GTA Online Heist: The Union Depository Contract [Solo]

Image: Gibson Ross via HGG

Human Made

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 Ashley Johnson

The Los Santos Tuners update added many things to GTA Online. New races, the LS Car Meet, and even a brand new auto shop property! The most impressive addition, however, is a new type of mission: a new take on heists, known as “contracts.” Of the eight new contracts added to GTA Online, the most challenging (and most rewarding) one is the Union Depository heist contract. I’ve ran this contract half a dozen times, and I’ve gotten down a basic strategy. Today I’ll be sharing with you my method on how to complete The Union Depository heist entirely solo!

Popular Destinations..

Grand Theft Auto 5 Waystone | Navigation Page

7 Best Houses in GTA Online (2024)

Prep Work #1: Elevator Key

This prep mission is by far the easiest, so don’t sweat it too much. This prep mission tasks us with stealing an elevator key and a security SUV. I’d recommend you bring a shotgun or some other close-range weapon, as almost all of the shooting will be done indoors. Start the mission from your auto shop and make your way to the apartment complex marked on your map.

Once you arrive and storm into the apartment building, be sure to check your corners and wait for the security guards to pop their heads out before shooting. Take out each one of the guards and make your way to the master bedroom. Once here, toss in a grenade or a sticky bomb and let it blow. The guy waiting for you inside is armed with a fully automatic shotgun, and he’s got a very itchy trigger finger.

Search his body for the elevator key. Now, back track to the room where you came in from. Take the elevator down to his garage. Equip an assault rifle (if you have one) and take out each of the guards one by one. Don’t use any explosives! If you do, you might destroy the security vehicle you came here for. Its an all black SUV (see the image above), and it always spawns on the left side of the garage in the very back.

Once you steal the vehicle, you’ll be instructed to drive to one of three different locations just outside the Union Depository. Don’t worry too much about where to stash your ride, as it won’t really matter all that much during the heist. Now that that’s over with, drive back to the auto shop and you can get started on your next prep mission!

Prep Work #2: Vault Code

Oh boy, this prep mission is…not bad, just not very fun. Start the mission like you normally would and head on over to LSIA to pickup a police helicopter. Don’t worry about the police, just focus on flying to the center of Los Santos (where all the tall skyscrapers are). Once you lose the cops, you’ll be instructed to head to a nearby location and peer through the helicopter’s mounted surveillance camera.

The guy we’re looking for will be in one of the cars we have to scan, but luckily for us, he drives the same car every time. The models all look the same from a distance, but the car he drives is always blue, so just scan all the blue cars until you find him. Nice and easy.

Now it’s time to trail him back to his hotel. Fly as high up as you can, and focus on following the blue dot on your mini map. Just be sure not to crash into any buildings! Once he arrives, you’ll need to look around the exterior of the place until you find him. The hotel he goes to seems to be random, but finding him isn’t too difficult. Our man only spawns at the exterior. He is always found standing next to one other person. Just look through the scanner every time you see two people next to each other. Once the camera confirms you’ve got the right guy, pull out your in-game phone and take a picture of him getting intimate. Send the photo to Sessanta and the mission will be completed!

Breaking in: The Robbery

You may have done all of the prep missions, but before we start the heist, there are a few things you need to do first. Make your way to the nearest Ammu-Nation and purchase as much super heavy body armor as you can. Then head back to your auto shop.

Underneath the stairs leading to the planning board, there is a bowl containing every snack item in the game. Walk up to it and grab everything you can, as these will come in handy later.

In case you didn’t know, body armor and snacks can be used at anytime during a mission by going into your interaction menu and then selecting inventory. You’ll be taking a lot of damage during the heist, so its important to not forget this before launching the mission.

Now that you have everything you need, go back to the prep board and start the mission. The game will give you three options for a weapon loadout: sharpshooter, hustler, and heavyweight. Personally, I found the sharpshooter loadout to be the best, as there are a few enemies that are far away, and having a sniper rifle definitely comes in handy. The SMG in this loadout is useful too.

The hustler is a viable loadout as well, and it seems to be the most popular option. This one comes with an automatic rifle, which is very effective at killing the NOOSE agents we will be tackling. As long as you don’t pick the heavyweight loadout, you’ll do fine. The heavyweight features a pump-action shotgun as its primary weapon, which makes dealing with targets at medium and long ranges a headache.

When you launch the mission, your first task will be to drive to the security vehicle you stashed earlier. Leave your getaway car here, and get behind the wheel of the armored SUV. Just follow the GPS to the Union Depository, and make your way inside the vault.

Whatever you do, don’t flash your weapons! The guards become alerted if you do this. Once inside, start looting either of the two gold stashes, and be quick about it, as you won’t have much time before the police arrive. Since you are doing this solo, you won’t be able to get everything, but you’ll still get enough to come home with a fat paycheck.

Getting Out

After the jig is up, there will be many NOOSE agents standing in the way of you and your freedom, so get your weapons ready. Aim for the head with your automatic weapon and push forward until you reach the parking garage you arrived at. Clear out the room slowly and cautiously, taking out each of the enemies using a well placed headshot. Use the sniper if you are having trouble hitting targets at longer ranges. Just remember to shoot them until they are dead, as the sniper rifle will not kill targets in one shot if you are aiming for the chest (normally it will take two or three).

Don’t even try to steal any of the cars in the garage, as their doors will be locked tight. Go to the right out of the garage, and you will see several other cop cars in your way. If you have the sharpshooter loadout, you can throw a few sticky bombs to blow them out of the way.

Push forward and you should see a few NOOSE vehicles parked just outside of the building. Run up to them and then immediately run back to cover. This will spawn in the NOOSE agents waiting for you outside. Take them out, and then aim for the two NOOSE that spawn on the balcony across the street. Remember when I said the sharpshooter loadout was the best? This is why.

Once everyone is dead, walk outside and wait for a police or civilian car to drive up to you. Steal it, then drive over to your getaway car. After you get behind the wheel of your car, the GPS should take you past the casino.

Don’t get on the highway! A better option is to take the road next to the highway, which has less cops and lets you get off the road easier if you need to take cover. Stay out of sight of the police — driving off-road if you have to — until your wanted level goes away.

Now it’s smooth sailing to your destination! Follow the GPS to the buy Moodymann has set up for you. The only thing you need to do on the way is think about how you will spend your cut!

Join the High Ground

When you finish completing the Union Depository heist, why not subscribe to our newsletter? We offer regular features and guides on the latest and greatest titles the gaming industry has to offer.

Thanks for reading, and happy gaming!