How many Monero (XMR) are in circulation?

As of early 2026, approximately 18.9 million XMR are in circulation. Unlike Bitcoin's fixed 21 million cap, Monero has no maximum supply. New XMR is created every ~2 minutes via the tail emission (0.6 XMR per block), adding about 157,680 XMR per year — roughly 0.83% annual inflation, decreasing over time.

Does Monero have a maximum supply cap?

No. Monero deliberately has no maximum supply. After the main emission curve ended in June 2022 (~18.132 million XMR), the tail emission began: a fixed 0.6 XMR per block forever. This ensures miners are always incentivized to secure the network, unlike Bitcoin where mining rewards eventually reach zero (relying solely on transaction fees).

What is Monero's tail emission?

The tail emission is a fixed reward of 0.6 XMR per block (~$100 at current prices) that miners receive indefinitely. It started in June 2022 when the main emission curve completed. This adds ~157,680 XMR per year. The inflation rate decreases asymptotically — from ~0.86% in 2023 to ~0.83% in 2026, approaching 0% over centuries but never reaching it.

What is Monero's inflation rate?

In 2026, Monero's inflation rate is approximately 0.83% per year (157,680 new XMR / ~18.9M existing). For comparison, Bitcoin's inflation is ~1.7% (until the 2028 halving), gold's is ~1.5-2%, and the US dollar's is 2-3%. Monero's inflation rate decreases every year and will fall below 1% permanently — already lower than most national currencies and gold.

Can you verify Monero's supply if transactions are private?

Yes. Monero uses Pedersen commitments — a cryptographic technique that allows anyone to verify that no XMR was created from nothing, without revealing individual transaction amounts. Every node verifies that inputs equal outputs plus fees for every transaction. The total supply is verifiable by summing all coinbase (mining) rewards, which are public. This is mathematically proven and independently auditable.

Monero Supply — How Many XMR Exist?

TL;DR: Approximately 18.9 million XMR exist as of early 2026. Monero has no maximum supply cap. The tail emission adds 0.6 XMR per block (~157,680 XMR/year) forever. Current inflation: ~0.83%/year — lower than gold, the dollar, and Bitcoin.

Current Supply Stats

~18.9M

Circulating Supply

No Cap

Maximum Supply

0.6 XMR

Per Block (Tail)

~0.83%

Annual Inflation

Emission Progress

Main emission (2014–June 2022): ~18.132M XMR

Genesis (Apr 2014) Tail emission begins (Jun 2022) Now (~18.9M)

The main emission curve distributed ~18.132M XMR over 8 years. Since June 2022, the tail emission adds 0.6 XMR per block indefinitely. By 2030, total supply will be ~20.1M. By 2050, ~23.3M. By 2100, ~31M.

Emission Schedule

Period	Total Supply	New XMR/Year	Inflation Rate
Apr 2014 (launch)	0	N/A	N/A
2015	~8.8M	~8.8M	Rapid emission
2018	~16M	~2.4M	~17%
Jun 2022 (tail starts)	~18.132M	~157,680	~0.87%
2026 (now)	~18.9M	~157,680	~0.83%
2030	~20.1M	~157,680	~0.78%
2050	~23.3M	~157,680	~0.68%
2100	~31.2M	~157,680	~0.51%

Why No Hard Cap?

Bitcoin will stop paying miners around 2140. After that, miners depend entirely on transaction fees. If fees are too low, miners leave, security drops, and the network becomes vulnerable to 51% attacks. This is Bitcoin's "security budget problem."

Monero solved this by design. The tail emission guarantees a minimum block reward forever. Miners always have an incentive to secure the network, regardless of fee levels. The trade-off is a small, predictable inflation that decreases toward zero over time — but never reaches it.

2026 inflation: 0.83% (lower than gold at ~1.5%)
2050 inflation: 0.68% (lower than any central bank target)
Effective scarcity: Coins are lost permanently (estimated 1-3% per decade). Net supply may actually decrease over time.

Monero vs Bitcoin Supply

Feature	Monero	Bitcoin
Max Supply	No cap (tail emission)	21,000,000 BTC
Current Supply	~18.9M XMR	~19.8M BTC
2026 Inflation	~0.83%	~1.7%
Emission Ends	Never	~2140
Mining Reward	0.6 XMR/block (fixed)	3.125 BTC/block (halving)
Security Model	Perpetual reward	Fees only (eventually)
Supply Auditable	Yes (Pedersen commitments)	Yes (transparent)
Lost Coins Recoverable	No	No

Note: Bitcoin's inflation rate is currently higher than Monero's (1.7% vs 0.83%). After Bitcoin's 2028 halving, they'll be roughly equal. Monero's inflation only becomes "worse" than Bitcoin's after ~2040.

Can You Verify the Supply?

Yes. Despite Monero's private transactions, the total supply is cryptographically verifiable. Here's how:

Coinbase rewards are public: Every block's mining reward is visible on the blockchain. Sum all coinbase transactions = total supply.
Pedersen commitments: Each transaction proves inputs = outputs + fees without revealing amounts. No coins can be created from nothing.
Any node can audit: Run monerod print_coinbase_tx_sum 0 99999999 to verify total emission yourself.
Independent verification: Multiple independent implementations (C++, Rust) verify the same supply figures.

The 2017 security audit specifically verified Monero's supply guarantees. No inflation bug has ever been exploited on mainnet.

Supply vs Privacy: The Rich List Question

Bitcoin has a "rich list" — you can see which addresses hold the most BTC. Monero has no rich list. Because transaction amounts and addresses are hidden by ring signatures, RingCT, and stealth addresses, nobody can determine how much XMR any individual holds.

This means:

No "whale watching" — large holders can't be tracked or front-run
No supply concentration analysis — distribution is truly unknown
No address reuse tracking — each transaction uses a unique one-time address

What Supply Means for Traders

Monero's supply model is the most honest in crypto. No surprise halvings, no fee crisis, no security budget debates. The inflation rate is predictable decades in advance and already lower than gold. For P2P traders, this means the XMR you buy today won't be diluted — 0.83% annual inflation is negligible compared to the 10%+ premiums in P2P markets.

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