What Is a Satoshi?
A satoshi (sat) is the smallest indivisible unit of Bitcoin, equal to 0.00000001 BTC — one hundred millionth of a Bitcoin. Named after Bitcoin's pseudonymous creator Satoshi Nakamoto, it enables precise transactions and pricing even as Bitcoin's per-unit price rises into the tens of thousands of dollars.
How Satoshis Work
Bitcoin is divisible to 8 decimal places. 1 BTC = 100,000,000 satoshis. At $65,000 per BTC, one satoshi is worth approximately $0.00065. The Lightning Network (Bitcoin's Layer 2) can even handle fractions of satoshis called "millisatoshis."
Why It Matters for Traders
Thinking in satoshis reframes Bitcoin from "expensive" to "divisible." You don't need to buy a whole Bitcoin — you can buy any fraction. Some traders denominate altcoin valuations in satoshis (sats) rather than dollars to track altcoin performance relative to Bitcoin rather than fiat.
