GTA Online players can earn money in many different ways, including businesses, contact missions and Freemode events.
Heists are the best way to earn the most cash at once. They generally require players to team up with friends and execute a carefully planned operation.
Here is a list of all the heists in the game, ranked according to their maximum potential take.
Note: All the payouts mentioned are achievable by playing the missions on hard mode
GTA Online Heists ranked according to payout
8) The Flecca Job (Maximum Payout: $143,750)
This is the very first heist GTA Online players can do after purchasing a high-end apartment.
The mission only requires two players and a setup cost of $11,500. It is designed to be a tutorial of sorts as Lester Crest helps players rob a Fleeca Bank branch in Banham Canyon.
This is also the only heist to pay $50,000 instead of $100,00 for completing the Elite Challenge.
7) The Prison Break (Maximum payout: $500,000)
This is the first heist in the game to require a full team of four players. The team must carefully execute every step in order to break Professor Maxim Rashkovsky out of Bolingbroke Penitentiary. The setup cost for this heist is $40,000.
The mission is the lowest-paying heist among those that require a four-man team.
6) Series A Funding (Maximum payout: $505,000)
Series A Funding is a heist that brings Trevor into GTA Online. It is planned by Ron, CEO of Trevor Phillips Industries.
This is the fourth heist to be unlocked but pays less than the Humane Labs Raid. Understandably, this also has a lower setup cost of $40,400.
A full four-man team is required for this heist.
5) Humane Labs Raid (Maximum payout: $675,000)
The Humane Labs Raid is a mission that requires a full team to break into a lab and steal a couple of important files.
Once the EMP is activated, the lights go out, and two members must break into the facility and recover the files. Meanwhile, the other members must wait in a chopper outside and fight off waves of enemy reinforcements.
The setup cost for this heist is $54,000.
4) The Pacific Standard Job (Maximum payout: $1,250,000)
Another mission that was a part of the Heists DLC, the Pacific Standard Job lets players experience a classic Hollywood bank robbery from the eyes of the criminal. It requires a full team of four members who are given specific roles.
The setup cost ($100,000) for this heist is considerably higher owing to the large payout.
3) The Doomsday Heist (Maximum payout: $3,412,000)
This is the longest heist in GTA Online and has three acts. Each act has its own setup cost and missions, playing out like a heist on its own. The $3.4 million takeaway is a cumulative figure.
Act 1
The Data Breach has a setup cost of $65K and pays out $812K.
Act 2
The Bogdan Problem has a setup cost of $95K and pays out $1.1 million.
Act 3
The Doomsday Scenario has a setup cost of $120K and pays out $1.5 million.
2) Diamond Casino Heist (Maximum payout: $3,619,000)
The Diamond Casino Heist is one of the more recent heists to be added to GTA Online, and it changed a lot of things.
Firstly, this mission has different approaches that players can choose from. These approaches have their separate setup costs and missions; they also play out very differently from each other.
The DCH also introduced players to the variable loot pool mechanic. The Casino vault can hold any one of the items mentioned below (along with their payout).
- Cash - Max Potential Take (3 players, Hard): $2,326,500
- Artwork - Max Potential Take (2 players, Hard): $2,585,000
- Gold - Max Potential Take (3 players, Hard): $2,843,500
- Diamonds - Max Potential Take (2 players, Hard): $3,619,000
1) Cayo Perico Heist ($4,570,600)
The Cayo Perico Heist is the latest addition to the GTA Online heists list and is, by far, the best one. The heist requires players to travel to Juan Strickler's (El Rubio) island and loot his compound for Miguel Madrazo.
The unique feature of CPH is that it can also be done solo, which makes grinding it a lot easier. Like the DCH, this mission also has a variable loot pool after the first attempt, which tasks the players with stealing files from a safe.
Other primary targets along with their payouts are:
- Sinsimito Tequila: $990,000 (hard)
- Ruby Necklace: $1,100,000 (hard)
- Bearer Bonds: $1,210,000 (hard)
- Pink Diamond: $2,090,000 (hard)
This GTA Online heist also features secondary loot. These are listed below:
- Cash: $313,920-$357,680
- Artwork: $352,400-$399,400
- Weed: $389,300-$398,050
- Cocaine: $441,000-$450,000
- Gold: $492,876-$499,788
Of the eight total Heists in GTA Online, the first five were added via the Heists DLC. They are fairly straight-forward and do not pay huge sums of money on completion.
The remaining three were included in titular DLCs over time. They are much more intricate and can be challenging at times.