Reaching level 50 and advancing your specialization levels in Borderlands 4 is essential, but it can be a long grind. With a seemingly endless number of specialization levels to farm, each one making your character stronger, it's easy to get overwhelmed by the time investment. Fortunately, there are several efficient ways to level up quickly. In this guide, we’ll walk you through the fastest ways to earn experience and level up in Borderlands 4.

 

1. Progress Through the Main Story

 

The first and most obvious method to level up is by completing the main story missions. This is a straightforward way to gain experience and progress in the game. The main story will take you through a series of missions, and you'll earn substantial experience rewards for each one completed. You’ll also get to experience the full narrative of Borderlands 4.

 

By the time you finish the main story, you’ll typically be at level 28 to 35 (sometimes higher, depending on your playstyle and side activities). From there, you’ll unlock Ultimate Vault Hunter mode, which will open up even more efficient ways to level up. So, if you haven’t completed the main storyline yet, focus on that first before worrying about reaching level 50 or working on your specialization levels.

 

2. Enemy Grinding

 

Once you've finished the main story, it’s time to move on to more efficient methods like enemy grinding. Although grinding can be repetitive, it can be made more enjoyable if you’re also farming for powerful loot while you level up. The key is to find high-density areas filled with enemies, as they will allow you to kill many mobs in a short amount of time and earn plenty of experience. Plus, the potential loot drops make it more rewarding.

 

There are several great locations to grind, but Ripper Drill sites are particularly effective. Three spots I highly recommend are:

 

Pitted Stain

 

Old Scrape

 

Saws Clench

 

Any Ripper Drill site can be farmed for experience, but these locations are especially good because each site has a unique boss. You can respawn the boss and enemies using the Encore Machines, which makes it easy to continuously farm these locations. With a solid build, you’ll clear these areas quickly, earning tons of experience from both regular enemies and the boss.

 

The bosses at these sites also have high drop rates for powerful legendary weapons like the Wombo Combo assault rifle and the Hell Walker shotgun, so you’re getting great Borderlands 4 Gear while leveling up.

 

3. Complete Side Quests

 

For those who prefer variety and a more immersive experience, side quests are an excellent way to level up quickly. Not only do side quests provide solid experience, but each one has its own unique storyline and characters, adding variety and fun to the grind.

 

There are a total of 98 side quests scattered throughout Borderlands 4, and you’ll find them marked by blue exclamation marks on your map. The key to quickly finding the best side quests for leveling is to pay attention to the XP symbol that appears when you hover over a side quest icon. The color of this symbol indicates the amount of experience you will earn, ranging from white (the least) to yellow (the most). Focus on the quests with the highest XP rewards for the fastest leveling.

 

4. Farming Contracts

 

If you're looking for an infinitely repeatable way to gain experience, contracts are your best bet. You've probably already completed a few contracts during your playthrough. They offer great rewards like weapons, cheap Borderlands 4 Gear, money, and aridium, but they also give a lot of experience. The best part? Contracts are repeatable, and you can keep doing them over and over.

 

Once you unlock Ultimate Vault Hunter mode, you'll also gain access to Vile Contracts. These purple contracts provide nearly double the experience of regular contracts, making them a fantastic option for fast leveling. But here's a trick to maximize your contract farming:

 

Unlock the Makeshift Chalet Safe House: This location on the map offers a contract board that has contracts that are very close by, saving you time. Other safe houses can have contracts that send you much further away, which makes farming more tedious.

 

Check the Contract Board: When you go to the contract board, look for any Vile Contracts. If there aren’t any available, quit the game, return to the main menu, and then reload your character. This refreshes the contract board, giving you new Vile Contracts to complete. You can carry up to five contracts at once, so keep an eye out for multiple Vile Contracts at once.

 

Repeat the Process: After completing your Vile Contracts, quit the game again and repeat the process—load back in, check for new contracts, and farm them. This process is simple but repetitive, allowing you to level up efficiently.

 

5. World Tours for Maximum Efficiency

 

To level up as quickly as possible, consider what I call World Tours. This method involves traveling to every contract board in the game, picking up all available contracts, completing them, and then moving on to the next board. Once you’ve completed all the contracts on the map, quit back to the main menu and load back in to refresh the contract boards.

 

I used this method to level up from 30 to 50 in just a few hours. It’s highly efficient because you’re constantly moving between contract boards, maximizing your XP gains in a short amount of time. Just be prepared for a bit of repetition, but it’s the fastest method for hitting level 50.

 

Conclusion

 

Leveling up in Borderlands 4 doesn’t have to be a long and tedious process. By focusing on the main story, grinding enemy locations like Ripper Drill sites, completing side quests, farming contracts (especially Vile Contracts), and doing World Tours, you can level up quickly and efficiently. These methods will keep you engaged while allowing you to progress fast, whether you're aiming for level 50 or working on specialization levels.