P2PKH Decline Curve
Long-term decline curve of the P2PKH output share as P2SH, SegWit, and Taproot formats progressively replace the original Satoshi 2009 script type.
What is it?
P2PKH (Pay-to-Public-Key-Hash) is Bitcoin's original output format, defined in 2009 by Satoshi Nakamoto. This metric measures the 1-week rolling share of outputs created in the P2PKH format among all blockchain outputs. Through successive protocol activations - BIP16 P2SH (April 2012), BIP141 SegWit (August 2017), BIP340-342 Taproot (November 2021) - wallets and applications have migrated to newer formats, structurally decreasing the P2PKH share.
How to read
The vertical axis is a percentage between 0 and 100. Read the curve as a measure of protocol inertia: the slower the decline, the stronger the lock-in on legacy wallets. Slope breaks coincide with major protocol activations and the wave adoption of wallets supporting newer formats.
Key zones
Over the full horizon, the curve forms an arc: P2PKH supplants the original P2PK format of the earliest years, reaches near-total dominance in the early-to-mid 2010s, then structurally declines in successive steps after each major activation (BIP16, SegWit, Taproot). The long-term decline is the cardinal reading. A stabilising floor would indicate the inertia of old coins immobilised since the pre-SegWit era.
What to observe
Watch the inflections around protocol activation dates (2012-04-01 BIP16, 2017-08-24 SegWit, 2021-11-14 Taproot). An accelerated decline post-activation indicates efficient migration; a slow decline indicates significant wallet inertia. Stagnation phases may correspond to inactive coins accumulated on legacy P2PKH addresses.
Historical context
The very first Bitcoin outputs used the P2PK (pay-to-pubkey) format of Satoshi's coinbases. P2PKH then established itself as the standard of the early years, reaching near-total dominance in the early-to-mid 2010s. The introduction of P2SH (BIP16, 2012-04-01) enabled multisig and complex scripts via a compact envelope. SegWit (BIP141, 2017-08-24) added native P2WPKH and P2WSH outputs with a fee discount thanks to the separated witness. Taproot (BIP340-342, 2021-11-14) brought P2TR with Schnorr signatures. Each activation gradually reduced the P2PKH share in newly created outputs.
Expert notes
The share of P2PKH outputs in newly created transactions can differ significantly from the share of BTC supply stored in P2PKH format: a coin issued in 2010 on a P2PKH address can remain immobilised for years even when no new P2PKH output is created. To analyse the legacy supply, cross-reference with UTXO age cohort metrics.
Common mistakes to avoid
Confusing the share of P2PKH outputs in new transactions with the share of BTC supply held in P2PKH format is a common error. This metric measures the share of outputs created on a 1-week rolling basis, not the cumulative stock. Moreover, a declining share does not mean P2PKH coins disappear - they can simply remain immobilised on legacy addresses without generating new outputs.
Programmatic access
REST API
curl -sS \
'https://api.trinityinsights.io/api/v1/onchain/p2pkh-decline-curve/history?days=90' \
-H 'X-API-Key: $TRINITY_API_KEY'MCP server
{
"tool": "get_chart_value",
"metric_id": "p2pkh-decline-curve",
"timeframe": "1y"
}Required tier: performance. See the pricing grid for the tier list and the MCP documentation for multi-client configuration.
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Institutional disclaimer
Trinity Insights is an educational and analytical tool. The metric above does not constitute investment advice. Trinity Insights is not a Crypto-Asset Service Provider (CASP) registered under MiCA Regulation (EU) 2023/1114. See the full disclaimer.