The addition of the Sailing skill to Old School RuneScape (OSRS) means that there are some new best methods to make more money!
After all, the new skill requires a lot of new resources. These will be in high demand for a while, due to everyone needing them to progress. Of course, this is also a great opportunity to get coins in the Grand Exchange.
In this guide, we’ll quickly go over the best moneymaking methods currently available.
Best Methods to Make More Money | OSRS – Sailing Update
Making Lead Bars
The first method is a pretty easy one that you unlock early on via Sailing. You can start doing this partway through the “Pandemonium” quest, once you reach the Pandemonium Cave.
Aside from that, you’ll also need to reach Level 25 Mining and Level 25 Smithing. Both of these are pretty low levels, so they shouldn’t take long!
The gist of this method is that you will mine Lead Ore from Pandemonium Cave, then smelt it into Lead Bars to sell. Lead Bars are required for a lot of Sailing- crafting, so they are in high demand currently!
Later on, you can also mine Lead Ore at The Onyx Crest instead. It unlocks at Level 47 Sailing and should be less crowded. Either way, the process remains the same.
Bolts of Linen
For this method, you’ll need to have Level 12 Crafting. Just get as much Flax as possible via farming it or purchasing it, then use a Spinning Wheel to turn it into Linen Yarn.
Then, use the Linen Yarn you get to create Bolts of Linen at a Loom. You can make 1 Bolt of Linen per 2 Linen Yarn.
The logic here is more or less the same as Lead Bars. It’s easy to make and this material is required for many crafting recipes to Sailing, so it’s in fairly high demand right now!
Farming Hemp
Yup, time to become a Hemp farmer! For this method, you’ll require Level 37 Farming and at least 3 Hemp Seeds to start with.
Hemp Seeds are fairly rare, but you can get them while defeating most ocean monsters and while Salvaging shipwrecks.
Once you get at least 3 Hemp Seeds, plant them in a Hops Patch. Also, give 6 Flax to a Gardener to have them keep watch for you.
When the plants are grown, you just need to harvest the Hemp! At this point, you can either sell it as is for a straight profit or process it further.
If you choose to process it, you’ll need Level 39 Crafting. Use a Spinning Wheel to turn your Hemp into Hemp Yarn, then turn that into a Bolt of Canvas at a Loom.
This extended processing does take longer, obviously, but you should get better profits than selling the Hemp as is. However, remember to check the in-game market for fluctuating prices to determine the best course for you!
That said, Hemp is required for some later Sails upgrades and the seeds are pretty rare. So, we expect this to remain profitable for some time.
Camphor Trees and Planks
For this one, you’ll need to have Level 66 Woodcutting. At the same time, you’ll need to reach Level 45 Sailing to do the “Troubled Tortugans” quest. This unlocks The Great Conch island for you.
You can find and chop down Camphor Trees on this island to get Camphor Logs. These are required for various Sailing- crafting recipes, such as for mast and sail upgrades.
At the same time, you can also turn the logs into Camphor Planks at a Sawmill or with the Plank Make spell. These planks are required for medium-high tier Sailing upgrades and Repair Kits.
Due to requiring a decently high Woodcutting level and being needed for a decent amount of upgrades, Camphor Logs and Camphor Planks are in high demand and are pretty profitable! Plus, Woodcutting is fairly easy to do AFK.
Salvaging
This is a Sailing-exclusive activity that doubles as both an AFK moneymaking method and an AFK leveling method. You can start doing it as soon as you get a Salvaging Hook on your ship at Level 15 Sailing or higher.
For this, you just need to find Shipwrecks out at sea and use the Salvaging Hook to… well, salvage them! You’ll get a variety of random loot in the process, as well as some Sailing XP. You can then sort those items at a Salvaging Station, either on your ship or at any dock.
Now, to be honest with you, most of the loot you get is not worth very much. This is especially true at the lower levels of the Sailing skill, when you have more limited options.
However, it becomes more profitable once you get access to Barracuda Shipwrecks (Level 35) and Large Shipwrecks (Level 53). They have some profitable goodies such as the Hemp Seeds we mentioned before, but also Rings, Oysters, Cannonballs, and more.
This method also speeds up later on, as you get an on-board Salvaging Station, more Salvaging Hooks, and Crewmates to automate the process.
This isn’t the most reliable method for pure moneymaking. But it is very low-intensity and is ideal for AFKing while also leveling up your Sailing!
Cannonballs
Last but not least, you can make and sell Cannonballs. These got a huge resurgence in demand now, as many types were added and they are necessary for cannons in Sailing combat.
Now, the exact requirements to make Cannonballs vary. The higher the tier, the rarer the materials and the higher your Smithing level will need to be. Of course, higher tiers do also mean more money!
Regardless, here are the basics for each tier in order from most common to rarest:
- Bronze Cannonball – 5 Smithing, 1 Bronze Bar.
- Iron Cannonball – 20 Smithing, 1 Iron Bar.
- Steel Cannonball – 35 Smithing, 1 Steel Bar.
- Mithril Cannonball – 55 Smithing, 1 Mithril Bar.
- Adamant Cannonball – 75 Smithing, 1 Adamantite Bar.
- Rune Cannonball – 90 Smithing, 1 Runite Bar.
- Dragon Cannonball – Can not be crafted, only found randomly as loot from ocean monsters and Salvaging.
Note that you make 4 Cannonballs per bar. So, at times, it might be profitable to just buy the bars to save time and then craft them into Cannonballs. However, as always, you’ll have to check the real-time prices yourself as they can fluctuate quite a lot.
That said, we expect Cannonballs to remain in high demand and be profitable for the foreseeable future. They are consumed on use and required for naval combat, after all!
So, there you have it. That’s all of the best methods we know of to make more money after the Sailing update in OSRS. We hope this helps you! Good luck in the Grand Exchange!
