Mining Leveling Guide 1-600

Luxrah

Mining is a gathering profession that rewards the player with ore, stone, and gems. Its materials can be used to craft items with Blacksmithing, Engineering, and Jewelcrafting, and it is often taken alongside those professions or on an alt to feed them. If you’re leveling Mining alongside any of those crafting skills, you may want to check our guides for a list of the materials you will need to mine for them.

If you reached max skill level in Mining during Cataclysm, you can skip most of the level ranges and start at the Zen Master section. Later in the expansion (Patch 5.3), you will be able to level Mining entirely in Pandaria if you choose. For that you can also skip to the last section of this guide.

Tips for Leveling Mining

Be sure to always have Find Minerals enabled so you can see nearby mining nodes marked on your minimap!
Typically you’ll find mining nodes on mountains and hills or in and around caves.
Mining orange difficulty nodes will always give you a skill-up. Yellow will frequently give skill, and green will sometimes give skill. Gray does not give any skill, and red means your skill is not high enough to mine the node.
There are several pieces of equipment and a few enchantments that can help you mine more efficiently. You can find them all in our Mining Overview.
If you’re not having luck in the locations we’ve suggested, you can try another zone of the appropriate level range. You can see a full list of mining nodes and locations in our dedicated guide.
Don’t forget you can gain skill from Smelting as well as mining. You can smelt the ore you mine for the most efficient leveling.
You will sometimes fail when attempting to mine a node. Just try it again!
Having the fastest mount you can get is beneficial for any type of open-world farming. If you’re leveling your character at the same time as your Mining, always train the next Riding skill as soon as it becomes available.
Mining a deposit that gives Mining skill will also give you a little bit of character experience, so working on your Mining can be a nice break from questing when leveling your character.
Don’t forget the Darkmoon Faire quest, Rearm, Reuse, Recycle, which can be completed every time the Darkmoon Faire is active (every two weeks in WoW Classic). This quest requires a minimum skill level of 75 and grants 5 skill points upon completion.

Trainer Locations

Here are some of the most convenient Mining Trainers to visit while leveling. We have a complete list of every trainer in the game on our Mining Trainer Locations page.

Pandaria: Smeltmaster Ashpaw is standing just outside Greenstone Quarry in The Jade Forest.
- /way The Jade Forest 46.0, 29.4
Pandaria – Alliance: Rockseeker Guo is at Paw’don Village in The Jade Forest.
- /way The Jade Forest 45.0, 85.8
Pandaria – Horde: Stonebreaker Ruian is at Honeydew Village in The Jade Forest.
- /way The Jade Forest 27.8, 14.8
Dalaran: Jedidiah Handers is inside the All That Glitters Prospecting Co. shop in the Magus Commerce Exchange of Dalaran.
- /way Dalaran 41.2, 27.2
Alliance: Gelman Stonehand is located in The Dwarven District of Stormwind.
- /way Stormwind City 59.6, 37.6
Horde: Makaru is inside the Red Canyon Mining & Jewelcrafting shop in the Valley of Honor of Orgrimmar.
- /way Orgrimmar 72.4, 35.6
Horde: Gonto is inside Naros’ Armory in the Valley of Strength of Orgrimmar.
- /way Orgrimmar 44.6, 78.6
Horde: Gizzik Oregrab is in the Goblin Slums area of Orgrimmar.
- /way Orgrimmar 36.0, 82.8
Monk: Master Brandom can be found at Peak of Serenity in Kun-Lai Summit, which is easily reached via Zen Pilgrimage.
- /way Kun-Lai Summit 48.6, 44.6

Leveling 1-600 With Smelting

You can reach skill level 525 exclusively through Smelting, but it will require you to already have a bunch of materials that are obtained through Mining. So this route either requires you to have another character with the Mining profession or a lot of gold to purchase the materials from other players.

You won’t be able to make it all the way to 600 skill through Smelting alone. There are a couple of stretches that require Mining (340-350 and 525-600). For those, see the appropriate portion of our Leveling 1-600 With Mining section below.

This method is incredibly fast compared to actually mining. You will be able to stand next to a Forge and spam crafting recipes. You won’t have to hunt for nodes or run back to town when it’s time to train. Keep in mind that you can also mix and match Smelting and Mining to break things up. You may encounter a skill range where ore nodes are hard to find and it’s easier to Smelt, or you might find that some ranges are too expensive for Smelting.

Required Materials:

Copper Ore x100
Tin Ore x100
Iron Ore x10
Gold Ore x20
Mithril Ore x40
Truesilver Ore x25
Thorium Ore x180
Fel Iron Ore x280
Adamantite Ore x120
Cobalt Ore x80
Khorium Ore x80
Saronite Ore x160
Obsidium Ore x360
Elementium Ore x200
Ghost Iron Ore x200
Coal x20
- Sold by Trade Supplies, Blacksmithing Supplies, and Mining Supplies vendors

What to Smelt

See our Smelting Table for detailed info about Smelting recipes, including a few that we skip over for leveling.

Check ahead before you sell the bars you craft. Some bars are smelted from other bars, allowing you to reuse materials.

Skill Level	Recipe	Materials	Quantity
1-50	Smelt Copper	– Copper Ore x1	100
50-70	Smelt Tin	– Tin Ore x1	100
70-100	Smelt Bronze	– Copper Bar x1 – Tin Bar x1	100
100-125	Smelt Iron	– Iron Ore x1	40
125-135	Smelt Steel	– Iron Bar x1 – Coal x1	20
135-150	Smelt Gold	– Gold Ore x1	20
150-175	Smelt Mithril	– Mithril Ore x1	40
175-200	Smelt Truesilver	– Truesilver Ore x1	25
200-275	Smelt Thorium	– Thorium Ore x1	180
275-325	Smelt Fel Iron	– Fel Iron Ore x2	140
325-340	Smelt Adamantite	– Adamantite Ore x2	60
340-350	(Mine Adamantite)	–	–
350-375	Smelt Cobalt	– Cobalt Ore x1	80
375-381	Smelt Hardened Adamantite	– Adamantite Bar x10	6
381-400	Smelt Khorium	– Khorium Ore x2	40
400-425	Smelt Saronite	– Saronite Ore x2	80
425-475	Smelt Obsidium	– Obsidium Ore x2	180
475-500	Smelt Elementium	– Elementium Ore x2	100
500-525	Smelt Ghost Iron	– Ghost Iron Ore x1	100
525-600	(Mine Ghost Iron)	–	–

Leveling 1-600 With Mining

Apprentice 1-50

Apprentice Mining can be learned right at character level 1.

If your character is below level 20, you can just mine in your current questing zone.

Zone	Faction	Level Range	Nodes
Elwynn Forest	Alliance	1-10	Copper Vein
Durotar	Horde	1-10	Copper Vein
Azuremyst Isle	Alliance	1-10	Copper Vein
Dun Morogh	Alliance	1-10	Copper Vein
Darkshore	Alliance	1-10	Copper Vein
Azshara	Horde	10-46	Copper Vein
Eversong Woods	Horde	1-10	Copper Vein
Mulgore	Horde	1-10	Copper Vein
Tirisfal Glades	Horde	1-10	Copper Vein

Zones denoted with a star tend to be the best for farming the ore.

Alliance Copper Routes

: Azuremyst Isle Copper Mining Route

: Dun Morogh Copper Mining Route

: Elwynn Forest Copper Mining Route

: Darkshore Copper Mining Route

Horde Copper Routes

: Durotar Copper Mining Route

: Azshara Copper Mining Route

: Eversong Woods Copper Mining Route

: Mulgore Copper Mining Route

: Tirisfal Glades Copper Mining Route

Journeyman 50-100

Journeyman Mining requires Mining level 50 to learn.

Zone	Level Range	Nodes
Hillsbrad Foothills	20-25	Tin Vein & Silver Vein
Ashenvale	20-25	Tin Vein & Silver Vein
Northern Stranglethorn	25-30	Tin Vein & Silver Vein

Zones denoted with a star tend to be the best for farming the ore.

Tin & Silver Routes

: Focus inside the red area as it has many Tin ore nodes and respawns quickly. However you can also follow the cliffs/ledges in the orange area for a few moments to give them time to respawn as needed. Caves also contain large quantities of ore.

: Northern Stranglethorn Mining Route

: Ashenvale Mining Route

Journeyman 100-150

Zone	Level Range	Nodes
Feralas	35-40	Iron Vein & Gold Vein
Western Plaguelands	35-40	Iron Vein & Gold Vein
The Cape of Stranglethorn	30-35	Iron Vein & Gold Vein

Zones denoted with a star tend to be the best for farming the ore.

Iron & Gold Routes

: Feralas Mining Route

: Western Plaguelands Mining Route

: The Cape of Stranglethorn Mining Route

Expert 150-200

Expert Mining requires character level 10 and Mining level 125 to learn.

Zone	Level Range	Nodes
Burning Steppes	50-52	Mithril Deposit & Truesilver Deposit
Felwood	45-50	Mithril Deposit & Truesilver Deposit
Badlands	45-48	Mithril Deposit & Truesilver Deposit

Zones denoted with a star tend to be the best for farming the ore.

Mithril & Truesilver Routes

: Burning Steppes Mining Route

: Felwood Mining Route

: Badlands Mining Route

Artisan 200-275

Artisan Mining requires character level 25 and Mining level 200 to learn.

Zone	Level Range	Nodes
Un’Goro Crater	50-55	Small Thorium Vein & Rich Thorium Vein
Winterspring	50-55	Small Thorium Vein & Rich Thorium Vein
Silithus	55-60	Small Thorium Vein & Rich Thorium Vein
Blasted Lands	55-60	Small Thorium Vein & Rich Thorium Vein

Zones denoted with a star tend to be the best for farming the ore.

Thorium Routes

: Un’Goro Crater Mining Route

: Winterspring Mining Route

: Silithus Mining Route

: Blasted Lands Mining Route

Master 275-325

Master Mining requires character level 40 and Mining level 275 to learn.

Zone	Level Range	Nodes
Hellfire Peninsula	58-63	Fel Iron Deposit

Fel Iron Routes

Hellfire Peninsula Mining Route

Master 325-350

Zone	Level Range	Nodes
Nagrand	64-67	Adamantite Deposit
Netherstorm	67-70	Adamantite Deposit

Zones denoted with a star tend to be the best for farming the ore.

Adamantite Routes

: Nagrand Mining Route

: Netherstorm Mining Route

Grand Master 350-400

Grand Master Mining requires character level 55 and Mining level 350 to learn.

Zone	Level Range	Nodes
Howling Fjord	68-72	Cobalt Deposit & Rich Cobalt Deposit
Borean Tundra	68-72	Cobalt Deposit & Rich Cobalt Deposit

Zones denoted with a star tend to be the best for farming the ore.

Cobalt Routes

: Howling Fjord Mining Route

: Borean Tundra Mining Route

Grand Master 400-425

Zone	Level Range	Nodes
Sholazar Basin	76-78	Saronite Deposit
Wintergrasp	77-80	Saronite Deposit

Zones denoted with a star tend to be the best for farming the ore.

Saronite Routes

: Sholazar Basin Mining Route

: Wintergrasp Mining Route

Illustrious Grand Master 425-475

Illustrious Grand Master Mining requires character level 75 and Mining level 425 to learn.

Zone	Level Range	Nodes
Mount Hyjal	80-82	Obsidium Deposit & Rich Obsidium Deposit
Vashj’ir	80-82	Obsidium Deposit & Rich Obsidium Deposit

Zones denoted with a star tend to be the best for farming the ore.

Obsidium Routes

: Mount Hyjal Mining Route

: Abyssal Depths Mining Route

: Shimmering Expanse Mining Route

Illustrious Grand Master 475-500

Zone	Level Range	Nodes
Twilight Highlands	84-85	Elementium Vein & Rich Elementium Vein
Uldum	83-84	Elementium Vein & Rich Elementium Vein
Deepholm	82-83	Elementium Vein & Rich Elementium Vein

Zones denoted with a star tend to be the best for farming the ore.

Elementium Routes

: Twilight Highlands Mining Route

: Uldum Mining Route

: Deepholm Mining Route

Zen Master 525-600

Zen Master Mining requires character level 80 and Mining level 500 to learn.

Zone	Level Range	Nodes
Jade Forest	80-90	Ghost Iron Deposit & Rich Ghost Iron Deposit
Valley of the Four Winds	81-90	Ghost Iron Deposit & Rich Ghost Iron Deposit
Townlong Steppes	83-90	Ghost Iron Deposit & Rich Ghost Iron Deposit

Zones denoted with a star tend to be the best for farming the ore.

Ghost Iron Routes

: Valley of the Four Winds Mining Route

: The Jade Forest Mining Route

: Townlong Steppes Mining Route

Author

Luxrah

I've been playing World of Warcraft on and off since vanilla, usually as a healer or caster and often as a guild leader. I play both retail and classic. I also love RPGs, sandboxes, and sims.