How to Make Money in RuneScape 3
There's no single "best" money-maker in RuneScape 3 — the right one depends on your account, your attention span, and what's profitable this week. This guide gives you the map; the exact GP/hour numbers live on the wiki, which stays current as prices move.
The four ways to make gold
Almost every method is one of these:
- PvM drops — killing bosses and monsters for valuable loot. The highest ceiling, but you need the combat levels and gear to get there. (Start with the PvM guide.)
- Gathering / skilling — collecting or producing sellable resources (herbs, logs, ores, potions, etc.). Steadier and lower-risk, and it levels a skill while you earn.
- Processing — buying a raw material and turning it into a more valuable product (cleaning herbs, crafting, etc.). Profit per item is small, so it's a volume game.
- Flipping / merching — buying low and selling high on the Grand Exchange. No combat or skilling needed, but it needs starting capital and patience.
Pick what fits your account
- Low levels? Lean on gathering and processing — they don't gate behind combat, and they build a skill you'll want anyway.
- Decent combat? Slayer is the sweet spot: it makes money and levels combat, so you're not choosing between progress and profit.
- Lots of gold already? Flipping and high-level PvM scale with capital and gear the fastest.
A couple of principles that always hold
- Reinvest early. Roll your first profits into the upgrade (weapon, tool, or capital) that raises your rate — don't hoard gold that isn't working.
- Value your time, not just GP/hour. An AFK method at half the rate can win if it lets you do something else at the same time.
- Do your dailies/passives. Low-effort daily and passive income (managed resources, reward currencies) adds up with almost no time cost.
Make your gold workRoll early profits straight into the one upgrade that raises your rate — a better weapon or more flipping capital — instead of letting gold sit idle.
Get current rates (prices change constantly)
GP/hour figures go stale fast as the Grand Exchange moves, so use the maintained source:
- RuneScape Wiki — Money making guide — filterable by skill, requirements, and GP/hour, updated with live prices.
- PvME — for the PvM methods, so your kills are as fast (and profitable) as possible.
Money-making references here are courtesy of the RuneScape Wiki and PvME. Track the rare drops you earn on your Codex profile's Drops tab.