If you're looking to level up your runes quickly in Elden Ring, there are a few items and locations you can use. One of the best is the Golden Scarab talisman, which increases your rune earnings by 20%.
Another great option is the Palace Approach Ledge-Road Site of Grace. Here, you can walk past the sleeping Albinaurics (worth 2000 runes each) and backstab them instead of fighting them.
Best Places to Farm Runes
There are several good locations to farm elden ring runes. One of the best is located west of Godrick, in the abandoned cave that you enter through the Haligtree Secret Medallion. There are a couple of Cleanrot Knights in here that can be tough to take down, but they drop a lot of Runes when killed. The cave is also home to a Golden Scarab talisman, which increases Rune acquisition by 20%.
The other great location for early Rune farming is the old Albunauric village at Moghwyn's Place. Once you reach the Palace Approach Site of Grace, fast-travel back to Limgrave and ride Torrent to this location. Then, immediately start killing the old Albunaurics that are hunched down. This will yield you over 3,000 Runes in less than a minute.
Unlike the villagers at the Site of Grace, the old Albunaurics here don't respawn until you kill them. If you repeat this process with the Golden Scarab talisman equipped, you can make a decent amount of money in a short amount of time.
Best Enemies to Farm Runes
There are a number of enemies that can net you substantial amounts of Runes. Defeating them will reward both the elden ring runes and a significant amount of EXP, which is useful for leveling up your Tarnished character.
A particularly easy rune farming spot can be found in southern Caelid. There's a massive castle named Castle Redmane, and it's a good place to farm. You don't actually need to go inside, though - there are fire-wielding knights and monstrous dogs fighting it out in the front yard, and as long as you stay hidden you can watch them rake in the rewards without worrying about getting killed.
This method won't earn you nearly as many runes as the methods involving the dragon, but it's still fairly quick and easy. If you equip the Golden Scarab talisman and the Golden Pickled Foul Foot consumable, your rune gain will be doubled. Resting at the nearby Site of Grace will reset all of the enemies that're bound to spawn in response to you showing up, making this an incredibly reliable rune farming location.
Best Ways to Farm Runes
Whether you're levelling up or simply need to earn some quick elden ring runes, there are several ways to go about it. You'll need a few key pieces of equipment, including a weapon with an area of effect and the Golden Scarab talisman, which boosts Rune acquisition by 20%.
One of the easiest methods for early-game rune farming, as well as endgame rune farming before the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC comes out in June, involves a trip to Caelid. You'll need to have unlocked the horse Torrent and progressed through Stormveil Castle and defeated Godrick the Grafted, but after that it should be easy enough. Once there, rest at the Palace Approach Ledge-Road site of grace and look over toward a small cliff area. You should see a flightless bird stalking around the bottom of the cliff -- fire your weapon or spell at it to cause it to cartwheel right off and die, netting you a decent amount of Runes.
Best Time to Farm Runes
Depending on your level, the best time to farm runes in Elden Ring can be at the end of the game or the beginning. At the beginning of the game, you can find a great farming spot at the Dragon-Burnt Ruins South of Lake Agheel. Killing the enemies in the area can give you a large payout of Golden Runes.
In addition, you can hit up the Palace Approach Ledge sites of grace to rake in even more runes. Here you can find a bird enemy that you can shoot with an arrow, causing it to fall off the cliff and drop over 17,000 elden ring runes on NG! This is a great way to fill your rune coffers and make any late grinding much less painful. As you progress into the later parts of the game, you can also visit places like Caelid and Mohgwyn Palace, although these areas are a bit too high-level for early rune farming.
