These Elden Ring rune farm spots will help you level up in no time

An Elden Ring rune farm can be a great way of skipping a lot of the initial level grind, and they are especially useful for players who've already completed the game, but don't want to have to do everything all over again just to jump into the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC. Rune farms were probably never an intentional part of Elden Ring, but since enemies in different regions give you more than others, it makes sense to take advantage of it.

Since the Lands Between are littered with trapped treasure chests and plain old portals that warp you to far-flung locations, getting to these late-game areas can be surprisingly easy. And that's not even utilising any of those weird speedrunning bugs that let people complete the game in under nine minutes.

In this Elden Ring rune farm guide, I'll walk you through a few of the best spots where you can farm up some runes to quickly level your character, whether it's teleporting across the map to find some late-game enemies or finding ways to exploit rune-fat foes. I'll also tell you how to get the Gold Scarab so you can buff your rune gains.

Before you head out though, it's worth noting that the DLC has a suggested level range of anywhere between 120 - 150. It also has a separate "power" system from the main game, so going much beyond that upper threshold may not bring huge benefits.

How to get the Gold Scarab

Before you start farming runes, you'll want to grab a very handy item that increases how many runes you get per kill: the Gold Scarab. You'll need to make your way to a small hidden dungeon in Caelid, The Abandoned Cave, and then defeat its pair of bosses to get this precious object. Thankfully, neither boss is particularly tough, and summoning some assistance—whether through Ashes or another player—will let you take them out while they're distracted. Check out our Gold Scarab guide for the specifics. 

The consumable Gold-Pickled Fowl Foot will give you another rune boost. This can be purchased from Patches, or from the Twin Maiden Husks after you've given them Patches' bell bearing. They can also be found dotted around the world. Once you get your hands on the Missionary's Cookbook [2], also sold by Patches, you'll be able to craft them yourself.

Best Elden Ring rune farm spot

Best Elden Ring rune farming guide

The best farming spot found so far takes some doing, and will see you delving underground into a pretty tough area. But don't worry—it's super straightforward once you're there.  

First, you'll need to have completed Varre's quest first, which involves visiting him in Liurnia's Rose Church. To get what you need for this farming run, follow his questline until he gives you the Pureblood Knight's Medal—ignore Varre when he tells you to wait. It can be used instantly. 

Using the medal will transport you underground. Just up the steps you'll find a map and the Grand Mausoleum Entrance site of grace. You'll then want to turn around and jump down, after which you'll be able to ride Torrent. And you'll need to: this place has a few nasty surprises that you'll want to gallop away from. But as long as you keep moving and go around the edge of the area, you should be fine. 

Eventually you'll reach a slope, and at the top you'll find the Palace Approach Ledge-Road site of grace. Rest here to reset all the enemies undoubtedly chasing you. You've made it! The next part is easy: look over the cliff edge at the area below you. See that mean looking bird wandering around? Shoot it with an arrow (or bolt if you're using a crossbow) and watch it eagerly leap to its death to try and get to you. Fortunately it is a flightless bird. For your trouble, you'll net yourself 13,245 runes.

If you're a much higher level and you have access to the Sacred Relic Sword from the final boss—other weapons work too but aren't as effective—an alternative method is to farm the albinaurics on the slope with the weapon's skill, Wave of Gold. This nets you a whole heap of runes and takes out multiple enemies in one go. You can reset them all by resting at the grace.

Early Elden Ring rune farm locations

While the underground rune farming method above will net you the highest rate of runes, you might find yourself needing some extra levels under your belt if you hit a roadblock before its accessible. No worries—here are some early game rune farming locations to speed your Tarnished through training camp.

All these are options are available as soon as you unlock the trusty steed Torrent; most of them involve riding past dangers you won't want to face head-on just yet. With these tricks in your arsenal, you'll have a ridiculous supply of runes right from the start, making your first run through Stormveil a lot easier. 

Northern Dragonbarrow, Caelid

Once you're mounted up on Torrent, you might want to check out this farming spot shown off by PowerPyx on YouTube. The method only begins in Limgrave, but will actually take you to a much higher level area. 

Elden Ring - Rune Farming Exploit Method - Early Game - 300,000+ Runes/Hour - YouTube

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They claim it'll net you about 300,000 runes per hour, which is enough for many, many levels at the beginning of the game, even if you only do it for 10 or 20 minutes. The catch is that this method will send you from Limgrave to a much higher level area, with enemies that will take you out very quickly. Magic builds will have an easier time, though it's still absolutely viable for melee characters. 

First you have to head to the Third Church of Marika in Limgrave—it's located east of the first few Sites of Grace. From there, you need to go northeast until you find a portal sitting in water. (This is actually connected to a side quest, but completing it isn't required.)

The portal takes you to Greyoll's Dragonbarrow, a high-level area in the north of Caelid that features one of the game's strangest characters, who you'll see right behind you when you arrive, along with a site of grace. Watch out for the big creature on the stairs in front of you as you leave, as you won't want to mess with it. 

Outside, you'll find some small, relatively weak enemies, and beyond them a bridge with another site of grace next to it. Grab the site of grace if you want, but don't cross the bridge. Instead, go back to the small enemies—they're who you'll be farming.

These little guys go down fast, and while a magic build will be helpful here, melee characters can still stagger them or employ stealth. The video claims you'll get 637 runes per kill, and there are quite a few of them, but upon testing it I found I was actually getting considerably more: 1094 runes per kill. The nearby site of grace will then let you keep respawning them. Just don't give them an opportunity to retaliate, as they can kill low level characters in a hit. 

Caelid boulder farm

The BEST Way To LEVEL Fast In Elden Ring! 585,600 Runes Per Hour - Elden Ring Rune Farm - YouTube

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Since you're already in Dragonbarrow anyway, you might as well hit up another cheesy farming spot nearby. This one is courtesy of TagBackTV on YouTube, and you don't need to get in any fights to fill your rune coffers. 

You'll need to make your way over to the Lenne's Rise Site of Grace, southeast of the one you should have activated next to the bridge earlier. You still don't want to cross that bridge, so instead double back a bit and take the route that will bring you to the smaller bridge to the east. Make sure to do this during the day, as there's a boss that appears on the bridge at night. There are a few enemies to avoid and some poison traps, but the Site of Grace is right at the end of the bridge, so it doesn't matter if you take a bunch of damage. 

Activate the Site of Grace and heal up, and then head down the path that takes you under the bridge you've been avoiding. Close to the top of the path is a trap—a magical boulder that will only appear when you're in front of it. Dash out of the way of the boulder and it will continue its trajectory, squashing something below and earning you a not-too-shabby 1952 runes. Then teleport back to the Site of Grace and do it all over again.

You can also get another big payday by taking on the boss on the small bridge. You want to wait until after you've got the Lenne's Rise Site of Grace. Start there, then ride over to the boss at the other end of the bridge. Don't fight him, though. Instead, get him to chase you through all the poison traps. If you keep him following you, the poison will eventually kill him, giving you an impressive haul: 42,000 runes. This is just a one-time thing, but nice nonetheless. 

Elden Ring AFK rune farm spots

Liurnia Highway AFK rune farm

Once you've conquered Stormveil Castle, the first Legacy dungeon, you'll probably have quite a lot of runes in your possession. But can you ever really have enough? Luckily there's a farming spot just up the road. 

You can find the spot near the Liurnia Highway North (past Stormveil Castle) Site of Grace, and you don't really need to do much here, since you can gain runes while AFK. 

Right next to the checkpoint are a bunch of soldiers fighting spiritual attackers and one giant (which you need to run over with your horse to trigger). The giant will smash most of the soldiers pretty quickly and grant you about 43 runes per kill. It's not much, but if you want to mindlessly do it while watching Netflix it could be useful. If you're in the area, you might as well. 

Caelid Greatbridge AFK rune farm

If you've tried PowerPyx's farming method above, you'll already have visited Caelid by travelling through a portal. And you might want to stick around, as there's a very handy farming spot in this area that, like the Liurnia Highway North Site of Grace, allows you to get runes while just sitting around and chilling, and in much greater quantities. 

You'll need to reach the Impassable Greatbridge in the far south first. The best route to take isn't from the Site of Grace you unlocked in Caelid earlier, as it's far away and covered in enemies that will do you in quickly. Instead, head east from Limgrave, and then south, following the road through Caelid. You might as well pick up the Caelid map and unlock Sites of Grace on your way. 

Near the Impassable Greatbridge Site of Grace is a battle between soldiers and giant demon dogs. They'll start fighting the moment you approach them, and from there you can just sit back and relax. I recommend perching on the rocks next to the damaged wall, as you get a good view and you'll be out of danger.

The soldiers will net you fewer than 200 runes each, but there are loads of them, while the dogs will give you 313. The soldiers always win the fight, but you can prolong it by dragging in a few other dogs that are hanging out just north of the battlefield. You should walk away with 2,000-3,000 runes per run, and with the Site of Grace right next to it, you can repeat the battle almost immediately. 

Just watch out for the soldiers on the tower next to you, as they will shoot you with their crossbows. There's some loot at the top of the tower, but you can ignore them if you want, as they won't be able to hit you if you're past the big fire, which you will be if you're sitting on the rock. 

With these rune farming methods in your arsenal, your Tarnished will be leveled up and Lord-worthy in no time.

Leda quest: Track the Erdtree main quest
Ansbach quest: Help the former servant of Mohg
Hornsent quest: Complete the quest for vengeance
Thiollier quest: Pay homage to the saint of sleeping
Freyja quest: Where to find Redmane Freyja