Bitcoin Pizza Day: The $600 Million Snack That Changed Everything

Apr 30

Let me set the scene:
It’s May 22, 2010. You’re sitting in front of your computer, mining Bitcoin with a setup that looks more like a glorified space heater than anything profitable. Bitcoin’s barely worth anything, but it’s interesting, experimental, and a little nerdy.

You’re a bit curious.

And then, a guy named Laszlo Hanyecz logs onto a forum and says:

“I’ll give 10,000 BTC for two large pizzas.”

Someone takes him up on it and he gets two Papa John’s pies delivered. The trade is complete, and just like that, Bitcoin Pizza Day is born.

At the time, it was worth about $41.
Today? That same 10,000 Bitcoin would be worth around $600 million (give or take, depending on the daily drama).

So…what does it all mean?

Let’s talk about the weird, wild history of Bitcoin Pizza Day, where Bitcoin stands now, and why this greasy transaction still matters 14 years later.

Who Is Laszlo Hanyecz (and What Was He Thinking?)

Laszlo wasn’t some clueless noob throwing crypto around. He was a developer and one of the early contributors to Bitcoin’s source code. At the time, Bitcoin was still just a concept, and there were no exchanges, no wallets as we know them today, and definitely no mainstream adoption.

So Laszlo made a bold move, he decided to prove that Bitcoin could be used in real life. Not just mined, not just hoarded, but actually spent on real world things.

And pizza? Well, it was tangible, delicious, universally understood, and honestly it was probably just what he was craving after hours of coding in his garage and he didn’t think too deeply about it.

However, it was the first documented instance of Bitcoin being used as a currency. That transaction turned theory into action, and Bitcoin from idea into reality.

Was It a Mistake? Or the Most Important Pizza Ever Bought?

Everyone loves to say, “he could’ve been a billionaire!”

But Laszlo doesn’t regret it, in interviews, he’s said:

“It wasn’t like bitcoins had any value back then.”

Which is kind of true, and also kind of why this moment is so fascinating. It’s the most expensive pizza order in human history, sure. But it’s also the transaction that proved a peer-to-peer, decentralized currency could actually work.

It’s become more of a symbol, and also a meme. While there are those who say he made the wrong choice, someone had to be one of the first to try this, and like he said, it wasn’t worth anything back then. It was probably more like trading Monopoly money than we’d care to admit.

Why Bitcoin Pizza Day Still Matters

Bitcoin Pizza Day isn’t just a nerd holiday, it’s a milestone in the evolution of digital money. It showed that crypto could be used in the real world, also value is always subjective (at the time, 10,000 BTC = dinner), and sometimes technology adoption starts with small, almost ridiculous steps.
Sometimes the moment that looks like a joke turns out to be history in the making.

And it makes us ask, what are we laughing at now that we’ll be kicking ourselves over later?

Where Bitcoin Stands Today

Fast forward to 2024 and Bitcoin’s no longer pizza money. It’s the largest cryptocurrency by market cap, legally recognized in countries like El Salvador, used in everything from real estate purchases to cross-border payroll, traded globally across thousands of platforms, and the subject of every financial think piece, from “It’s the future!” to “It’s doomed!”

As of now, one Bitcoin floats somewhere between $90,000–$120,000 depending on the month. And it’s gone as high as $124,128 (on August 14, 2025) and as low as $9,045.39 on June 27, 2020..

Volatile…yeah, you can say that again.

The Culture of Pizza Day

What started as a throwaway trade has become something bigger. Each year on May 22 Bitcoin fans tweet tributes and memes, crypto influencers order pizza and pay with BTC, some companies run crypto-themed deals, and we all get a reminder that even the most groundbreaking tech starts small, often with a snack!

There’s something delightfully relatable about it. It’s history, but it’s also pizza. I mean, what’s not to love?

Why I Believe Cryptocurrency Will Change the World

This story (and everything that’s happened since) is exactly why I wrote this post about why I believe cryptocurrency will change the world.

Because crypto isn’t just about coins and tokens, it’s about control, accessibility, freedom, and flipping the financial status quo on its head.

Bitcoin Pizza Day was proof-of-concept, everything since has been proof-of-impact.

What Would You Have Done?

I think about this a lot more than I should, honestly. If you had 10,000 Bitcoin back then, would you have spent it on pizza?

Maybe not, but that’s only hindsight talking. At the time, it was probably the least weird way to test Bitcoin.

Laszlo put action to belief, and that’s something most people never do.

So before you laugh too hard, ask yourself: what are you holding onto that might be worth a lot more, not in dollars, but in legacy?

Happy Bitcoin Pizza Day

Whether you’re holding Bitcoin, trading altcoins, or still figuring out what blockchain even is, this day belongs to all of us who believe in new systems.

And maybe the next financial revolution will also start with a slice of greasy pizza.

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Michele Gargiulo http://michelegargiulo.com