Fallout 76 Leveling Guide: 10 Best Ways to Level Up Fast

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Penned by Gibson Vasela

My name is Gibson Vasela. I am a freelance writer who has been playing video games for almost 20 years now. I play all kinds of games, but I especially love immersive sims and RPGs.

Reviewed by Benjamin Barr

One of the most popular games on Xbox Game Pass at the moment is Fallout 76. Considering how far the game has come since its launch, it’s not that hard to see why. If you are one of the many new players that have decided to give the game a try, then you’ve come to the right place. Here in this leveling guide for Fallout 76, we’re covering some tips and tricks on how to level up as fast as possible. We’ll also be going over some of our favorite places to grind for XP, regardless if you are one of those new players, or a veteran trying to find better ways to get XP.

Let’s get started!

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Leveling Up Overview

Let’s start out with a brief overview of how leveling up works in Fallout 76. Like every good RPG, your character has a level that can be increased by acquiring experience points (XP). You gain XP by doing things like completing quests, killing enemies, and completing special actions in the game (such as successfully picking locks or hacking into terminals).

Once you gain enough XP, your character will advance to the next level. When you level up, you will gain Perk Card Packs. These are packs that can be opened up to give you a set of random Perk Cards, which you can use to gain special abilities like doing more damage with a certain weapon, using less AP while using VATS, etc.

Leveling up is one of the most important aspects of Fallout 76. It is the main form of progression, and many weapons, armor, and even quests can be only acquired/started by being at a certain level. Therefore, it’s important that you know how to level up as fast as possible, so you can get the most out of the game and improve your character.

10 Best Ways to Level Up Fast in Fallout 76, Ranked in No Particular Order

Without any further delays, let’s hop right into Fallout 76 leveling guide!

1/10

Complete the Base Game

This may seem obvious, but many players skip out on this tip. If you just created a new character, you are going to want to start doing the main quest. Don’t try to do “Wastelanders” or “Steel Reign,” as you need to be at a certain level to do those quests. I am talking about the original main quest line for the base game — the one where you track down the Overseer of Vault 76.

The quest log should be activated automatically when you leave the vault, and it should take you to the town of Flatwoods. Head on over to that location and find the Overseer’s camp. From there, you can carry on with the main quest line. Completing quests in this game is a great way to earn XP, especially if you are just starting out.

2/10

Increase Your Intelligence

In order to increase the amount of XP you gain for each action that rewards XP, you are going to want to increase your character’s Intelligence. This is the only SPECIAL stat in the game that affects your XP gain, so you can give yourself an easy XP boost just by adding points to INT when you level up.

You can also increase your Intelligence by finding armor in the game with legendary effects that improve the stat. Simply by wearing them, your Intelligence will increase and you will gain more XP each time you kill an enemy or complete a quest.

3/10

Complete Daily Missions

One of the best and most reliable ways to get XP in Fallout 76 is by doing daily missions. As the name implies, daily missions are quests that can only be completed once per day. You can find daily missions scattered all around the map. Once you discover one for the first time, that daily quest will stay in your log forever.

This means that every time you log into the game each day, you’ll be able to complete these missions for a nice boost of XP. For a full list of all the daily missions in Fallout 76, you can follow the link to the wiki page posted here. The three best daily quests for beginners are “Feed the People,” “Tea Time,” and “Speaker Repair.”

4/10

Sleep for a Temporary XP Buff

One of the simplest and easiest ways to give yourself a temporary buff to XP you gain is through sleeping for 30 seconds. You can do this in either a sleeping bag or a regular bed frame. Either way will reward you with a temporary XP buff of +5% for any and all actions you do. This effect will last for exactly one in-game hour.

Considering that it only takes 30 seconds of sleeping, I’d say that’s not a bad deal! You can set up a little shack with a bed inside it at your CAMP. Then, every time you log into the game for the day, just sleep in a bed before getting on with your adventures and you’ll earn a nice little XP boost that is sure to help you level up.

5/10

Scrap Items

Next up on our Fallout 76 leveling guide is scrapping items. Just about anything in the game can be scrapped down to its base components. This includes weapons, armor, and of course, junk. You’ll be scrapping a lot of junk that you find on your journey, as components found in these items are needed for upgrading your gear.

You should also prioritize scrapping weapons as well. Scrapping weapons is not only a great way to earn XP, but the most reliable way to unlock weapon mods. Enemies tend to drop at least one or two weapons on their death. So if you have the carrying capacity, be sure to pick it up so you can break it down at a nearby Tinker’s Workbench for some new weapon mods and easy XP.

6/10

Use the Right Perk Cards

One interesting change in how Fallout 76 works compared to Fallout 4 is the perk system. In Fallout 4, you used to be stuck with your perks permanently. In Fallout 76, however, the game uses a perk card system. This means that you can swap different perks in and out in order to suit whatever situation you find yourself in at the moment.

This means that you don’t need to compromise on your build if you had a particular one in mind but still want some extra XP. There are several perk cards in the game that allow you to increase your XP gain, such as the Inspirational perk. This boosts XP gain by +15% when in a group. Swap this card in whenever you join a group to do an event or a Daily Ops for some bonus XP.

7/10

Use Lunchboxes

One interesting item that many veteran Fallout 76 players are familiar with is the lunchboxes. While these were simple, scrappable junk items in Fallout 4, in this game they work a bit differently. When you open up a lunch box in your inventory, you and any nearby players will gain several buffs. The most notable of which (at least if you are after more XP) is the +25% buff to XP gain.

This is a really, really sizable boost to your experience points earned. And since it can be shared among other players, this means that you can cooperate with others to share the benefits. Lunchboxes are rewarded freely by reaching certain SCORE ranks. You can also purchase packs of them from the Atomic Shop, the in-game microtransaction store.

8/10

Build Up Your CAMP

CAMP building is one of the best parts of Fallout 76’s gameplay loop. You are able to craft a base of your very own design that lets you rest up, modify your weapons, and gather much-needed resources. As you can probably guess, building up your CAMP by placing down items will grant you experience points. This is important to note, as it is one of the most straightforward ways to get XP.

You can take a look at your daily and weekly challenges by opening up the pause menu and scrolling down to the “Challenges” section. Here, you may find a challenge you can complete for building a certain number of CAMP items. Completing this challenge won’t reward you with more XP per se, but it does contribute to leveling up your SCORE board. This will allow you to earn more of the lunch boxes mentioned earlier.

9/10

Use Chems

Another one of the many different ways that players can increase their XP gain is through using various different chems scattered throughout the wasteland. There are many different types of chems, such as buffout and jet. But the most important one for those of you reading this article is mentats.

When you take a mentat, your intelligence will increase! As already discussed earlier, intelligence is needed in order to increase the amount of XP you gain. So if you want to boost that number up high, take as many mentats as you can. Just keep in mind that it is possible to get addicted to them in Fallout 76. I’d recommend you take the Chem Resistant perk, as at max rank this will stop you from getting addicted to chems.

10/10

Complete Workshop Events

Now for the last tip on our Fallout 76 leveling guide. Throughout the map of Fallout 76 are workshops. These are basically settlements that you can hold onto temporarily that will produce various resources and allow you to build up a base. While you can’t hold onto them forever, they do make great ways to temporarily boost your resource gains.

They are also a fantastic source of XP. Because of this, you should consider doing one whenever you are near a workshop settlement. Upon arriving in the area, you will automatically be given a quest to eliminate any nearby enemies. Once you do that, the workshop will be yours after you pay a fee for caps. This is a good way to get some nice XP fast, as long as you are okay with losing about 100 caps.

Best Locations to Level Up in Fallout 76

Now that we’ve given you a rundown on some tips and tricks for how to get XP fast, let’s take this next section to discuss the best places to farm XP in Fallout 76. You can farm XP at these locations simply by traveling to them, killing any and all NPCs located there, and then server-hopping. You can server hop by exiting to the main menu and then launching Adventure Mode again.

1/4

Charleston Capitol Department of Motor Vehicles

Location: The Forest, City of Charleston | Recommended For: All Player Levels

This first one is probably the most popular XP grinding spot (and arguably the best). Located on the edge of the forest in the city of Charleston, you’ll find a DMV that is overrun with feral ghouls. When you get to this location, the ghouls will be sleeping on the ground and won’t attack unless they hear you or you attack them first. This makes them easy target practice.

Considering the fact that most ghouls have low health, it is incredibly easy to just stroll through the building and pick them off one by one. Additionally, there are so, so many of them! All these factors combine to make this a great spot to grind for some valuable XP. Once you reach the end of the dungeon, just server-hop and then head back into the DMV again for another shooting spree.

2/4

Point Pleasant

Location: The Forest, West of Vault 76 | Recommended For: Low-Level Players

Another great spot to go hunting for XP is in the town of Point Pleasant. This can be found in the region The Forest, making it an easy spot to get to if you are just starting out your adventure in Fallout 76. Here at this location, you will find an abundance of hostile NPCs in the form of the Mothman Cultists. These guys may seem intimidating, but they are actually pretty weak foes.

They generally have little armor and can be taken down easily with only a few shots. I recommend using a shotgun here. Pump shotguns are easy to get if you are low-level, and they do high damage per shot. This makes them great for “pest control” against the Mothman Cultists.

3/4

West-Tek Research Center

Location: Savage Divide, Northwest of Cranberry Bog | Recommended For: Medium-Level Players

Up next is the West-Tek Research Center. This is a mid-game dungeon you can find in the Savage Divide. This is a location that I don’t see very many people discuss online, which is a shame, as it’s a really great spot to get some XP. Before the war, it was the location of some testing for the Forced Evolutionary Virus. After the bombs dropped, it became a base of operations for super mutants!

So make sure you bring some stimpaks here because super mutants don’t play around. There is quite an abundance of them to be found at this location. And because super mutants are more difficult to fight, they tend to reward more XP than some of the more common enemies found throughout the game. I recommend bringing high-damage weapons to this dungeon.

4/4

Fissure Site Prime

Location: Cranberry Bog, Southern Side | Recommended For: High-Level Players

Last but not least, we have the Fissure Site Prime. This is a late-game location found south of the Cranberry Bog. In order to get the most XP here, the site must first be nuked by you or another player. After this, it will trigger the final boss for the game: the scorch beast queen! Killing her and all the scorched that spawn during this event will earn you a high amount of XP, as well as some other rewards.

I don’t know if this can really be considered a “farming” location, but it’s still worth mentioning regardless. This area can’t be farmed for XP in the same sense that the previous ones can be. In the other dungeons, you can simply rinse and repeat the same location again and again by server-hopping. But at this location, you have to wait for a nuke to be dropped onto the site. I recommend that you keep your eyes peeled for the Scorched Earth event, and whenever it pops up, fast travel over here to do it. This event is usually packed with other players, so completing it is typically very easy.

Join the High Ground!

We hope that you enjoyed reading our Fallout 76 leveling guide. What are your thoughts on our tips for getting the most XP? If you have any of your own, feel free to drop them in the comments. And make sure to subscribe to our weekly newsletter for more guides.

Happy gaming!