The recommended route
This is the balanced route: low effort where Fishing is slow, and the new leechfin spots once you can reach them. It assumes no tick manipulation. If you are willing to 3-tick or 2-tick, skip to the fastest section below.
| Levels | Method | XP/hr | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1-27 | Sea Slug, Fishing Contest, Freeing Pirate Pete | Quest XP | 10,612 XP combined |
| 27-35 | Fly fishing trout and salmon | 25,000 | 45,000 if you 3-tick |
| 35-58 | Tempoross | 30,000 | Earns the fish barrel and spirit angler pieces |
| 58-78 | Barbarian fishing | 37,000 | Passive Agility and Strength; 68,000 with 3-ticking |
| 78-99 | Leechfin fishing | 109,000 | Needs The Blood Moon Rises; 130,000 by 99 |
Rates are for the first level of each band and climb as you level. The fishing calculator shows catches needed for any target, and what the fish are worth if you bank them instead of dropping.
Levels 1-35: quest past the shrimp
Sea Slug alone takes a new account from 1 to 24. Add Fishing Contest and the Freeing Pirate Pete part of Recipe for Disaster and you reach 27 with 10,612 XP. Tai Bwo Wannai Trio and The Fremennik Trials add 7,812 more and land you on 33, though both ask more of your account.
From 20 you can fly fish for trout, and at 30 salmon joins the same spots. AFK, it gives about 25,000 XP/hr at 30 and 30,000 at 40. With 3-tick manipulation it nearly doubles, but that is a lot of attention for a low level.
Tempoross from 35
Tempoross is the most relaxed decent-XP method in the skill. At 35 with a regular harpoon expect about 30,000 XP/hr, at 70 about 62,000. Not cooking the harpoonfish gives more XP; cooking them gives more reward permits and loot. A crystal harpoon at 99 pushes rates to about 95,000 XP/hr.
Do at least a few dozen games early. The fish barrel and tackle box both come from the reward pool, and the spirit angler outfit gives the same XP bonus as the angler's outfit. The Tempoross calculator shows what your permits are likely to return. Solo games are possible since the 2024 update, and solo rates can reach about 102,000 XP/hr at high levels.
Barbarian fishing (58-78)
Barbarian fishing in Otto's Grotto needs part of Barbarian Training, a barbarian rod, and 30 Agility and Strength for leaping salmon (45 for leaping sturgeon). It is available from 48 but only overtakes fly fishing and Tempoross at around 58, where AFK rates are about 37,000 XP/hr, 48,000 at 70 and 57,000 at 99.
The side benefit is the reason many people pick it: every catch gives passive Agility and Strength XP. If you cut-eat the fish instead of dropping, you also gain some Cooking XP. Tick it and the rates jump to 68,000 at 58 and over 100,000 at 90.
Leechfin fishing (78-99)
Leechfin spots arrived with The Blood Moon Rises and are now the strongest method that does not need tick manipulation. You need the quest, 78 Fishing (boostable, so a super fishing potion gets you in at 72) and a big fishing net. Rates start at about 109,000 XP/hr at 78, reach 122,000 at 90 and around 130,000 at 99 with the angler's outfit. Older guides still send you to barbarian fishing for 99, which now costs you a lot of hours.
Fastest: tick manipulation
If you can stand the clicking, 3-tick fly fishing and 3-tick barbarian fishing roughly double the AFK rates. At 71, 2-tick harpooning swordfish and tuna at Port Piscarilius reaches 78,400 XP/hr with a normal harpoon, 91,000 with a dragon harpoon and 101,800 with a crystal one, and around 132,800 at 99. With the crystal harpoon and perfect play it peaks near 137,000. Check the dragon harpoon price if you have not got one yet; it helps here and at Tempoross.
Train Hunter or Sailing at the same time
Drift net fishing (47 Fishing, 44 Hunter, Bone Voyage): at 70 it gives about 88,550 Fishing XP and 116,725 Hunter XP per hour. Drift nets are a running cost, so treat it as buying two skills at once. Once your Hunter training goals are met, switch back to a Fishing-only method.
Aerial fishing (43 Fishing, 35 Hunter): uses a cormorant at Lake Molch. Slower than drift nets but cheap and it can also give angler pieces.
Deep sea trawling (69+): a Sailing hybrid where your boat drags up to two trawling nets through shoals of giant krill, haddock, halibut and other sea fish. Fishing rates vary by fish and net, from around 15,000 to 38,000 XP/hr, plus Sailing XP on top. It suits players already working on their boat; see the Sailing guide for the setup.
AFK and money methods
| Level | Catch | Requirement | Style |
|---|---|---|---|
| 62 | Monkfish | Swan Song | Very AFK, modest money |
| 65 | Karambwan | Tai Bwo Wannai Trio | Steady, short bank trips with a fish barrel |
| 80 | Infernal eels | Fire cape, ice gloves, oily rod | Tokkul and coins |
| 82 | Anglerfish | Sandworms and a rod | Low XP, good money, AFK sea spot |
| 82 | Minnows | Fishing Contest, full angler outfit | Click-heavy, traded for raw sharks |
| 85 | Dark crabs | Wilderness, dark fishing bait, lobster pot | Risky, bring only what you can lose |
None of these are fast. Monkfish run at about 35,800 XP/hr at 62 and karambwan at about 29,000 at 65, rising to around 42,000 at 99. Anglerfish sit near 15,000 XP/hr at 82 and 23,000 at 90 with sandworms, and they are worth far more than their XP suggests because demand from PvM never dries up. Check the anglerfish price against monkfish and karambwan before picking one. Monkfish can now also be caught at sea from a raft with 75 Sailing. Compare these on the fishing money makers list before you settle, since the best earner changes with prices.
Gear that changes your rates
The dragon harpoon (61 Fishing) is faster than a normal harpoon for every harpoon method, and the crystal harpoon (71, after Song of the Elves) is faster again. Both work at Tempoross and for 2-tick harpooning. Leechfin spots need a big fishing net rather than a harpoon.
The fish barrel from Tempoross holds extra raw fish, which matters most for karambwan, monkfish and anglerfish where banking is the slow part. Without it, karambwan rates drop by around 10%. The Heron pet can come from any Fishing action, so long AFK sessions give you as many chances as fast ones per catch.
Free-to-play Fishing
Free-to-play players have a short list: shrimp and anchovies with a small net, sardines and herring with bait, fly fishing trout and salmon at Barbarian Village from 20, lobsters with a cage at 40, and harpooning tuna at 35 and swordfish at 50 on Karamja. Fly fishing is the best XP; lobsters and swordfish are the best money. Members methods leave all of these behind, so the route above assumes membership.
Quests and unlocks worth planning around
- Swan Song: 50,000 Fishing XP at 62 and opens monkfish.
- Land of the Goblins: 8,000 XP, needs 40.
- Perilous Moons: 5,000 XP, needs 20.
- Song of the Elves: no Fishing XP, but it gives access to the crystal harpoon and the Prifddinas fishing spots.
The angler's outfit adds 2.5% XP per fish and comes from the Fishing Trawler (around six hours for the set on average) or aerial fishing. The Kourend & Kebos diary reward worn in the ammo slot gives a chance at a double catch, though the extra fish gives no XP.