Bitcoin Explained: What is a Satoshi (SAT)?

In the context of Bitcoin, the term Satoshi also appears again and again. This is of course on the one hand the presumed name of the Bitcoin inventor, but on the other hand also a unit of value within the Bitcoin system.

Satoshi describes the smallest unit that is stored on the Bitcoin blockchains. The term stands for a so-called decimal place, consisting of seven zeros and a 1 – expressed in numbers: 0.00000001 (1.0 * 10^-8 in scientific notation).

Due to the price development of Bitcoin, SAT (as the abbreviation) are being used more and more frequently, as it requires a smaller way of writing and representation.

Satoshi	Wert in Bitcoin (BTC)
1	0,00000001
10	0,00000010
100	0,00000100
1.000	0,00001000
10.000	0,00010000
100.000	0,00100000
1.000.000	0,01000000
10.000.000	0,10000000
100.000.000	1

Satoshi as a Means of Payment

Lately, SAT has become more and more established as a payment unit in the Bitcoin network. For example, the transaction fees incurred for Bitcoin transactions are increasingly being quoted in Satoshi. This also has a simple reason: Due to the price development of the Bitcoin course, it is becoming increasingly difficult to specify small amounts in BTC. SAT naturally help with this. Mining providers are also increasingly paying out their miners with Satoshi.

Historically, the idea of referring to smaller units of Bitcoin as SAT first appeared at the end of 2010. There, a BitcoinTalk user named Ribuck suggested calling 1/100th of a Bitcoin (0.01 BTC) a Satoshi. At that time, this was the smallest possible displayable unit. At this time, the Bitcoin community could neither speak for nor against it. Only months later, the topic became relevant again and was then decided. In another thread in the Bitcoin forum entitled “More divisibility required – move the decimal point”, the discussion was continued and finally decided in the discussion in the thread Bitcent?. The users agreed on