Old School RuneScape (OSRS) is a game built on deep and intricate gameplay, offering players the chance to explore a massive world and level up a wide variety of skills. As with any long-running MMORPG, players often wonder which skills are the best to level up, which ones are the most rewarding, and which ones are the most grueling. With over 20 skills to choose from, the difficulty and enjoyment associated with each skill vary greatly.
In this article, we will rank all 23 skills in OSRS based on different factors such as experience per hour (XP/h), the grind required, accessibility, and how useful or rewarding the skill is in the game. This tier list is subjective, based on both general player experiences and gameplay trends in the OSRS gold community. Let’s dive into the tier list and analyze each skill to give you a clear idea of which ones should be prioritized, and which ones might be best avoided for those seeking a more efficient and enjoyable experience.
S Tier: The Most Efficient and Rewarding Skills
These are the skills that are considered highly rewarding, either because they are efficient to train or they offer useful perks and advantages for the player in the long run. These skills are generally considered essential for progression in OSRS.
Prayer
Why It’s S Tier: Prayer is a game-changing skill in OSRS. It unlocks several powerful combat boosts, such as the protection prayers (like Protect from Melee) and the offensive prayers (like Piety and Rigour). It’s also required for end-game content such as boss fights and PvP activities.
Training: The most efficient method to train Prayer is by using bones at altars (like the Ectofuntus or the Gilded Altar), which provide great experience for relatively little effort. Dragon bones and superior dragon bones are considered the best for maximizing XP/h.
Grind Factor: It can be expensive to train Prayer, but it’s a skill worth grinding due to its high utility in combat.
Runecrafting
Why It’s S Tier: Although it is known for being one of the most grindy skills in the game, Runecrafting is ranked high due to the rewards it offers. High-level Runecrafting is profitable, with Runespan, Abyss, and ZGS rune crafting offering a high return on investment. Additionally, Runecrafting is a requirement for endgame content and many quests.
Training: The Abyss and Rune Pouch method are the best for training Runecrafting at higher levels. Runespan provides a more AFK alternative, though less efficient.
Grind Factor: The grind is long, especially when training Runecrafting to level 99, but it offers one of the highest experience rates in the game once you unlock advanced methods.
Slayer
Why It’s S Tier: Slayer is one of the most rewarding skills in OSRS due to the variety of monsters it involves. Many of these monsters drop valuable loot, and Slayer rewards players with unique abilities, such as the ability to kill Basilisks, Abyssal Demons, and other high-level monsters.
Training: Slayer can be trained efficiently by using a slayer helmet, cannon, and boosters for high-efficiency monster slaying. It’s also important to choose the best tasks that provide good experience and drops.
Grind Factor: The grind is long, but it’s relatively AFK-friendly, and the rewards are substantial in terms of experience and loot.
A Tier: Highly Efficient and Important Skills
These skills provide substantial benefits to players but are not quite as universally useful or efficient as those in the S-tier. Still, they are highly valued in the game for progression and can be very rewarding once they’re leveled up.
Fishing
Why It’s A Tier: Fishing is an essential skill for obtaining high-level foods, such as Sharks and Rocktails, which are critical for PvM activities. It’s also one of the most AFK-friendly skills, allowing players to train while multitasking.
Training: The best methods for training include fly fishing, sharks, and rocktails. Fly fishing is very efficient, and Rocktails give substantial experience per hour.
Grind Factor: The grind can be long, but it’s a relatively AFK-friendly skill and offers high XP rates once you unlock better methods.
Woodcutting
Why It’s A Tier: Woodcutting is a highly profitable and useful skill that allows players to gather logs for firemaking, fletching, and even crafting. High-level Woodcutting is useful for cutting rare trees like Magic Trees or Yew Trees, which are in high demand.
Training: The best methods for training Woodcutting involve Magic Trees or Ivy at higher levels. Using the Dragon Axe or Infernal Axe provides a nice experience boost.
Grind Factor: Although the skill can feel slow and repetitive at lower levels, the higher-level methods provide decent XP rates with some AFK capabilities.
Fletching
Why It’s A Tier: Fletching is one of the fastest and most efficient skills to train, especially once you reach higher levels. It’s also one of the most profitable skills if you’re crafting high-demand items like broad arrowheads, bows, and arrows.
Training: The best method for training Fletching is by creating broad arrowheads and broad arrows. You can also train by crafting Armadyl crossbows and broad arrowhead tips.
Grind Factor: Fletching is very quick and relatively straightforward to train, with minimal effort involved compared to other skills.
B Tier: Mid-Tier Skills
These skills are neither the best nor the worst. They offer decent rewards, but the grind to level them up is either more tedious or less efficient than those in the higher tiers.
Crafting
Why It’s B Tier: Crafting is a useful skill for making items like jewelry, armor, and teleportation items. It’s often required for quests and achieving high combat stats. However, it’s slower and more resource-intensive to level than many other skills.
Training: The best way to train Crafting involves creating cut gems and bolts, crafting amulets or necklaces for experience, or dragonhide armor crafting.
Grind Factor: It can be expensive to level and often involves repetitive activities. The experience rates aren’t as high as some other skills, and it’s not as rewarding unless you’re crafting high-demand items.
Hunter
Why It’s B Tier: Hunter allows players to capture rare creatures and gather resources, such as chinchatts or chinchompas. While it’s a fun skill to train, it’s often slow and tedious, especially in the lower levels.
Training: The best methods to train Hunter involve box trapping, bird snaring, or chinchompa hunting at higher levels. This skill also provides various useful items like implings and pouches.
Grind Factor: The grind can be a bit slow, especially at early levels, and requires focus. It’s also one of the more AFK-friendly skills but requires an investment of time.
Thieving
Why It’s B Tier: Thieving is a useful skill for obtaining resources and loot, including artefacts, scrolls, and coins. It’s a skill that involves pickpocketing NPCs, looting stalls, or completing mini-games like The Pyramid Plunder.
Training: The best training methods include pickpocketing Master Farmers, looting stalls for resources, and completing mini-games like Desert Treasure and Pyramid Plunder.
Grind Factor: While Thieving can be done quickly with high experience rates, it can also be repetitive and requires attention to avoid getting caught.
C Tier: Average Skills with Moderate Reward
These skills offer some value, but they generally feel less rewarding compared to the higher-tier skills. Training them can feel tedious, and the experience gained is often lower.
Mining
Why It’s C Tier: Mining is required for obtaining ores and crafting bars for other skills like Smithing. It’s slow to train and can feel like an endless grind, especially at lower levels. Higher levels involve mining Runite Ore, Magic Ore, and other valuable resources.
Training: The best method for training Mining is to use powermining, Blast mining, and **mining in the Motherlode Mine for some AFK action.
Grind Factor: The grind can be slow, and it requires a lot of time spent mining at different locations. The rewards aren’t as high as other skills.
Herblore
Why It’s C Tier: Herblore is crucial for potion-making and combat, but it is one of the most expensive skills to level. It requires buying ingredients from the Grand Exchange or making potions from herbs, making it expensive but necessary.
Training: The best training methods involve making super restore potions, prayer potions, and overloads.
Grind Factor: It can be a costly grind, making it one of the less appealing skills for many players.
D Tier: Skills That Feel Slow and Unrewarding
These skills are often considered the least fun or most tedious. They provide some benefit, but the grind is either overly repetitive or doesn’t feel as impactful for the player’s overall progression.
Construction
Why It’s D Tier: Construction is useful for building houses, obtaining teleportation tablets, and improving your overall quality of life in the game. However, it is also one of the most expensive and time-consuming skills to level.
Training: Training Construction requires high-level resources like planks and nails, and the grind involves a lot of repetitive tasks like building furniture or rooms.
Grind Factor: The skill can be quite slow and expensive, making it an unpopular skill for many players.
Conclusion
RuneScape gold for sale offers a diverse range of skills, each with its own unique challenges and rewards. The tier list above ranks the skills based on efficiency, the grind required, and the overall benefits each skill provides. Whether you’re looking to maximize your XP rates, unlock powerful abilities, orsimply enjoy the grind, OSRS offers something for everyone. Choose your skills wisely, and enjoy the grind!