Last Updated: 2026-05-03 · By Liam Carter
This OSRS Firemaking guide covers every realistic path from level 1 to 99: the fastest XP routes, AFK methods, Wintertodt rotations, every firemaking boost worth using, and the quests that hand out free experience. As of 2026, the fastest method peaks at around 519,750 XP/hour with redwood logs in the eastern Grand Exchange, while Wintertodt remains the most popular path because it pays for itself in supply crate rewards.
Why Train Firemaking in OSRS?
Firemaking is one of the cheapest skills to 99 and unlocks the Firemaking cape, a max cape requirement, and quality-of-life perks like instant log burning anywhere in the world. It is not a money-maker, but Wintertodt produces enough loot (logs, herbs, ores, seeds) that most players break even or profit on the way to 99. For Ironmen, Wintertodt is one of the best low-effort sources of herbs and ranged gear in the early game.
The skill is also a soft requirement for several quests and Achievement Diaries, and Forestry updates have added new tradeable rewards (bruma kindling, dragon axe specials) that keep the skill relevant in 2026.
What Is the Fastest Way to 99 Firemaking?
The fastest method is burning redwood logs at the eastern Grand Exchange, which delivers up to 519,750 XP/hour at level 90-99 with tick-perfect lighting (OSRS Wiki, 2026). A full 1-99 conventional run costs roughly 31M GP and takes about 30 hours of click-intensive play. This is the route to pick if money is no object and you want the cape as fast as possible.
Tick manipulation pushes very early levels higher — 1-tick pyre logs hit 92,000 XP/hour at level 1-30 (after Shades of Mort'ton), versus 29,400 XP/hour without manipulation. Most players quest through to level 50 and switch to Wintertodt instead of grinding tick manipulation.
How to AFK Firemaking
The most AFK method is tending bonfires: light one log, drop your inventory onto the fire one log at a time, and tap spacebar every 90 seconds when the chat-box prompt appears. Manual bonfire tending hits up to 341,250 XP/hour with redwood at level 90-99; auto-tending without spacebar drops to roughly 232,750 XP/hour. Bonfires also grant a 50% boosted Hitpoints regeneration timer for 10 minutes after lighting one.
For true low-attention play (5-second click intervals), maple or yew logs at any fire-cluster bank works fine and runs at 80-180k XP/hour depending on level. The trade-off versus Wintertodt is that AFK bonfires are a pure GP sink with no reward crate.
Wintertodt: Levels 50-99 Strategy
Wintertodt unlocks at level 50 Firemaking and is the default 50-99 method for over 90% of players. It scales from 161,000 XP/hour at level 50, to 226,000 XP/hour at level 70, to 320,000 XP/hour at level 99 (OSRS Wiki firemaking training table). Going 50-99 takes around 40-50 hours and the supply crates pay for the entire run.
What you need before queuing:
- Warm clothing — 4+ pieces (clue scroll items, wolf mask, earmuffs, bobble hat now count) cuts passive cold damage substantially.
- Knife or bruma torch — for fletching bruma roots into kindling (1.2x points and best XP-per-action).
- Hammer + tinderbox — repair braziers and re-light when downed.
- Food — sharks/anglerfish; sub-100 hp builds need rejuvenation potions.
- Pyromancer outfit pieces — drops from the reward cart and grant a small XP boost when fully equipped.
The October 2024 update replaced individual supply crates with a Tempoross-style reward cart you search at game-end. Drops scale with your other skill levels, so high Herblore/Mining accounts walk away with more grimy ranarrs and runite ores per round.
Wintertodt point thresholds
| Points per round | Crate | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 500-999 | 1 crate (small) | Bare-minimum participation |
| 1,000-1,499 | 1 crate (medium) | Average solo run |
| 1,500+ | 1 crate (large) | Optimal — fletch + light, never relight |
Firemaking Boosts in OSRS
There are five firemaking boosts worth knowing in 2026: poison chalice (+0 to +5), spicy stew with orange spice (-5 to +5), brawler's resolve (+1 with magic logs), dwarven stout (+1 after Fishing Contest), and the scroll of efficiency from Last Man Standing (~10% chance to save logs). The most reliable for hitting a level threshold is spicy stew with orange spice, which is also the cheapest and the only one that stacks toward boost thresholds for quests like Desert Treasure I (firemaking 53).
For Ironmen, the spicy stew route is the canonical boost path because the inputs are all skill-locked rather than tradeable. Cooks' Assistant + a few thieving stalls is enough to set up the supply chain. Avoid the poison chalice for anything time-sensitive — its 50% chance to deal 7 damage isn't worth the inconsistency.
OSRS Firemaking Quests Worth Doing
Five quests reward enough firemaking XP to skip the early grind entirely. Doing all of them takes a fresh account from level 1 to roughly level 35 with no log-burning at all:
- Sea Slug — 7,175 XP (level 30 fishing required)
- Desert Treasure I — 10,000 XP (level 50 firemaking required, boost from 47)
- Enakhra's Lament — 7,000 XP
- Shilo Village — 3,875 XP
- Heroes' Quest — 3,075 XP
For Achievement Diaries, the relevant firemaking thresholds are: Falador Hard (level 49), Karamja Elite (level 53), Western Provinces Hard (level 75), and Wilderness Elite (level 75). Hitting 75 firemaking unlocks every diary requirement in one threshold.
Firemaking Level Cheat Sheet
If you prefer a level-based path instead of a method-based one, this is the canonical breakdown most players follow in 2026:
| Level | Best log | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1-15 | Normal logs | Use Varrock west bank |
| 15-30 | Oak logs | Or do Sea Slug + Heroes for instant 30 |
| 30-45 | Willow logs | Cheap; great for Ironmen |
| 45-50 | Maple logs | Push to 50 for Wintertodt |
| 50-99 | Wintertodt | Default route; profit + XP |
| 50-99 (alt) | Magic / redwood logs | Click-intensive but fastest cape |
Need Logs or GP to Power Through?
If you'd rather skip the click marathon entirely, you can buy OSRS gold to fund a redwood-log redboot, or browse our other skilling guides to plan multi-skill grinds:
- OSRS Fishing Guide 1-99 — pairs naturally with firemaking via Wintertodt cooking loot
- OSRS Woodcutting Guide 1-99 — chop your own redwoods to skip the GE bill
- Fastest OSRS Skill to 99 — where firemaking ranks against the other 22 skills
- OSRS Cooking Guide 1-99 — for spicy stew supply chain
Firemaking Skillcape Perk
The Firemaking cape perk lets you light any log instantly, anywhere in the world, including while standing on top of an existing fire. It also acts as a one-click shortcut to teleport to the Wintertodt boss room, removing the run from the Doors of Dinh every game. This makes the cape one of the most quietly useful skillcapes in the game even after you stop training the skill.
For comparison, the Wintertodt-specific bruma torch (a separate reward from supply crates) lets you light braziers without a tinderbox, which is a 1-tick speed-up but a permanent inventory slot save during the minigame.
Forestry and Bruma Kindling Updates (2024-2026)
The Forestry update reshaped how high-level firemaking interacts with woodcutting in 2024. Bruma kindling — fletched from bruma roots looted at Wintertodt — now grants 3.8x XP versus a regular log when fletched and burned, making it the highest XP-per-action item in the game for firemaking outside of redwood log spam. Players queuing Wintertodt rounds with a knife in inventory should always fletch their roots before lighting, since the points reward also scales with kindling lit.
Forestry also added the dragon axe special attack (Lumberjack's Cry) which buffs woodcutting but indirectly helps firemaking economy: cheaper redwood logs mean a sub-31M GP route to 99 if you chop your own. The dragon axe spec costs no special attack energy when used for woodcutting only, so it's free uptime for any firemaker who alternates between skills.
How Long Does 99 Firemaking Actually Take?
Realistic time-to-99 estimates from level 1, assuming you start with 0 XP and zero quest XP banked, in 2026:
| Method | Hours to 99 | GP cost | Effort |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pyre logs (1-tick) → redwood at GE | ~28 | 31M | Very high (tick perfect) |
| Quests to 50 → redwood at GE | ~30 | 26M | High |
| Quests to 50 → Wintertodt | ~45 | ~0 (profit) | Medium |
| Bonfire maple/yew (full AFK) | ~80 | ~5-10M | Very low |
| Mixed: Wintertodt 50-80, redwood 80-99 | ~38 | ~12M | Medium-high |
The "mixed" route is what most efficient mains run in 2026: Wintertodt covers the long boring middle stretch with profit, and the final 80-99 push uses redwood logs at the GE because XP/hr at higher levels makes the GP cost worth the time saved (about 7 hours saved versus pure Wintertodt).
Final Picks for 2026
Three concrete recommendations based on the current meta:
- Most efficient overall: Quest to 50, then Wintertodt to 99. About 45 hours, profitable, low APM.
- Fastest possible: Tick-manipulated pyre logs to 50, then redwood logs at GE to 99. About 30 hours, 31M GP cost, very click-heavy.
- Most AFK: Quest to 50, bonfire maple/yew logs to 99. About 80 hours, 5M-10M GP, near-zero attention.
Whichever route you pick, slot the firemaking quests in first — they cover the early grind for free and unlock Wintertodt access. For deeper minigame strategy, see the official Wintertodt wiki page and the P2P firemaking training table for current XP rates per log.