Stock Market Guide (Story Mode)
- •Story-only money does not affect GTA Online.
- •Phone → Internet → BAWSAQ or LCN to trade.
- •Biggest profits: Lester's five assassination missions.
- •Save the four optional hits until after the story.
- •Use all three characters' cash across separate portfolios.
How the Story stock market works
Open your in-game phone, tap Internet, and choose BAWSAQ or LCN. Browse stocks, buy shares, and sell later for profit. Prices move over in-game time. The largest Story Mode fortunes come from Lester's assassination missions, which move predictably after each hit. Normal trading without assassinations gives smaller gains.
Tip: This guide is Story Mode only. GTA Online has a separate economy.
BAWSAQ vs LCN: which to use?
BAWSAQ hosts the assassination stocks (BET, DEB, FRT, MWE, GCN). On PlayStation and Xbox, BAWSAQ prices can sync with other players when you are online, which may skew Story prices. Play offline or in Story-only sessions for consistent assassination investing. LCN (Liberty City National) is single-player only, prices never sync with other players. Use LCN for casual trading; use BAWSAQ for the assassination chain.
Approaches:Assassination profits = BAWSAQ. Casual buy-low-sell-high without Lester = LCN if you want zero online interference.
How to buy and sell (step by step)
1) Open phone → Internet. 2) Select BAWSAQ or LCN. 3) Pick a stock ticker (e.g. DEB for Debonaire). 4) Buy shares: invest as much cash as that character holds. 5) Complete the mission or wait for price movement. 6) Reopen the market and Sell All. 7) Sleep at a safehouse bed to advance time between checks.
Tip: There is no short-selling. Profit comes from buying before a rise (or buying Merryweather after the Bus crash).
Three characters, three portfolios
Michael, Franklin, and Trevor each have separate bank accounts and stock holdings. You cannot transfer stocks between them, only cash via heist cuts and bank withdrawals. For maximum assassination profit, log each character in after a sell-off, withdraw cash to investable balance, and buy the next stock before switching characters.
Tip: Deathwish ending keeps all three alive so all three can keep trading post-game.
When to start investing
During the story: ignore stocks except Hotel Assassination (required). Do not drain your bank before The Big Score. After the finale on Deathwish: pool millions from The Big Score, then run the four optional assassinations in order with full investment each time. Optional missions are marked on the map with Lester's icon after the story.
Approaches:Minimum path: skip all stock play and finish the story. Maximum wealth: post-game assassination chain only.
The Hotel Assassination (during story)
Required mission. Betta Pharmaceuticals (BET) rises afterward. You cannot postpone it. Min-max players invest little or nothing here and save capital for the four post-game hits. If you do invest, buy BET before the mission, wait for the peak, sell.
Tip: See the assassination walkthrough table below for tickers and timing.
Post-game assassination order
After credits: 1) Multi Target: buy Debonaire (DEB) before. 2) Vice: buy Fruit (FRT) before. 3) Bus: buy Merryweather (MWE) AFTER the mission at its low, hold for rebound. 4) Construction: buy GoldCoast (GCN) before. Reinvest profits from each step into the next. Save before every buy and sell.
Tip: The Bus Assassination is the exception: buy Merryweather after the hit, not before.
Waiting for peaks and sleeping
Stock peaks often take one to three in-game days after an assassination. Use safehouse beds to skip time. Save before sleeping in case you want to reload. Check BAWSAQ on your phone after each sleep. When the profit bar looks maxed, sell all shares on every character before starting the next assassination.
Redwood / Facade advanced trick
Multi Target crashes Redwood (RWC) while Debonaire rises. Vice crashes Facade (FAC) while Fruit rises. Advanced players buy the falling stock on all characters before the mission, sell at the bottom, then buy the rising stock, doubling profit on one assassination. Optional complexity; buying only the rising stock is enough for millions.
LCN casual trading (no assassinations)
LCN stocks fluctuate randomly in Story Mode. You can buy low and sell high without missions, but returns are modest compared to assassinations. Useful if you finished the story and want something low-effort, or if you dislike mission grinding. Not required for 100% or story completion.
Common mistakes
Buying Merryweather before the Bus Assassination (buy after the crash). Investing everything before The Big Score and having no cash for heists. Forgetting to reinvest on all three characters. Staying online on console and seeing weird BAWSAQ prices. Selling too early before the peak. Mixing up BAWSAQ tickers. Lester usually texts which stock to watch.
Rough profit expectations
A full post-game assassination run with max investment on three characters can reach tens of millions combined, often $100M+ if you follow the chain and reinvest. Exact amounts vary by platform and timing. Combined with The Big Score payout, you can afford everything in Story Mode comfortably.
Tip: See Make Money in Story Mode for how stocks fit the overall wealth path.
Confused?
Assassination walkthrough
Follow in order after finishing the story (Hotel runs during the campaign). Save before each step.
Step 1
The Hotel Assassination
During storyBuy before mission
BET · Betta Pharmaceuticals
Required for story progress: cannot skip. If saving optional assassinations for post-game max profit, invest only a small amount here or skip investing entirely.
Wait: Wait until BET peaks (often next in-game day), then sell.
Step 2
The Multi Target Assassination
Post-gameBuy before mission
DEB · Debonaire Cigarettes
- RWC falls. Redwood crashes after this hit. Advanced: buy Redwood on all characters before the mission, sell at the bottom, then buy Debonaire.
First optional assassination to run after the finale. Use all cash on all three characters before starting.
Wait: Sleep 2–3 in-game days saving between sleeps. Sell DEB at peak profit.
Step 3
The Vice Assassination
Post-gameBuy before mission
FRT · Fruit Computers
- FAC falls. Facade drops when Fruit rises.
Reinvest profits from Multi Target across Michael, Franklin, and Trevor.
Wait: Wait for FRT to peak (usually 24–48 in-game hours), then sell all.
Step 4
The Bus Assassination
Post-gameBuy after mission
MWE · Merryweather Security
This one is different: do NOT buy Merryweather before the hit. Wait for the crash, buy the bottom, sell the rebound.
Wait: Buy MWE only AFTER the mission when the price hits its low. Hold through several in-game days. Recovery can take a while. Save before buying.
Step 5
The Construction Assassination
Post-gameBuy before mission
GCN · GoldCoast Medical
Last optional assassination. Reinvest everything for the biggest single spike.
Wait: Wait for GCN peak, then sell. Final big payout of the chain.