Updated in January 2023

Mining is one of the most straightforward skills in Old School RuneScape. There are several locations where you may find ore; however, it all boils down to repeatedly swinging a pickaxe against rocks. These ores can be used for Smithing or Crafting later on.

Mining may be the most profitable skill in RuneScape if you want to make a significant amount of money. It is a highly profitable profession if you’re willing to put in the effort. If you’re an Ironman, mining is an excellent method to get rare weapons and gems.

This comprehensive guide will show you every current mining method to reach 99 in the game, regardless of whether you’re a F2P or P2P player.

Ore	Level Required	XP Per Ore	Best Locations
Copper/Tin	1	17.5	Lumbridge Swamp Mine, Varrock East Mine
Iron	15	35	Al Kharid Mine, Legends’ Guild Mine, Resource Area
Silver	20	40	Al Kharid Mine, Crafting Guild Mine
Coal	30	50	Mining Guild, South Ardougne Mine, South-West Wilderness Mine
Gem Rocks	40	65	Shilo Village Mine (Basement)
Gold	40	65	Crafting Guild, Arzinian Mine
Granite	45	50	Western Desert Mining Site
Mithril	55	80	Mining Guild, Hobgoblin Mine
Adamantite	70	95	Mining Guild, Desert Mining Site
Runite	85	125	Fossil Island Mine, Central Fremennik Isles Mine

What you will need to start mining

Let’s review some mining equipment that will help you level up quickly. The celestial ring, which players can obtain through the Shooting Stars activity, gives an invisible +4 to their mining skill when equipped.

Although this only boosts experience rates, it is still worth bringing if the player wants to get level 99 mining using one of the methods below.

There are also mining gloves available in the Mining Guild. The expert mining gloves are worth getting if you’re planning on mining amethyst crystals.

Outfit and Items

If you have them equipped or in your inventory, you’ll need these tools to train mining.

Pickaxes

If you’re looking to maximize your Mining experience, investing in the most advanced pickaxe on the market is best.

Although wearing a tool is unnecessary for its operation, with level 60 Attack and some funds saved up, one may unlock Dragon Pickaxe’s special attack that grants a whopping +3 bonus at any mining skill!

You’ll need a Pickaxe item for your mining training in Old School RuneScape. There are many sorts of pickaxes:

Item				Shop price	Weight	Ticks between rolls
	Bronze pickaxe	1	1	One coin at Nurmof and Bob	2.267 kg	8
	Iron pickaxe	1	1	140 coins at Nurmof	2.267 kg	7
	Steel pickaxe	6	5	500 coins at Nurmof	2.267 kg	6
	Black pickaxe	11	10	Not sold	0.01 kg	5
	Mithril pickaxe	21	20	1,300 coins at Nurmof	1.814 kg	5
	Adamant pickaxe	31	30	3,200 coins at Nurmof	2.721 kg	4
	Rune pickaxe	41	40	32,000 coins at Nurmof	2.267 kg	3
	Dragon pickaxe	61	60	Not sold	2.4 kg	2.83
	Infernal pickaxe	61	60	Not sold	2.4 kg	2.83
	Crystal pickaxe	71	70	Not sold	1.36 kg	2.75

Prospector Outfit

The Prospector Outfit is an OSRS version of the lumberjack, anglers, and other skilling outfits found in previous iterations. The Prospector Outfit is a reward from the motherlode mine, and like its other skilling counterparts, it provides a decent 2.5% EXP increase when all pieces are worn.

Item		XP Boost	Cost (in )	Sells for (in )	Boost per nugget (% per )
	Helmet	+0.4%	40	32	0.010
	Jacket	+0.8%	60	48	0.013
	Legs	+0.6%	50	40	0.012
	Boots	+0.2%	30	24	0.007
Set bonus		+0.5%
Complete set		+2.5 %	180	144	0.014

You can buy The Prospector outfit in the shop at the Motherlode Mine. You’ll need to pay with Golden Nuggets, which you get passive while mining at the Motherlode Mine.

The mining experience boost of an additional 2.5% will help a lot in getting 99 mining, so it’s worth acquiring. This is especially true since the motherlode mine (which this guide covers) gives a great mining experience per hour.

The entire prospector collection will set you back 180 nuggets. Obtaining the complete set is a no-brainer since one of the AFK mining techniques, the motherlode mine, gives an excellent return per hour.

Mining Gloves

The mining gloves come in three different variants and can be obtained for 60, 120, or 240 unidentified minerals from the mining guild. Additionally, wearing these gloves also gives you a chance of not depleting a rock when mining.

There are three types of mining gloves: regular, superior, and expert. The three tiers are mining gloves for regular mining, superior for gold ore, and expert mining gloves for runite ore.

You can achieve the quickest mining experience rates in Old School Runescape by pairing mining gloves with prospector armor pieces and the Varrock armor piece.

Type	Works With	No Depletion Chance	Cost
Mining Gloves	Silver, Coal, Gold	50%, 40%, 33.33%	60 Unidentified Minerals
Superior Mining Gloves	Mithril, Adamantite, Runite	25%, 16.66%, 12.5%	120 Unidentified Minerals
Expert Mining Gloves	Silver, Coal, Gold, Mithril, Adamantite, Runite, Amethyst	50%, 40%, 33.33%, 25%, 16.66%, 12.5%, 25%	240 Unidentified Minerals

Varrock armor

Varrock armor gives you a 10% chance of mining two ores rather than one. Whenever this happens, you’ll earn experience for both ores, making the Varrock armor an excellent way to improve your mining skills.

When the complete Prospector outfit is equipped, the prospector jacket may be removed for the Varrock armor body, which will take over its functions. So you may get the most out of both accessories at once!

The Varrock body may be obtained by completing the Varrock achievement diaries. There are four distinct versions for each level of achievement diaries, one for each degree of accomplishment.

Motherload mines, blast mines, volcanic mines, dense runestone, and gem rocks are all ores that don’t work with Varrock armor.

Armour	Extra Ore Chance	Works On
Varrock Armour 1	10%	All ore up to Coal
Varrock Armour 2	10%	All ore up to Mithril (Lovakite included)
Varrock Armour 3	10%	All ore up to Adamant
Varrock Armour 4	10%	All ore up to Amethyst

Quests

The first mining levels will take some time to achieve, so I recommend that you bypass these and complete some of the current quests.

Quest	Experience reward	Mining requirement
The Forsaken Tower	500	–
Doric’s Quest	1,300	–
Plague City	2,425	–
The Giant Dwarf	2,500	–
Heroes’ Quest	2,575	50
Another Slice of H.A.M.	3,000	–
The Lost Tribe	3,000	17
Between a Rock…	5,000	40
Enakhra’s Lament	7,000	45 -optional
Making Friends with My Arm	10,000	72
The Dig Site	15,300	–
Dragon Slayer II	18,000	68
Song of the Elves	20,000	70
Total	90,600

Levels 1-10: Doric’s Quest

Doric’s quest is brainless. You only need to purchase the items from the grand exchange, and you’re good to go. This task will take beneath a minute, and it will advance your mining level to 10.

Levels 10-18: Plague City

Plague city is a quick and easy quest that can be completed with zero requirements. It’s also a vital quest, as it’s required for the recipe for disaster subquests. Upon completion, you’ll receive level 18 mining experience as a reward.

Levels 18-33: The Dig Site

You’ll receive 15,300 mining experience if you finish the Dig Site. This will quickly put you at level 33 in the mining skill. This quest has different requirements than the others:

• 10 Agility;
• 10 Herblore;
• 25 Thieving.

P2P 1-99 OSRS mining guide

The fastest approach to reach 99 mining is to utilize the powermining method. This implies you empty your inventory rather than going to the bank when your stock is total (or instantly if you use tick manipulation).

Levels 1-37: Questing

Mining experience can be gained very quickly at the beginning by completing quests that give mining experience. For example, if completed one after another, Doric’s Quest, The Dig Site, Plague City, The Giant Dwarf, and Another Slice of H.A.M. will get the player from level 1 up to 37!

And not only that, but these quests have pretty low requirements overall, so even new players should be able to do them without much problem.

Upon completing any of these quests mentioned, the player is rewarded with an adamant pickaxe which can come in handy for future mining endeavors. Copper and tin ore are viable substitutes if you’re not interested in completing any mining quests.

Multiple spots for these ores can be found throughout Old School RuneScape, but the best location is at the Varrock mine. However, it’s recommended that you do questing instead.

Levels 1-15: Copper/Tin ore

Players should mine copper or tin from levels 1 to 15. It’s possible to mine whenever you want, but the Lumbridge Swamp mining site is disputed owing to its low player count, fierce monsters, and abundance of copper and tin rocks.

Levels 15-45/70: Iron ore

When you hit mining level 15, you unlock the ability to mine iron ore. You’ll want to do this until you reach level 75 for the best experience per hour.

Use only three-rock locations, as they will give you more XP in less time. Starting at mining level 60, you will instantly mine iron ore, giving you a significant experience boost.

Iron may be obtained in the following locations: Al Kharid, Mining Guild (60 mining required), Legend’s Guild mine, Tahaearn mine (Prifddinas), Wilderness Resource area (7500gp to enter), Piscatoris mine, and Fossil Island (Bone Voyage quest).

The Mining Guild is an optimal place to mine iron ore because it offers a level 7 boost that makes the miner invisible.

Levels 45-99: Granite

3-Tick Granite is Old School RuneScape’s quickest way to train mining, though it requires a lot of clicking. If you’re lazy and prefer AFK, go for the motherlode mine instead. You’ll need four waterskins for this method unless you have a dessert amulet, as the only location is in the desert.

If you can use lunar spellbook spells, bring runes for humidifying. The granite quarry is in the Kharidian Desert. To the east of Nardah and south of the bandit camp. Simply travel to bandit camp using the magic carpet, then proceed south.

F2P 1-99 leveling

Unfortunately, the members-only quest The Dig Site hampers your ability to level up quickly, but you can still get a quick boost by completing Doric’s Quest. This is still recommended and will take you straight to level 10.

Please note that your most effective pickaxe will be Rune. For the fastest experience rates, it is recommended that you drop all of your ores.

Levels 1-15: Copper/Tin Ore

You’ll want to begin mining immediately south of Lumbridge, as shown in the P2P strategy above. Mine for Copper or Tin and drop the ores for the quickest experience possible. It isn’t worth it to bank them unless you’re an Ironman account.

Levels 15-99: Iron Ore

Powermining Iron ores are the quickest approach to improve your mining level in F2P. Powermining Iron ores will significantly boost your experience rates, so only do this if you need additional gold. Powermining is most effective at a spot that has three rocks close together.

The best location for this currently is the Al Kharid mine, but be warned that there are level 14 Scorpions in the area that will attack lower levels. If you want to bank the ores, you might try Varrock mines (east or west), Falador mine, and Rimmington mine.

The payoff isn’t worth it, though. In F2P, there are many more efficient ways to make money than banking ore.

Other methods

The mining leveling methods below are for people who want to make money while also grinding their way up the mining skill or those who would prefer an AFK activity in the background.

Levels 1-15: Rune Essence

Did you know that even low-level players can AFK train? If you complete the Rune Mysteries quest, you unlock the ability to mine for rune essence.

It’s great for mobile players or those doing homework because you have to click on the rock once, and your inventory will automatically fill up. And each complete inventory of rune essence gives 140 XP!

Levels 10-99: Crashed stars

The mining of Crashed Stars is an in-store activity that may be done alongside the Shooting Stars Distraction and Diversion. They provide poor experience per hour, but they need only a limited amount of attention.

A star can be mined for many minutes without needing to interact with it, as long as the player clicks again when the star tier deteriorates. Spending 30 minutes or more in one place can earn a single player up to 20,000–25,000 experience every hour at level 70.

Stardust may be exchanged for a celestial ring, which adds an inconspicuous +4 to mining.

Levels 30-99: Motherlode Mine

When you reach level 30 mining, you gain access to the motherlode mine. This is one of the most efficient training options for leveling up your mining skill to 99, and it’s AFK too!

The only way to receive the Prospector kit is through this method, which gives you a chance to increase your experience by 2.5%. Even if other methods seem better in experience rates, grinding out 180 nuggets required for the set will be more than worth your while in the long run.

If you want to AFK train to 99, this is your method. Use it alone or with 3-tick granite for an even more efficient AFK training session. The motherlode mine is divided into two parts: an upper and lower region and the basement is reachable from level 30 mining.

The higher level, which must be invested with a hundred golden nuggets, has an entrance fee of 100 coins.

How the Motherlode Mine works

In these regions, you may mine from ore veins on the walls, providing you pay-dirt with 60 experiences per ore. You then proceed to the cleaning room once your bag is full.

Simply put the pay-dirt into a hopper, and the water circuit will take care of the rest. The dirty pay-dirt will be disposed of in the sack at the end of the water circuit, where you may prospect for ores and golden nuggets.

Your mining level determines the available minerals, so after level 70, you can get adamantite ore, and after level 85, you can get runite ores, increasing your hourly profit. The motherlode mine is in the dwarven mines beneath Falador.

You may use a skills necklace to visit the mining guild in one of two ways: directly or via Falador and attempting to reach the party room. At Prospector Percy’s Nugget Shop, you may exchange golden nuggets for Motherlode rewards.

You should get a prospector kit, higher floor access, and an enormous pay-dirt sack using your first 480 nuggets.

Levels 40-99: Gem rocks

If you are level 61 mining and have completed the Hard Karamja Diary, you can mine at the underground portion of Shilo Village. You’ll need to use your Karamja 3 gloves to get to the Shilo Village mine.

Gem mining is an excellent alternative because it offers fascinating hourly payouts and profit margins. You can expect to experience rates of 90K/hr and earnings of up to 1M/hr at 99 mining with tick manipulation.

Levels 70-99: Volcanic Mine

At level 50, if you’ve completed the Bone Voyage quest, you can join in on the volcanic mine game. However, having at least 70 mining is best to get reasonable experience rates. The primary world for this minigame is World 323; however, it’s suggested that you search for a team.

The Grouping interface consists of a clan chat for Volcanic Mine, where you can find players to be in your group. 3 to 5 players are ideal for this game; however, playing alone or in a duo has advantages, such as faster experience rates and greater enjoyment.

The table below outlines the experience rates, which increase proportionately with the level. The role played and team performance also dictates these rates.

Level	XP/h	XP/h
70	68,000	N/A
75	69,000	75,000
80	72,000	81,000
85	76,000	86,000
90	79,000	90,000
95	81,000	91,000
99	84,000	94,000

Levels 75-99: Blast Mine

You can obtain runite ore from the blast mines when you reach mining level 75, making it a tremendous money-making opportunity while also gaining some solid hourly experience rates. In the blast mines, you’ll break rocks and stuff them with dynamite.

After detonation, you’ll receive ore which can be placed in barrels near the water circuit – it functions similarly to how the motherlode mine works. After you’ve spoken to the miner, you may retrieve the ore by talking with him.

This is where you’ll receive an Exp boost if you have a Prospector’s outfit on hand; take it from the bank and wear it before gathering to get your 2.5% expertise bonus.

Level 85-99: Runite Ore

The following method, available at level 85, is mining Runite ore. Recently, a few additions to the game have been with new Rune rocks, including Myth’s Guild has Rune rocks.

Also, the Inferno area has a set of 3 Rune rocks. Other locations are in the Wilderness to mine Runes; however, these are not suggested due to the remote player-killing threat.

They are going from level 85 – 99 mining by just collecting Runite ores results in approximately 880 000 000 total profit, although experience per hour (XP/h) rates are low.

Levels 92-99: Amethyst

Amethyst is a good choice for those wanting to mine with little effort or click intensity. However, the experience rates are prolonged.

Players can expect to mine 80 to 100 amethyst per hour at high mining levels, translating to roughly 20,000–25,000 experiences an hour and 360,000–450,000 profit per hour.

Mining Guild

The mining guild in Old School Runescape offers the same benefits as every other skilling guild- an invisible +7 level boost. Once players have reached 60 mining, they are welcome to join the guild and explore both the F2P area as well as the P2P section.

The Rocks listed below are available in the guild:

• Iron;
• Coal;
• Mithril;
• Adamantite;
• Runite.

You can find the guild by going to Falador and locating the dwarven mine underneath the city. You can use a skills necklace for easy transportation or walk there from the South-East bank.

Making Money With mining

Look no further if you’re searching for a method to generate money that isn’t a chore. Here are some simple techniques to create a bank without putting in too much work.

Mining Runite Ores

Mining Runite is the best high-level money-making strategy since the costliest ore in RuneScape is Runite. The only challenge you may face is the competition with other players to mine it since you have to travel between worlds to find an ore that hasn’t been used up.

The Mining Guild, due to the invisible mining boost, is the best location to mine Runite ores. The effect reduces the respawn period of any rock by half, which is only seen within the Mining Guild.

The best strategy to mine Runite is to alternate between different worlds rather than waiting for the rock to reappear. A Varrock armor tier 4, superior mining gloves, and a good pickaxe are also essential.

Mining a Runite ore gives 125 XP, which is still an ineffective training method since a Runite Rock has a 12-minute cooldown, making it slow to earn XP compared to the other options.

Don’t go to the mining Runite expecting high XP rates; the only good thing about it is that you can make money.

Mining Volcanic Ash

Mining Volcanic ash is another profitable mining method, although it has poor XP rates since you only earn 10 XP per volcanic ash.

To begin mining Volcanic ash, you’ll need at least a mining level of 22 and the completion of Bone Voyage, which gives you access to Fossil Island, where you can start mining near the Fossil Island Volcano.

To mine Volcanic ash, simply left-click on the Ash piles, and your character will start mining them until they deplete. The number of Volcanic Ashes you get from 1 Ash pile is based on your mining level — the higher level you are at, the more ashes you can collect.

Level	Ash obtained
22	1
37	2
52	3
67	4
85	5
97	6

A better pickaxe will help you mine faster and make more money per hour. Experts recommend being at least level 67 mining to get a good return on investment.

Mining Basalt & Salt

Mining Basalt & Salt is a popular way to generate money through mining since you may make up to 700K G.P./Hour, but the XP rates are pretty low. You will need a mining level of 72 and to have completed the “Making Friends with My Arm” Quest before you can start mining Basalt & Salt.

The Basalt Rocks are located beneath Weiss in the Salt Mine, and it is just like mining any other rock, but these don’t deplete after collecting one ore. There are three types of salt: blue, red, and green. You can see their colors in the basalt rocks.

Choose any color for mine. The black stones will only give you basalts. If your goal is to earn a quick profit, focus on mining basalts rather than salts. You’ll be able to sell them at significantly higher prices.

The salt is stackable, but the Basalt isn’t. You may still convert the Basalt to notes by chatting to Snowflake, standing outside the mine. This method is only helpful for making money while semi-AFK, so don’t expect great XP rates.

Trivia

There is no need to equip your pickaxe; you can simply use it from your inventory. It is essential that you memorize the skill requirements for each respective pickaxe and always use the best one available to you.

Remove all the mined Ores to make the most of your mining session; clear out bag space by eliminating them. With this, you can cut out time-consuming bank trips and conserve energy to focus on making more money.

Another great way to level up your mining skill is by completing quests. Save time on your next mining venture by double-checking your inventory before departure.

That way, you won’t have to waste valuable time making unnecessary trips back to the bank. It’s happened to all of us. Just make sure you have a pickaxe this time.

This table shows OSRS diaries that require mining:

Difficulty	Task	Level	Diary
Easy	Mine five clay in the northeastern desert.	5	Desert
Easy	Smith some Blurite limbs on Doric’s anvil.	10	Falador
Easy	Craft a tiara from scratch in Rellekka.	20	Fremennik
Easy	On the northwest peninsula of Karamja, mine gold from the rocks.	40	Karamja
Easy	You may mine iron at the Mount Karuulm mine.	15	Kourend & Kebos
Easy	At the Al-Kharid mine, dig some iron ore.	15	Lumbridge & Draynor
Easy	Travel to the southeast mining patch near Varrock and mine some iron.	15	Varrock
Easy	Mine some iron ore near Piscatoris.	15	Western Provinces
Easy	Mine some iron ore in the Wilderness.	15	Wilderness
Medium	At the Crafting Guild, you can begin mining gold ore.	40	Falador
Medium	Mine some coal in Rellekka.	30	Fremennik
Medium	Mine some gold at the Arzinian Mine.	40	Fremennik
Medium	Mine some coal near the coal trucks.	30	Kandarin
Medium	Cut a red topaz from a gem rock found in Shilo Village or during the Tai Bwo Wannai Cleanup.	40	Karamja
Medium	Mine some volcanic sulfur.	42	Kourend & Kebos
Medium	Use your mouse to dig up gold ore beneath the Grand Tree.	40	Western Provinces
Medium	Mine some mithril ore in the Wilderness.	55	Wilderness
Hard	Mine some granite.	45	Desert
Hard	Enter the Mining Guild wearing full Prospector.	60	Falador
Hard	Mine 5 Adamantite ores on Jatizso.	70	Fremennik
Hard	Kill a Deathwing in the cave beneath Kharazi Jungle.	52	Karamja
Hard	Mine some Lovakite ore.	65	Kourend & Kebos
Hard	In the Abandoned Mine, you may mine mithril ore.	55	Morytania
Hard	Mine some adamantite ore in Tirannwn.	70	Western Provinces
Elite	Craft one or more Blood runes.	38	Kourend & Kebos
Elite	Smith a rune scimitar from the Resource Area.	85	Wilderness

Conclusion

This guide covers the basics of leveling up mining skills so that grinding for experience is more efficient. Please remember that all steps featured above are just guidelines. You don’t have to follow them if you don’t want to. However, we hope that this is helpful in some way.

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