Highlights

• Finding it hard to keep up with Souls prices in Dark Souls? Farm enemies efficiently in Darkroot Basin with the hidden bonfire.
• In Valley of the Drakes, take on Drakes for 1000 Souls each. Unique enemies can be profitable sources of Souls and item drops.
• Need a quick boost of Souls? Hunt down Man-Eater Shells in Crystal Caves, dropping 2000 Souls each along with valuable items.

Souls are an all-important currency in Dark Souls. They are used to purchase items, upgrade equipment, and even level up one's character. With the ever-increasing difficulty of Dark Souls, however, players can soon find themselves struggling to get by as prices increase to buy the spells, infuse weapons, and buy armor.

When this happens, players must resort to the age-old method of farming. But what are the best Dark Souls Soul farming areas at each point in the game? And, more importantly, in which areas can players easily get Souls without worrying something will come along and kill them? Players should prepare thoroughly, as they're going to need their Symbol of Avarice after this.

Updated on March 17, 2024 by Ritwik Mitra: Dark Souls is one of the most popular video games of all time, and the success of Elden Ring will just push more people to check out From Software's esteemed library, including the game that started it all. Dark Souls can be pretty unforgiving at times for players who are new to this title and don't know the best course of action to take for acquiring and investing Souls. Thankfully, there are a few tried-and-tested farming routes in the game that will help players enhance the strength of the Chosen Undead in no time.

19 Darkroot Basin

Unlock The Hidden Bonfire To Efficiently And Repeatedly Kill A Group Of Valuable Enemies Nearby

There's a hidden bonfire near the door in Darkroot Basin that requires 20,000 Souls to open. Players should unlock this bonfire since this farming method becomes efficient that way. Near this door is an open area that is full to the brim with a variety of enemies that give varying amounts of experience.

Players should efficiently clear the entire area in as little time as possible before running back to the bonfire and restarting the process. In some time, players will have more than the number of Souls required to buy the key from Andre!

18 Valley Of The Drakes

The Drakes Drop 1000 Souls Each, Making It Valuable To Clean Out This Area

The Valley of the Drakes is one of the more unique locations in Dark Souls, even if some people may find it underwhelming. This area essentially bridges together different levels in Lordran while adding some unique enemies and encounters of its own. Players who took the Master Key as their starting gift can reach this area pretty early... although they'll be in for a really tough fight.

Players with decent gear can tackle the many Drakes in this area, who give 1000 Souls each, along with some unique item drops as well. For an area that mostly just connects areas in Dark Souls, it's amazing just how memorable and atmospheric this area is, regardless.

17 Crystal Caves

The Man-Eater Shells Here Drop Valuable Items Along With 2000 Souls Each

To utilize this great farming spot, players need to defeat Seath the Scaleless and activate the bonfire that spawns right after. This gives them a quick spot to go back to after hunting down all the Man-Eater Shells that are present in the Crystal Caves, since players can easily bait them to fight one at a time before taking them out in a resounding fashion.

These shells drop Twinkling Titanite and Purging Stones rather frequently as well, making this tactic great for players who may need both these items. Along with this, they'll drop 2000 Souls each, meaning that taking these six Man-Eater Shells out nets a great 12,000 Souls in no time at all. That being said, players should still be wary every time they farm and only bait these enemies one at a time since they're pretty durable, and trying to take down multiple enemies at once is more trouble than it's worth.

16 Firelink Shrine

A Risky Way To Farm Souls In The Early Game By Going To The Graveyard And Taking Out Skeletons

Firelink Shrine is one of the earliest areas in the game and acts like a central hub where most of the NPCs go after players convince them to travel there. This area is also good for soul farming early on in the game, especially for those who are new. There are easy-to-kill undead enemies here that players can use to practice their parrying, which will help them in the future. They can also make things a little easier when they unlock the aqueduct shortcut. Simply run back and forth between the bonfires, and players are good to go.

One fairly risky yet lucrative way to get a decent amount of Souls early on is to farm the giant skeleton enemies in the graveyard nearby. Each of these big boney fellows drops 500 Souls and has a low chance of dropping a Murakumo curved greatsword as well. Since this area is so close to a bonfire, there's little trouble to retrieve one's Souls if a giant skeleton or one of their smaller allies defeats the Chosen Undead. It is recommended to use Fire damage or a Strike weapon on them as they have high damage resistance to pretty much every other type of attack.

15 Undead Burg

The Hellkite Wyvern's Fiery Blaze Nets Players A Ton Of Souls In No Time

The Undead Burg is another great opportunity for players to practice their parrying skills but this time on more enemies. Around the primary bonfire in Undead Burg are a bunch of enemies from which to reap Souls. All of these enemies are easy to parry or backstab to get the bonus Souls. If players open up the shortcut to the depths there are even more enemies to run around and kill. Granted, killing all these enemies won't provide very many Souls, but early on, every Soul counts.

A remarkably easy and quick way to farm Souls is to use the Hellkite Wyvern as an unexpected ally. Once one finds the occasionally burning bridge where the draconic foe perches above, be sure to unlock the ladder shortcut on the right that leads down to a previously encountered bonfire. Since there are quite a few hollow enemies on this bridge that respawn, poking one's head out on this bridge will trigger the Hellkite Wyvern to unleash its fire breath and immolate all those in its path. Repeatedly using the bonfire and peeking out to trigger this attack can net players hundreds of Souls every minute.

14 The Depths

Kill Oozes And Rats, Then Repeating The Process

The Depths are another great early farming location to get those extra Souls needed to get stronger. Once players get to the bonfire, simply run out and kill all the oozes, then take a turn down the stairs to slay a large group of rats. This is an extremely easy area to farm, especially if they are a spellcaster. All the rats also have a chance to drop humanity which is always useful, even for a seasoned Dark Souls veteran. Even if players end up getting poisoned, the nearby bonfire can quickly remove it, leading to the Chosen Undead rarely dying with this method. Just don't get careless.

The inky, black slimes that try to ambush the player from above rightly deserve the worst kind of death. Therefore, one should utilize their weakness to Fire damage when farming these sludge-like adversaries. It is much more worth it to focus on the slimes instead of the rats, as the former drops 100 Souls and the latter only 20. If one does not have pyromancies, Firebombs can make farming in the Depths less tedious.

13 Darkroot Forest

The Three NPC Enemies Are Challenging But Drop A Decent Amount Of Souls

Accessing the Darkroot Forest requires a few Souls, 20,000 to be exact, but it is worth it. Once players unlock the secret bonfire next to the massive stone door, unlock the door with the Crest of Artorias (which can be bought from Andre of Astora), and on the other side are three NPC enemies to kill. Each of these enemies grants 2,000 Souls and some good practice for PVP fights without being overly difficult. If they do prove to be too tough at the time, players can always bait them off the cliff as well.

It is recommended to tackle each of these foes one at a time, as the abundance of trees makes it difficult to see if one is being snuck up on by another of the Forest Hunter covenant's warriors... that is, if one intends to face them in head-on combat. A far easier method is to draw the attention of these warriors and then head back to the stairs leading to the bonfire. Run up the stairs and then drop down the side, directly next to the cliff. The AI's pathing will take them up the stairs if they are close enough behind the player, but as they follow off the edge of the stairs, they'll most likely tumble down the cliff.

12 Anor Londo - Entrance

The Giant Knights That Welcome Players To Anor Londo Give 1500 Souls Each

Anor Londo has two areas that make for good Soul farming locations. The first one that is worth mentioning is at the bonfire where all the giant knights are near the area entrance. Each one of these big boys gets players 1,500 Souls and there are a good number of them. Strafe around them and hit them from behind or use some powerful spells to quickly dispose of them and reap the rewards. This is also an area players can easily teleport to, making it one of the best spots to go to.

The sentinels are relatively weak to Magic damage; therefore, sorcery builds will have an easy time farming them, especially since they can stay out of aggro range while blasting these towering foes with blue-white spells. Surprisingly, these armored guards of great size are also very susceptible to poison, making it all too easy to wreck them with poison arrows from a safe distance. Around the bonfire where the firekeeper known as the Darkmoon Knightess is found, there are 6 sentinels close by to farm per run between bonfire rests.

11 Anor Londo - Castle

The Castle Is Littered With Silver Knights And Bat Wing Demons That Drop A Decent Amount Of Souls

Once players have progressed a little farther into Anor Londo, they will find themselves at the castle surrounded by silver knights. These gleaming beauties provide about 1,000 Souls each. There is another great area to practice one's parrying skills since silver knights don't pose much of a challenge and, if necessary, are easily backstabbed. There are also other enemies further down by Smough and Ornstein's boss room, but players may need a homeward bone for that route unless they have the bonfire there as well.

Another type of enemy that there is an abundance of in this area is the bat wing demons (sometimes called "imps"). These ugly, pink fiends grant 500 Souls each and also have a low chance of dropping the Demon's Spear, one of the longest and highest-damaging spears in the game. Despite having wings, these thin demons cannot fly and can be pushed or tricked into falling off the area's many ledges to their demise. Their frailty lets players easily push them around with the shield bash of great shields or even with standard kicks due to the bat wing demons' low poise.

10 Anor Londo - Throne Room

The Area Before The Boss Has Two Royal Sentinels That Drop 3000 Souls Each

In the Throne Room before the boss fight with Ornstein and Smough, players can fight two Royal Sentinels. These enemies only appear here and nowhere else, and can serve as a great source of Souls. However, they can be really tough to beat, and a melee build might face some issues while fighting this enemy... especially given the annoying archer that's present in this area as well.

However, a mage can help players quickly farm these enemies without any problems. Players need to maintain their distance and pepper this enemy with spells to take them down before they can trigger their healing spell. Doing so efficiently will net players a cool 3,000 Souls per enemy, which is a pretty substantial number indeed.

9 The Duke's Archives - Prison

The Pisaca Here Are Easy To Dispose Of

The Duke's Archives is one of the few areas in the latter half of Dark Souls that is actually fun to explore, which is saying something given how the quality of the game drops off in the latter stages. The first area that players get to explore here is the Prison, which has several new enemies.

The Pisaca is one such enemy and is only present in this area. There are multiple versions of it, and they all have a short aggro range, meaning that players can go to town on them and harvest their Souls without having to worry about being ambushed.

8 The Duke's Archives - Path To The Crystal Caves

The Crystal Golems Are Plentiful, Easy To Kill, And Drop A Lot Of Souls

Another area of The Duke's Archives where players can farm souls efficiently is when they drop down and start making their way towards the entrance to the Crystal Caves. These open areas feature several Crystal Golems that look imposing, but telegraph their attacks quite obviously, making them easy pickings for players who understand how simplistic their attacking patterns really are.

Killing all these Crystal Golems nets a decent amount of experience that players can farm over and over again. There are a total of ten Crystal Golems that players can farm before heading to the Crystal Caves, and the fact that they're spaced out pretty far apart makes them a really safe and effective farm indeed.

7 Tomb Of The Giants - Second Bonfire

The Giant Skeletons Are Quite Lucrative

The Tomb of the Giants is easily one of the most daunting areas to explore in Dark Souls. The trek to the area is pretty challenging as is, and players will be greeted by pitch-black darkness that makes any step a dangerous one to take, unless players have a source of light to make things a little easier for themselves.

Once players manage to reach the second bonfire, they'll find themselves in a lucrative spot where they can farm souls from two Giant Skeletons nearby. These enemies are pretty challenging, but players should be able to take out these foes without breaking into a sweat once they get the hang of it, and they can return over and over until the Chosen Undead dwarfs their enemies in terms of Strength.

6 Tomb Of The Giants - The Area Before Gravelord Nito's Boss Room

The Baby Skeletons Give A Lot Of Souls And Humanity

This farming method is best done with Kirk's armor (Thorns set) because of the damage players can cause from rolling. Down in the Tomb of the Giants, players will find Nito's boss room, but that isn't what we care about. Right before the boss door is a room where tons of baby skeletons will spawn. That is the enemy they are looking for. These baby skeletons die fast and offer about 120 Souls each. That can quickly add up after a short while given that these little buggers spawn infinitely.

As with other skeletal enemies, these creepy dead babies are weak to Strike and Fire-type damage, though be warned that due to their small stature, it is easy to completely miss them while attacking with some weapons. Pyromancies and Firebombs will be helpful here. Since the Covetous Silver Serpent Ring can be found in this area, it is recommended to grab it despite the ambush that awaits the player after they pick it up. This ring grants a 20% boost to Souls gained from killing enemies, making it incredibly useful for Soul farming.

5 Kiln Of The First Flame

The Black Knights Are Tough But Manageable, With Each Run Netting 10000 Total Souls

The Kiln of the First Flame is the end of a Dark Souls run, which is unfortunate because it is a good area to get some Soul farming done. This area has a group of black knights that can net players a solid 10,000 Souls per run. Like the silver knights, they are rather easy to kill with parrying or backstabbing. Players just need to set up their spawn location in the area and use a homeward bone each time they finish off the enemies. Just be careful not to progress through the fog wall.

It should be mentioned that every single one of a black knight's attacks can be parried except their shield bash (which is easy to see coming). Slaying them with a riposte will also grant more souls. Since this is the last area in the game, players will have had a chance to acquire both the Covetous Silver Serpent Ring as well as the Symbol of Avarice helmet, which, when stacked, boosts Souls gain rate by a massive 44%.

4 Demon Ruins - First Bonfire

The Egg Bearers And Larva Net A Decent Amount Of Souls

The Demon Ruins is one of the most reviled areas in Dark Souls, featuring torrid copy-paste design and uninteresting levels which make it clear that FromSoft had run out of money while developing the second half of Dark Souls. This area has its fair share of unique enemies to farm for Souls, with a surprising mention coming in the form of the Egg Bearers, and the Larva that come out of them if they aren't killed with fire.

With the Overkill mechanic, players can maximize the Souls they get from this weird enemy, with the trek to and from the first bonfire being forgivingly short. It may not be the most effective way to gain Souls, but some players may argue that it's the safest and most simple way for players to acquire a decent amount of the resource.

3 Demon Ruins - Second Bonfire

The Taurus And Capra Demons Here Are Plentiful And Drop A Lot Of Souls

The Demon Ruins are a great place to gather a few extra souls if players want to venture around the hellish landscape. Nearby the second bonfire of the area is a group of Taurus Demons. These ugly brutes will provide 3,000 souls each. Plus, at that point in the game, they are pretty easy to kill. There are also Capra Demons in the area that will reward players with a little over 1,000 souls each. Players can quickly gather souls in this area, especially if they are a magic-user.

These demonic foes can be defeated much like their boss counterparts from earlier in the game. Using a bow and some arrows to lure them out one at a time can make farming them a bit easier. Just be wary of the lava in this area, as even though one should be able to take these demons out fairly easily in one-on-one duels, their attacks can still push a player to their burning death if blocked while near a pool of lava.

2 Painted World Of Ariamis

The Phalanx Is Huddled Up And Easy To Defeat With Some AoE Attacks

To farm here, there are a few necessary steps. Return to the Asylum from the start of the game and return to the playable character's cell. Inside, players will find a strange doll. Take this doll to the massive cathedral in Anor Londo and they will be able to enter The Painted World of Ariamis. Once there, they'll want to traverse through the area until they find the Phalanx. These enemies are piles of goo with spears and shields that can be a bit annoying if players aren't used to them. Equip a weapon, preferably with lightning damage, and go to town on them. They can easily net players 10,000 souls each time they farm them. By far, the best area to farm souls in the game.

Furthermore, they are even weaker to Fire damage, so pyromancies and Firebombs once more can be very useful here. The Phalanx's 13 individual amorphous bodies will constantly try to poke the player to death, so be sure to utilize hit-and-run tactics if one is taking them on in a melee fight. Since they are very slow and don't leave their formation, the bigger, slower pyromancies can absolutely devastate them. In addition, immolating over a dozen enemies simultaneously with a single Chaos Storm's direct Fire damage, as well as the pools of lava it leaves behind, is immensely satisfying.

1 Oolacile Township

This DLC Area Has Many Bloatheads That Net A Decent Amount Of Souls

The Artorias of the Abyss DLC is one of the best content packs released for any game, period. Not only does it have some great lore and bosses, but the areas present in the DLC are great for exploration and farming purposes as well.

The twisted Bloatheads here are easy to kill and drop a decent amount of experience. Finding a decent bonfire in the Oolacile Township and quickly killing enemies around it over and over again is a great way to get a ton of experience in a very short amount of time.