| Best method | Lester’s assassination stock tips |
|---|---|
| Biggest lump sum | The Big Score |
| Money cheat | None |
| Accounts | Michael, Franklin and Trevor each have their own |
There’s no money cheat in GTA V, and early on money feels tight. That changes fast. If you follow the order on this page, each character can end the game with hundreds of millions, or more. Here are the real sources, biggest first.
Every way to make money compared
| Source | Roughly what it pays | Who | When |
|---|---|---|---|
 Lester’s stock tips | Up to billions in total | All three | Best after The Big Score |
 The Big Score | About $200 million before the crew’s cut, shared three ways | All three | Near the end of the story |
 Epsilon finale | About $2 million profit, if you steal the money |  Michael | At the end of the Epsilon missions |
 Sonar Collections Dock | $690,000 profit, after the $250,000 price | Anyone who owns it | After The Merryweather Heist |
 Properties | Up to $264,500 a week each | Depends on the property | After Nervous Ron |
 Altruist Camp Shootout | $103,000 |  Trevor | Random Event |
 Gray’s Bike Theft | $100,000 in Animal Ark stock | Any | Random Event |
| Drug Shootout | $10,000 to $100,000 | Trevor | Random Event |
| Buried Alive | $60,000 or more | Any | Random Event |
| Deal Gone Wrong | $25,000 or more | Any | Random Event |
 Bail Bonds | $20,000 to $40,000 per job | Trevor | After Maude’s first call |
| Countryside Shootout | $10,000 | Any | Random Event |
| Security vans | About $5,000 each | Any | Random Event |
 Arms Trafficking | $5,000 ground, $7,000 air | Trevor, with McKenzie Field | Repeatable |
The best order for making money
Work through these in order and you’ll get the most out of every tip.
- Early story: pick up Random Events as you see them. Do them for the cash and for the crew members they unlock.
- The Hotel Assassination: this one comes during the story, so invest everything you have, in all three characters, before you start it. See the stock steps.
- Stop there: leave Lester’s other four assassinations until after The Big Score. You can do them any time after the credits.
- The Big Score: keep the crew’s cut low. Each 1% is worth about $2 million in total, so the cheap crew really matters.
- The four remaining assassinations: put all of the money from all three characters into the tips, one mission after another.
- Then spend: buy the golf club, the cinemas and whatever else you want.
The ending also matters here. If you choose Something Sensible or The Time’s Come, one character is gone and you have one fewer account to invest with. The Third Way keeps all three.
How to make money early on
Before the first big heist, cash comes from small jobs. Random Events are the best of these, especially for Trevor, as the Altruist and drug jobs pay six figures. Robbing a store gives a quick few hundred dollars, and it also ticks off one of the 100% tasks. Armored trucks are worth stopping for when you see one on the map.
A cheap way to protect what you have is to avoid dying and getting arrested, because the hospital and the police both take money. Quick save often when you’re carrying a lot of cash.
Is buying property worth it?
Only some of it. Properties pay little compared to stocks, and most take years of game time to earn back their price. You need five for 100% anyway, so buy the ones that pay off quickest. The property guide has the numbers for each one.
Can you give money to another character?
No. Each character’s account is separate, and you can’t move money between them. That’s why it’s worth switching to each one and investing separately before a stock tip. A character’s account also has a ceiling of just over $2.1 billion, which you’ll only meet if you put everything into every tip.
