How to Make Money

In Probably Stolen, make money early by flipping food and household goods and scavenging, then appraisals and the furnace, then water, wine, fish or batteries, and weapons late. Build one working business before buying more machines.

Early money in Probably Stolen comes from trading and scavenging, and KeenGamer's stage-by-stage order runs on through appraisals and the furnace to water, wine, fish, batteries and finally weapons.

Quick facts

Early	Food and household trading, scavenging
Early to mid	Appraisals
Mid	Furnace production
Mid to late	Water, wine, fish farming, battery recharging
Late	Weapon manufacturing

Trading

0:42 Buy from sellers below value and sell with your automatic retail markup, and take wholesale lots whenever you can place them: AllThingsHow bought a scrap pile for 64 and sold it for 92. See Bargaining for squeezing more. Upper Level Visitors pay the highest prices, and the customers you attract depend on Customers and Display Case.

Market events

Read the newspaper and calendar each morning. Water crises raise water prices, outages raise Energy Cell prices, and shady customers sell tips for 50. KeenGamer advises selling high-quality stock during a water spike, not clearing it beforehand.

Side income

Appraisals: join the Appraiser Board for 85 credits; see Appraisals.
Energy Cells: depleted cells bought cheap, charged and sold. TreyexGaming's playtest figure is about 1 credit per 100 kJ.
Scratchers: up to 350 credits, from bartering and scavenging.
Waste: the Corporate Waste Manager pays 100 credits per barrel.
Dr. Jackson: he buys only materials, at prices that rise in a shortage.
Bounties: the Wanted List totals 3,600 credits.
Vending Machines: they keep selling overnight, though KeenGamer says the landlord's offer added 150 to weekly rent for disappointing sales and advises declining.

Dead stock

Rent day has its own buyers: GitM met a Supply Runner selling at 50% markup and a Merchant buying at a 15% discount. The Merchant's cut now depends on difficulty. TreyexGaming sells spare manuals and extra magnifying glasses to B4, as noted in the playtest.

Frequently asked questions

What is the fastest way to make money in Probably Stolen? There is no proven fastest way this early; KeenGamer's run moves from trading to appraisals, furnace work, water or fish, then weapons.

Is contraband worth it in Probably Stolen? It pays the best margins, GameSpew calls weapons and contraband the real money, but seizure costs you the goods, so KeenGamer tells beginners to avoid it.

Should I take the vending machine offer in Probably Stolen? KeenGamer's run declined the landlord's offer because it added 150 to weekly rent, though Vending Machines bought otherwise keep selling overnight.