Money Making
Gold (gp) comes from three places: selling items from your inventory at their sell value, coins stolen in Thieving, and the small coin drops of early monsters. This guide ranks every repeatable way to earn it, from a fresh account to level 99.
How to read the numbers
from = the hour you unlock the method: unlock level, no gear, no upgrades. up to = level 99 with the recommended loadout and every permanent upgrade that speeds the method up. Every figure is derived from the game's own rate formulas and current sell prices; real sessions land somewhere in between. Gems are a separate currency and never counted here.
At a glance
Best repeatable earner per skill, ranked by the ceiling. Jump to the section for every alternative.
| Method | Profit | Requirements | Type | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thieving — The Vault Keeper | 335k ~ 672k gp/hr |  Thieving 99 · Thieves' Guild (guild chain) | Skilling | 300 coins per steal · with the full 6-piece loadout |
| Combat — Black Dragon | 381k gp/hr |  Melee 99 · Valley of Dragons | Combat | 21.7k gp of loot per kill · (D) Dragon Greatsword at 99 |
| Woodcutting — Elderwood Tree | 81.8k ~ 364k gp/hr |  Woodcutting 90 | Skilling | 1,000 gp per log · Dragon Axe ladder · Timberfall set (never fails) |
| Runecrafting — Soul Rune | 19.8k ~ 167k gp/hr |  Runecrafting 92 | Processing | full loop incl. gathering the inputs · 4s per craft at 99 |
| Thieving — Knight | 77.1k ~ 135k gp/hr | Thieving 80 | Skilling | best target outside the guild |
| Fletching — Redwood Longbow | 21.2k ~ 89.4k gp/hr |  Fletching 85 | Processing | full loop incl. gathering the inputs · 116s per craft at 99 |
| Mining — Adamantite Ore | 54.7k ~ 78.2k gp/hr |  Mining 70 | Skilling | 95 gp per ore · with the full 11-piece loadout |
| Pip the Ferret (pet) | 1.3k ~ 67.5k gp/hr | Pets unlocked · scales with your Thieving level | Passive | 5★ level 99 · banks up to 24h between collects |
| Cooking — Sunflower Loaf | 52.6k ~ 58.4k gp/hr |  Cooking 90 | Processing | full loop incl. gathering the inputs · 5s per craft at 99 |
| Crafting — Black D-hide Body | 34.8k gp/hr |  Crafting 99 | Processing | full loop incl. gathering the inputs · 621s per craft at 99 |
| Smithing — Adamantite Bar | 24.6k ~ 33.0k gp/hr |  Smithing 55 | Processing | full loop incl. gathering the inputs · 15s per craft at 99 |
| Fishing — Raw Leviathan | 8.4k ~ 13.5k gp/hr |  Fishing 99 · Abyssal Trawl-Net | Skilling | 170 gp per fish, minus 15 gp bait per cast |
| Farming — Purple Rose | 6 ~ 552 gp/hr |  Farming 10 | Passive | 16 fields + Everbloom Greenhouse · ticks while you do anything else |
Thieving
Coins land in your purse directly — nothing to sell. A fresh target succeeds about 60% of the time; level, stealth gear and potions raise that to 75%, and target mastery adds the last 15% up to the 90% cap (how a steal works). The "up to" column adds target mastery 99, +20 stealth, +25% coins and 10% faster steals from the loadout. Loot is valued at sell price.
| Target | Level | Area | Coins / steal | Loot / steal | Success | Profit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Man | 1 | Town | 1–10 | 0 gp | 60% → 90% | 4.0k ~ 8.3k gp/hr |
| Fisherman | 10 | Town | 4–14 | 9 gp | 60% → 90% | 13.2k ~ 24.5k gp/hr |
| Farmer | 20 | Town | 8–20 | 0 gp | 60% → 90% | 10.1k ~ 21.0k gp/hr |
| Golo The Master Farmer | 30 | Town | 10–23 | 2 gp | 60% → 90% | 13.3k ~ 27.1k gp/hr |
| Lumberjack | 40 | Forest | 12–26 | 36 gp | 60% → 90% | 39.9k ~ 71.9k gp/hr |
| Miner | 50 | Forest | 16–31 | 72 gp | 60% → 90% | 68.6k ~ 121k gp/hr |
| Mage | 60 | Forest | 18–33 | 47 gp | 60% → 90% | 52.2k ~ 94.5k gp/hr |
| Bandit Brad | 70 | Forest | 20–36 | 47 gp | 60% → 90% | 54.1k ~ 98.2k gp/hr |
| Knight | 80 | Forest | 26–42 | 73 gp | 60% → 88% | 77.1k ~ 135k gp/hr |
| The Vault Keeper | 99 | Thieves' Guild | 175–425 | 259 gp | 50% → 80% | 335k ~ 672k gp/hr |
Combat
Loot value per kill (every drop at sell price, plus bones and any coin drop) divided by a modelled melee kill time: hit chance and max hit use the game's own formulas (your hit chance counts the monster's defence at ×0.5), the combat triangle applies, one second of respawn is added, and food is assumed free. "from" fights at the area level in the best melee gear of that level; "up to" is Melee 99 in the best gear available. Ranged and Magic kill faster on their triangle but pay for ammo or runes. Top 15 of 28 open-world monsters:
| Monster | Area | Loot / kill | Kill time | Profit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Black Dragon | Valley of Dragons | 21,683 gp | 205s → 204.9s | 381k gp/hr |
 Drowned Corsair | The Sunken Reach | 1,017 gp | 19s → 12.9s | 194k ~ 283k gp/hr |
 Wizard | Wizard Tower | 767 gp | 46s → 10.2s | 60.4k ~ 270k gp/hr |
 Abyssal Titan | Abyssal Rift | 6,536 gp | 100s → 91.7s | 236k ~ 257k gp/hr |
 Apprentice Wizard | Wizard Tower | 240 gp | 19s → 3.5s | 46.1k ~ 246k gp/hr |
 Mystic Mage | Wizard Tower | 2,136 gp | 57s → 31.7s | 136k ~ 242k gp/hr |
 Leviathan Spawn | The Sunken Reach | 2,623 gp | 64s → 42.6s | 147k ~ 222k gp/hr |
 Tempest Roc | The Sunken Reach | 12,615 gp | 205s → 204.9s | 222k gp/hr |
 Rune Colossus | Abyssal Rift | 8,986 gp | 148s → 148.3s | 218k gp/hr |
 Imp Warden | Abyssal Rift | 1,075 gp | 46s → 18.0s | 84.8k ~ 215k gp/hr |
 Rift Hound | Abyssal Rift | 1,734 gp | 53s → 30.2s | 117k ~ 206k gp/hr |
 Chaos Dragon | Abyssal Rift | 5,646 gp | 109s → 99.6s | 187k ~ 204k gp/hr |
 Green Dragon | Valley of Dragons | 5,200 gp | 101s → 92.6s | 185k ~ 202k gp/hr |
 Tidewrought Golem | The Sunken Reach | 1,535 gp | 41s → 27.5s | 135k ~ 201k gp/hr |
 The Drowned King | The Sunken Reach | 5,976 gp | 119s → 109.1s | 181k ~ 197k gp/hr |
Dungeons pay a completion chest instead of per-kill loot — see Dungeons. Chests hold items only, never gold.
Gathering
Raw materials sold straight from the inventory. Processing them first is usually worth more — compare with the Processing table.
Woodcutting
Success starts at 50% and gains 1% per level over the tree's requirement (cap 95%); the full axe ladder cuts 35% off every swing and the Timberfall set never fails.
| Tree | Level | Log value | Profit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Normal Tree | 1 | 5 gp | 1.8k ~ 8.0k gp/hr |
| Oak Tree | 5 | 15 gp | 4.5k ~ 20.0k gp/hr |
| Willow Tree | 20 | 30 gp | 6.8k ~ 30.0k gp/hr |
| Teak Tree | 30 | 50 gp | 9.0k ~ 40.0k gp/hr |
| Maple Tree | 40 | 80 gp | 12.0k ~ 53.3k gp/hr |
| Mahogany Tree | 50 | 120 gp | 15.4k ~ 68.6k gp/hr |
| Yew Tree | 60 | 200 gp | 22.5k ~ 100k gp/hr |
| Magic Tree | 70 | 350 gp | 35.0k ~ 156k gp/hr |
| Redwood Tree | 80 | 600 gp | 54.0k ~ 240k gp/hr |
| Elderwood Tree | 90 | 1,000 gp | 81.8k ~ 364k gp/hr |
Mining
Ore veins succeed 80% of the time at any level and swings 30% faster. Silver Ore, Gold Ore, Dragonite Ore are finite discovery nodes, not a sustainable rate, so they are left out.
| Ore | Level | Ore value | Profit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rune Essence | 1 | 5 gp | 7.2k ~ 10.3k gp/hr |
| Copper Ore | 1 | 5 gp | 4.8k ~ 6.9k gp/hr |
| Tin Ore | 1 | 5 gp | 4.8k ~ 6.9k gp/hr |
| Iron Ore | 15 | 10 gp | 9.6k ~ 13.7k gp/hr |
| Coal Ore | 30 | 15 gp | 14.4k ~ 20.6k gp/hr |
| Mithril Ore | 50 | 35 gp | 25.2k ~ 36.0k gp/hr |
| Adamantite Ore | 70 | 95 gp | 54.7k ~ 78.2k gp/hr |
| Runite Ore | 80 | 80 gp | 38.4k ~ 54.9k gp/hr |
Fishing
Bait is used on every cast, caught or not, and is priced at its gold shop pack; gem baits cast up to 30% faster but are not counted. Higher rods and harpoons are one-off gold purchases — see Fishing Tools.
| Fish | Level | Tool | Fish value | Bait / cast | Profit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Raw Shrimp | 1 | Small Net | 5 gp | — | 3.0k ~ 5.7k gp/hr |
 Raw Sardine | 10 | Basic Rod | 6 gp | 2 gp | 900 ~ 3.3k gp/hr |
 Raw Herring | 20 | Basic Rod | 12 gp | 5 gp | 600 ~ 3.8k gp/hr |
 Raw Trout | 30 | Oak Rod | 18 gp | 2 gp | 3.1k ~ 6.8k gp/hr |
 Raw Pike | 35 | Oak Rod | 21 gp | 5 gp | 2.2k ~ 6.0k gp/hr |
 Raw Salmon | 40 | Willow Rod | 24 gp | 2 gp | 3.0k ~ 6.2k gp/hr |
 Raw Tuna | 50 | Harpoon | 30 gp | 5 gp | 2.6k ~ 6.0k gp/hr |
 Raw Swordfish | 60 | Harpoon | 36 gp | 10 gp | 1.8k ~ 5.4k gp/hr |
 Raw Monfish | 65 | Reinforced Net | 39 gp | 10 gp | 2.0k ~ 5.7k gp/hr |
 Raw Shark | 70 | Heavy Harpoon | 42 gp | 15 gp | 1.1k ~ 4.5k gp/hr |
 Raw Manta Ray | 80 | Heavy Harpoon | 48 gp | 15 gp | 1.5k ~ 4.9k gp/hr |
 Raw Anglerfish | 90 | Precision Rod | 54 gp | 10 gp | 2.5k ~ 5.3k gp/hr |
 Raw Whale | 95 | Legendary Harpoon | 57 gp | 15 gp | 1.9k ~ 4.2k gp/hr |
 Raw Leviathan | 99 | Abyssal Trawl-Net | 170 gp | 15 gp | 8.4k ~ 13.5k gp/hr |
Processing
Each recipe is rated as a complete loop: gather the raw materials yourself at the rates above (combat drops such as hides and meat are farmed at the kill times from the Combat table), buy any shop consumables, then craft at the 80% base success rate (a failed attempt still eats the inputs, unless you own Keith's Steady Hands). The result is directly comparable with the gathering tables. Recipes whose inputs have no repeatable source (chest-only gems, the finite Silver/Gold/Dragonite nodes, quest items) are listed under "Not rateable as a loop" instead of rated. Top five per skill:
Smithing
A bar folds its whole ore chain into the loop time. Plated gear needs Silver/Gold bars from finite discovery nodes, so it cannot be rated as a loop.
| Recipe | Level | Sells for | Loop time | Bought inputs | Profit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adamantite Bar | 55 | 175 gp | 15.2s | — | 24.6k ~ 33.0k gp/hr |
| Runite Bar | 70 | 175 gp | 18.8s | — | 19.8k ~ 26.9k gp/hr |
| Mithril Bar | 40 | 80 gp | 11.8s | — | 14.9k ~ 19.6k gp/hr |
| Steel Bar | 25 | 30 gp | 8.3s | — | 8.2k ~ 10.5k gp/hr |
| Iron Bar | 10 | 12 gp | 5.6s | — | 5.1k ~ 6.1k gp/hr |
Not rateable as a loop (inputs from chests, finite nodes or quests): Silver Bar, Gold Bar, Dragonite Bar, (S) Bronze Dagger, (S) Bronze Sword, (S) Bronze Gloves, (S) Bronze Scimitar, (S) Bronze Helmet, (S) Bronze Battleaxe, (S) Bronze Greatsword, (S) Bronze Boots, (S) Bronze Shield and 177 more.
Crafting
Hides are farmed from the monster that drops them cheapest; gem jewellery needs expedition-chest gems and is flagged.
| Recipe | Level | Sells for | Loop time | Bought inputs | Profit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Black D-hide Body | 99 | 7,500 gp | 620.6s | — | 34.8k gp/hr |
| Black D-hide Cowl | 97 | 5,000 gp | 414.8s | — | 34.7k gp/hr |
| Black D-hide Chaps | 98 | 5,000 gp | 414.8s | — | 34.7k gp/hr |
| Black D-hide Gloves | 93 | 2,500 gp | 208.9s | — | 34.5k gp/hr |
| Black D-hide Belt | 94 | 2,500 gp | 208.9s | — | 34.5k gp/hr |
Not rateable as a loop (inputs from chests, finite nodes or quests): Sapphire Ring, Ruby Ring, Emerald Ring, Sapphire Necklace, Ruby Necklace, Emerald Necklace.
Fletching
Feathers are bought by the pack (2 gp each); the loop picks the cheapest allowed log and smelts its own bars.
| Recipe | Level | Sells for | Loop time | Bought inputs | Profit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Redwood Longbow | 85 | 3,600 gp | 116.0s | — | 21.2k ~ 89.4k gp/hr |
| Redwood Shortbow | 85 | 2,400 gp | 78.0s | — | 21.2k ~ 88.6k gp/hr |
| Rune Arrow ×5 | 75 | 153 gp | 37.5s | 10 gp | 29.3k ~ 57.7k gp/hr |
| Magic Longbow | 70 | 2,100 gp | 105.2s | — | 13.7k ~ 57.5k gp/hr |
| Magic Shortbow | 70 | 1,400 gp | 70.8s | — | 13.7k ~ 56.9k gp/hr |
Runecrafting
"up to" assumes the Eternal Altar (+5 runes per essence) and +1 more from gear; essence is mined inside the loop.
| Recipe | Level | Sells for | Loop time | Bought inputs | Profit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soul Rune | 92 | 31 gp | 3.8s | — | 19.8k ~ 167k gp/hr |
| Ancient Rune | 85 | 29 gp | 3.8s | — | 18.6k ~ 156k gp/hr |
| Spirit Rune | 80 | 27 gp | 3.8s | — | 17.3k ~ 145k gp/hr |
| Blood Rune | 75 | 26 gp | 3.8s | — | 16.6k ~ 140k gp/hr |
| Death Rune | 65 | 22 gp | 3.8s | — | 14.1k ~ 118k gp/hr |
Brewing
Potions are worth far more drunk than sold — brew for the buff and sell only the surplus.
Nothing in this skill beats selling the raw materials.
Not rateable as a loop (inputs from chests, finite nodes or quests): Prospector's Fortune.
Cooking
Cooking never fails and the fish is caught inside the loop (bait included). Cooked fish are also your combat food.
| Recipe | Level | Sells for | Loop time | Bought inputs | Profit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sunflower Loaf | 90 | 73 gp | 4.5s | — | 52.6k ~ 58.4k gp/hr |
| Pumpkin Pie | 85 | 63 gp | 4.5s | — | 45.4k ~ 50.4k gp/hr |
| Carrot Soup | 67 | 60 gp | 4.5s | — | 43.2k ~ 48.0k gp/hr |
| Wolf Burger | 78 | 159 gp | 15.0s | — | 12.7k ~ 38.2k gp/hr |
| Barley Stew | 75 | 43 gp | 4.5s | — | 31.0k ~ 34.4k gp/hr |
Firemaking and Prayer only consume — they are XP, not income.
Farming
Crops sell for next to nothing — farming feeds Cooking and Brewing, it is not a gold source on its own. Fields grow while you do anything else. Per-field profit is the crop's sell price minus one seed (no shop sells seeds, they all come from drops and quests, so they count as free); "up to" runs all 16 fields with the Everbloom Greenhouse (+5 crops per harvest). Harvests need you to come back — the Auto Farmer replants for you.
| Crop | Level | Grows in | Sells for | Seed | Per field | All fields, max greenhouse |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Wheat | 1 | 1h | 1 gp | drop | 1 gp/hr | 96 gp/hr |
 Marrentill | 1 | 1h | 5 gp | drop | 5 gp/hr | 480 gp/hr |
 Lettuce | 2 | 1.5h | 1 gp | drop | 1 gp/hr | 64 gp/hr |
 Carrot | 3 | 2h | 1 gp | drop | 1 gp/hr | 48 gp/hr |
 Radish | 5 | 2h | 1 gp | drop | 1 gp/hr | 48 gp/hr |
 Tarromin | 6 | 2.5h | 1 gp | drop | 0 gp/hr | 38 gp/hr |
 Cabbage | 7 | 3h | 1 gp | drop | 0 gp/hr | 32 gp/hr |
 Corn | 10 | 4h | 1 gp | drop | 0 gp/hr | 24 gp/hr |
 Purple Rose | 10 | 4h | 23 gp | drop | 6 gp/hr | 552 gp/hr |
 Tomato | 12 | 5h | 1 gp | drop | 0 gp/hr | 19 gp/hr |
 Harralander | 14 | 5.5h | 1 gp | drop | 0 gp/hr | 17 gp/hr |
 Onion | 15 | 6h | 1 gp | drop | 0 gp/hr | 16 gp/hr |
 Rice | 18 | 7h | 1 gp | drop | 0 gp/hr | 14 gp/hr |
 Barley | 20 | 8h | 1 gp | drop | 0 gp/hr | 12 gp/hr |
 Ranarr Weed | 24 | 9.5h | 1 gp | drop | 0 gp/hr | 10 gp/hr |
 Potato | 25 | 10h | 1 gp | drop | 0 gp/hr | 10 gp/hr |
 Pumpkin | 30 | 12h | 1 gp | drop | 0 gp/hr | 8 gp/hr |
 Sunflower | 35 | 14h | 1 gp | drop | 0 gp/hr | 7 gp/hr |
 Avantoe | 38 | 15h | 1 gp | drop | 0 gp/hr | 6 gp/hr |
 Magic Herb | 40 | 18h | 1 gp | drop | 0 gp/hr | 5 gp/hr |
 Dragon Pepper | 50 | 24h | 1 gp | drop | 0 gp/hr | 4 gp/hr |
 Kwuarm | 50 | 22h | 1 gp | drop | 0 gp/hr | 4 gp/hr |
Pets
Pip the Ferret pickpockets for coins while you are away — 20% of a manual thief's coin rate, spread evenly across every target your Thieving level has unlocked, times the star and level multipliers. Coins are banked for up to 24 hours between collects. Every other pet produces items you can sell instead; see Pets.
| Your Thieving | 1★ level 1 | 3★ level 50 | 5★ level 99 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1.3k gp/hr | 3.9k gp/hr | 7.8k gp/hr |
| 40 | 3.1k gp/hr | 9.1k gp/hr | 18.2k gp/hr |
| 80 | 4.7k gp/hr | 13.9k gp/hr | 27.6k gp/hr |
| 99 | 11.4k gp/hr | 33.9k gp/hr | 67.5k gp/hr |
Other sources
- Exploring surveys pay a bundle of gathering materials tuned to a share of what gathering the best tier yourself would earn (about half for most areas), plus bonus rolls — a way to earn while training a different skill.
- Weekly Board quests and milestones pay gold directly on top of whatever you were doing anyway.
- Selling gear returns only 40% of a shop item's price. Smithed and plated gear has its own hand-set values — check the item page before you sell a set you might re-equip.
- Gems buy the fastest tools and pets, but cannot be sold: nothing here converts gems into gold.
Notes & Strategy
- Levels 1–30: Thieving pays from the very first steal and needs no gear, and Mining overtakes it the moment Iron unlocks — ore sells for far more than logs or fish at the same level. Sell what you gather while questing instead of banking it; the early quest chains hand out the gold for your first axe, rod and fields.
- Levels 30–70: Move up the Thieving targets as they unlock (the Forest targets carry valuable loot on top of their coins), keep Mining on the highest ore you can hit, and start fighting the areas that drop hides and meat — those feed the Crafting and Cooking loops in the Processing table, which beat selling the raw drops.
- Levels 70+: The ceiling belongs to the Thieves' Guild vault target, Elderwood logs, Black Dragons in the Valley of Dragons and Runecrafting with a fully upgraded altar. Since the 2.13 combat rework, fights are much shorter, so the big dragons now out-earn most skilling at 99. The permanent upgrades that speed those up (altar tiers, the axe ladder, the recommended loadouts) pay for themselves within days at these rates, so buy them before anything cosmetic.
- Fishing is steady, not spectacular. Every fish earns gold, but the whole ladder sits in a narrow 3–7k gp/hr band because a fish's value barely outgrows how long it takes to catch. The exception is the Leviathan, which needs the Anglers' Guild net and pays roughly double anything else in the skill. Fish for food and Cooking XP first; the gold is a bonus.
- Farming is food, not income. Crops sell for a coin or two. Grow them to cook and brew with, and sell only genuine surplus.
- Never sell gear you crafted or plated to re-equip later. Shop gear returns 40% of its price, and a plated set took hours of bars to make.