How much can you really earn with Helium hotspots in 2025?

The hype has faded, but for smart operators, there’s still money to be made in Helium’s new two-token world.

Remember the stories of Helium hotspots raking in hundreds of dollars a month? Those days are mostly history. The network has grown up, and making a profit is now a game of smarts, not just luck. While you won’t be retiring off a single device, a well-managed hotspot can still generate a decent, if smaller, stream of crypto.

Before you even think about earnings, you have to know that Helium isn’t one network anymore. It’s split in two, and your choice determines what you earn. The original network for the Internet of Things (IoT) now pays out in IOT tokens.

Its newer, high-speed counterpart for 5G cellular service rewards miners with MOBILE tokens. You can swap both of these for HNT, the main coin of the Helium ecosystem.

Let’s talk real numbers!

Pinning down an “average” earning is tough because your location and setup change everything. Still, by looking at the blockchain and what people are reporting, we can get a good idea of what’s possible.

• Helium for IoT – For most people running an IoT rig, you’re now looking at cents, not dollars, per day. A well-placed hotspot in a city with decent, but not crowded, coverage can expect somewhere between $0.10 and $1.50 daily. That adds up to a monthly haul of $3 to $45. Many operators in early 2025 find themselves in the $4 to $8 per month range. If your box is stuck in a packed area or has a terrible view, you’ll earn much less.
• Helium for 5G – The 5G game is a bigger gamble. The hardware costs a lot more upfront, but the potential payoff is higher. Here, it’s not about how many hotspots you can see, but how much real data people are using through your device. It’s not uncommon to see earnings clear $50 a month, and if you can get a radio set up in a busy urban spot or one of Helium’s “boosted” zones, that number can climb much higher.

What moves the needle on earnings?

That huge gap in potential income isn’t random. It all boils down to a few key things you can control.

Crypto prices

Your hotspot mines tokens, but their dollar value swings with the market. Your earnings are tied directly to the price of IOT, MOBILE, and the main HNT token. Nobody has a crystal ball, but here’s what some analysts are guessing for 2025 –

• HNT – Price targets are all over the place, from a pessimistic $2.38 – $3.58 to a much more optimistic $10.82 – $12.95.
• IOT – The forecasts for IOT are tiny, hovering somewhere between $0.000275 and $0.000829.
• MOBILE – Predictions for MOBILE have a massive range, from $0.000247 all the way up to $0.00729.

Source: HNT/USD, TradingView

This constant price movement is the biggest risk and the biggest thrill of being a Helium miner.

Location, location, crowding

For IoT hotspots, placement is a tricky dance. The system rewards you for proving your neighbors’ wireless coverage. Ideally, you want your hotspot high up with a clear view to “witness” lots of other hotspots. But there’s a catch: if your little hexagon on the Helium map gets too crowded, your “transmit scale” drops, and so do your rewards. On the flip side, a hotspot all by itself in the middle of nowhere earns almost nothing.

For 5G hotspots, the strategy is way simpler: go where the people are. These radios make money when they offload data from mobile phones. That means setting up in busy downtown areas, malls, event venues, or transit stations is the key to earning more.

Get that antenna up high!

The stock antenna that comes in the box is a good start, but the real gains for IoT come from getting a better one mounted outside. A high-gain antenna on your roof or a mast can massively boost how many other hotspots you can reach.

Don’t cheap out on the cables either and make sure your internet is solid. Every time your hotspot reboots or goes offline, you’re losing money.

Halving is coming – August 2025

Just like Bitcoin, Helium has scheduled “halvings” to slow down how many new coins are created. The latest one was on 1 August 2025. On that day, the amount of new HNT minted each year was cut in half, from 15 million to 7.5 million.

This directly slashed the rewards you get from just providing coverage. The idea is that making HNT scarcer could increase its value over time. Importantly, rewards for actual data usage weren’t affected, showing that Helium is serious about being a useful network, not just a mining fad.

Upfront costs

You can get started for a couple hundred bucks or go all-in for over a grand.

• IoT hotspots – A new one will run you $200 to $500.
• Antennas & extras – A good outdoor antenna costs $40 to $100. Add in quality cables, mounts, and a lightning arrestor, and the bill grows.
• Power bill – The good news is these things barely use any electricity. A hotspot uses about 5 watts, which you’ll never even notice on your power bill.

Here’s a look at what you might spend to get started –

Competition and real-world use

Helium isn’t the only game in town anymore. Big players like Amazon Sidewalk are moving in, and other crypto-based projects are popping up, making the space more crowded. At the same time, governments are starting to pay attention to crypto. New laws in the U.S., like the FIT21 Act, are trying to create clear rules for digital tokens, which could be good for projects like Helium that have a real-world use.

Despite the noise, more and more real businesses are using the network. Logistics companies (LoneStar Tracking), environmental groups (Airly), and others are using Helium to track assets, check air quality, and manage supply chains. Deals with big IoT companies like Actility and Senet are also bringing more traffic to the network.

So, is it still worth it?

In 2025, running a Helium hotspot is not the get-rich-quick scheme it once was. It’s more like a small business. Your success depends on doing your homework, picking the right spot, and investing in good gear. The profits are made by those who pay attention to the details of antenna height, token prices, and network crowding.

If you’re willing to put in that work, Helium is still a fascinating way to invest in and help build the physical infrastructure of the decentralized web.