Introduction

Constantly changing classes is one of the most unique and exciting parts of Final Fantasy XIV. You are never stuck with what you started with, you can try out every single way the game can be played and pick your favorite! But in order to do so, you will have to go through of a lot of leveling up.

There are plenty of different ways to level up and it can be overwhelming for new players and returning veterans alike. So, I wrote this guide. The main goal is to list and explain the main ways to get EXP while keeping in mind the goal of a game is to have fun! Once you know all the different ways to level, you will be able to maximize your EXP gains while doing content you enjoy the most.

I have been playing FFXIV since 2.5, and have been maxing every single job from Hevensward onward, so I have some experience getting experience. In this guide, I will explain when you should (and shouldn't) focus on leveling up, detail the different ways to get EXP, but also go in-depth on topics like how combat EXP works and the strategy I follow every expansion to max out all jobs.

This guide is peppered with trivia and info you might not know about the game, and has been written with a singular focus: like Final Fantasy XIV itself, reading this guide should be fun. If you enjoy a more visual format, I made a video of this guide! You basically exchange the trivia bits with some great tracks from the game, it's up to you. I hope you enjoy this guide, and find it useful!

1/ Playing through the story

Before you start getting EXP bonuses, leveling specific jobs and making sure you have the correct boosting items and buffs, you will need to play through the Main Scenario Quests. Every single piece of content in the game is tied to finishing a specific chapter of the MSQ. More importantly, I believe the story in FFXIV is really something special, and you only get to experience it for the first time once, so you shouldn't let leveling get in the way of your enjoyment!

If you are worried about not being high level enough to access the next MSQ, as they do have a level requirement, don't be! As long as you focus on one job, you will be fine. The last time I got stuck on the MSQ because my level was too low was the release of Heavensward, at a time when most of the different ways to acquire EXP hadn't been implemented yet. Trust me, you will be locked out of content because of your MSQ progress before you get locked out of MSQ because of your level.

That being said, here are a few tricks to help maximize your EXP gain while playing through the game's main story:

• There is no need to be more than 2 levels ahead of the MSQ. They give a good amount of EXP that should be given to another job if possible.
• The first time you finish a dungeon, you get a significant EXP boost. It is one of your main sources of EXP during the MSQ. Keep this in mind whenever you unlock new content.
• Starting a new class or job is the perfect way to take a break from the story for a bit. It will also prevent you from overleveling your main job.

2/ Do I really want to level other jobs?

While getting every job to the maximum level as soon as possible is tempting, it is also important to note that leveling a job early on during an expansion takes longer than later down the patch cycle. Square Enix always adds fresh content, allowing you to catch up on underleveled jobs, such as:

• Palace of the Dead (Heavensward), Heaven-on-High (Stormblood), The Bozjan Southern Front (Shadowbringers).
• New Beast Tribes with their daily quests.
• Relic weapons and gear, which often requires you to do older duties.

Additionally, most of an expansion's content is unlocked at that expansion's maximum level and you get an EXP boost for playing at a level lower than your highest-level job (+100% EXP up to level 80, +50% otherwise, only on specific content) meaning you should always focus on a main job until maxed.

Playing and leveling other jobs keeps your gaming experience fresh during downtime between major patches, so having some underleveled jobs might be more fun in the long run than getting everything maxed out right away.

3/ The main ways to get EXP in FFXIV

Duty Roulettes

The most straightforward and best-known way to get EXP is the daily Duty Roulette bonus. Every day, you get a plethora of bonuses, including EXP, the first time you do each roulette in the Duty Finder, represented by the blue arrow in the Reward box. This bonus is synced to your current level, and not every roulette rewards the same EXP. Which roulettes you should do depends on what you want: fun content, short time spent or big EXP bonuses.

Here is the list of roulettes you can do, ordered by my personal level of recommendation:

Again, your choice is highly dependent on what you are currently looking for. Alliance Raids and Main Scenario roulettes are absolutely worth doing if you want as much EXP as possible, but considering they reset every day, you may not have time to do much else in the game if you choose to include them. Remember that the most important part is to have fun, which is why the roulettes I recommend the most offer a good tradeoff between enjoyment and time spent.

Finally, as tempting as the Adventurer in Need bonus is gil and token-wise, the EXP reward is actually insignificant. You are better off ignoring this bonus and spending more time in the queue while doing other activities if you want to level a specific job. Also, if you always follow the recommendation, Duty Roulette can quickly become Tank Roulette which, from personal experience, tends to suck the fun out of the role. Tanking is fun, do it when you want to!

Dungeons

While doing dungeons as part of Duty Roulettes will grant you EXP bonuses, dungeons themselves grant a significant amount of EXP and are one of the best ways to level up. The EXP you gain is combat EXP, meaning it can be increased by different means. It is also the only way to get EXP that rewards you with gear directly, as the other way to get gear without buying or crafting it is to exchange it for Poetics Tomestones obtained from roulettes. As better gear means more damage, which means faster content, which means more efficient leveling, it is a good idea to focus on doing the dungeon closest to your level if you feel undergeared.

Most importantly, by doing dungeons, you actually get to play your job the way it was intended, with a good mix of multi and single-target, buildup and usage of resources, cooldown management and boss mechanics. Running your level appropriate dungeon is the best way to learn, understand and enjoy the job you are playing, and combining it with daily roulettes provides the most straightforward yet efficient way to level up.

Challenge Log

A good EXP boost can be found in the Challenge Log. Unlockable at Limsa Lominsa at level 15, it is a weekly log of activities with varying rewards... including EXP! As daunting as it may look, there are only 5 challenges that interest us:

• Feeling Lucky (complete 3 dungeons via the Duty Roulette) and Dungeon Master (complete 5 dungeons).
• Exercising the Right (vote 5 times in player commendation).
• In your Fate I and II (get the gold rating in 5 and 10 FATEs).

You will get Feeling Lucky, Dungeon Master and Exercising the Right while doing your daily roulettes. Be careful, however, to get those for the correct job, as you can achieve them on a max level job and miss the EXP boost.

In your Fate I and II are pretty quick and require you to complete FATEs, which bring me to the next way to get EXP...

FATEs

FATEs are events that randomly appear in every zone of the game. They are small quests that grant you EXP, gils and a specific currency. The amount you get depends on your level of contribution to the FATE (bronze, silver or gold) and the level of the FATE itself, which is determined by the level of the zone you are in. There are 5 different types of FATE objectives: kill waves of enemies, kill one or multiple bosses, collect items, defend an objective and escort an ally.

During A Realm Reborn and Heavensward, FATEs were the only way to level up efficiently. They remain a fantastic way for several reasons:

• The EXP to time spent ratio is extremely good.
• You can always find FATEs at your exact level.
• Joining a group can make farming a lot quicker.
• You can start and stop FATEs at your leisure.
• It is possible to queue for other content and do FATEs while waiting.

As more ways to level up were introduced, FATEs got some small upgrades to keep up. From Stormblood onwards, some FATEs can spawn with a symbol indicating you get an EXP bonus when accomplished, regardless of your contribution. This bonus is significant enough to warrant dropping everything and going for that FATE as soon as you see it. There is also a chance for an extra elemental to appear in any FATE which, when defeated, grants a boost to the next FATE you complete.

Here are some tricks to FATE farming:

• Joining a group is highly recommended if you plan on farming FATEs in the same zone. Not only does it help coordinate with other players and get their buffs, but any progress made by any party member counts as yours, making for easy golds. Note that you still have to contribute to the FATE at least once.
• The progress required to complete a FATE is dependent on the current zone's FATE activity. If you are in a zone where a lot of FATEs are being completed, each subsequent FATE will progress slower to compensate (up to a predetermined limit). The opposite is also true, meaning if you enter a zone with no previous FATE activity, progress will go quickly and FATEs will finish fast, even with a single player contributing. Knowing that, if you start a FATE and see progress go really slowly, either join the current FATE group or go to another zone.
• The amount of EXP you get from a FATE is based on its level, but it will be harder to get a gold contribution if you are underleveled. Joining a group solves that issue and allows you to complete FATEs of a higher level than your current one. Also note that enemies are usually at a lower level than their FATE.
• Since FATEs involve a lot of combat, your Companion Chocobo is a tremendous help. Remember to summon it!

As good as it looks, there are quite a few issues with leveling up via FATEs:

• Most FATEs are completed by rounding up enemies and spamming area-of-effect abilities; not the most interesting way to play the game.
• There are a finite number of FATEs in a zone, and you very quickly repeat the same ones over and over.
• If a zone has a lot of FATE activity, you may be required to join a group to get a gold contribution or finish a FATE, which prevents you from queuing for other content.
• You only get rewards from a completed FATE if you are in the same zone the moment it finishes. If you are not present for any reason, your Duty Finder queue popped for example, you don't receive anything.
• Some of the endgame content, like Eureka, Bozja or Shared FATEs, amounts to FATE grinding. Leveling up jobs using FATEs as well can make the game feel similar and tiresome.

In my opinion, FATE farming should be done in short bursts, either in-between other grinds as a pallet cleanser or while you wait for a roulette. The best way to incorporate FATEs during leveling is to do a couple of FATEs on your way through a zone: during MSQ or side quests, while gathering with Disciples of the Land or in-between hunting marks. Which brings me to...

Hunts

Knowing what hunts actually are can be confusing since the same term is used to describe different systems. There are 4 types of content that can be referred to as hunts, with only the first 2 giving out EXP:

• The Hunting Log (A Realm Reborn only)
• Daily hunt marks via the Hunt Board
• Weekly Elite hunt marks (also called B-Rank)
• Group hunts (also called A-Rank and S-Rank)

The Hunting Log is 2.x specific and gives you a list of enemies to defeat for each class, rewarding you with a one-time EXP bonus when completed. It is a good way to complement leveling and should be done with each new class but becomes irrelevant past level 50.

The Hunt Board in its current form was introduced in Heavensward and added to each subsequent expansion. Every day, you get a list of enemies to defeat for EXP, gils and a specific currency. Up to 3 daily mark bills can be unlocked per expansion, with enemy levels going up per bill, up to the expansion's maximum. Each expansion's hunt mark bills are accessible at its specific Hunt Board and have a prerequisite quest:

Mark bills are a fantastic way to get experience, yet are often overlooked for a simple reason: the EXP gain. The EXP you get from hunting marks is comparable to completing a FATE, and considering marks are in every zone of an expansion, most of the time is spent teleporting. But there are a lot of reasons that make hunting a really strong way to supplement your EXP grind and my personal favorite:

• On the way to your marks, you can stop to clear FATEs. If you happen to be doing hunts from an older expansion, chances are FATEs will have been left alone for a while, thus being at their smallest completion requirement.
• Unlike FATEs, if you find a party via the Duty Finder while hunting, you do not lose your current progress.
• Going through different zones provides a good change of scenery and allows you to take a breather from non-stop EXP grinding.
• Hunting is a good way to get accustomed to your job's skills, spells, abilities and rotation without pressure, and to level up your companion.
• Hunt marks are available in each expansion and makes leveling multiple jobs of different levels a smooth experience. You can hunt with a level 55 and a level 75 job at the same time without one job hindering the progress of the other, as opposed to roulettes where only one job gets the daily bonus.
• You get money on top of the EXP gain (fixed gil reward per mark x 5 marks x 3 daily bills per expansion) and at maximum level have access to a weekly Elite mark with a bounty of 5,000 gils and tokens which can be used to buy hunt-specific rewards.
• Since hunt marks take you through every zone of an expansion, they will lead you to the daily Beast Tribes quests' location.

Daily Beast Tribe quests

Some side quests introduce you to a Beast Tribe and you can increase your reputation with the tribe by doing daily quests. Each Beast Tribe is added in a major patch and has a specific zone it is tied to. You can do 3 daily quests per Beast Tribe, up to a maximum of 12 quests each day. Daily quests reward you with EXP, gils, reputation and tokens specific to each tribe.

Daily Beast Tribe quests are quick to do and are synced to your current job level in both difficulty and EXP reward, albeit limited to the expansion's maximum level. There are a lot of tribes that have been introduced with each expansion, with significant EXP rewards only being a factor since Heavensward, and there are even specific tribes focused on Disciples of the Hand and Land. Here are the Beast Tribes relevant to us:

Daily Beast Tribe quests are a great addition to a hunt marks and FATEs tour, especially considering each tribe is independent from one another and they cover several expansions. Like hunt marks, you can focus on several jobs of varying levels at the same time, your only limit being 12 daily quests per day. Also, when you increase your reputation rank with a tribe, you are allowed 3 more quests (the daily maximum remains the same however).

As an added benefit, once you reach the maximum reputation with a tribe, you can purchase several rewards, with at least one unique mount and minion. Getting all Beast Tribes at maximum reputation unlocks a quest for A Realm Reborn, Heavensward and Stormblood. So, you get bonus EXP while still experiencing what the game has to offer. On that topic...

Side quests

Most of your time will be spent doing quests, first with the MSQ, then with the plethora of side quests that unlock. While they provide a one-time reward only, getting the most out of your side quests can give you a pleasant EXP boost where needed. Here's a few tricks to help you quest efficiently:

• Always check the minimum level required and give the quest reward to a job close to that level even if the EXP reward of a quest is synced; the added synced EXP is marginal.
• While only 5 quest locations can be displayed at the same time on the map, completed quest locations are always displayed. To get rid of a quest cluster quickly, pick up all the quests at once and every time you complete one, ignore the quest in the Journal by clicking the checkbox twice. Another quest location will take its place, yet the end location will still be displayed on the map.
• You only get EXP when you complete a quest via the dialog box. Apart from Beast Tribe quests, nothing prevents you from doing a quest with your preferred job, only to switch at the very end. You can also cancel the quest completion dialog box if you like to get the reward on another job.

Catch-up content

Each expansion introduced a different way to quickly level up alt jobs once you have completed the main storyline. This catch-up content is extremely efficient and is probably the most recommended way to level through previous expansions. As compelling as the EXP gain is, there are 2 main reasons why I would discourage you from exclusively relying on it:

• It is really grindy and requires you to go through the same content from start to finish with little variation.
• You do not need to know how to play your job neither does it teach you the way it works.

Still, it is a solid way to get lower-level jobs up to speed, so here is all the info you need to get going:

4/ The ARR anomaly (from level 1 to 50)

The 2.x content was made differently from the rest of the game and, as such, some key leveling components are missing or changed. Hunting marks are effectively replaced with the Hunting Log, Beast Tribe quests don't reward with enough EXP to be worth it and dungeon levels are sporadic. Fortunately, there are more ways to level up in A Realm Reborn!

Levequests

Levequests are small repeatable quests. Once unlocked as part of the main story, you need to talk to each camp's Levemete to unlock levequests in this specific region. Leves are separated into 3 categories depending on the type of class required to do them: Battlecraft leves for Disciples of War and Magic, Tradecraft leves for Disciples of the Hand and Fieldcraft leves for Disciples of the Land. Accepting a levequest requires you to use an allowance which you automatically generate 3 of every 12 hours, up to 100. You can see how many levequests allowances you have at the bottom right of your Journal.

Leves are mostly used for leveling up Disciples of the Hand and Land, so much so that no Battlecraft leves have been added since Heavensward. But if you are leveling a class in A Realm Reborn, they remain a decent EXP boost for a few reasons:

• Since a single levemete provides leves for a specific region and most levequests have a similar starting location, you can accept several quests, complete them and get your rewards, all at the same time. Rinse and repeat!
• You can adapt the quest level to yours when you start. You can even choose a higher level if you have good gear and are feeling confident.
• Levequests are available in every area of A Realm Reborn, so you can always take a quick "leve-break" when you feel like it.
• There are 2 challenges in the Challenge Log linked to levequests: Making Like a Tree (complete 20 levequests) and Just Leve it to Me (complete 5 levequests with different leve plates - the drawing on the top right of a levequest in the Journal).

Guildhests

Designed to be small tutorials, Guildhests are brief encounters that teach you one specific game mechanic. They are really short and don't provide much experience once you hit level 50, if any. Until then though, they are a fast and easy way to get some EXP bumps. To start doing guildhests, you first need to unlock levequests. Then, complete a quest dependent on your starting city (Limsa Lominsa, Gridania or Ul'dah) to unlock guildhests and the associated roulette. If you are playing a job under level 50, you absolutely should do guildhests:

• The first time you complete a guildhest, you get a hefty EXP bonus. Like the Hunting Log, it is a one-time bonus unique to each class. When you unlock a new class, do not forget to go through your guildhests!
• You automatically unlock 2 guildhests every 5 levels from level 10 to 50. Add to that the specific Duty Roulette and you have some quick content you can easily queue for while doing other things.
• There are 2 challenges relating to guildhests: You're the Hest Around I and II (complete 3 and 10 guildhests).

5/ Miscellaneous tips and tricks

Combat EXP

In FFXIV, you have 2 distinct ways of getting EXP: defeating an enemy (encounters in the world, dungeon bosses...) or completing an objective (FATEs, roulettes, challenges...). The EXP you get for defeating enemies is called combat EXP and is special because it can be increased by different means. You can tell by what percent your EXP got boosted in parentheses next to it.

Here are the main ways of increasing your combat EXP (note that they can stack):

Companion

Probably the biggest help to a newer player yet easily missable, the Chocobo Companion makes for a fantastic sidekick while hunting, grinding FATEs or doing any solo content. Once you unlock it at level 30, you can summon your companion by using Gysahl Greens and it will help you in combat. It also gains levels and will be able to learn abilities and passive traits from 3 trees: Defender, Healer and Attacker.

The Chocobo Companion is fairly straightforward, yet there are a few things I would recommend you do once you get it:

• Focus on getting the Healer skills first, as it will help you survive FATEs and prolonged encounters, and the damaging abilities are not powerful enough to make a real difference. Once that is done, you can spread your points around to boost your companion's stats.
• Use your Chocobo Companion often! Gysahl Greens are cheap and available everywhere, and the main way to get companion EXP is to either fight enemies or complete your 2 weekly challenges from the Challenge Log. A high-level companion can allow you to solo some pretty difficult encounters.
• There are a few items to boost your companion's stats if you wish: Sylkis Bud (attack), Mimett Gourd (healing), Tantalplant (HP), Pahsana Fruit (enmity) and Curiel Root (EXP gain).

Role leveling

One of the biggest issues you will run into if you decide to max out every job is inventory space. You will always want to have the best gear for your level, which means keeping gear for several jobs since any piece of equipment can be worn by every job with the same role, except for melee DPS. As such, in order to keep your inventory as clean as possible, I would recommend leveling up every job in a specific role one after the other. You can then get rid of all equipment related to that role and start another one. Of course, if you have other ways to get gear, don't really mind having suboptimal equipment or have a lot of inventory space, feel free to level jobs in any order you want.

Wondrous Tails

Unlocked at level 60 in Idyllshire, Wondrous Tails is a weekly journal requiring you to complete varying duties, from dungeons and trials to raids and PvP. There are 16 activities to choose from but you only need to complete 9, and can even redo some you have already completed. What makes this journal worth the detour are the rewards, which include endgame tokens, money, minions and even a unique mount if you are really lucky!

More relevant to the quest for EXP though is the really good boost you get for completing 9 duties. Since you can only get 1 journal every week, you will most likely complete it while doing roulettes, if you remember to Second Chance Retry the relevant dungeon activities. And cherry on top, you only get the EXP when you hand in the journal, meaning you can choose exactly when and on which job you want the bonus.

Trust

Introduced in Shadowbringers, the Trust system is a way to do dungeons with NPC party members. One of the biggest downsides of using your Trust instead of a normal party is that the dungeon takes longer to complete, about 15 minutes more on average. But considering dungeon leveling is really efficient and provides you with equipment, the Trust system turns out to be a stress-free way to learn and gear any job, while removing the queue waiting time. Note that you get less pieces of gear per dungeon with a Trust, but are ensured anything that drops. Good if you tend to be unlucky on rolls.

6/ The Ultimate Expansion Leveling Strategy

Knowing more about the different ways to level up should already help your journey tremendously, but putting everything together into a general guideline to follow will allow us to get the most out of every single EXP gain and have fun while doing it!

One factor to take into account is synced EXP versus fixed EXP. While roulettes, daily quests and the Challenge Log reward EXP dependent on your current job's level, FATEs, hunts and dungeon runs give out a fixed amount of EXP. That means we should try to get the most of our fixed EXP where we can, and get synced EXP bonuses when leveling gets harder. Also, since the leveling experience has been very similar from one expansion to the next since Heavensward, we only need to come up with a good strategy for a single expansion and it will be applicable to every other, including Endwalker.

Using all the knowledge we now possess, here is a fun yet efficient strategy to level up in FFXIV in any expansion:

Doing dungeons at their level is one of the most efficient ways to gain EXP, and will also grant us relevant gear. If we are looking to level up a job at an odd level, it is definitely our go-to. Once we are past the dungeon level, we should take advantage of all the daily and weekly content to bridge the gap to the next odd level. If we run out of synced EXP content, doing more of our level relevant dungeon is still very much worth it, and we could realistically level a job pretty quickly by only doing dungeons.

The best aspect of this strategy, and the most important, is that we vary the content we do while still playing the job. One of the biggest issues with the most efficient ways to level up is the fact that we barely have to learn the job we play. Mixing dungeon and roulette content allows us to understand a job while leveling it up. Of course, if you don't particularly like the job in question, you can absolutely focus on daily quests, Alliance and Main Scenario roulettes, and FATEs.

The first level of any expansion (from x0 to x1) is particularly difficult to get through, mainly because the item level difference between early and late expansion gear is huge. You get in a spot where the x9 content does not reward with enough EXP to be worth grinding and the new x0 content is really far stats-wise and tough to do efficiently. As such, it is recommended to give synced EXP to any job at a x0 level to get them started on an expansion. Once you hit a x1 level, things get a lot smoother, and you can start gearing and leveling via dungeons again.

Remember though: this strategy is only a recommendation. At the end of the day, the only thing that matters is how much fun you are having. If you really enjoy the dungeon at your current level, play it for 2 levels and ignore all the daily content. If you don't, ignore the dungeon and do everything else. I have certainly done both depending on the job I was leveling; we all have our favorites! If you enjoy playing the game, it doesn't matter if you are being efficient, you will naturally play more, level up more and most importantly: have fun!

Conclusion

You are now ready to get every single job to the maximum level! I sincerely hope this guide was helpful and that you have learned a few things along the way. I understand it may be a lot of knowledge at once, so remember you can bookmark this guide and come back to it when you need to or to double-check information.

I have tried to keep a good balance between concise and detailed. If you spot any mistakes or missing elements, feel free to contact me. We may even meet in-game, I am Lyrara Lyra on Moogle, always ready and willing to help newer players!

Finally, the one thing you should remember about this guide, whether you are leveling up, focusing on specific jobs or coming up with personal ways to maximize your EXP: enjoy yourself in Final Fantasy XIV!