Free-to-play Mining training (2024)

This article is about non-members methods of training the Mining skill. For members' methods of training Mining, see Pay-to-play Mining training.

Introduction[]

This guide describes the most effective free-to-play methods to train the Mining skill. The experience rate estimates in this guide assume that the best possible pickaxe is being used for the stated Mining level and do not incorporate the use of any experience boosting items or bonus experience. They also assume that players do not bank the ores that they obtain. Banking ores decreases the amount of experience players can gain per hour and, as most ores are not very valuable, is usually not worth the time taken from Mining training. Players using the Evolution of Combat mode can drop ores by adding the ore to their action bar and pressing the associated keybind to drop the ore. As opposed to dropping items directly from the inventory using their right-click drop option, dropping ores via the action bar does not interrupt mining.

Mining is a gathering skill which typically involves collecting ores from different types of ore rock; ore rocks are often found in groups at mining sites. Players can also occasionally obtain uncut sapphires, emeralds, rubies and diamonds while mining. A pickaxe is required when mining. Levelling up the Mining skill increases the rate at which players gain resources and experience while mining. As players level up they are also able to use better pickaxes. To gain the best experience rates possible, players are strongly recommended to use the highest level pickaxe available to them.

Useful equipment[]

Pickaxes[]

In addition to Mining level requirements, pickaxes require certain Attack levels to be wielded. However players are able to use a pickaxe without equipping it, as pickaxes held in the inventory or tool belt are automatically used to mine. Once a pickaxe is added to the tool belt it cannot be removed, but players can add a higher level pickaxe to their tool belt if the pickaxe currently stored in the tool belt is inferior to the one being added. Players can add pickaxes which they do not currently have a high enough Mining level to use to their tool belt. If the pickaxe stored in a player's tool belt requires a higher Mining level to use than the player currently possesses, the pickaxe will function as the best available pickaxe at the player's current Mining level.

Level required	Image	Name	Mining damage	Rock penetration	GE price
1		Bronze pickaxe[n 1]	3 - 7	0	1,456
1		Dwarven army axe	3 - 7	0	Not sold
10		Iron pickaxe	5 - 15	5	4,343
20		Steel pickaxe	10 - 30	15	1,887
30		Mithril pickaxe	15 - 45	30	2,828
40		Adamant pickaxe	20 - 60	50	5,407
50		Rune pickaxe	25 - 75	75	22,097

Urns[]

Urns can be used to gain additional Mining experience while training. When held in the inventory, urns are filled as the player mines ore. Only base experience gains counts towards filling the urn. Full urns can be teleported away to receive additional experience, equivalent to 20% of the Mining experience gained while filling the urn. Only one urn is filled at a time, though players may own up to a total of 10 full urns. If a player owns 10 full mining urns they must teleport at least 1 away before they can fill more urns. Urns are only tradeable in their (nr), non-runed, forms. In order to use a mining urn the player must add an earth rune to it; this makes the urn untradeable.

Image	Name	Crafting level required to add rune	GE price of non-runed urn	Charges gained from	Type of ore	Experience required to fill	Experience gained from teleporting
	Cracked mining urn	1	908	Ores available at level 1	Clay Copper ore Tin ore Rune essence	437.5	87.5
	Fragile mining urn	17	1,194	Ores up to and including level 20	The above, plus: Blurite ore Iron ore Silver ore	1,000	200
	Plain mining urn	32	1,463	Ores up to and including level 50	The above, plus: Pure essence Coal Gold ore	1,625	325

Golem outfits[]

Parts of golem outfits could be won as a prize from Treasure Hunter between the 19 June and 23 June 2014. The sapphire golem outfit, emerald golem outfit and ruby golem outfit consist of head slot, body slot, leg slot, hand slot and feet slot items. When wearing a complete version of any of these three outfits, the player's chance of successfully mining a resource is increased by 5%.

Players who won all pieces of the sapphire golem outfit, emerald golem outfit, and ruby golem outfit could combine these outfits' components to form the magic golem outfit. When wearing a complete magic golem outfit, the player's chance of successfully mining a resource is increased by 7% (as opposed to 5% with the other golem outfits).

Methods[]

Summary[]

See here to calculate how many ores will be obtained during training. The following figures do not include boosts nor urns.

Levels 1-15: Rune Essence[]

The best training method available to free to play players is to mine rune essence, using the action bar to drop the essence obtained. Rune essence can only be found at the Rune Essence mine, which players can access using the right-click teleport options on Aubury in Varrock; Archmage Sedridor in Wizards' Tower; or Carwen Essencebinder in Burthorpe. Pickaxes' level seems to have a negative effect on their ability to mine rune essence: a bronze pickaxe is most effective in mining rune essence; it mines 7 rune essence per 8 game ticks/ Equipping a bronze pickaxe will ensure that this is used instead of any higher level pickaxe that the player may have stored in their tool belt. Using a bronze pickaxe, the player may gain around 26,000 experience an hour. This experience rate is gained at any Mining level and is the recommended method of training.

Levels 15-99+: Iron Ore[]

Players who are willing to risk training in the Wilderness and can defend themselves from initially aggressive level 28 hobgoblins can power mine iron ores in the Bandit camp mining site. This method can give up to 50,000 experience per hour, or 60,000 per hour if the player brings mining urns. This method is risky and very intensive, but yields more than twice the amount of experience earned from essence.

Players should bring at least 5 logs of any kinds. In the north-east corner of the mine is a group of 8 iron ores. Lay down two logs, one to the east of the northwestern-most rock and one just south of it. Starting with the most northwestern ore, mine each iron rock. Then mine the rocks directly east. Then, light the logs on the ground, but before the logs can catch, mine the patch of iron just northwest of the southern-most ore. Then mine the ore north of it and light the second set of logs. Before they catch, click the southernmost ore patch. Drop the ores, then start over. Using the logs in this way will cancel the animation of moving between rocks, thus eliminating any ticks spent in doing so.

Levels 50-99+: Shooting Stars[]

Players looking for a more afk training method can play the D&D Shooting Star. If stars are found quickly, players can expect up to 55-60k experience per hour. For help on how to locate stars in free-to-play worlds, there is a guide at Shooting Star Strategies. The shooting star appears every two hours but will sit there, allowing players to change channels and continually find stars to maximise experience. Be cautious that approximately a third of the stars in free-to-play worlds are found in the wilderness.

Money making using the Mining skill[]

Mining clay[]

Mining iron ore[]

Mining adamantite ore[]

Mining runite ore[]