SHA-256 is the most widely used member of the SHA-2 family, producing a 256-bit (64 hex) hash. Published by NIST in 2001, it is the cryptographic backbone of the modern internet, used in HTTPS certificates, Bitcoin mining, digital signatures, and password hashing systems.

How does Bitcoin use SHA-256?

Bitcoin uses SHA-256 in two critical ways: (1) Proof-of-work mining requires miners to repeatedly hash block headers until finding a hash below the target difficulty. (2) Bitcoin addresses are generated by applying SHA-256 followed by RIPEMD-160 to public keys.

Can SHA-256 be reversed or cracked?

No. SHA-256 has 128 bits of security against collisions. There are no known practical attacks. Even with all of Bitcoin's mining power (~400 exahashes/second), finding a SHA-256 collision would take billions of years.

SHA-256 vs SHA-512: which is faster?

On 64-bit processors, SHA-512 is actually faster than SHA-256 because it processes 64-bit words instead of 32-bit words, making better use of modern CPU architecture. However, SHA-256 produces shorter 64-char hashes vs SHA-512's 128 chars.

Is SHA-256 suitable for password hashing?

SHA-256 alone is not ideal — it is designed to be fast, which is the opposite of what password hashing needs. For password storage, always use bcrypt, Argon2id, or scrypt. If you must use SHA-256 in a password context, use PBKDF2 with a high iteration count.

Tools

SHA-256|64 hex chars

Input

Output

Hash result will appear here...

0 chars|0 bytes

SHA-256 Hash Calculator — Bitcoin & HTTPS Standard

The global industry standard — powers Bitcoin, HTTPS certificates, and digital signatures worldwide. 256-bit output, 128-bit security. The most trusted SHA-2 variant by far.

Features

✓Compute SHA-256 hashes online — the global industry standard powering Bitcoin and HTTPS
✓Real-time 256-bit hash computation with 64 hex character output, Web Crypto API accelerated
✓One-click copy, download as .txt, and uppercase/lowercase toggle
✓Used in blockchain mining, SSL/TLS certificates, and digital signatures worldwide
✓Hash verification against known SHA-256 checksums with auto-detect
✓100% browser-based — zero server uploads, hardware-accelerated hashing

How to Use

1Type or paste your text into the input box above.
2Your hash digest appears instantly — no page reload needed.
3Toggle UPPERCASE / lowercase to change the hex output format.
4Click the copy icon to copy the hash to clipboard, or use Download to save as .txt.
5Paste an expected hash into the Verify field to check for a match.

Frequently Asked Questions

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