Fortnite: The Best Ways to Earn Free V-Bucks (2022)

V-Bucks are the heart of Fortnite’s economy and are available from a variety of different sources, some of which are free for all players. Of course, Fortnite itself is free to play, but V-Bucks serve as currency for players to purchase in-game items such as cosmetics, emotes, and access to most of the content in the all-important Battle Pass. There’s no shortage of paid sources for V-Bucks, including the official in-game store, paid codes available at many different retailers, and Fortnite’s exclusive Crew Membership subscription, but it’s also possible for players to get them for free for playing the game itself.

Typically, the only legitimate sources of V-Bucks are either large retailers or console manufacturers such as PlayStation or Xbox or from playing Fortnite. Fortnite offers a wide variety of different challenges, which grant the player experience points when completed, allowing the player to progress further along the Battle Pass, which serves as the main source of free V-Bucks in Fortnite.

Fortnite introduces a new Battle Pass with every season with a few items, including packs of 100 V-Bucks, that can be claimed for free by all players who gain enough XP and level up. However, there are a few things players need to know before grabbing these free packs.

Earning Free V-Bucks in Fortnite

Each Battle Pass in Fortnite contains a few packs of V-Bucks that can be claimed by all players, including those who opt not to shell out extra cash for the paid premium version of Fortnite’s Battle Pass. These packs are practically the only source of free V-Bucks in the game at the moment. However, Epic has tweaked Fortnite’s economy, and players will have to grind through most if not all of the Battle Pass’ levels to claim them all. This can be done with a focus on playing lots of matches with the aim of completing challenges. Fortnite has no shortage of challenges for players to complete over a single season, with new challenges available weekly. The game also regularly features new in-game events, such as Fortnite’s recent Naruto crossover Nindo 2022 event, which provides additional challenges for players to complete for XP and levels.

With the current Season 3 Battle Pass, players can earn 300 V-Bucks for free, but given that cosmetic bundles can cost upwards of 2,000 V-Bucks, the situation doesn’t favor those who don’t pay. The best way forward for these players is to grind for free packs of V-Bucks across several seasons before spending them on a premium Battle Pass, allowing players to claim up to 1,500 V-Bucks. This will enable players to pay for future Battle Passes while still having some V-Bucks to spend on cosmetics and other items they might want. However, Fortnite Seasons can last months, making this an unattractive prospect for the impatient.

One niche way to earn free V-Bucks is playing Fortnite: Save the World, the game’s original, lesser-known tower defense/survival mode. Free V-Bucks are rewarded for completing challenges and daily logins in Save the World. Unfortunately, this is only available to Early Access Founders: players who bought Save the World before it left Early Access on June 29th, 2020. Players who did buy Save the World might like to hop back in for more, but others will have to rely solely on Fortnite’s Battle Pass for free V-Bucks.

Fortnite is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series S|X.