Hunter methods use traps, tracking, projectiles, or contracts. Level controls eligible creatures and often the number of traps that can be active.
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GATHERING • MEMBERS
Hunter
Build passive levels with birdhouses, then mix rumours, salamanders, and chinchompas.
QUICK WIN
Birdhouse runs stack neatly with herb runs and quietly carry the awkward early levels.
UNDERSTANDING HUNTER
Learn the system before you optimise the loop.
Hunter is a gathering skill with several viable routes. The best method is not automatically the one with the largest experience-rate number: startup time, travel, real input prices, useful outputs, and the amount of attention you can sustain all belong in the decision.
This guide treats levels as unlocks rather than a single uninterrupted race to 99. Use the route below as a strong default, then switch when a quest, diary, equipment upgrade, or account goal makes another method more valuable to you.
Trap placement and respawn behaviour determine real rates. A well-spaced route beats reacting randomly to every failed trap.
Birdhouses progress in real time and use logs, clockworks, and seeds. They are a recurring run, not an activity to wait beside.
Hunter rumours assign a creature and award a reward sack when its rare piece is returned, creating a task-based alternative to one-creature grinding.
LEVEL-BY-LEVEL METHOD FINDER
Set your level. Get the methods that apply now.
This is the working core of the guide: source-backed training sections filtered by current level and account type, with full rates, quantities, requirements, setup notes, and method tables kept beside their revision.
ACCOUNT
3 Hunter sections shown for Members at level 1.
Open a section for its full setup, evidence, and tables.LEVEL 1–9 • MembersLevels 1–9: Natural History Quiz
2 detailed notes
Levels 1–9: Natural History Quiz
Completing the Natural History Quiz in Varrock Museum grants the player 1,000 experience, which will get the player from level 1 to 9. To start the quiz, speak to Orlando Smith, located in the basement of the museum.
- Completing the Natural History Quiz in Varrock Museum grants the player 1,000 experience, which will get the player from level 1 to 9. To start the quiz, speak to Orlando Smith, located in the basement of the museum.
Verify against Hunter training, revision 15284406. Community reference material is attributed to the OSRS Wiki; this fan guide adds its own planning tools and route framing.
Members • MembersRecommended quests and diaries
1 detailed notes
Recommended quests and diaries
- Bone Voyage for access to Fossil Island, which is required for bird house trapping and drift net fishing.
Verify against Hunter training, revision 15284406. Community reference material is attributed to the OSRS Wiki; this fan guide adds its own planning tools and route framing.
Members • MembersRecommended skills
1 detailed notes
Recommended skills
- 90+ (75 required)
Verify against Hunter training, revision 15284406. Community reference material is attributed to the OSRS Wiki; this fan guide adds its own planning tools and route framing.
FOUR EDITORIAL STARTING POINTS
Shortlisted routes with executable instructions.
Use the finder above for the complete method library. These four routes are the fan-guide shortlist: each includes its setup, repeatable sequence, realistic rate band, and most important failure point.
018k–50k XP/hr
1–43 • MEDIUM ATTENTION
Birds, butterflies, and early creatures
BEST FOR
Reaching mature methods
ECONOMY
Low profit
LOCATION
Polar, Woodland, Feldip, and Varlamore hunting areas
REQUIREMENTS
Creature level and regional access
INVENTORY / LOADOUT
Bird snares, butterfly net/jars, ropes/nets or creature-specific tools
EXECUTION
- Carry one more trap only when the level unlocks it.
- Combine nearby catches when their spawn cycles overlap; ruby harvest plus birds can reach about 20k.
- Move to embertailed jerboas around 39 for rates near 50k when available.
02117k–127k Hunter XP/hr plus Fishing
44/47 onward • HIGH ATTENTION
Drift net fishing
BEST FOR
Combined Fishing and Hunter XP
ECONOMY
Consumes drift nets
LOCATION
Fossil Island underwater
REQUIREMENTS
Bone Voyage, 44 Hunter, 47 Fishing; 70 Hunter for full 101.5 XP per shoal
INVENTORY / LOADOUT
Drift nets, merfolk trident, diving apparatus/fishbowl, flippers, stamina optional
EXECUTION
- Load both anchors with drift nets and herd shoals continuously.
- Claim full nets before shoal flow stalls, then replace them immediately.
- Price nets against the combined value of roughly 1,150–1,250 shoals per hour.
0360k–140k XP/hr
46–99 • MEDIUM ATTENTION
Kebbits and rumours
BEST FOR
Variety and Hunter Guild rewards
ECONOMY
Useful meats and sacks
LOCATION
Hunter Guild assignments and creature habitats
REQUIREMENTS
Guild access and rumour tier; creature-specific kit
INVENTORY / LOADOUT
Hunter kit, whistle, meat sack, teleports for assigned biomes
EXECUTION
- Build a block list by leaving unwanted creatures assigned to other guild hunters.
- Carry a compact kit and direct teleports for every remaining rumour target.
- For pure XP, razor-backed kebbits can reach roughly 100k–140k with clean tracking.
04160k–300k XP/hr
73–99 • HIGH ATTENTION
Black chinchompas
BEST FOR
Top-end Hunter XP and valuable catches
ECONOMY
High-risk profit
LOCATION
Wilderness chinchompa hunting area
REQUIREMENTS
73 Hunter, Wilderness risk tolerance
INVENTORY / LOADOUT
Box traps, one-click teleport where usable, cheap defensive gear, minimal risk
EXECUTION
- Place traps in the tightest legal pattern and reset failed traps immediately.
- Keep player alerts visible and decide a catch-value banking threshold before starting.
- Use tick manipulation or an alt only after ordinary trap management is perfect.
HUNTER CALCULATOR
Turn a level goal into hours and materials.
Select a method for its realistic experience-rate band. Add XP and GP per action when you want an exact resource estimate for your chosen item.
The level formula is exact. Time and budget are planning estimates: your equipment, banking, failures, attention, and live Grand Exchange prices determine the real result.
SETUP PROGRESSION
Upgrade the part that actually controls the rate.
| Stage | Setup | Priority |
|---|---|---|
| Traps | Maximum legal trap count plus one spare | Trap count rises with level and directly affects throughput. |
| Rumours | Hunter's whistle and meat/fur sacks | Reduce travel and banking interruptions. |
| Drift net | Merfolk trident, flippers, underwater apparatus | Underwater movement makes the method viable. |
| Wilderness | Disposable clothing and escape teleport | Never risk more than the intended catch stack. |
THE ROUTE
From level 1 to cape
1
1–29
Natural History Quiz and starter prey
Use the museum quiz, then basic traps until birdhouses open up.The opening objective is access, not perfect efficiency. Use quests and inexpensive equipment to compress levels where possible, and avoid over-investing in a method you will outgrow quickly.2
29–46
Birdhouses plus swamp lizards
Recurring runs provide seeds and nests while active Hunter fills the gap.This is where the skill settles into a repeatable loop. Upgrade the parts of the setup that affect every action, measure a representative session, and keep travel or banking from becoming the hidden bottleneck.3
46–80
Rumours, salamanders, or chins
Hunter rumours add structure and rewards; chins lean toward profit.At the mid-game checkpoint, compare the fastest route with account progress, useful outputs, and attention. A slightly slower method can be more efficient overall when it also supplies quests, diaries, or another skill.4
80–99
Herbiboar, rumours, or black chins
Choose low-stress tracking, varied tasks, or Wilderness risk and reward.Late-game training is a sustainability problem. Recheck prices and unlocks, alternate high-focus sessions with calmer ones, and choose a route you can repeat without turning the cape into a chore.LOWER-INTENSITY ALTERNATIVE
Drift-net fishing combines Hunter and Fishing once its requirements and supplies make sense.
LEVEL REFERENCE
Milestones worth planning around
These are decision points, not instructions to stop. Boostable requirements and quest gates can change when an unlock becomes usable.
| Level | Unlock | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| 9 | Copper longtails | Early bird-snare progression. |
| 15 | Ruby harvests | Butterfly and mixed-method options begin. |
| 29 | Swamp lizards | A practical early active route. |
| 46 | Hunter Guild | Rumours and guild facilities become available. |
| 63 | Red chinchompas | Valuable stackable Ranged ammunition. |
| 80 | Herbiboar | Tracking route with herb and fossil rewards after setup. |
QUEST ROUTING
Let account progress do part of the grind.
Quest experience is most valuable when it skips slow early methods or opens a training system you will keep using.
Natural History Quiz
Museum activity that grants the first Hunter and Slayer levels.
Bone Voyage
Opens Fossil Island birdhouses and Herbiboar access.
Children of the Sun
Part of the route into Varlamore and the Hunter Guild region.
CHOOSE YOUR ACCOUNT
The route changes with the rules you play by.
Spend for the time you value
Keep birdhouses running passively, then select an active method for the session: rumours for variety, salamanders for direct XP, chinchompas for value, or Herbiboar for a calmer route.
Optimise the whole supply chain
Bird nests, herbs, impling loot, and chinchompas all serve other skills. Choose targets based on future supplies; black-chin risk may not be justified when red chins meet the account's Ranged needs.
Know the edge of the map
Hunter is members-only. Free-to-play accounts cannot place traps or gain Hunter experience.
REVISION-PINNED REFERENCE
The detailed tables behind the recommendations.
Pulled in one batch from the Old School RuneScape Wiki on August 2, 2026. Every table keeps its source page and revision so you can verify requirements or spot a later game update.
Levels 44–99: Drift net fishing7 reference rows
| Level | XP/shoal | XP/h | GP/XP | Total | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | Total | — | — | — | — |
| 44 | 47 | 52.3 | 46.2 | 60,145 | 53,130 |
| 50 | 50 | 62.5 | 50.0 | 71,875 | 57,500 |
| 55 | 55 | 71.5 | 56.3 | 82,225 | 64,745 |
| 60 | 60 | 81.0 | 63.0 | 93,150 | 72,450 |
| 65 | 65 | 91.0 | 69.8 | 104,650 | 80,270 |
| 70 | 70 | 101.5 | 77.0 | 116,725 | 88,550 |
Levels 72/91–99: Hunters' Rumours3 reference rows
| level | XP/h |
|---|---|
| 72 | 160,000 |
| 91 | 195,000 |
| 99 | 250,000 |
Levels 73–99: Black chinchompas8 reference rows
| level | Alt | Solo | XP/h | GP/h | XP/h | GP/h |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| XP/h | GP/h | XP/h | GP/h | — | — | — |
| 73 | 157,000 | 1,503,213 | 145,000 | 1,388,317 | — | — |
| 75 | 164,000 | 1,570,235 | 151,000 | 1,445,765 | — | — |
| 80 | 197,000 | 1,886,197 | 167,000 | 1,598,959 | — | — |
| 85 | 214,000 | 2,048,965 | 182,000 | 1,742,578 | — | — |
| 90 | 233,000 | 2,230,883 | 197,000 | 1,886,197 | — | — |
| 95 | 251,000 | 2,403,225 | 213,000 | 2,039,390 | — | — |
| 99 | 265,000 | 2,537,270 | 225,000 | 2,154,286 | — | — |
Levels 25–39: Sapphire glacialis3 reference rows
| Location | Levels | Members | Spawns | Map | League region |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rellekka Hunter area DKS | N/A | 6 | Show map | Fremennik✓ | — |
| Farming Guild | N/A | 2 | Show map | Kourend✓ | — |
| Mons Gratia | N/A | 7 | Show map | Varlamore✓ | — |
SOURCE PAGES
- Hunter training ↗revision 15284406
- Ironman Guide/Hunter ↗revision 15203383
- Hunter ↗revision 15285295
- Hunter/Level up table ↗revision 15285224
Reference tables are adapted with attribution from the community-maintained OSRS Wiki. Editorial recommendations, method walkthroughs, warnings, and calculators are original fan-guide material.
COMMON QUESTIONS
Hunter FAQ
How often should I do birdhouses?
When each run completes and fits your routine. Reset supplies immediately and combine the trip with other Fossil Island or farming goals.
Are rumours better than chinchompas?
Rumours offer variety and sacks; chins offer a focused stackable output. The better route depends on attention, unlocks, and what you value.
KEEP RESEARCHING
Read the OSRS Wiki training reference ↗Game updates can change rates, requirements, and best methods. Check the community reference before a large purchase.
Ready to price the route?