Skills Overview and Tier List

At the moment, there are 23 different skills in OSRS. All of these start at level 1 with 0 experience, except for Hitpoints, and go to level 99 with 200 million experience. So, unless you are planning to create a specific account build, such as a skiller or a pure, you will want to raise your skills as high as possible.

In OSRS, there are skills like Hunter and Herblore that are exclusive to members and cannot be trained in F2P. Additionally, the skills you can train in F2P often have slower and less lucrative training methods compared to the options available in P2P.

We will provide a comprehensive OSRS skill overview along with our 100% indisputable Skill Tier List.

F2P skills

There are 15 free-to-play skills. You can train these from level 1 to 99 without paying for membership. However, it will take you a much longer time, as the training methods in F2P are extremely slow compared to members. You need to accumulate 13,034,431 experience points in a skill to reach level 99.

F2P Skills

• Attack
• Strength
• Defence
• Prayer
• Magic
• Ranged
• Woodcutting
• Cooking
• Fishing
• Firemaking 
• Smithing
• Mining
• Crafting
• Hitpoints
• Runecrafting

P2P exclusive Skills

P2P skills in OSRS are exclusively available to players who have purchased a membership. Consequently, you can only train these skills in a members’ world. Currently, there are eight skills that are restricted to members. P2P players also enjoy access to a variety of improved training methods for enhancing their F2P skills. Similar to those skills, P2P skills also require 13,034,431 experience points to reach level 99.

P2P exclusive skills

• Hunter
• Construction
• Farming
• Thieving
• Slayer
• Agility
• Herblore
• Fletching

OSRS Skills Tier List

The above image showcases our OSRS Skills Tier list. S-tier represents the highest tier, indicating that the skill is enjoyable to train and holds significant utility. On the other hand, F-tier is the lowest tier, implying that the skill is tedious and uninteresting to train. Here, we will provide information about each skill and explain why it’s placed in the respective tier shown above.

Ranging

Ranging is among the combat skills in OSRS and is part of the combat triangle. It employs bows and crossbows to attack enemies from a distance. This allows for engagement from safe spots without sustaining damage. Elevating your ranging level also unlocks access to various dragon hide armors, known for their high magic resistance. Training ranging in the Nightmare Zone (NMZ) stands out as one of the most effective AFK methods to enhance skill levels.

Ranging receives an S-tier designation from us due to its standing as one of the finest combat skills available. It grants access to potent weaponry like the Twisted bow, offers high and accurate hits, facilitates damage-free combat against monsters, and obviates the need to train multiple melee skills.

Magic

Magic, another combat skill tied to the combat triangle, necessitates runes for spellcasting. Distinct spellbooks offer access to varying magic types, encompassing combat spells causing damage and utility spells such as teleports that simplify OSRS gameplay. A heightened Magic level also reduces the accuracy of adversaries’ magic attacks. The primary drawback to training Magic is the cost of runes. Moreover, numerous AFK magic training methods exist to passively enhance this skill.

Magic attains an S-tier ranking from us due to its practicality involving teleports, multi-target attacks, and the ease of skill improvement. Employment of blood and ice barrages allows combat against up to 15 monsters concurrently, with potential experience gains reaching 400k per hour in magic and 100k in Slayer. Additionally, the utility of teleports is invaluable. Unlike melee skills, mastery of this skill is the sole requisite for full utilization.

Hitpoints

Hitpoints is a skill that can be honed with minimal effort. It’s feasible to reach level 99 by focusing on other combat skills, without direct attention to Hitpoints training. Elevated hitpoints significantly bolster survivability and prove advantageous in combat scenarios.

Hitpoints obtains an S-tier standing from us due to its effortless training nature and its universal usefulness across different levels of play.

NMZ (Nightmare Zone) serves as a prime avenue for training combat skills like Ranging, Hitpoints, and others.

Slayer

My personal favorite is Slayer. This skill unveils premier game content, rendering combat training diversified and engaging. The anticipation of a new slayer task is consistently exhilarating, and Slayer is a skill that receives regular updates. Beyond merely enhancing combat levels, training in Slayer is lucrative.

Slayer claims an S-tier classification in our evaluation, largely due to its vast content offerings and its enhancement of combat training enjoyment. Furthermore, Slayer introduces top-tier boss monsters, often translating into substantial financial gains during training.

Defense

Defense, one of the three melee skills alongside Attack and Strength, escalates combat level, enables access to superior armor, and mitigates monsters’ accuracy in targeting you. Defense also diminishes adversaries’ magic accuracy.

Defense attains an A-tier ranking from us. While it’s easy to train and profoundly beneficial against monsters and bosses by reducing their damage output, it falls short of an S-tier due to the requirement of high Attack and Strength levels for optimal synergy.

Attack

Attack is a skill unlocking superior weaponry and augmenting accuracy during monster engagements. Among the three melee combat skills, Attack is straightforward to improve and relatively cost-effective to train, except when deploying degradable weapons, incurring additional costs.

Attack garners an A-tier status due to its ease of training and economical nature, essential for defeating monsters and bosses. It heightens hit accuracy and facilitates weapon upgrades, thereby bolstering damage per second (DPS). However, it misses S-tier recognition due to the need for complementary Strength and Defense levels.

Strength

Strength, a melee skill enhancing maximum damage output, boasts immense popularity within OSRS, evident by the abundance of players reaching level 99. It proves advantageous when combatting low-defense monsters and during boss encounters to boost experience gains.

Strength earns an A-tier placement due to its ease of training and the potency it adds to attacks. However, it falls short of an S-tier classification as it necessitates coordination with Attack and Defense skills to unlock its full potential.

Construction

In our opinion, Construction is an underrated OSRS skill. It unlocks an array of valuable teleports and storage options that save countless hours during the pursuit of a maxed account. This skill particularly benefits Slayer training and clue completion. The player-owned house adds an element of enjoyment, although its main function revolves around teleports.

Construction secures an A-tier position owing to its valuable contributions to gameplay and substantial quality-of-life improvements. It can be rapidly elevated to high levels in just a few hours. However, it doesn’t achieve S-tier recognition due to its time-consuming and expensive training requirements.

Prayer

Prayer furnishes temporary aids for combat assistance, encompassing defense against melee, magic, and augmented attack potency.

Prayer receives an A-tier rating from us due to its utility and essential role in preparing for end-game content such as boss fights. However, it doesn’t ascend to S-tier due to its reliance on supplementary skills and the considerable expense associated with higher-level training.

Hunter

Hunter revolves around capturing wild creatures. The skill is easy to train and can be quite profitable if you catch chinchompas.

Hunter receives a B tier rating from us due to its effortless training and potential for earnings. Nonetheless, we don’t place the skill in a higher tier because Hunter training can be quite monotonous and its utility lies primarily within the skill itself.

An enhanced method for making the skill more engaging is tracking and capturing the Herbiboar. Although this approach yields slower progress at around 160k experience per hour, it offers a more interactive experience.

Firemaking

Firemaking’s utility is almost non-existent. The process involves simply lighting logs, offering minimal engagement. Notably, Wintertodt is beneficial for ironmen, and Firemaking proves easy to level up.

Firemaking attains a nearly B-tier placement. While the skill itself holds limited value, ironmen benefit from valuable items obtained through Wintertodt.

Herblore

Herblore emerges as highly useful, particularly for Ironman accounts and those engaging in Raids. The skill facilitates access to high-level potions, greatly enhancing skill training and boss encounters.

Herblore secures a B tier ranking due to its practicality and swift training pace. However, its expense and repetitive nature contribute to its placement.

Fletching

For those with substantial resources aiming for a rapid 99, Fletching is a viable route. By employing optimal techniques like high-level fletching darts, one can achieve level 99 in less than a day. Fletching offers swift, enjoyable training and can be effectively managed on OSRS mobile.

Fletching garners a B tier status despite its limited utility. The skill’s speed in leveling and easy path to a 99 contribute to its placement. Timed raw material purchases can even yield decent profits.

Cooking

Cooking is of marginal use for regular players but becomes a vital skill for Ironman accounts, providing essential healing food for combat and Slayer training. Enhanced Cooking levels yield better food quality and reduced burn rates. Unlike the original OSRS 15 years ago, training Cooking can now be a profitable endeavor.

Cooking achieves a B tier rank due to its value to Ironman accounts, rapid training, and potential for earnings. However, more lucrative money-making methods exist, hence its solid B tier placement.

Thieving

Thieving has received substantial updates over the years, with Pyramid Plunder notably enhancing the training experience. Thieving can be quite lucrative through activities like Pyramid Plunder, provided favorable scepter drops. The skill progresses rapidly but remains predominantly useful within its confines.

Thieving secures a B tier ranking due to its noteworthy aspects.

Smithing

Smithing involves crafting armor, weapons, and ammunition from raw materials and metal bars. While it’s costly to reach 99, the experience gain is comparatively swift. The prominence of rune items as the highest-tier armor and weaponry at level 40 is perplexing and arguably merits revision.

Post-99, Smithing can yield profits by crafting rune platelegs and skirts, as bar prices tend to be lower than their alchemy values.

Smithing receives a near B tier standing from us due to its speed and post-99 money-making potential.

Farming

Farming is a unique skill in OSRS. Initiating effective training can be complex, considering its distinct mechanics that don’t necessitate constant active involvement. Farming is more about checking in periodically to progress.

We allocate a C tier to Farming. The skill has undergone significant overhauls in recent years, rendering it less monotonous. Ironmen benefit from valuable herbs and secondary ingredients. However, for regular players, high farming levels offer limited utility beyond utilizing spirit tree patches for new teleportation options.

Crafting

Crafting proves challenging for ironmen due to the substantial material requirements for higher levels. Nevertheless, it offers utility by enabling creation of high-level ranged armor for alchemy purposes and stronger jewelry like onyx amulets, subsequently enchantable into amulets of fury.

However, for regular accounts, Crafting holds minimal usefulness, primarily limited to crafting the Slayer Helm and Slayer rings. Although Crafting trains rapidly due to its buyable nature, its lack of practical application is evident. Incorporating ideas from the proposed Warding skill into Crafting could enhance its value.

For these reasons, Crafting is assigned a C tier by OSRS Boss.

Fishing

Fishing level? Nice. Fishing is one of those love-it-or-hate-it skills in OSRS. We’ll place Fishing in an average C tier due to its polarizing nature. There’s nothing inherently wrong with the skill, and the Tempoross mini-game has provided a notable upgrade, but it remains slow and monotonous.

For regular players who can utilize the Grand Exchange, there’s scarcely a reason to prioritize Fishing. If you’re inclined to train the skill, I recommend opting for a profitable AFK Fishing method to passively earn some coins. However, for Ironman accounts, training Fishing becomes essential to secure sustenance for Slayer and monster combat.

In OSRS, Barbarian Fishing emerges as the swiftest route to 99 Fishing. Through tick manipulation, this method can yield up to 110k experience.

Woodcutting

Woodcutting, one of the most iconic skills, is notably familiar to many players. Recent updates have made it a relatively AFKable skill with reasonable experience gains.

We’ve categorized Woodcutting as a C tier skill. The process of progressing from level 1 to 99 is virtually the same: click tree, drop logs, repeat. The metagame for woodcutting can be perplexing; cutting level 15 oaks yields more experience than yews and proves more profitable if logs are banked. The potential feels underutilized, thus earning a C tier placement primarily due to nostalgia. Donning a lumberjack outfit is advised for optimal Woodcutting experience.

Agility

Here’s a fun fact: Agility, not Runecrafting, boasts the lowest number of players with a 99. Its sole redeeming quality is that it’s not Runecrafting. Beyond enhancing your run energy recovery rate, there’s scarcely any substantial reason to invest in Agility. A solid D-tier skill, its utility is notably limited.

Mining

Mining has evolved from being a lackluster skill to a more viable option with the advent of the Motherlode Mine and other exceptional training methods. While it’s no longer relegated to an E-tier status in our opinion, it’s still not a top-tier choice.

Unless you’re utilizing the technique of three-ticking granite rocks, Mining remains a methodically slow skill progression that feels unchanged from levels 1 to 99. The lack of substantial profit until level 85 further contributes to its D-tier classification.

Runecrafting

Unsurprisingly, Runecrafting finds itself in the solid F-tier category within our evaluation. While some may dispute this placement, we regret to inform them that the skill is unequivocally lackluster, tedious, and doesn’t offer commendable monetary gains. A minor benefit lies in the capacity to runecraft at the Ourania Altar somewhat AFK, and updates have slightly improved its experience. However, for a notable improvement, the skill requires significant reimagining (without an experience boost).

The only conceivable exemption from this F-tier placement is following our Guardians of the Rift Guide, which can potentially make the experience somewhat more enjoyable.

Notable mentions: Rejected skills

Sailing

One of OSRS’s intriguing what-ifs is the Sailing skill. Despite discussions about its introduction, all attempts have faltered. Sailing would have encompassed shipbuilding, navigation, treasure hunting, and exploration. Based on available information, Sailing might have settled into a B-tier category in our tier list.

Unfortunately, Sailing fell short of the poll requirements, achieving 68% in favor to 32% against, a mere 7% shy of the necessary 75%.

UPDATE: SAILING HAS BEEN CONFIRMED TO BE THE FIRST NEW OSRS SKILL.

Warding

Warding aimed to replicate what Smithing was for melee and Crafting was for ranged, providing mage armor and robes. Regrettably, Warding’s execution left much to be desired, failing to gain traction with players due to its limited utility as a buyable skill. In our evaluation, Warding could have slotted into a C or D tier.

Only 66% of players voted in favor of adding Warding to the game, resulting in its cancellation and likely permanent exclusion from OSRS.

Artisan

Artisan intended to serve as a skill akin to Slayer, but for other skills. Unlike Warding, Artisan demonstrated potential for usefulness and enjoyment. It’s regrettable that Artisan failed to gain entry into the game, raising concerns about future skill additions. Analyzing developer blogs and Jagex’s QA sessions, we speculate Artisan could have secured an A-tier position in our OSRS Skill tier list.

Unfortunately, Artisan received only 56% approval in the poll, suggesting it won’t be repolled and will likely remain absent from the game.

OSRS Skills FAQ

Final thoughts on OSRS Skills

The 23 distinct skills in OSRS have undergone substantial enhancements over the years. By and large, each skill has received increased and improved content, rendering their training more engaging. While the potential threat of Easyscape is indeed a valid consideration, we are far from the level of convenience seen in RS3.

We firmly believe that the introduction of a new skill in OSRS is long overdue. Nevertheless, we hold a strong conviction that if Dungeoneering were to be polled today, the likelihood of it securing a 75% YES vote would be quite favorable.