How to Do Heists in GTA Online: Requirements and How to Start

Heists are the centrepiece of GTA Online: multi-stage robberies with their own stories, setups and finales that pay better than almost anything else in the game. But you cannot host one the moment you create a character. Hosting has two firm requirements, and understanding them (plus the difference between hosting and joining) will save you a lot of confused wandering around Los Santos.

The Two Heist Requirements

Reach Rank 12. Hosting unlocks at rank 12, which takes 33,400 RP. That sounds like a wall, but contact missions, races and the tutorial itself will get a new player there within a few hours of ordinary play.

Own a high-end apartment. The original heists are planned from a dedicated planning room that only high-end apartments have, so the host must own one. The cheapest option in the game is Del Perro Heights at $200,000, which is why it is the standard first purchase for heist-minded players. Any high-end apartment works, so buy for location if money is no object.

Starting Your First Heist

With both boxes ticked, Lester Crest will call you. Accept his invitation to visit his garment factory, watch the cutscene, and your first heist unlocks: The Fleeca Job, a two-player bank robbery designed as an introduction to the whole format. From then on, heists are launched from the planning board in your apartment's planning room, where as leader you recruit the crew, pick the approach where a heist offers one, and assign roles and vehicles. Friends can be invited directly, or you can matchmake with other players.

Hosting vs Joining

Anyone can join a heist as a crew member from much earlier in the game, but the host carries extra responsibility and cost. The host pays the setup fee for the heist, earns nothing during the setup missions themselves, and is compensated with control over the finale payout splits. Crew sizes vary by heist: the original apartment heists mostly need four players, Fleeca needs just two, and later heists such as the Diamond Casino Heist accept two to four. One famous exception to every rule is the Cayo Perico Heist, the only major heist that can be played completely solo.

How Setups and Finales Work

Every heist follows the same rhythm. First come the setup missions: guided prep jobs such as stealing a getaway vehicle, scoping a location or eliminating a target, all launched from the planning board. Finish them all and the finale unlocks, the big score itself. On the original heists, one player dying or disconnecting fails the mission for everyone, so a reliable crew matters as much as a skilled one. Later heists are more forgiving, but the structure of prep, finale and payout split has stayed the same ever since.

Tips for Your First Heists

Run The Fleeca Job first; it is short, teaches the planning-room flow and pays a respectable amount for two players. Play heists on Hard once your crew is comfortable, since the original heists pay noticeably more, roughly a 25% uplift, for the same work. Keep snacks and armour stocked from the Interaction Menu, because several finales are long firefights. And when you are the host, be generous with splits early on: a happy, returning crew is worth more than a few extra percent.