How to Earn Reales Fast in Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced

Reales run the Caribbean in Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced. Almost every Jackdaw upgrade needs a pile of them on top of raw materials, and the price only climbs as the story goes on. By the time you're eyeing Heavy Shot, thicker hull armor, or a full stock of ammunition before a Legendary Ship fight, you'll feel it if your funds are running thin.

None of that requires grinding, though. The Caribbean throws money at you constantly, through naval combat, treasure hunting, warehouse raids, hunting, and trading. Some of these pay off early, others only get good once the Jackdaw and your access to tougher waters have caught up.

Below, we've ranked the fastest and most reliable ways to earn Reales, when each method becomes worthwhile, and how to maximize your profits at every stage of the game.

Quick Tips for Earning Reales

Short on time? Here's the version without the explanations:

• Capture and loot bigger enemy ships once your Jackdaw can beat them safely.
• Prioritize Royal Convoys. They tend to carry the most Reales and the best cargo.
• Upgrade cargo capacity early so you can haul more before heading back to port.
• Raid warehouses whenever one's available, they pay out in both materials and sellable goods.
• Dig up treasure maps while you're already near an island instead of saving them for later.
• Sell cargo you don't need instead of letting it sit in a full hold.
• Only repair the Jackdaw when it actually needs it, not after every skirmish.
• Stack activities on one voyage: combat, treasure, hunting, and a warehouse raid before you sail home.

Do these consistently and your wallet fills up on its own, no dedicated grinding sessions required.

What Are Reales Used For?

Reales are the main currency in the game. Plenty of Jackdaw upgrades also ask for Wood or Metal, but nearly all of them want a chunk of money too.

Expect to spend Reales on:

• Jackdaw upgrades
• Ship ammunition
• Harpoon upgrades
• Edward Kenway's equipment
• Pistols and swords
• Outfits and cosmetics
• Treasure maps
• Fast travel and other services
• Assorted upgrades unlocked as the campaign progresses

Since both your ship and your character lean on this one resource, it's worth treating it carefully. Blow it all on cosmetics early and you'll be stuck waiting on the upgrades that actually make combat easier.

The Best Ways to Earn Reales at a Glance

Not everything pays the same. Some activities give a quick burst, others turn into steady income over an entire playthrough.

The best long-term approach isn't picking one method and sticking to it. Sink ships, scoop up floating cargo, raid a nearby warehouse, and sell your surplus before heading back out. Do all four on the same trip and the totals add up fast.

If you're wondering where your time is best spent, this comparison breaks down the game's most reliable money-making activities. While every method has its place, some become significantly more profitable as the Jackdaw grows stronger and new regions of the Caribbean open up.

Method 1: Win Naval Battles Instead of Avoiding Them

A lot of new players steer clear of enemy ships early on. That's a mistake, naval combat is one of the steadiest earners in the whole game.

A successful battle can drop:

• Reales
• Cargo to sell
• Crafting materials
• Ammunition
• Resources for Jackdaw upgrades

Bigger military vessels pay out more, but they hit harder too. As the Jackdaw gets stronger, frigates and man o' wars go from terrifying to genuinely lucrative.

Don't sink a disabled ship out of habit. Boarding it often nets extra cargo and can patch up the Jackdaw for free, which saves you a repair bill later.

Every point you put into broadside cannons, Heavy Shot, and hull armor makes future battles faster, safer, and more profitable. Combat upgrades tend to pay for themselves.

Method 2: Hunt Down Royal Convoys

If you want the single biggest payout from one encounter, nothing beats a Royal Convoy. These fleets haul serious amounts of Reales and cargo, and they're one of the best targets in the game once the Jackdaw can handle them.

The catch: convoys travel with heavily armed escorts that will wreck an underprepared crew. Wait until you've got stronger hull armor, better broadside cannons, Heavy Shot, and upgraded mortars before picking a fight.

Why Royal Convoys Are Worth Hunting

Beating a convoy usually gets you:

• A large sum of Reales
• High-value cargo
• Crafting materials for ship upgrades
• A chance to repair the Jackdaw by boarding enemy vessels

The payout-to-effort ratio is hard to beat once you're mid to late game.

Tips for Defeating Royal Convoys

Go in fully stocked. Running dry on Heavy Shot or mortars mid-fight can turn easy money into an expensive repair bill.

• Take out the smaller escorts first to cut down on incoming fire.
• Stay mobile instead of trading broadsides head-on.
• Use mortars at range before closing in.
• Switch to Heavy Shot up close for maximum damage.
• Board damaged ships when you can to claw back some Jackdaw health.

If the fight starts turning against you, disengage. A wrecked ship or a huge repair bill can easily cancel out whatever the convoy was carrying.

Method 3: Sell Cargo You Don't Need

It's easy to let thousands of Reales worth of cargo just sit in your hold. You should keep what you need for upcoming upgrades, but hoarding everything indefinitely isn't doing you any favors.

Naval battles, floating wreckage, warehouses, and captured ships will all fill your hold over time. Once you've got more than you need, selling the extra is one of the easiest ways to stay flush.

What Should You Sell?

Check which upgrades you're working toward before docking. If you've already stockpiled enough of a material, sell the rest instead of letting it eat cargo space.

Sugar, rum, cloth, and other trade goods picked up during combat are usually safe to offload. Rarer crafting materials for advanced upgrades are worth holding onto until the ship is fully kitted out.

Trade goods accumulate much faster than you'll usually spend them on upgrades, making them some of the safest materials to sell once you've planned your next round of Jackdaw improvements.

Don't Empty Your Entire Cargo Hold

Selling everything after each trip feels good in the moment but can slow you down. If you end up needing those materials for a big hull or cannon upgrade, you'll be re-farming them from scratch.

Keep what you need for planned upgrades, sell the rest, and head back out with room to spare.

Method 4: Raid Warehouses Whenever You Can

Warehouses are one of the best sources of both materials and cargo. They take more effort than attacking a merchant ship, but the payoff usually justifies it.

Most raids blend stealth, combat, and naval gameplay, so you're getting a solid haul in a short window.

Why Warehouses Are So Valuable

A clean raid typically hands over large amounts of Wood, Metal, Cloth, Sugar, Rum, and other upgrade materials. Anything you don't need right away can be sold or saved for later.

Make the Most of Every Raid

• Scout before you commit to an attack.
• Take out guards quietly to avoid pulling in reinforcements.
• Loot every chest and supply cache you find.
• Escape cleanly instead of eating unnecessary damage on the way out.

Raids get noticeably easier once Edward and the Jackdaw have a few upgrades under their belt, so it's worth revisiting them throughout the campaign.

Method 5: Never Ignore Treasure Maps

Treasure maps are easy to forget about when you're chasing story missions or naval battles, but they're often the cheapest money in the game to collect.

You'll stumble onto buried treasure just by sailing the Caribbean, and a lot of it sits close enough to story objectives that grabbing it barely costs you a detour.

Why Treasure Hunting Is Worth Your Time

Digging up a map usually rewards Reales, collectibles, crafting materials, cosmetics, and occasionally a piece of unique gear. None of it requires a fight.

Save Time by Combining Activities

Instead of setting aside a whole session for treasure hunting, grab it while you're already in the area. A single voyage might cover a story mission, a captured merchant ship, a warehouse raid, and a treasure dig before you sell off the extras back at port.

Method 6: Complete Fleet Missions for Passive Income

Fleet Missions won't be available immediately, so don't worry if you haven't unlocked them during the opening hours of the campaign.

Once your fleet starts growing, Fleet Missions become a solid source of Reales that doesn't require you to lift a finger. The payout isn't as immediate as sinking a ship, but it adds up while you're doing literally anything else.

Send captured ships out regularly instead of leaving them idle, and you'll come back to extra currency waiting for you.

Why Fleet Missions Are Worth Doing

• Generate Reales while you're off doing other things.
• Reward extra resources depending on the mission type.
• Give captured ships a purpose beyond scuttling every enemy vessel you meet.
• Scale up as your fleet grows.

Treat these as passive income on top of your main earnings, not a primary source.

Keep Your Fleet Active

Before logging off or diving into a long story session, check for available Fleet Missions and send out any ship that isn't needed elsewhere. It costs nothing and you'll rarely miss out on easy Reales this way.

Method 7: Hunt Animals for Crafting Materials

Hunting won't make you rich fast, but it matters early on. Plenty of pelts go toward crafting upgrades for carrying capacity, ammo reserves, and health, and unlocking those early makes everything after them easier.

Prioritize Useful Upgrades

Don't hunt every animal you see. Focus on upgrades that actually improve efficiency: bigger ammo pouches, more carrying capacity, extra holsters, and health boosts.

Once those are unlocked, you'll spend less on restocking and survive longer in tough fights.

Sell Excess Materials

Once you've crafted what you want, sell whatever pelts and materials you don't need. It's not a huge earner, but it makes every hunting trip a little more worthwhile.

Method 8: Complete Story Missions and Side Activities

The campaign hands out Reales as you go, which makes it one of the more dependable sources of income during the opening chapters. Missions also unlock new regions, tougher ships, more warehouses, and better opportunities across the map.

Don't Rush Straight to the Ending

It's tempting to beeline the main story, especially if you're chasing late-game upgrades. But clearing side content between missions usually leaves you in far better financial shape.

Worth doing along the way: Naval Contracts, Assassin Contracts, treasure maps, warehouse raids, hunting, and easy naval encounters. Mix these into your story runs and you'll rarely need a dedicated grinding session.

Early Game Money-Making Strategy

Early on, the Jackdaw can't take on everything it runs into. Don't chase the biggest rewards yet, focus on building a foundation instead.

Avoid buying every cosmetic item that becomes available. During the early game, nearly every Reales is better invested in Jackdaw upgrades that increase your earning potential.

Priorities for the Early Game

• Defeat smaller merchant ships.
• Loot floating cargo after battles.
• Complete story missions.
• Collect nearby treasure maps.
• Upgrade cargo capacity whenever you can.
• Steer clear of heavily defended military ships.

Consistency beats risk-taking at this stage. Small wins stack up and set you up for the bigger payouts later.

Mid Game Money-Making Strategy

Once the Jackdaw's hull, cannons, and ammunition are upgraded, the Caribbean opens up and your income starts climbing fast.

Your Main Sources of Income

• Attack larger enemy ships.
• Raid warehouses.
• Hunt Royal Convoys.
• Sell excess cargo.
• Complete Fleet Missions.
• Collect treasure while you're out exploring.

Instead of docking after every fight, keep sailing until your hold is nearly full. Less travel, more value per trip.

Late Game Money-Making Strategy

With a fully upgraded ship, you can take on nearly any naval encounter without much risk. At this point, earning Reales becomes less about survival and more about running an efficient loop.

Once your upgrades are complete, Reales become less of a limiting factor, allowing you to focus on optional content and Legendary Ship encounters without worrying about your finances.

Maximize Every Expedition

A strong late-game voyage might look like this: hunt a Royal Convoy, capture or board a few military ships, grab every floating crate you pass, raid a nearby warehouse, pick up treasure along your route, then head back only once your hold is nearly full and sell off the surplus.

Stack enough of these into one trip and you'll spend far less time farming and far more time just sailing.

Common Mistakes That Cost You Reales

Finding good income sources is only half the job. Dodging a few common mistakes will save you a lot of Reales over a full playthrough.

Delaying Important Ship Upgrades

Hoarding every Reale for later can actually slow you down. Stronger cannons, heavier armor, and better ammunition make future fights faster and safer, and those upgrades usually pay for themselves quickly.

Selling Every Crafting Material

Cashing out your whole hold after a good voyage is tempting, especially with an expensive upgrade in sight. But selling materials you'll need soon just means farming them again later. Check what's next on your upgrade list before you sell anything.

Ignoring Boarding Opportunities

Sinking ships on sight skips out on better rewards. Boarding usually gets you more cargo and Reales, plus a free repair on the Jackdaw. Those free repairs save real money over a full campaign.

Returning to Port Too Often

Docking after every win wastes time and potential earnings. Keep exploring as long as your hold has room, the Jackdaw's healthy, and you've still got ammo. Stacking activities into one voyage beats constant trips back to town.

Picking Unnecessary Fights

Not every ship is worth the ammo. If a fight is going to chew through your supplies or leave the Jackdaw wrecked, the repair bill can easily outweigh whatever you'd gain.

Additional Tips for Maximizing Your Earnings

Once your income is steady, a few habits can push every voyage further.

Upgrade Cargo Capacity Early

A bigger hold means more time at sea before you need to dock, which translates directly into more materials, more trade goods, and more Reales per trip. It's one of the best early quality-of-life upgrades available.

Plan Efficient Sailing Routes

Instead of zigzagging toward one objective at a time, group nearby activities together. Heading to a story mission? Check for Royal Convoys, warehouses, treasure maps, Naval Contracts, and shipping lanes along the way.

Keep the Jackdaw Supplied

Running dry on ammo mid-fight can force a retreat or cost you a good payout. Stock up on Round Shot, Heavy Shot, Chain Shot, mortars, and Fire Barrels before setting sail so you're ready for whatever shows up.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the fastest way to earn Reales?

Hunting Royal Convoys, winning naval battles, and selling off excess cargo. Combine all three on the same voyage for the best return.

Should I sell all of my cargo?

No. Hold back what you need for your next round of Jackdaw upgrades and sell the rest, otherwise you'll end up farming the same materials twice.

Are warehouse raids worth doing?

Yes. They pay out large amounts of crafting material that you can either use directly or sell once you've got more than you need.

Is hunting a good way to make money?

It's not the highest earner, but it's worth doing early since it unlocks crafting upgrades that make Edward more efficient and cut your future expenses.

Should I board ships or sink them?

Board them when it's safe. You usually get extra cargo and Reales, plus a free Jackdaw repair without spending anything at a harbor.

Do story missions provide enough money on their own?

They're a good early income source but won't cover every upgrade by themselves. Pair them with naval combat, warehouse raids, and treasure hunting to keep pace.