How to make money in GTA 5 Story Mode
Legit ways to get rich in GTA 5 Story Mode: Lester's assassination missions and the stock market, heists, property and smaller earners.
Key facts
- Best method
- Stocks around Lester's assassination missions
- When
- Four optional hits after the main story
- Exchanges
- LCN and BAWSAQ (phone internet)
- Money cheat
- None in the game
There is no money cheat in GTA 5, even in Story Mode, as PC Gamer and IGN both point out. You get rich by playing the stock market around Lester’s missions, finishing heists and buying businesses. Everything here uses normal play only: no glitches and no exploits.
How the stock market works
Open the phone, go to the Internet, then Money and Services, and pick an exchange. There are two:
- LCN is driven by events in the game itself. GamesRadar says radio news and people you meet drop tips about its stocks.
- BAWSAQ was linked to how players everywhere behaved, through the Rockstar Social Club, according to Kotaku and GamesRadar.
Each character has their own bank account and can trade, as Kotaku notes. GamesRadar adds that prices do not move at weekends, and that if a stock you hold has not moved after about ten real minutes, you should sleep at a safehouse and check again. It also says LifeInvader stock on the LCN never seems to rise.
Lester’s assassination missions
Lester offers five assassination jobs, played as Franklin. Each target is linked to a company, so the hit moves share prices, and Kotaku notes that Lester spells out which company will be affected.
The timing rule
The first hit, the Hotel Assassination, is required to continue the story. GamesRadar and PC Gamer both advise leaving the other four until after the main story ends. By then all three characters have their heist money, and the same percentage gain on a big balance is worth far more. PC Gamer says careful investing around these missions can take you past $2 billion. Invest with all three characters each time.
Which stock for each hit
The picks below come from GamesRadar and PC Gamer. Their sell points differ a little, so watch the return percentage in your portfolio and sell when it stops climbing.
| Mission | What to buy | Exchange | What the guides say |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hotel Assassination | Betta Pharmaceuticals (BET), after the hit | BAWSAQ | GamesRadar: can take about 20 real minutes to rise, sell at about 50% |
| Multi Target Assassination | Debonaire (DEB) before, then Redwood after | LCN | PC Gamer: Debonaire roughly doubles about a day later; both outlets say buy Redwood once the job is done |
| Vice Assassination | Fruit (FRT) before, then Facade (FAC) after | BAWSAQ | PC Gamer: about 50% on Fruit; GamesRadar sells Facade at about 40% |
| Bus Assassination | Vapid (VAP), after the hit | BAWSAQ | GamesRadar: sell at about 100% |
| Construction Assassination | GoldCoast (GCD), before the hit | LCN | GamesRadar: sell at about 80%; IGN says it almost doubles |
Heists
The story heists are the biggest single payouts in the game. How much reaches each account depends on the approach you pick and the crew you hire. IGN’s tip is to hire the best crew available, since a skilled crew usually saves you more than its cut costs. For the final heist, IGN puts the quieter approach at roughly $15 million to $20 million per character, with the louder approach paying more. Our heists guide covers crews and approaches.
Heist money is also your stock market fund, which is why the optional Lester hits pay best once every heist is done.
Buying property
IGN explains that most businesses cost a lot up front but pay out every week, and that properties start to unlock soon after Trevor becomes playable. GamesRadar’s 100% checklist includes buying five money making properties.
- Sonar Collections Dock in Paleto Cove goes on sale after The Merryweather Heist for $250,000. It unlocks the nuclear waste hunt, which pays $23,000 per barrel, or $690,000 for all 30, according to GamesRadar and IGN. See our collectibles guide.
Kotaku warns that mission money alone will not cover the most expensive properties and vehicles, so it makes sense to buy the big ticket items after your stock wins.
Smaller earners
These come from IGN’s money guide unless noted:
- Mission rewards cover everyday spending such as guns, armor and car mods, as Kotaku notes.
- Armored trucks sometimes show up as blips on the mini map while you drive. IGN says one often holds more than $5,000.
- The investment banker. A random event for Michael on the road between Pacific Bluffs and Chumash: get the stranded banker to the airport within two minutes and he tips you to buy Tinkle (TNK) on the BAWSAQ.
- Street races are a steady earner for Franklin, whose special ability helps on tight corners.
- Hidden packages. Twelve briefcases of cash, eleven of them underwater, holding between $5,000 and $25,000 each.
- Ammu-Nation discount. Completing every shooting range challenge earns a 15% discount at Ammu-Nation, and gold in all of them raises it to 25%.
- Spend less early. IGN suggests stealing cars instead of buying them and sticking to a few weapons until your first heist.
Quick checklist
- Finish the Hotel Assassination when the story asks for it.
- Play the rest of the story, including every heist.
- Before each remaining Lester hit, move every character’s money into the stock listed above.
- Sell when the return peaks, then reinvest for the next hit.
- Spend the profits on property and vehicles.
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