Mining Dogecoin with a Raspberry Pi: The Complete Guide

Using a Raspberry Pi to mine cryptocurrencies has always been something of interest for Raspberry Pi users: having a cheap device that consumes little electricity and can run 24/7 to mine crypto while you sleep. In this article, I’ll show you how to set up your Raspberry Pi to mine Dogecoin, the crypto popularized by Elon Musk.

To mine Dogecoin on a Raspberry Pi, a miner and a mining pool are required. XMRig is an open-source miner that can be used on a Raspberry Pi. And unMineable is a mining pool that can be used for most cryptocurrencies, like Dogecoin, Bitcoin, Ethereum, and more.

I’ll give you the instructions to install this miner on your Raspberry Pi. To be honest, don’t expect to become rich with this setup, but at least you’ll learn how it works. And if later on you want to try it on a bigger computer running any Linux distribution, it’ll be the same. Take this tutorial as a learning experience, more than a way to make money.

If you’re new to Raspberry Pi or Linux, I’ve got something that can help you right away!
Download my free Linux commands cheat sheet – it’s a quick reference guide with all the essential commands you’ll need to get things done on your Raspberry Pi. Click here to get it for free!

Prerequisites to Mine Dogecoin on Raspberry Pi

There are 3 requirements before beginning to mine Dogecoin on a Raspberry Pi:

• A recent Raspberry Pi model is recommend for better results (good CPU needed).
• A 64-bit operating system is required to install the miner.
• A mining pool is needed to link the miner to the Dogecoin network.

I’ll explain these three steps in details in this first part of the tutorial.

Pick a Raspberry Pi

Most miners use powerful computers, with several GPU, to improve their performance and earn more money. On Raspberry Pi, there is no GPU we can use, so the only thing we have is the CPU. Using a Raspberry Pi 5 or Pi 4 will provide better results than older models.

Also, we’ll need to install a 64-bit operating system (that’s the next step), so forget testing this on older hardware. The only boards you can use for this tutorial are:

• Raspberry Pi 2B, version 1.2 only
• Raspberry Pi Zero 2
• Raspberry Pi 3 or 3B+
• Raspberry Pi 4 or 400
• Raspberry Pi 5 or 500 or 500+

The newer ones on this list will be the best choices.

Install a 64-bit Operating System

The miner we’ll use in this tutorial only runs on a 64-bit operating system, which is only supported on more recent Raspberry Pi boards. A 64-bit operating system will also give better results.

If you are entirely new to this, the miner is the software we’ll install on the Raspberry Pi to do the work. It will connect to the cryptocurrency network and use the resources on the computer to do the jobs given by the mining pool.

Once you’ve selected your Raspberry Pi, the first step is to install a system on it. It doesn’t really matter which one you pick, the easiest one might be Raspberry Pi OS or Ubuntu Server as it’s included in Raspberry Pi Imager, or you can just use any system you prefer:

• Install Raspberry Pi OS 64-bit: The Lite version would be enough, as we don’t need a graphic interface. You can find it directly in Raspberry Pi Imager, check my tutorial if you’re not familiar with this tool.
  
  You can read our other article for more details about the difference between 64 and 32-bit.
• Install Ubuntu Server 64-bit: If you’re used to Ubuntu or want to keep things simple, you can use Raspberry Pi Imager to install Ubuntu Server.
  
  In the OS section, click on “Other general purpose OS” and then “Ubuntu” category.
  Pick Ubuntu Server 64-bit from the list and flash it onto your SD card.
  
• Other options: The operating system doesn’t really matter. You just need a 64-bit OS, without an interface if possible, for better results. But you can pick Manjaro, Fedora, Kali, etc. If you already have a 64-bit OS installed, go with it, you don’t need to start from scratch.

Once your SD card ready, boot your new operating system and configure the basics:

• On Raspberry Pi OS, for example, you can use raspi-config to configure the network or keyboard layout if needed:
  sudo raspi-config
• Once done, it’s recommended to update all the packages to the latest version with:
  sudo apt update
sudo apt full-upgrade

Tip: Command lines can be a pain to memorize. I put the essential Linux commands on a printable cheat sheet so you don't have to keep googling them. You can grab the PDF here if you want to save some time.

Read my article about Ubuntu or Manjaro if you are using another system and need help to do the same thing.

Get a Dogecoin Address

Depending on the mining pool you choose, this might not be mandatory. But if you’re serious about doing this (especially if you will try on another computer after testing on your Pi), you can get a DOGE address by following the instructions on the official website.

There are several ways to create an address. I did it by installing the MyDoge app on my smartphone. On PC, you can also try Dogecoin Core, but the synchronization took me a few hours with a fiber connection—maybe the lite version (Multidoge) would be a better choice for PC.

Anyway, here’s an example of how to create a Dogecoin address with the MyDoge app:

• Install the MyDoge app on your smartphone and open it.
• Tap Create a wallet.
• Set a PIN to act like your password.
• You’ll be asked to back up your new wallet.
  I chose “Write on paper” to get going fast.
• Optional – Sign in to the Dogeverse.
  I skipped this step for now.
• After the setup is done, you’ll be sent to your Wallet.
  It shows how much Dogecoin you have currently and its current trading price.
  
• To see your DogeCoin address, tap Receive.
  

You’ll use this info for in the miner configuration later, just keep it somewhere safe for now.

By the way, if you prefer not to bother with the software part, you can just use my address for the tests. If your goal is just to do the experiment on your Raspberry Pi, you won’t earn anything, and it doesn’t matter which address is used.
Here is my address for this tutorial: DAuARerBnjJE9rs7MoaM75nSpfdx5GGjK6

Join a Mining Pool

The last thing you need to mine Dogecoin on Raspberry Pi is a mining pool. A mining pool is a group of miners that put their resources in common to increase the chance to find and block, and so receiving a reward for their work.

I’m not an expert on this topic, but one mining pool that come often as a recommendation is unMineable. You can use it without having to create an account, it’s compatible with XMRig and their fees are pretty standard (they keep 1% of your revenue).

Here are the required steps to use unMineable as your mining pool:

• Visit the site’s guided setup wizard: here.
• Choose Basic mode.
• As we don’t have a graphics card, click the CPU option.
• Select RandomX for the algorithm
• For the coin to be mined, select Dogecoin.
• Enter your wallet address.
  
• For referral code, you can enter mine: 5zvv-gkvv
  Or “Continue without referral code.”
• On the “Start mining!” step, click Linux to see the command:
  
• Copy this to your notepad for later.

There are actually only two things we need here:
The URL: rx.unmineable.com
The user: DOGE:DAuARerBnjJE9rs7MoaM75nSpfdx5GGjK6.unmineable_worker_jprcgf#5zvv-gkvv

I’ll show you how to configure this in the next part.
You can try other mining pools if you want, the idea is always the same. It will give you a URL.

How to Mine Dogecoin on your Raspberry Pi

We’re now ready to start mining on the Raspberry Pi! To get started, we just need to install the miner software on the Raspberry Pi and configure it with our details.

I recommend following these steps from your PC. Connect to your Raspberry Pi with SSH, so you can copy and paste the following commands directly. Don’t know how to do this? Read this article first.

Install the Miner: XMRig

Here is the procedure to install XMRig on your Raspberry Pi:

• Install the prerequisites:
  sudo apt install git build-essential cmake libuv1-dev libssl-dev libhwloc-dev
• Clone the GitHub project to your device:
  git clone https://github.com/xmrig/xmrig.git
• Create the build folder and enter it:
  mkdir xmrig/build && cd xmrig/build
• Start the compilation:
  cmake ..
make -j$(nproc)

It shouldn’t be too long. If everything goes well, you’ll see a file named “xmrig” in your build folder. I’m following the steps given for Ubuntu on this page, you can refer to it if you have any doubts.

If after this test on your Raspberry Pi you want to test on your PC, XMRig has releases available for all major operating systems, you can download them directly from their GitHub page. It’s only on Raspberry Pi that you need to compile it from source.

Configure XMRig to Mine Dogecoin with unMineable

You can run XMRig with all the options in one command line, but a more practical way is to use a configuration file.
You can download the template available on their GitHub project with:
wget https://raw.githubusercontent.com/xmrig/xmrig/master/src/config.json

Make sure to be in the build folder before running this command.
Then you need to slightly edit the file to set the server address and your DOGE address:

• Open the file with nano:
  nano config.json
• Find the “pools” section, you’ll need to change the values for the “url” and “user” configuration variables.
• Put your mining pool address in the “url” field, so if you’re using unMineable it should be:
  rx.unmineable.com:3333
• Then fill the “user” field that you copied down earlier:
  DOGE:<address>.<worker_name>
For example:
  DOGE:DAuARerBnjJE9rs7MoaM75nSpfdx5GGjK6.rpitips
  If you use my address, please change the worker’s name to avoid any issues.
• Save and exit (CTRL+X).

You might also like: How To Create and Edit JSON Files In Linux Terminal

Start the Miner

Now that everything is set up and configured, you can start the miner. As everything is set in the configuration file, the command to start the miner is just:
./xmrig

After a few seconds, you should see some logs indicating that the miner is receiving jobs from unMineable and working on them:

You’ll receive regular updates regarding the mining speed. But if you are using unMineable, you’ll find all the details directly on the website. I’ll show you how in the next part.

Results & Final Thoughts

I told you right at the beginning, that you shouldn’t expect much from this experiment. Installing a miner on your Raspberry Pi is a great way to learn more about cryptocurrencies, and how the whole system works. But you won’t become rich overnight by doing this. You are in competition with mining farms using the latest CPUs and GPUs that will get most of the reward.

Check Your Results

If you’re using unMineable, you can enter your wallet address on this page to check your results in real-time:

You’ll see your current balance in DOGE coins. And also a list of your workers and the results they got in the last hours.

I tested this on my Raspberry Pi 4, without optimizing anything, and the hash rate was between 100 and 200. The speed is declining, I suspect this is a cooling issue. I didn’t put my Pi in a proper case with a decent cooling system. The CPU temperature is now around 75° C, and it’s probably why everything is slowing down.

If you are testing this for a longer period, it’s probably a good idea to overclock your Raspberry Pi and install a good cooling system (something passive maybe like the Argon Neo, or even the Ice Tower to keep the temperature as low as possible).

To learn more about the Raspberry Pi temperature and how to keep it cool, check this guide I have on the website.

Final Thoughts

As you can see, with my results, I got something like 0.001 DOGE coin for each hour of mining. At the time of writing, 1 DOGE is worth something like $0.15, and you’ll need around one month of mining to get one :-).

Even if you have a way to get a Raspberry Pi for free and don’t pay the electricity bills, it’s not really worth it.

Also, unMineable require at least 30 DOGE coins for a payout, so you’ll need to keep your Pi running for 2 or 3 years before getting anything on your DOGE account! There are probably mining pools with a lower threshold, but anyway. At least, you learned how all of this works, and can now apply the same tutorial on a better computer, where you should get very different results.

Want to try another crypto? Read my guide on how to mine Monero on your Raspberry Pi or check this article listing a few other options.
I use different software and a different mining pool, so you can learn other things.

And if your ultimate goal is to make money to pay off your Raspberry Pi, click the links to find better options.

Video Tutorial

https://youtu.be/zvkaXj2Dca8

Not getting the same result?

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