The First Bitcoin Transaction in Reality: The Pizza Purchase That Changed Everything

What was the first time a person actually used Bitcoin to buy something physical? The answer lies in a relatively simple transaction from May 2010 – two pizzas from Papa John’s. This purchase, which was only valued at about $41 at the time, would later be worth over $690 million. But the money was never the point – it was proof that Bitcoin could function as real money.

From Digital Experiment to Real Currency

To understand why this pizza purchase means so much, we need to go back to the early days of the Bitcoin blockchain. In 2010, Bitcoin was still an experimental technology without an established real-world value. No one really knew how long it would exist or if it would become anything more than a programmer’s hobby project.

It was in this uncertainty that a programmer named Laszlo Hanyecz posted a message on the Bitcointalk forum on May 18, 2010. His request was simple and straightforward: he wanted to exchange 10,000 Bitcoin for two large pizzas – preferably from a chain that could deliver.

For Hanyecz, it wasn’t about making money or investing. He simply wanted to prove that Bitcoin could be used for everyday purchases, just like regular currency. Four days later, on May 22, a 19-year-old internet user named Jeremy Sturdivant (, known as “jercos” on the forum ), accepted the offer. He ordered the pizzas and received 10,000 Bitcoin in return – which would become known as Bitcoin Pizza Day.

Two Men, One Historic Moment

Laszlo Hanyecz was far from a random Bitcoin user. He was one of the early miners on the Bitcoin blockchain network and developed one of the first GPU mining implementations, revolutionizing how Bitcoin mining was performed. His contribution to Bitcoin’s technical development made him a pioneer in the cryptocurrency community long before the pizza purchase.

Jeremy Sturdivant, on the other hand, was just a young man who saw the opportunity to participate in something new and interesting. He paid for the pizzas with traditional currency and received Bitcoins in exchange – a transaction that would earn him a permanent place in cryptocurrency history, even if he didn’t get rich from it.

Interestingly, both men have repeatedly confirmed that they do not regret the transaction. Hanyecz has explained that Bitcoin had no real value at the time, so the idea of exchanging it for food was completely logical. Sturdivant spent his share of Bitcoins on travel and other expenses within the year – a perfectly reasonable path when long-term value was lacking.

The Value Increase That Created a Lesson

The period after the pizza purchase tells an insightful price history:

Nine months later the value of Bitcoin reached the same as one US dollar, making the two pizzas worth $10,000 according to the transaction.

In May 2015, on the five-year anniversary, the same 10,000 Bitcoin was valued at about $2.4 million.

In 2024, when Bitcoin traded over $69,000 per unit, these pizzas would theoretically be worth over $690 million.

This makes the pizzas potentially the most expensive food items ever purchased – a title that says more about Bitcoin’s incredible growth than any mistake on Hanyecz’s part.

What the Pizza Purchase Really Showed

What made this transaction legendary wasn’t the size of the Bitcoins transferred – it was what it proved. At a time when Bitcoin was just a theory and an experiment in Satoshi Nakamoto’s original paper, this purchase demonstrated that cryptocurrency could actually work as a medium of exchange for real goods.

Before the pizza purchase, Bitcoin was mainly theoretical. Afterward, it became something practical. This moment marked the transition from “digital curiosity” to “actual currency” – and it was this transition that helped pave the way for massive adoption later.

The transaction also established Bitcoin’s first real-world pricing: about $0.004 per Bitcoin. This reference point was crucial for people to understand the value of cryptocurrency.

Bitcoin Pizza Day Is Now a Global Tradition

What started as a simple forum post from a hungry programmer is now an annual holiday celebrated by cryptocurrency enthusiasts worldwide on May 22.

Celebrations take many forms:

• Crypto exchanges run special campaigns and givebacks
• Pizza restaurants in crypto-friendly areas offer discounts for Bitcoin payments
• Conferences and meetings are scheduled around this date
• Social media fills with memories, memes, and discussions of this historic event
• Charitable fundraisers where people donate Bitcoin to buy food for those in need

Some collectors have also created NFTs and artworks based on the Bitcoin pizza story, showing how deeply this moment has been woven into crypto culture.

From Pizza to Lightning Network

Laszlo Hanyecz continued to be involved in Bitcoin development long after his famous pizza purchase. In February 2018, he made history again by becoming the first person to buy pizza using Bitcoin’s Lightning Network – a scaling solution designed for faster and cheaper transactions.

For this purchase, he paid only 0.00649 Bitcoin for two pizzas – a dramatic difference from the 10,001 Bitcoin ( including the fee ) from 2010. This demonstrated Hanyecz’s ongoing commitment to making Bitcoin practically usable for everyday purchases.

Fun Facts You Might Not Know

Here are some interesting facts about this historic transaction:

• The transaction was recorded in block 57,043 of the Bitcoin blockchain
• It took four days from the forum post to delivery
• The total cost was actually 10,001 Bitcoin due to a transfer fee
• Hanyecz’s Bitcoin address has been used in over 3,300 transactions since the pizza purchase
• Some Bitcoin enthusiasts now calculate a “Bitcoin Pizza Index” to track how many pizzas could have been bought with a single Bitcoin over the years
• The pizza purchase has inspired art, memes, and even more stories of other incredible Bitcoin purchases

A Reminder of What Money Really Is

Bitcoin Pizza Day is not just a fun day for crypto geeks to celebrate. It’s a reminder of a fundamental truth: the value of currency lies in what people are willing to exchange for it.

The day Laszlo Hanyecz bought pizza with Bitcoin was the day Bitcoin finally moved from theory to reality. It was the day a digital asset showed that it could function as a real medium of exchange – something essential for anything to be called a currency at all.

This moment paved the way for more people and businesses to accept Bitcoin, leading to the millions of transactions that happen daily now. It was also this moment that helped launch Bitcoin from a computer science experiment to a global financial phenomenon.

Every time Bitcoin Pizza Day is celebrated on May 22, it honors not just two pizzas and a transfer fee – but a pivotal moment in how the world learns to think about money and value in the digital age.