Install and use Idle Miner

Idle Miner uses spare CPU time to run the RandomX mining algorithm. unMineable handles the pool work and conversion into your chosen payout currency: Bitcoin (BTC), Litecoin (LTC), Dogecoin (DOGE), or Ethereum (ETH). Choosing BTC does not turn your CPU into a Bitcoin ASIC miner; it chooses how the provider accounts for and pays your rewards.

A public Receive address tells the provider where to send a payout. Idle Miner never needs a wallet login, password, recovery phrase, or private key. Mining uses electricity and produces heat; earnings are variable and may be lower than your costs.

Download

Get the current packages from the Idle Miner website. For version 1.8 (build 11), choose:

Computer Download
Apple Silicon Mac, macOS 14 or later Idle-Miner-1.8-macOS.dmg
Supported 64-bit ARM or x86 Linux desktop Idle-Miner-1.8-Linux.tar.gz

The Linux download is a source installer that builds the engine on your computer. It needs Python/PySide6, Qt 6, KDE Frameworks 6 development packages, and compiler dependencies from your distribution repositories. Fedora, Fedora Asahi, and recent Ubuntu/Debian-family systems are supported by the installer; older releases may lack the required packages. Native Asahi operation has not been verified. See the release notes for testing details.

Install on a Mac

  1. If updating, select Stop and Quit in every Idle Miner currency instance before replacing the app.
  2. Open Idle-Miner-1.8-macOS.dmg.
  3. Drag Idle Miner into Applications. Replace the previous copy if updating.
  4. Eject the mounted disk and open Idle Miner from Applications.

Existing wallets and settings remain in your user account. The app normally opens stopped. Open any additional currency instances again and start them when ready.

This build is locally ad-hoc signed, and has not been notarized by Apple. macOS may block the first launch because it cannot verify the developer or check the app for malicious software. Only proceed if you trust the source and the downloaded app. After trying to open it, Apple's documented process is System Settings → Privacy & Security → Open Anyway, then confirm Open if that option is available. Read Apple's instructions and warnings first. A warning that the app is damaged or will harm your computer requires investigation before opening it.

Install on Linux

  1. If updating, stop mining and quit all Idle Miner windows/profiles.

  2. Extract Idle-Miner-1.8-Linux.tar.gz.

  3. Open Terminal in the extracted Idle-Miner-1.8-Linux folder.

  4. Run:

    bash install.sh

  5. Allow several minutes for the build, then open Idle Miner from your application launcher.

Run the installer as your normal desktop user. It requests sudo only to install missing system dependencies; do not run the whole installer with sudo. Internet access is needed for those packages. The pinned XMRig source is included and checked before building. If your package manager is busy updating the OS, let that update finish and retry. Existing settings are preserved during reinstall.

Set up a payout address

  1. In a compatible wallet or exchange account, open Receive for the currency you want.
  2. Copy that currency's public address on its native network. Check that the destination supports receiving that currency and any deposit requirements.
  3. Open Idle Miner Settings and paste the address into its matching BTC, LTC, DOGE, or ETH field. Leave currencies you do not plan to use blank.
  4. Choose the currency for this instance and save. Check the saved address against your wallet's Receive screen.
  5. Select Start Mining.

Saving Settings stops this instance's mining session. Start it again when you are ready. See Privacy before saving an address: reporting sends your public address to unMineable, and mining sends it in the pool login. The Mac reports automatically while open; Linux offers a reporting checkbox.

Ethereum payouts

Ethereum uses proof of stake rather than mining. Idle Miner uses CPU RandomX work; unMineable converts credited rewards into ETH. Selecting ETH does not directly mine Ethereum.

Use a native ETH Receive address: 0x followed by 40 hexadecimal characters (20 bytes). All-lowercase and all-uppercase hex addresses are accepted; mixed-case addresses must have a valid EIP-55 checksum. ENS names, payment URIs, and token contract addresses are not Receive-address substitutes. Validation checks address format, not ownership or deposit eligibility.

unMineable lists Ethereum as its default ETH payout network. Before mining, open Pool Payouts and confirm that the provider's selected network and your wallet or exchange's ETH Receive network match. The same 0x format is used on multiple networks, so Idle Miner cannot infer a network from the address. Provider network choices are managed outside the app. Check current thresholds, fees, and deposit requirements there; do not choose a network solely for a lower threshold.

Daily controls

Control What happens
Start Mining Enables automatic mining: lighter CPU use while you are active, more after five minutes idle. Settings can pause completely while active.
Stop Ends the session and cancels a timed Boost.
Boost Temporarily uses the shared configured CPU limit for 15/30 minutes or 1/6/12/24 hours, then returns to automatic mode. Safety checks still apply.
End Boost Returns to automatic mode before the timer expires.
Offline Test Runs a short local one-thread test without connecting to a mining pool or earning rewards.

Battery, heat, memory pressure, sustained CPU load, and system sleep can pause or reduce work. Idle Miner does not change sleep settings or keep the computer awake. Display sleep is different from system sleep: mining can continue while the display is off if the system remains awake. In a VM, guest activity and available sensors may not reflect the host; use modest CPU/RAM allocations and stop if responsiveness suffers.

The status color describes operation: green means confirmed work, gray means stopped, paused, or starting, and red means an engine, connection, or reporting issue. A working Offline Test is labeled as earning nothing. Green does not promise a payout or profit.

Switch or run multiple currencies

Use Switch Currency to choose another saved address in the same instance. The old engine stops before the new one starts. If the session was running, automatic mining may resume for the new currency. A missing address opens Settings and leaves mining stopped.

Use Open Another Currency for a separate instance. It opens stopped: check its wallet and start it explicitly. Each instance has its own Stats, engine configuration, and logs. Only one engine may mine a given currency at a time.

All instances for the same OS user share the total configured CPU/thread limit. Opening a second currency does not double that limit. Capacity becomes available to other instances after an engine has actually stopped. Each engine needs its own RandomX dataset of roughly 2 GB; Linux checks for at least 3 GB of free memory before starting an engine. Additional currencies need additional memory.

Read Mining Stats

Item Meaning
Hashrate and graph Locally observed computing speed and recent session history. Gaps can reflect pauses, startup, or unavailable readings.
Accepted shares Work accepted by the pool during this local session. They are not payments or a guarantee that all computation earned a reward.
Pool balance The provider's reported unpaid balance for this currency/address. It can include other devices and earlier sessions.
Worker status Provider-reported activity; where available it can include multiple workers using the address, and can lag local work.
Coin price A Coinbase USD spot quote, not a profit calculation. Electricity costs are not deducted.
Session began / elapsed Start date/time and elapsed session time, including automatic pauses. Elapsed time freezes on Stop; the next Start begins a new session.
Hashing time Sampled time with fresh positive work, excluding startup and long sleep gaps. It is not a precise measure of total CPU work.
App uptime Time this app instance has remained open.

Pool reporting and prices may be delayed or unavailable. A failed query is not proof of a zero balance. Use Pool Payouts to inspect the provider's dashboard and current threshold, fees, payout settings, and any reported issue.

The provider sends a payout only when its current rules and configured payout settings allow it. Idle Miner does not transfer funds or change those settings. Check your wallet or exchange separately to confirm a deposit; pool credit or a payout status is not the same as a confirmed wallet receipt. There is no fixed earnings or payout-time promise.

Mining Stats can be resized by dragging an edge or corner. Small displays retain scrolling. On Mac, reopening Stats during the same app session preserves your chosen size.

Visibility and login

On Mac, Settings lets you show a Dock icon, a menu bar icon, or both. The menu bar is the default. Currency instances share one ₿ menu bar icon. Click it to see the colored currency rows, then hover over a currency to see its summary and controls. Choose Mining Stats in that submenu for its full window. Keep at least one visibility option enabled.

On Linux, these options control the main window/taskbar and tray presence. Currency instances share one tray icon with controls for each currency. A desktop without a usable tray keeps the main window accessible. Closing hides the window only when a usable visible tray remains; otherwise it quits and stops mining. GNOME tray support depends on the desktop setup.

Start at Login alone opens the default instance stopped. Directly beneath it, Start at Login and Start Mining configured currencies is a separate opt-in checkbox, off by default. When both are enabled, an actual login launch opens a profile and starts automatic mining for each valid saved BTC, LTC, DOGE, and ETH address. Currencies without a saved address are skipped. Invalid or unreadable settings require attention before automatic startup. It does not create wallets or copy an address into another currency.

All started profiles share your configured CPU limit and retain the usual safety checks. Each active engine can require its own roughly 2 GB dataset, so enabling several currencies increases memory, electricity, and heat use after login. Manual app openings remain stopped. Turning off Start at Login clears and disables the mining checkbox. You can still select Start Mining explicitly whenever ready.

Check for updates

Choose Check for Updates… from the app menu. Idle Miner checks the version information at https://idleminer.app/updates/stable.json only when you request it. If a newer release is available, you can read its release notes and download the installer for your platform. The update check and download do not send your wallet addresses.

The app does not replace itself or install an update automatically. Stop mining and quit every currency instance, then install the downloaded package using the Mac or Linux steps above. Your saved wallets and settings remain in your user account. You can also download the current release from idleminer.app.

Keep or remove your settings

Updates preserve the settings stored outside the app:

Quit every instance before backing up or changing these files. Settings, configuration, and logs can contain your public wallet addresses; do not post them unredacted.

To remove the app, first turn off Start at Login and quit every instance. On Mac, remove Idle Miner from Applications; keep or remove its Application Support folder separately. On Linux, the installed app is in ~/.local/share/idle-miner, its launcher is ~/.local/bin/idle-miner, and its desktop entry is ~/.local/share/applications/idle-miner.desktop. Keep or remove the settings directory separately. Do not delete coordination locks while any instance is running.

For problems, include your OS, app version, and a description in a GitHub issue. Redact public addresses and other personal information from logs and screenshots first.