How do I mine Monero with P2Pool using XMRig?

To mine Monero with P2Pool and XMRig, you run three programs: a Monero node, P2Pool, and XMRig. Your node checks the blockchain, P2Pool coordinates mining with other miners, and XMRig uses your computer’s processor to do the mining work.

1. Get your wallet and software ready

P2Pool is a decentralized mining pool: you combine your mining work with others without a central operator holding your rewards. This is a native-software setup, not browser mining.

You need:

• A Monero wallet: Use its primary address, which starts with 4, rather than a subaddress or an integrated address.
• Monero’s node software: The program you run is called monerod.
• P2Pool: This connects your mining work to the pool.
• XMRig: This performs the mining calculations.

Download each program from its official project source. Check release signatures or checksums where available; these help you confirm that your download is genuine. Never enter your wallet’s secret recovery words into mining software.

P2Pool payout addresses are publicly visible on its separate share-tracking chain. Consider using a dedicated mining wallet for privacy.

2. Start and synchronize your Monero node

A node downloads and checks Monero’s transaction history, called the blockchain. Give it enough disk space and time to synchronize before starting the rest.

A basic local-node command is:

./monerod --prune-blockchain --rpc-bind-ip 127.0.0.1 --rpc-bind-port 18081 --zmq-pub tcp://127.0.0.1:18083

On Windows, use monerod.exe instead of ./monerod.

Here is what those settings do:

• --prune-blockchain reduces disk use by discarding some older transaction data while keeping what the node needs.
• Port 18081 provides RPC, an interface P2Pool uses to request blockchain information.
• Port 18083 provides ZMQ notifications, which quickly tell P2Pool about new blocks.
• 127.0.0.1 keeps these interfaces accessible only from your own computer.

Keep the node running. Do not expose its unrestricted RPC interface to the public internet.

3. Connect P2Pool to your node

For a typical single-computer miner, P2Pool Mini is usually a more practical starting point than the main P2Pool chain. It makes finding a share, a recorded proof of mining work, more accessible to smaller miners.

Start it with:

./p2pool --host 127.0.0.1 --wallet YOUR_PRIMARY_XMR_ADDRESS --mini

Replace the placeholder with your own public wallet address. Wait for P2Pool to synchronize its share-tracking chain and confirm that it is receiving information from your Monero node.

Mini shares rewards among Mini participants, not main-chain P2Pool participants. Neither choice guarantees steady daily payments.

4. Start XMRig and check your results

Connect XMRig to P2Pool’s default local mining port:

./xmrig -o 127.0.0.1:3333 -u x -p x

Your payout address belongs in the P2Pool command, not XMRig’s username field.

Look for accepted work in XMRig and synchronization messages in P2Pool. Accepted XMRig submissions do not necessarily mean you have found a payout-eligible P2Pool share.

Rewards depend on eligible shares in P2Pool’s recent-work window when the pool finds a Monero block. Payments go directly to your wallet, without a central withdrawal balance. Newly mined rewards remain locked for 60 blocks—roughly two hours.

The bottom line

Keep all three programs running, watch temperatures, and compare electricity costs with a live mining calculator. Mine only on devices you own or have explicit permission to use, and expect irregular payouts rather than guaranteed income.