be happy to answer all your questions.
Is the Z15 Pro better than the Z15K?
On efficiency and hashrate, yes: ~3.15 J/kSol and 840 kSol/s versus 4.73 J/kSol and 525 kSol/s. On price per kSol and availability, the Z15K wins.
Which has faster payback, the Z15K or the Z15 Pro?
At September 2026 launch pricing, the Z15K pays back faster at every power price we tested, because it costs about half as much and earns about 60% as much.
Should I wait for a Z15 Pro or buy a Z15K now?
Depends on your expectations. If you think the next six months stay as good as today, the Z15K’s head start wins. If you expect difficulty to keep rising and price to soften, the Pro’s efficiency wins.
Are two Z15Ks better than one Z15 Pro?
At cheap power, yes: more hashrate for similar money. At residential power prices, no.
Is the Z15K more efficient than the Z15 Pro?
No. The Pro runs at roughly 3.15 J/kSol; the Z15K at 4.73 J/kSol. The Z15K’s advantages are price per kilosol and availability, not efficiency.
Can I host a Z15K or Z15 Pro in Norway?
Yes, individual units, no minimum. See the Norway hosting page for the current rate.
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