Witcher 3 Best Ways to Farm XP Fast: Levels, Quests and the Grey-Quest Penalty
Witcher 3 XP guide: how the grey-quest penalty works, the best XP sources by level, XP trophies, Enemy Upscaling, level caps 70/100 and New Game+ rules.
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Updated September 29, 2026. The fastest way to level Geralt in The Witcher 3 is not grinding monsters. It is doing quests, contracts and map activities while they are still close to your level, because the game cuts quest XP sharply once you out-level them. This guide explains how XP actually works, which sources are worth your time at each stage, what the level caps are with and without the expansions, and what changes in New Game+.
Quick answer
Quests and witcher contracts are the main XP source; monster kills give comparatively little. Once you are 6 or more levels above a base-game quest, it turns into a "grey" quest worth only about 5% of its normal XP, so do side content as soon as it is at or near your level. The level cap is 70 without Blood and Wine and 100 with it, and Places of Power give ability points, not XP.
How XP Works in The Witcher 3
Geralt earns experience from completing quests, fulfilling witcher contracts, clearing question-mark locations on the map, and killing enemies. Each level-up grants an ability point to spend on skills. The official Witcher wiki's XP table puts the total needed for level 100 at 200,000 XP, with the last levels costing 10,000 XP each, which is why late levels crawl no matter what you do.
The key detail most players miss is that XP from quests is not fixed. Every quest has a suggested level shown in the journal, and the reward you actually receive depends on how that number compares to Geralt's level at the moment you hand the quest in.
Quests are the backbone of progression. Enemy kills add up, but trophy bonuses and upscaling tweaks only nudge kill XP, while a single on-level contract or story quest can move the bar far more. Plan around quests first and treat combat XP as a bonus.
The Grey-Quest Penalty Explained
The journal colour-codes quests against your level. A red level means the quest is above you, a green or normal one means you are roughly on level, and a greyed-out/white level means the quest is now below you. Gamepressure's guide to the system notes that the game "might limit or completely remove experience" for those lower-level quests, and that the same scaling applies to some question-mark locations.
The thresholds
- Safe zone of five levels: the official Witcher wiki states that being up to five levels above a quest still earns the full reward. A level 25 Geralt finishing a level 20 quest gets full XP.
- Six or more levels above: the quest becomes a "grey" quest. Mod authors who have documented the vanilla formula (including the widely used "Always Full Exp" and "Full XP from quests" mods on Nexus Mods) put the payout at 5% of normal XP.
- Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine quests use a different sliding scale: according to the same mod documentation, XP moves by roughly 16% per level of difference, with a floor of 5% and a ceiling of 150%. In practice, expansion quests reward you for being slightly under-levelled and punish you gradually for being over-levelled.
Why some quests pay 5% even when you are on level
One quirk is worth knowing: a handful of quests have an internal level that does not match the suggested level shown in the journal. The "Low XP from Some Quests Fix" mod exists precisely because players received about 5% XP on quests they were not five levels above. If a quest pays almost nothing when it should not, this is usually the reason, not something you did wrong.
Difficulty also scales XP
The official Witcher wiki notes that playing on "Blood and Broken Bones!" earns 10% less XP than normal. Mod documentation of the vanilla values lists Just the Story and Story and Sword at 100%, Blood and Broken Bones! at 90% and Death March! at 80%. The difference is small next to the grey-quest penalty, so pick the difficulty you enjoy.
Best XP Sources by Level Range
The table below ranks sources by how much they are worth relative to each other. We do not list per-quest XP numbers because they vary by quest and by your level at turn-in; the value column reflects the verified rules above.
| XP source | Best level range | Relative value | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Main quests | All levels, at or near suggested level | High | Subject to the same level comparison as side quests |
| Side quests | Within 5 levels of the suggested level | High on level, about 5% when grey | Do them in the region you are in, not later |
| Witcher contracts | Within 5 levels of the suggested level | High on level, about 5% when grey | Also pay coin and can drop trophies |
| Question marks (nests, bandit camps, abandoned sites) | Early and mid game, while on level | Moderate | Some are affected by the same level scaling |
| Hearts of Stone quests | Around level 30 and up | High, up to 150% if under-levelled | Sliding scale of roughly 16% per level |
| Blood and Wine quests | Mid-30s and up | High, up to 150% if under-levelled | Needed to push past level 70 |
| Monster and human kills | Any, better with Enemy Upscaling | Low | Trophies add +5% kill XP |
| Places of Power | Any | No XP | First use grants an ability point instead |
Levels 1 to about 10: White Orchard and Velen
Clear White Orchard's side content before leaving; it will turn grey quickly once you reach Velen. In Velen, take notice-board contracts and nearby question marks as they appear. Gamepressure's recommended route is Velen first, then Novigrad around level 10.
Levels 10 to 20: Novigrad and Skellige
Novigrad has a dense cluster of side quests and contracts, and many will go grey if you rush the story to Skellige, which the same route suggests visiting around level 15. A common rule of thumb from leveling guides is to finish a couple of side quests or contracts for every main quest, which keeps you close to the suggested levels instead of racing past them.
Levels 20 to 30+: late game and the expansions
By this point most leftover low-level side quests will be grey. Prioritise anything still green, then move into Hearts of Stone. Because expansion quests pay more when you are below their level, starting them on the early side of the recommended range is the most XP-efficient approach, as long as you can handle the fights.
Places of Power: Ability Points, Not XP
Places of Power are often lumped into leveling guides, but they do not award experience. Drawing from a Place of Power for the first time grants one ability point; using it again afterwards gives a temporary boost to a specific Sign. That first-use point is still worth a detour, because ability points are otherwise tied to levels.
Note that the Witcher 3 Remastered update released today reworks skills into a tree with three ranks per skill and resets existing skill points. The published patch notes do not mention changes to XP, level caps or Places of Power, so the rules in this guide still apply. See our Witcher 3 Remastered breakdown for the full list of changes, and our best early skills guide for where to put those points.
XP-Boosting Mechanics You Can Actually Use
Monster trophies on Roach
Trophies from contracts and certain boss monsters hang on Roach's saddle and each gives one bonus. Several give +5% experience from killing monsters, including the Ekimmara, Wyvern, Leshen, Cave Troll and Katakan trophies. Others, such as the Nightwraith, Grave Hag and Wraith trophies, give +5% experience from killing humans and nonhumans. Only one trophy can be equipped at a time, and it only affects kill XP, not quest XP.
Enemy Upscaling
Enemy Upscaling, found under Options, then Gameplay, raises enemies to match Geralt's level. Because enemy XP depends on enemy level, upscaled enemies give more kill XP than they would otherwise. It does not restore quest rewards: the grey-quest penalty is calculated from the quest's level, not the upscaled enemy level on screen.
What does not boost XP
- Places of Power (ability points only).
- Enemy Upscaling for quests (kill XP only).
- Delaying quests "to do them later with better gear" - this is the single biggest source of lost XP.
Farming XP: Grinding vs Questing
Some leveling guides suggest farming respawning drowners in Novigrad or clearing a monster nest's area and meditating until enemies respawn. This works, but kill XP is low compared with quests, and the rewards shrink as monsters fall below your level. It is only worth doing for a final push, ideally with a +5% monster-XP trophy and Enemy Upscaling on.
A better "farm" is simply the quest log. Before advancing a main quest, check the journal for anything green or red you can finish nearby. Monster nests, which you destroy with a bomb, bandit camps and abandoned sites are quick wins while on level. If a fight is holding you back, our combat tips for beginners and parry and counterattack guide will help you take on red-level content safely.
If you only want the levels and not the grind, the game's console commands on PC can add XP or set a level directly, although that is obviously a different way to play.
Level Cap With and Without the DLCs
- Base game (with or without Hearts of Stone): level 70.
- With Blood and Wine installed: level 100.
In practice, a single base-game playthrough usually finishes somewhere in the 40s to 50s, according to leveling guides. Reaching the high levels realistically requires both expansions and New Game+, especially since the final levels each need 10,000 XP.
Both expansions can also be started from the main menu with a pre-made character: Hearts of Stone gives a level 32 Geralt and Blood and Wine a level 34 Geralt, with level-appropriate gear. That skips the base-game grind entirely if you only want the expansion stories.
New Game+ and XP
New Game+ carries your level over. According to CD Projekt Red's details reported at the mode's launch, Geralt keeps the level he finished at if it was above 30; if he was below level 30, he is bumped up to level 30 for the start of NG+. Enemies are stronger and quest levels shift upward, so quests stay relevant rather than instantly going grey.
The level cap is unchanged in New Game+ (70, or 100 with Blood and Wine), but enemies can scale beyond it, so fights keep getting tougher even when Geralt can no longer level. If your goal is level 100, NG+ with both expansions installed is the intended route.
Frequently Asked Questions
QWhy am I getting almost no XP for a quest in Witcher 3?
You are probably six or more levels above the quest, which makes it a grey quest worth about 5% of its normal XP. A few quests also have a mismatched internal level, so they can pay very little even when the journal suggests you are on level.
QHow many levels above a quest can I be and still get full XP?
Up to five. The Witcher wiki describes a five-level safe zone, so a level 25 Geralt still gets full XP for a level 20 quest.
QWhat is the max level in The Witcher 3?
Level 70 without Blood and Wine and level 100 with it. Hearts of Stone alone does not raise the cap.
QDo Places of Power give XP?
No. The first time you draw from each one you get an ability point. Later visits give a temporary Sign boost.
QDoes Enemy Upscaling give more XP?
Yes for kills, because upscaled enemies match your level. It does not change quest XP, which is still judged against each quest's own level.
QWhat level do you start New Game+ at?
The level you finished at, or level 30 if you finished below that. Enemies and quests are scaled up to match.
For more on getting the most out of the game, see our Witcher 3 beginner's guide.
Sources checked on September 29, 2026 against the official Witcher wiki, CD Projekt Red's New Game+ and Remastered patch details, Gamepressure's Witcher 3 guide, and vanilla XP formulas documented by Nexus Mods authors.
Kai Mercer covers game news, free games, release calendars and guides for xGamerss.
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