Animal Crossing: New Horizons is finally here, and like each of the previous entries, the animal world is your oyster! The amount of freedom granted in this charming sim experience is more flexible and expansive than ever in this Switch sequel. Though this can make for an endlessly delightful experience, it can also be tough to pinpoint just what you should be focused on and how best to obtain money, or "Bells."
But never fear! With this list, we'll cover some tips, tricks, and general activities that you can focus on in order to gather cash more quickly and effectively.
Updated August 10th, 2020 by Elise Nelson: About five months after its initial release, Animal Crossing: New Horizons is still one of the most popular Switch games on the market. Players are continuing to find savvy and creative ways to turn their islands into the ultimate escape. Since Nintendo is keeping the game fresh with various updates, we're sure players will keep their islands fresh, too. Of course, that can cost a pretty virtual penny, but there are a ton of ways to become a quick Bellionaire.
15 Collect Bugs, Fish, And Weeds To Sell To NPCs
Selling things to Timmy and Tommy is not always your most profitable option. It may be your first instinct to capture a bug or fish and immediately head off to Nook's Cranny, but try to hold on to the critters for a bit. There are a few NPCs who will make it worth your while.
First, we have Flick, a punky lizard who loves to collect bugs. There's also CJ the beaver, a fishing extraordinaire. A recent addition to the NPCs, Leif the sloth, runs a traveling gardening stand and will take weeds off your hands. All of these characters buy their respective collectibles at a premium price. It may take a while to see them on your island, but the bigger the collection you bring them, the more bells you make. Rarer bugs and fish are even more profitable.
14 Sell Turnips At High Prices
The Stalk Market has been a mainstay in the Animal Crossing franchise since the beginning. Daisy Mae visits islands every Sunday morning until 12 p.m. with a fresh crop of turnips, which she sells at prices ranging from 90 to 110 bells per turnip. Players then have one week to sell their turnips to Timmy and Tommy, who can offer prices from 15 bells to 650 bells. The price changes twice a day. It's a bit of a gamble, because you never know if or when you will get a decent price.
Thankfully, there are tools on the Internet to help track and predict daily turnip prices. In addition, you can check out sites like Turnip Exchange to find islands with high prices. Fill your pockets with turnips and reap the rewards.
13 Give Gifts To Villagers
Generosity goes a long way. Once a villager is on your island for at least a week with frequent communication, you can begin giving them daily gifts and helping them with tasks as needed. More often than not, they'll give you something in return, sometimes in the form of bells. Otherwise you can collect and sell the items that they give you.
Of course, they won't give you a huge amount of bells, but all those little amounts will add up.
12 Sell Fossils
Each day, four fossils are buried randomly on your island. Donating new finds to Blathers at the museum is a sensible option, but these ancient relics are also great money-makers. Each fossil is worth anywhere between 1,000 bells and 6,000 bells from Timmy and Tommy. Selling a full inventory of fossils will easily see you walking away with 50,000 bells or more.
You're likely to find a ton of duplicate fossils as the museum's collection grows, so don't feel too bad if you decide to sell instead of giving your finds to Blathers.
11 Prioritize Getting A Shovel And Get Digging
Luckily, you'll be able to craft a shovel relatively quickly and painlessly in NH. It's simply a matter of waiting for a day and getting Blathers to set up shop on your island, which is triggered after you've assembled a Flimsy Fishing Rod and a Flimsy Net. You'll then simply need to nab five bugs or fish and bring them to Tom Nook.
Once you've gotten this valuable tool, you can go to work on digging up coveted goods and planting things that can pay off after playing the waiting game. You'll want to be on the lookout for things like fossils to sell to Timmy in the Resident Services building, and you can also use it to mine precious materials from stone.
10 Sell Furniture And Crafted Items
Scouring for natural resources around your island can bring in a steady stream of Bells, though it's a particularly good idea to prioritize using raw materials like wood, branches, and nuggets to craft various items. This is because these items tend to sell for quite a bit more than most raw materials and random finds around the island. You might want to craft a bunch of items with the sole intent of selling them right back.
Be sure to collect any spare, unwanted furniture you've previously made or have been gifted, as this will bring in pretty large quantities of Bells too.
9 Collect Foreign Fruit
You may have noticed that your island has an abundance of a certain type of fruit. You can, of course, gather a collection of these to sell, though you'll want to prioritize getting foreign fruit. Basically, it's all about supply and demand, even in the fantasy world of Animal Crossing. You can obtain this coveted foreign fruit by exploring a Mystery Island that can be flown to via a Nook Miles Ticket.
Besides this, you can also trade this foreign fruit with a friend, by going to each other's islands and gathering the native fruit there. You'll then be able to farm this by planting your own tree back on your homeland, which can, in turn, be exploited by gathering more and selling it at a higher price than your native fruit brings in.
8 Focus On Nook Miles And Convert Them To Bells
One of the cool new features of New Horizons is Nook Miles, which doubles as a sort of in-game achievement system and an alternative form of currency. Among other uses, those who covet Bells can directly utilize these Miles by converting them into this more universal AC currency.
Simply pay a visit to the Resident Services kiosk to exchange 500 Nook Miles for a 3,000 Bell voucher. Shoot for these more effectively by using your trusty smartphone to flip through various tasks that reward you with Miles and check your progress. You'll get prompts on your phone once you've knocked out another achievement, which will enable you to immediately cash in.
7 Sell Dream Bell Exchange Tickets
Animal Crossing's August 2020 update introduced dream islands, which allow you to capture your island as a static dream. Players can visit via a Dream Address without the ability to affect anything on the island. Nothing saves at the end of the dream visit, so there's no fear of vandalization.
Luna, the anteater in charge of dream islands, will reward you with Dream Bell exchange tickets in the mail if you visit dream islands frequently. These work the same as the aforementioned Bell Vouchers from the Nook Miles kiosk. However, at 5,000 bells a piece, these tickets rake in a bit more cash.
6 Travel And Explore Other Islands
There's another key way in which Nook Miles can be useful, and can directly help you obtain more Bells quicker and more efficiently.
After you earn 2,000 Miles, you can purchase a Nook Miles Ticket, which will allow you to explore and forage a Mystery Island. This is a practice you'll want to take on often, as the island is home to unique and rare varieties of critters and resources, as well as unique fruit. Be sure to clear out some space in your inventory, equipping yourself with the necessary tools - and happy hunting!
5 Focus On Fishing
One of the first activities you'll be able to partake in is fishing, and you'll want to do this quite regularly. Still, while catching most fish types can be fairly beneficial, you'll want to be on the lookout for larger fish swimming about. This will increase your chances of notching a rarer breed, which can be pawned for larger quantities of Bells.
Fish like Red Snapper and Saw Sharks fall into this exclusive category, among a slew of others. If you've landed a large and unique-looking fish, chances are they can bring in at least decent cash. Use bait when possible, and prioritize fishing in the ocean rather than rivers, as you're more likely to get rare catches with these actions.
4 Go Insect-Hunting At Night
You may notice that we've thus far excluded insect hunting. This isn't because nabbing bugs is a pointless, time-wasting affair necessarily. Yet, it's usually a bit tougher and doesn't typically net as much earnings as fishing. With that said, though, you definitely should have that net ready if you're out and about at night (past 6pm). This is the point of the day where rarer bugs and critters like Tarantulas will be emerging.
As mentioned, bug catching can also yield greater returns when exploring Mystery Islands as well.
3 Seek Out The Money Rock
One of the simplest - and ironically most fruitful - New Horizons endeavors is to roam your island and bash as many rocks as you can. As we've covered, this will yield resources, though you'll also have a chance to spot the rare "money rock," with will unearth bags of precious Bells. You'll be able to find one per day, and they can be hit up to eight times - granting up to 16,400 Bells!
You may not want to attempt this until you're able to get something more sturdy than a Flimsy Shovel/Axe, as these will break on you rather quickly.
2 Focus On Selling Nook's "Hot Item" Of The Day
Be sure to prioritize obtaining Nook's Cranny, which is the game's dedicated shop, first and foremost. This is triggered upon completing Timmy and Tom's request to gather 30 pieces of the following - wood, softwood, hardwood, and iron nuggets. It might seem a bit tedious, but the payoff is quite worth it. The dedicated shop will open, at which point the "hot item of the day" will be opened up to you.
Now, you'll be able to pawn a randomly-chosen crafted item which will bring in twice the Bells it normally sells for. So get a jump on what the item in question is and get to work having one ready to sell during the day.
1 Glorious Money Trees!
If you've spent a day or two wandering your island habitat, you might have noticed the occasional enticing gold glow coming from the ground. As it happens, digging in this area will unearth a bag of cold hard Animal Crossing cash.
Moreover, you can then take this bag and bury it back in the hole from whence it came. This will trigger the eventual growth of a money tree, which will bear additional bags of Bells. You can plant more than one of these trees on your island, and burying more Bells will yield greater returns - so take advantage and make it rain!