Fishing

OSRS Fishing 1–99 Guide

Start with Sea Slug or a small net, then decide what you want from Fishing: quick levels, food for combat, or a quiet session. This guide covers the route and the setup at each useful stop, including how to learn the faster tick methods.

Updated 5 September 2026

Decide what you want from your catches

Fishing can provide combat food, minigame rewards or fast XP if you drop the catch. Banking every inventory takes time, so decide whether you need the fish before choosing a spot. Ordinary fishing gives short breaks between clicks; tick methods and Leechfin need much more attention.

Starting at level 1? See the quest route ↓

Skip to level 24 with Sea Slug

Optional quest route · order, requirements and next training method

Sea Slug skips the small-net stage entirely. It is a members’ quest you can do at 1 Fishing, but you need to train Firemaking first.

Level 1 → 24 +7,175 Fishing XP
Sea Slug
Before you start: 30 Firemaking and swamp paste; no Fishing requirement.
Speak to Caroline on the coast north of Witchaven, east of Ardougne. Use swamp paste to repair the boat and investigate the Fishing Platform. Swamp tar on its own will not repair the boat.

Continue from level 24

After the quest, buy a fly fishing rod and feathers. Fly fish at Barbarian Village or Lumbridge from 24 to 35, then choose Tempoross or continue fly fishing.

Go to the training instructions →

Without 30 Firemaking, start with a small net near Lumbridge to 20, then fly fish. Sea Slug only rewards Fishing XP. Later options such as Barbarian Fishing and Swan Song also give combat-skill XP, so check them separately on a restricted account.

Levels count the XP listed above from a fresh start. Making your own supplies, quest fights or optional lamps can put you further ahead.

Later quests for Fishing unlocks

Take the other rewards with their unlocks

Karambwan and monkfish access can shape the rest of your training. Smaller quest rewards are useful when you are already doing the quest line.

Tai Bwo Wannai Trio
5,000Fishing XP
For karambwan access
Do this if you want to bank karambwan for combat. The quest needs only 5 Fishing, alongside 15 Agility, 30 Cooking and Jungle Potion; catching karambwan afterwards needs 65 Fishing.
Set up karambwan fishing →
Swan Song
50,000Fishing XP
For monkfish access
A large reward, but the 62 Fishing requirement and long quest chain make it a poor shortcut for Fishing alone. Complete it when you want monkfish or are already working through the quests.
Decide whether monkfish suit you →
Fishing Contest
2,437Fishing XP
On the way through the Dwarf quests
Needs 10 Fishing. Take the reward while opening up the Dwarf quest line; Sea Slug is the bigger early skip.
Freeing Pirate Pete
1,000Fishing XP
While working on Recipe for Disaster
Needs 31 Cooking and the opening Recipe for Disaster quest. The Fishing XP is a small extra while rescuing the guests, rather than a reason to make a separate detour.

In the Fishing Training Planner, select only quests you still intend to complete. A finished quest’s XP is already included in your current total.

Fastest Fishing training

For Fishing XP alone, use a tick-manipulation route once you are comfortable with its rhythm. Drift nets are particularly useful when you also want Hunter XP.

Levels 1–20: Shrimp and anchovies

1 Fishing; anchovies join the catch at 15

Use a small fishing net at a Net fishing spot to catch shrimps. Anchovies join the catch at 15 Fishing without changing your equipment. Drop the fish for quicker training, or keep a small stack if you want to cook it.

Getting there: Use the net spots south of Lumbridge in the swamp, or along the coast south of Draynor bank.
Bring and unlock: Bring a small fishing net. It needs no bait. Low-level accounts should keep clear of the dark wizards near Draynor.

Choose Net on the small-net fishing spot. Your character keeps fishing until the spot moves or the inventory fills.
Drop the catch for faster Fishing XP, or bank it if you want to cook the food.
At 20, take a fly fishing rod and feathers to Barbarian Village and choose Lure.

Sea Slug awards enough XP to skip to 24 if you have 30 Firemaking. Otherwise the nearby net spot is enough for this short opening.

Net shrimp and anchovies until 20, then buy a fly fishing rod and feathers. If you have 30 Firemaking, Sea Slug takes you straight to 24 Fishing and skips this opening.

Levels 20–58: Fly fishing

20 Fishing

A cheap, quick start after Sea Slug. Trout and salmon share a spot, so you can keep the same setup when salmon unlock at 30.

Getting there: Fish on the River Lum beside Barbarian Village, west of Varrock. Walk from Varrock or Edgeville; no teleport unlock is needed. The spots south-east of Prifddinas are a later alternative that do not move.
Bring and unlock: Fly fishing rod and feathers. Each catch consumes a feather. Members who want the early quest shortcut need 30 Firemaking for Sea Slug.

What you bring, and what you catch

Rod + a stack of feathers
Use the Lure option. Each successful catch uses one feather.
Trout, then salmon too
Trout start at 20, salmon join at 30. Drop catches for XP, or bank them if you need the food.

Use the Lure option, rather than Bait, on a rod fishing spot.
Drop the fish as the inventory fills and click the spot again. On desktop, enable shift-click dropping in the game settings.
Bank only if you want the food. Cooking at the permanent Barbarian Village fire adds Cooking XP but slows the Fishing grind.

For a short early goal, the accessible spot usually matters more than travelling to the best possible one. Tempoross is a good next stop at 35; stay here if you prefer a simpler loop.

Fly fish from 20 to 58, keeping the same rod and feathers when salmon unlock at 30. Then switch to Barbarian Fishing with the Agility and Strength requirements below. Tempoross is an earlier alternative from 35 for rewards.

Levels 58–99: Barbarian Fishing and 3-tick fishing

48 Fishing to start; 58 for the usual route

Barbarian Fishing trains Agility and Strength alongside Fishing. Normal fishing is straightforward; 3-tick fishing is a worthwhile upgrade when you want a more active session.

Getting there: Speak to Otto at Otto’s Grotto by Baxtorian Falls and use the lake outside. A games necklace to Barbarian Outpost leaves a short run south. You can also walk north from East Ardougne.
Bring and unlock: Start Otto’s Fishing training and take the heavy rod from his bed. Bring feathers or suitable bait. Leaping trout need 48 Fishing and 15 Agility/Strength; salmon need 58 and 30/30; sturgeon need 70 and 45/45.

For normal fishing, click the heavy-rod spot and drop catches when full. Keep the free Agility and Strength XP in mind when comparing it with a faster Fishing-only method.
To learn 3-tick fishing, bring a clean guam, swamp tar and a pestle and mortar. Use the herb on the tar, then click the fishing spot before the tar-making action finishes.
Repeat that sequence every three game ticks, or 1.8 seconds. Practise the rhythm first; add dropping between cycles once catches are consistent.
If you make guam tar by mistake, replace the herb and restart. A spare grimy herb lets you recover without banking immediately.

Learning the rhythm. Start with a few minutes at a time. Your first attempts may be slower than normal fishing, but the skill transfers to other 3-tick methods. The planner’s advanced rate describes sustained cycles after practice, not a learning session.

The usual switch is at 58, when leaping salmon become available. Leaping sturgeon join the catch at 70, with 45 Agility and Strength. Stay to 99 with normal or 3-tick fishing, or try two-tick harpooning from 71 and leechfin from 78 for another active method.

Levels 71–99: 2-tick harpooning

An active alternative; crystal from 71 Fishing

One of the fastest Fishing options once you can keep the attack cycle running. You are using incoming attacks to trigger catches more often, so the setup matters as much as the harpoon.

Getting there: Use the Port Piscarilius harpoon spots and the nearby rats. Travel by Veos from Port Sarim, or use an unlocked Kourend teleport and walk to the docks.
Bring and unlock: A harpoon, low-damage equipment to lure two rats without killing them, and auto-retaliate enabled. Dragon needs 61 Fishing; a charged crystal harpoon needs 71 Fishing and Song of the Elves, with crystal-shard upkeep.

Lure two rats so their attacks reach you two ticks apart. Protect your Hitpoints while setting up without killing the rats.
Stand beside the fishing spot and let the attacks establish a regular two-tick rhythm.
Click the fishing spot on the same tick a hitsplat appears, repeating on the next attack. Drop catches between cycles.
Reset the rats if their attacks line up. Once comfortable, compare a sustained short session with 3-tick Barbarian Fishing.

Learn the attack timing before adding fast dropping

A game tick lasts 0.6 seconds. Each rat attacks every four ticks; you want their attacks staggered so one arrives, then the other two ticks later. If both hit together, you have one four-tick trigger instead of the two-tick rhythm you need. Move and re-establish the offset before continuing.

Auto-retaliate needs to be on, and you need to prevent your retaliation from killing the rats. Equip a shortbow without arrows and keep your harpoon in the inventory. Click the fishing spot on the same tick that a hitsplat appears, then add dropping once catches stay consistent. Equipping a weapon you can actually attack with can dismantle the setup.

Crystal is faster, but buying and charging it for a short goal may save little time. Barbarian Fishing also gives Agility and Strength XP; harpooning does not provide those same secondary gains.

From 71, a crystal-harpoon setup offers very fast training to 99. The two-tick technique can be used earlier with an ordinary harpoon, but it will not match the crystal rate. Start with the rat timing, then add fast dropping.

Levels 78–99: Leechfin

78 Fishing and The Blood Moon Rises

Fast Fishing with constant aiming, without a herb-tar cycle. It is a good fit if you enjoy reacting to the stream; cutting catches offers blood sacs and Cooking XP.

Getting there: Use Drakan’s medallion to reach the Castle Drakan portal, then enter Vampyrium. The river spots are south of the Ruined Village. Saving the Aranei scout on the hunting-ground path unlocks useful travel inside Vampyrium.
Bring and unlock: A big fishing net and free inventory space. The Angler outfit adds XP, but the fish barrel and catch enhancers do not work here. Bring a knife if you want to cut some catches.

Cast the net, then aim left, centre or right to meet the incoming fish.
Drop fish while the interaction continues. A full inventory stops fishing, so clear space before the last slot fills.
Watch for the lull after each group of 22 fish. Use it to drop the remaining catches or cut a few before the next group.
For a simpler supply-focused loop, cut full inventories. Cutting interrupts fishing and materially lowers Fishing XP; it adds Cooking XP and a chance of blood sacs.

Learn to recognise repeated lanes before trying to optimise every tick. Successful catches and failed catches both award XP, so dividing the whole goal by the success XP alone will overstate how many fish you take away.

From 78 after The Blood Moon Rises, aim for leechfin to train actively to 99. Drop catches for Fishing XP, or cut them when you want blood sacs and Cooking XP as well.

Low attention

Low-attention Fishing on land and at sea

For a quiet route, use ordinary catches near a bank until karambwan at 65. Their fixed land spot keeps the action running until your inventory fills. An open fish barrel doubles the fish you can carry, but you still need to empty it at a bank. Keep enough karambwanji for the trip and use your fairy-ring return route.

Anglerfish from 82 have longer gaps between catches and useful healing, with much slower XP than active Fishing. Choose them for the food and longer inventories. A higher Sailing setup can extend offshore sessions further.

Monkfish at seaAbout 3 to 4 minutes per inventory

The offshore spot stays in place. Cargo holds more fish, but a long bank trip can wipe out the time saved at the spot.

Anglerfish at seaAbout 6 to 7 minutes per inventory

A sloop and high-tier cargo can stretch the session to roughly one bank trip per hour. The Fishing XP remains low.

Offshore karambwan can also hold more fish, but the bank trip depends heavily on the raft and route. Compare the full round trip with your land spot before switching: holding more fish is only faster if unloading them does not take too long.

Deep Sea Trawling is another option when you want fish alongside Sailing training. For a dedicated Fishing grind, use the methods below to compare your remaining time.

Levels 62–99: Monkfish

62 Fishing and Swan Song

A simple banked-food method with a bank inside the colony. It is convenient if Swan Song is already done, but slower XP than active training.

Getting there: Use fairy ring AKQ and run north-west to the Piscatoris Fishing Colony. Before fairy rings, take Kathy Corkat’s boat from north-west of the Tree Gnome Stronghold. A Piscatoris teleport scroll is another direct option.
Bring and unlock: A small fishing net. Swan Song is required for the ordinary fishing spots after the quest; the quest’s fresh monkfish are separate items.

Net fish at the spots along the colony’s northern shore.
Bank full inventories inside the colony and return to an active spot.
Use the raw fish for Cooking or sell them. Compare this complete loop with your karambwan bank route before choosing a long goal.

Do not unlock a long quest chain solely to shave a little travel off a short Fishing goal. The colony is most useful when the quest already serves your account.

Start at 62 after Swan Song. At 65, compare karambwan if you want a fixed fishing spot and combo food; you can keep banking monkfish to 99 if the colony’s simple trip suits you.

Levels 65–99: Karambwan

65 Fishing

A fixed fishing spot and useful combo food make this a comfortable long-term choice, especially on an Iron. The barrel extends trips but is not required.

Getting there: Fairy ring DKP lands beside the north-east Karamja fishing spot. Without rings, travel to Karamja by ship and walk to the coast north of the Ship Yard. Plan a bank teleport and a way back before filling the first inventory.
Bring and unlock: Complete Tai Bwo Wannai Trio and learn the technique from Tiadeche. Bring a karambwan vessel and raw karambwanji. Catch the stackable bait with a small net in the lake south of Tai Bwo Wannai, near fairy ring CKR.

A karambwan supply trip

Vessel + bait
Load the vessel with raw karambwanji. Bring enough bait for the trip.
Fish at the fixed spot
An open fish barrel stores up to 28 extra catches. The spot does not move.
Bank, then return via DKP
Deposit the inventory and empty the barrel at a bank. Refill your bait before returning.

Put karambwanji into the vessel, then fish at the karambwan spot.
Open the fish barrel if you have one so catches fill it automatically. It holds 28 raw fish and can only be emptied at a bank or deposit box.
Teleport to your bank, deposit the fish, empty the barrel and return. A nearby fairy ring at your chosen bank or house makes a large difference.
Gather another bait stack before it runs out. Bait collection belongs in the time budget even though it is not a GE purchase.

Choose the return route before the first trip

A simple early bank loop is a ring of dueling to Castle Wars, then an Ardougne cloak to the monastery and a run east to the fairy ring south of Ardougne. Dial DKP to return to the fish. A quest point cape to the Legends’ Guild ring, or a fairy ring in your house, makes that return shorter later.

You must start Fairytale II far enough to use fairy rings; finishing the whole quest is not required. Carry a dramen or lunar staff until the elite Lumbridge diary removes that requirement. Without rings, the long walk from Karamja’s docks makes karambwan much less convenient than its stationary spot suggests; monkfish are an easier banked alternative if you have Swan Song.

For food, learn proper karambwan cooking from Tinsay after Tai Bwo Wannai Trio. Cooked karambwan heal 18 and can be eaten immediately after ordinary food for a quick combined heal. That makes them useful well beyond the levels where their Fishing XP looks attractive.

A slow bank route can eat up the benefit of the barrel. Test a few full trips with your own teleports and use that pace when planning a food stack.

From 65 after Tai Bwo Wannai Trio, bank karambwan for a relaxed route to 99. Anglerfish at 82 are an optional change for longer catches and different food, not an XP upgrade.

Levels 82–99: Anglerfish

82 Fishing

Long catches and food that can heal above your usual Hitpoints. Land spots can move unexpectedly; stationary boat-fishing spots nearby are an alternative for longer uninterrupted trips.

Getting there: Fish on the beach in Port Piscarilius. Take Veos from Port Sarim or use an unlocked Kourend teleport and travel to the north-east docks.
Bring and unlock: A fishing rod and sandworms, bought from Tynan’s shop nearby or the GE. A fish barrel lengthens trips. Diabolic worms catch fish faster but give 79.2 XP per catch instead of 120. Compare the extra bait cost with the extra food.

Use the Bait option on an anglerfish spot.
Bank when your inventory and barrel are full, empty the barrel at the bank and return.
Keep sandworms or diabolic worms topped up; the choice changes your cost per fish as well as the catch rate.

Measure a few full trips. It takes many catches to level here, so a short lucky inventory is a poor guide to your long-term pace.

From 82, catch anglerfish when you want long waits between catches and food for bossing. You can stay to 99, but karambwan or active methods finish Fishing much sooner.

Other worthwhile methods

These routes trade some Fishing-only speed for rewards, another skill or supplies you will use.

Levels 35–99: Tempoross

35 Fishing

Choose this for Fishing XP with reward permits, Spirit Flakes and a chance at useful equipment. Cooking the fish shifts the game towards rewards.

Getting there: Take Ferryman Sathwood’s ferry just south of Al Kharid bank to the Ruins of Unkah, then board the boat at the sea spirit dock. The Sorceress’s Garden Grouping teleport puts you near the ferry; a ring of dueling to the PvP Arena is another way into Al Kharid.
Bring and unlock: A harpoon, a hammer, a rope and two buckets of water. Supplies are available from the ship’s crates. An equipped harpoon saves an inventory slot; the full Spirit angler outfit replaces the rope.

The catch has two uses

Catch harpoonfish
Keep catching and loading during the shield phase.
Load raw for Fishing XP
Skipping the cook step leaves more time for Fishing.
Cook first for points
Cooked fish deal more damage and give more points when loaded. Fish the spirit pool when it opens.

Catch harpoonfish, favouring the jumping double-fish spots. Cook them at a shrine if you are playing for permits; load them raw for a faster Fishing XP game.
Load the cannons to drain Tempoross’s energy. Tether to a mast or totem when the wave warning appears, and use water on fires that block your route.
When Tempoross submerges, fish at the spirit pool to damage its essence. Return to catching and loading if another phase begins.
After the game, use your permits at the reward pool. The catch supplies from inside the fight are not ordinary bankable fish.

Follow the game’s three bars

EnergyLoad fish to bring it down

Catch harpoonfish and load the ship’s ammunition crate. Cook them first when aiming for more contribution points.

EssenceFish the pool at zero energy

Tempoross submerges. Stop collecting ordinary fish and use the spirit pool to reduce the essence bar.

Storm intensityDo not let it reach 100%

This is the phase deadline. Help load fish promptly; a growing storm is not an invitation to finish one more full inventory.

On your first games, take a hammer, rope and two buckets of water from the ship’s supplies. The full Spirit angler outfit replaces the rope; an individual piece does not. A wave can break a mast, so repair it with the hammer before trying to tether. Fires destroy fish and supplies rather than dealing ordinary combat damage. Refill buckets from a pump and clear a safe path.

Stay with one priority for the game. For reward permits, cooking and loading contribute more points; for Fishing XP, raw fish save cooking time. A mass world is a straightforward place to learn both phases. Solo point-maximising games depend on deliberately controlling phase timing and are a separate step after this loop is comfortable.

Learn on a mass world so you can watch the warnings and pool timing. Once the loop is familiar, decide whether you want faster XP or more permits instead of changing priorities halfway through every game.

Enter at 35 and stay for the rewards you want, or keep playing to 99. Cook fish for more permits; load them raw for more Fishing XP. A new Fishing level does not require leaving the activity.

Levels 47–99: Drift net fishing

47 Fishing and 44 Hunter

Strong combined training while both skills need XP. You pay for nets and get more Hunter XP than Fishing XP from the same session.

Getting there: After Bone Voyage, use the rowboat at Fossil Island’s north-east shore to reach the small island and dive underwater. The mushroom network and a bound digsite pendant shorten repeat trips. Speak to Ceto in the northern underwater area.
Bring and unlock: Drift nets, 200 numulites for a day’s access or 20,000 for permanent access. Wear the fishbowl helmet and diving apparatus from Freeing Pirate Pete. Flippers, run energy restoration and a suitable trident or dragon harpoon improve the chase.

Set a net on each anchor. You can leave noted spare nets with Annette.
Click a nearby fish shoal once to send it away from you towards a net. Move to line up the next shoal rather than repeatedly clicking the same one.
Replace each net after ten shoals. Keep both nets available to avoid wasting shoals against a full net.
Choose whether to pay numulites to bank the fish. Banking adds output value, but interrupts the fastest loop.

Stand behind the shoal you want to move

The shoal flees away from you. Put yourself on the side opposite the net, then click it so the chase sends it toward that net. If it heads the wrong way, change your position before clicking again. Work on nearby shoals while the first one travels, and keep both nets set.

Store spare nets with Annette before starting. Each net fills at ten shoals; replace it promptly and decide in advance whether you are paying to bank the fish. Empty nets and time spent chasing across the whole area are the common reasons a first session falls below the published rate.

The fast published rates assume good movement and almost continuous chasing. Use the combined Fishing and Hunter benefit to judge the net cost; it is much less attractive once one of those skills is finished.

From 47 Fishing and 44 Hunter, use drift nets while both skills need XP. Keep going as long as the combined training is worth the net cost; switch to a Fishing-only method once Hunter XP stops helping your account.

Equipment and reward choices

Where Tempoross fits

Tempoross unlocks at 35. Loading raw harpoonfish gives better Fishing XP. Cooking them first gives more points and reward permits. Harpoon tier changes the rate, so a crystal-harpoon table should not be applied to a regular-harpoon account.

The Fish Barrel and Tackle Box can each be bought for 6,000 Spirit Flakes after the August 2026 update. An Iron account no longer needs to stay until the barrel appears as a random permit reward. Stay for the broader rewards only if they suit the account.

Angler outfit and tools

The full Angler set gives 2.5% extra Fishing XP. It can take several hours to obtain, so it may not repay the detour on a short goal. Leechfin maximum tables assume the full set. Dragon, infernal and crystal harpoons also belong to different setups and should not share one rate.

XP rates

Fishing XP rates you can compare

Compare methods at the same Fishing level first. “Plan around” is the Training Planner’s expected rate; the benchmark is the published rate or faster setup behind it. A benchmark is not always a maximum: normal Barbarian Fishing and Fish Barrel rates already allow for parts of a real session.

At level 70: food, steady XP or faster clicks

All six rows use level 70 Fishing. The bars share one scale and show Fishing XP only.

Method and setup	Plan around Fishing XP/hr	Benchmark Fishing XP/hr
Karambwan Fast banking after Tai Bwo Wannai Trio. Banked food, with time spent gathering karambwanji.	Plan around · XP/hr28,600Includes gathering bait	Benchmark · XP/hr31,000Fish Barrel setup
Fly fishing Fast dropping, without an Angler outfit. Static spots remove the need to chase the fishing spot.	Plan around · XP/hr41,000Published normal rate	Benchmark · XP/hr45,100Static Prifddinas spots
Barbarian Fishing Heavy rod, feathers and dropping. Adds Agility and Strength XP without a tick cycle.	Plan around · XP/hr45,000Practical session rate	Benchmark · XP/hr48,000Published normal rate
Tempoross, no cook Regular harpoon, loading raw fish for XP. Cooking trades Fishing XP for more reward permits.	Plan around · XP/hr55,80090% planning estimate	Benchmark · XP/hr62,000Efficient no-cook games
Drift net fishing 44 Hunter, nets, numulites and active movement. These figures exclude the extra Hunter XP.	Plan around · XP/hr79,70090% planning estimate	Benchmark · XP/hr88,5501,150 shoals per hour
3-tick Barbarian Fishing Continuous herb-tar cycle and dropping. Learn the rhythm before expecting this pace.	Plan around · XP/hr81,00090% planning estimate	Benchmark · XP/hr90,000Practised 3-tick cycle

Where a reliable normal-session average is unavailable, the planner uses 90% of the benchmark, rounded here. These are planning estimates, not guaranteed output. A first session learning a tick cycle can be much slower.

Higher levels and their setups

The level is part of the result. Use the two level-90 rows to compare Leechfin with anglerfish; the level-99 crystal figure is a later goal.

Method and setup	Plan around Fishing XP/hr	Benchmark Fishing XP/hr
Level 78Leechfin Big fishing net and full Angler after The Blood Moon Rises. Drop the catches for Fishing XP.	Plan around · XP/hr98,10090% planning estimate	Benchmark · XP/hr109,000Every-tick aiming
Level 90Leechfin Same full Angler setup at a higher level. Cutting full inventories for sacs lowers the Fishing rate.	Plan around · XP/hr109,80090% planning estimate	Benchmark · XP/hr122,000Every-tick aiming
Level 90Anglerfish Long catches and banked food. Much less attention than Leechfin, with much slower levels.	Plan around · XP/hr20,70090% planning estimate	Benchmark · XP/hr23,000Ordinary worms
Level 992-tick crystal harpoon Song of the Elves, a charged crystal harpoon and the Port Piscarilius rat setup.	Plan around · XP/hr119,50090% planning estimate	Benchmark · XP/hr132,800Efficient rat cycle

Build a route for your level and goal → The planner adjusts rates as you gain levels instead of applying one row to the whole grind.

At level 99

The crystal 2-tick table lists 132,800 XP per hour, with 137,000 stated separately for perfect efficiency. Leechfin reaches 130,000 with full Angler, every-tick aiming and dropping catches. Cutting Leechfin for blood sacs reduces Fishing XP and eases the loop somewhat.

At Leechfin, dropping during the stream and cutting a few fish in the lull can preserve the Fishing pace. Cutting every full inventory is a different method: it gives more Cooking XP and blood sacs, but substantially less Fishing XP.

Iron accounts

Bank what the account needs

Opening
Quest into normal training
Use Sea Slug when convenient, then fly fish into Tempoross. Cooking at Tempoross is slower Fishing XP but gives more permits and Spirit Flakes.
Level 65
Decide whether food beats raw XP
After Tai Bwo Wannai Trio, karambwan provide a fixed spot and useful combo food. Account for karambwanji gathering and banking. The Fish Barrel extends the trip, but the no-barrel route remains valid.
Later
Use multi-skill methods deliberately
Barbarian Fishing is good when passive Agility and Strength XP still matter. Drift net fishing is stronger when Hunter also needs XP and you can afford the consumables.
Endgame
Choose food or a faster finish
Anglerfish bank useful food at 82 but train slowly. Leechfin and tick methods are faster; they do not replace the supplies your account still needs.

Tempoross stop point: do not use "stay until Fish Barrel" as a universal route. The 6,000-flake purchase gives you a deterministic fallback, and the remaining rewards may or may not justify more games.

Choose food for the content you will use it at

Food route	Why bank it	When to choose something else
Monkfish · 62 Fishing	Straightforward everyday food with a bank at the colony. Cooked monkfish heal 16.	The Swan Song chain is substantial if you only want a small food stack. Karambwan become more useful for quick combined heals.
Karambwan · 65 Fishing	Heals 18 and can follow an ordinary food in the same tick. Useful for boss mistakes as well as routine Slayer.	Collect bait and set up a bank return. The unmoving fishing spot cannot compensate for a very long round trip.
Anglerfish · 82 Fishing	Healing scales with Hitpoints and can raise you above your normal maximum. Useful to eat before a difficult fight.	Much slower Fishing XP. Build the supply you need, then return to faster training if levels are the goal.

Banking raw fish also leaves a Cooking job. Learn proper karambwan cooking from Tinsay after the quest; otherwise you will not be preparing the food described here. On a main, compare buying the finished food with fishing it yourself. On an Iron, a supply goal such as “enough karambwan for my next Slayer block” is often more useful than staying until an arbitrary Fishing level.

If you choose drift nets, include the time to obtain nets on an Iron. The strong combined rate is attractive while both Fishing and Hunter need levels; Rumours or Herbiboar may supply things you need more than a faster Hunter number.

Free to play

Net to 20, then fly fish for XP

Catch shrimps and anchovies with a small net until 20. Fly fishing trout and salmon is the standard XP route from there. Dropping is faster; banking gives you food at the cost of XP per hour.

Start at the shrimp spots on the Lumbridge Swamp coast, south of the graveyard, with a small fishing net. Anchovies join the same catches at 15 without a tool change. At 20, buy a fly fishing rod and feathers, go to Barbarian Village west of Varrock and choose Lure. Salmon join the trout from 30. The village’s permanent fire is convenient if you want to cook a small early food stack.

Lobsters and swordfish are reasonable when you want banked fish, but they are not faster training. Free to play does not have Tempoross, Barbarian Fishing, karambwan or the members quest route.

Clicks and client settings

Set up your fishing clicks

These RuneLite plugins are included with the client. Find them in the plugin configuration sidebar, turn them on and open their settings.

Fishing: identify the spot

Enable RuneLite’s Fishing plugin, then choose Display spot names or Display spot icons. Display spot tiles makes a moved spot easier to pick out. Start with the labels you find useful rather than enabling every overlay. For minnows, Show Minnow Movement overlay adds a countdown to the next movement.

Menu Entry Swapper: choose the right fishing action

For a spot with both Cage and Harpoon, enable the Harpoon swap in Menu Entry Swapper. For fish you intend to drop, enable Customizable left-click under Item Swaps, then Shift-right-click that fish in your inventory and set Drop. Keep bait, tools and useful catches on their usual actions. On the official mobile app, edit the fish’s long-press menu and move Drop to the top, then test one tap.

Set up the Drop action before practising tick manipulation so clearing your inventory fits into the fishing cycle.