EFT Tutorial and Guide
THE TARKOV CENTRAL
Moneymaking
Making money is one of the aspects that concerns new players the most, and it seems like a difficult goal to achieve when you start playing because you don’t know the maps, you don’t know the spots where to find more loot, and extracting alive from raids feels too challenging.
In reality, once you learn a few tricks, making money is easier than it seems.
Stash Runs (or Cache Runs)
Every map has many hidden caches (or stashes). Hidden caches are great because they can randomly contain almost any kind of loot present in the game: weapons, ammo, armor, food, healing items, valuables, etc. We can find practically anything inside them, and with a bit of luck, they can help us earn a lot of money.
Additionally, they are often placed in hidden and remote spots, where there is little traffic from other players, and therefore, there is less danger of being killed.
At one point, these hidden caches were fixed, making them easier to find. However, some time ago, BSG changed this game mechanic, and now every time you enter a raid, they have a chance to spawn or not. Given their large number, though, they remain an excellent way to gather loot and make money.
In the image below, you can see the Woods interactive map taken from the EFT Wiki, showing only the hidden caches. As you can notice, there are 44 potentially spawning hidden caches.
You can find them by chance, but the best thing to do is to get an interactive map, such as those available on the EFT Wiki, filter the icons so that only hidden caches are shown, and click on the cache positions. A box will open with a screenshot of the in-game location, making it easier for you to find them.
I suggest starting with Woods because it’s the calmest map to explore. Enter Practice Mode, disable the AI, and discover the hidden cache locations by going there with your character. You’ll need to do several runs to memorize them (especially since sometimes the ones you’re looking for might not spawn), but once you do, when you’re moving around the maps, you’ll know their locations and find them easily.
You can also do this in online raids, but obviously, it will be riskier because you might be heard or caught off guard by an enemy while searching or looking at the map.
To learn them, there are also many YouTube videos that teach you, map by map, where they are and how to reach them. In any case, the best way to learn their locations is to go there in (virtual) person.
Stash runs are an excellent way to use your Scav since you don’t risk your own gear, and by spawning when the raid has already started, it’s less likely you’ll encounter other players. Additionally, AI Scavs won’t attack you.
Stash runs are also a great way to learn the maps because by wandering around to find them, you’ll get better at orienting yourself and learning the various zones and landmarks.
Interchange is also an excellent map for stash runs because the hidden stashes are located in the outer area surrounding the mall. They’re easy to find, and it’s usually rare to encounter other players. There aren’t many of them, but this means you can quickly complete the run, extract, and repeat.
Scav Runs
We’ve already mentioned that with your Scav, you can do profitable stash runs, but searching for loot in containers and loose on the map is also a great way to make money. Additionally, if you enter the raid late or wait for the initial moments of intense combat to pass, by moving through the hotter zones or going to areas where you’ve heard gunfire, it’s likely you’ll find some bodies to loot. It’s fairly common to come across PMC bodies, sometimes even unlooted by others, meaning you can grab good weapons and gear to take home for your PMC or simply sell them.
The map with the most loot is undoubtedly Streets of Tarkov, but it’s also one of the hardest to learn because it’s packed with structures you can enter, underground areas, and multiple floors. For this reason, some players don’t recommend it for inexperienced players. Additionally, unfortunately, it’s the most demanding map in terms of performance, so if you don’t have a powerful PC, it might be problematic.
However, if you have a good computer and the patience to learn it, it’s definitely the map from which you’ll extract with the most loot.
In reality, based on my experience, I’d say that all maps are more or less good, each with its own strengths and weaknesses.
Choose the one you know best, or pick one you’re less familiar with to learn it.
Use Your PMC Like a Scav
Often, when we play with our PMC, we focus on doing quests or seeking PvP.
In reality, there isn’t much difference between a PMC run and a Scav run, except that other Scavs are hostile to you as a PMC, and with a Scav, you get a random free kit.
But if you enter a raid with your PMC equipped with a budget loadout, it’s practically the same thing. You’ll only risk a few tens of thousands of rubles, but you’ll have the advantage of entering at the start of the raid, giving you more time. Plus, you’ll have the chance to find areas where other players haven’t been yet, meaning all the loot is yours.
Avoid fights, stay in less contested areas, and you’ll see that even with your PMC, you can achieve great results. The advantage is that you’ll gain experience with your PMC and level up their skills.
Sell Items the Right Way
When selling items, choose the right method to do so.
Some traders pay more for certain items than others. For example, Therapist usually pays more than other traders for the same items.
Additionally, once you unlock the Flea Market at level 15, you’ll discover that some items sell for much more there than with traders.
Therefore, always compare sale prices by searching the Flea Market—right-click the item and select “Filter by Item.” Once you see the sale price there, compare it with the traders’ prices to decide whether to sell it to them or on the Flea Market.
TIP: Remember that when selling on the Flea Market, you pay a fee for the sale, which you can see in the item’s sale window. For this reason, if the Flea Market price isn’t much higher than the traders’ price, it’s still better to sell to the traders. Sometimes you’ll get slightly less money, but it’s much faster.
Exploit the Flea Market
Once you reach level 15 and unlock the Flea Market, in addition to selling items you find during raids, you can also start speculating on the market.
There are players who spend a lot of time on the FM buying and reselling items. By doing this, they drive up prices and then sell at a higher price than what they paid for the items. You can make a lot of money this way, but you need a fairly large sum to invest, know the price trends, and it still requires time.
There are also those who do “flipping”, meaning they resell highly sought-after items on the market that cost less from traders. But to do this, you need to know the market, the right items, and have already unlocked the higher levels of trader reputation to access the most in-demand items.
What you can do from the early levels, however, is make small but risk-free and quick profits by buying items from the Flea Market that are sold for less than what traders pay.
It often happens that fairly common items, easy to find, are still sold on the Flea Market even though selling them to traders would earn you the same or even more.
So, when you’re selling items, always compare the sale price on the Flea Market with the traders’ prices. If you discover that the item you want to sell is paid more by traders, you can not only sell the item you have to the vendor but also buy other items sold below market value on the Flea Market and resell them to traders.
Sometimes the difference is minimal, just a few thousand rubles, but sometimes it can be 10k or more rubles. However, if there are 10 or 20 items of that type on the Flea Market sold at a discount of 5k or 10k rubles, with 10 items, you can make 50k or 100k profit in just a few moments and with zero risk.
It’s not a method to become a billionaire quickly, but if you’re just starting out, have little money, or want to maximize profits, every ruble makes a difference!