8. Factory

Part of the factory map

Factory Gameplay

Factory is the smallest map in Escape from Tarkov. Players can expect close-quarter combat with high intensity. Sadly, the loot available on the map is minimal; players only venture to this map in search of PVP or quests. A small amount of loose loot is present, along with one safe in the third-floor office area. This is not enough reasoning to convince logical players to risk their inventory for poor potential loot. The boss of this particular map is named “Tagilla,” who is on the easier spectrum of Tarkov bosses.

Tagilla loot and information: https://escapefromtarkov.fandom.com/wiki/Tagilla 

I only play Factory as a player-Scav to kill PMCs and obtain free gear; otherwise, there is no true point in playing this map unless it’s for quick tasks. Tagilla is a good method for players to farm PPBS ammunition, as he is relatively easy to kill.

I would advise players to only play this map when they are messing around, looking for quick loot, and doing tasks or quests. Otherwise, do not risk good equipment raiding on this map if it is not necessary.

Factory information: https://escapefromtarkov.fandom.com/wiki/Factory 

7. Reserve

An image of Reserve with the observatory in the background

Reserve Gameplay

“The secret Federal Reserve Agency base” has great raid potential. However, this “potential” comes mainly from combat. Reserve is a large map and can have up to 12 players on it in one session. Plenty of Scavs are scattered across the map, giving players some annoyance, but there are much bigger problems to handle on Reserve. Whether it be “the bunker” raiders or the Reserve’s boss, Glukhar.

In order to defeat Glukhar, you must kill him and his six followers, who are decently to heavily armoured and deadly accurate. Killing the whole lot will earn players tons of experience and tons of loot; in the early wipe, killing Glukhar and his goons can set you up for a whole day's worth of gear if you can kill them all.

Glukar loot and information: https://escapefromtarkov.fandom.com/wiki/Glukhar 

The map also includes three marked rooms, two of which you can purchase keys for at the flea market, and one that you must either find or trade for.  These rooms give decent loot; however, I do not believe they are worth the trouble. Tons of locked doors are present on this map; behind each one are different types of loot, but only some are worth buying. Reserve would be ranked high on older versions of Tarkov because the overall loot was better.

Reserve loot and key information: https://escapefromtarkov.fandom.com/wiki/Reserve#Usable_Keys 

6. Customs

River-crossing on Customs

Customs Gameplay

The first map I ever learned how to play was Customs. Why? It's a simple map. It is reliable, fun, and provides good to high-tier loot depending on how fortunate and prepared you are. This map provides loose, dynamic loot. Meaning that it consists of specific spawn locations that have the potential to spawn any item in the game.

Last wipe, I managed to find a “red keycard” in one of these dynamic spawns. As the lovely Tarkov player that I am, I found and proudly displayed all of the Labs keycards on the last wipe. 

Anyway, the map also consists of its own marked room. Unlike Reserves marked rooms, this marked room is much more profitable. Capable of dropping loot worth millions of rubles. Customs provides plenty of challenging combat, whether it be Reshala (the main map boss), the Ex-USEC rogue bosses, cultists, or other PMCs; expect high amounts of enemy contact. 

Reshala, like Glukhar, offers a lot of potential gear but at a lower risk.  I tend to find fighting Reshala easier than fighting Glukhar. The rogue bosses and cultists are another story. Both are much more of a threat than Reshala, so only engage if you are educated. 

All information for Customs: https://escapefromtarkov.fandom.com/wiki/Customs 

5. Labs (The Lab)

Terragroup's Lab

Labs Gameplay

Labs is TerraGroup’s hidden facility that is situated right underneath the centre of Tarkov. Labs is the map where high-tier loot and high-tier combat are both combined and implemented on a smaller map. Similar to Customs, this map has designated dynamic loot spawns but has far more. More players mean more loot and more fun, right? This is one of those maps only for the most experienced Tarkov players, and you do not have to have any keycards to profit from this map.

Keycards are extremely expensive, and the locations in which you use said keycards are constantly in high demand. The upside to keycards is they have unlimited uses, whereas conventional keys have limited uses before they break. No bosses reside on this map; however, plenty of spawnable raiders do. Depending on the engagements you have, raiders can be simple or very irritating.

Other downsides to Labs are that insurance (using traders to insure your gear in case of death, giving potential gear returns if not picked up by players) does not apply to Labs, and to gain access to Labs, players must buy access keycards that are single-use consumables.

Labs information: https://escapefromtarkov.fandom.com/wiki/The_Lab 

4. Shoreline

The Wooden animal statues on Shoreline

Shoreline Gameplay

Shoreline is one of the bigger maps in Escape From Tarkov, and, as the name suggests, the map is by the coast or outskirts of Tarkov. This map also consists of dynamic loot spawns and is famous for its consistency with regards to finding high-tier loot, specifically LEDX Skin Transilluminators, which are about 1,000,000 rubles per LEDX. This map can have up to 13 players at one time and is home to Sanitar, the rogue bosses, and a group of cultists.

I love this map at nighttime, as it is less action-packed but still highly profitable. I would advise you to strap on a pair of NVGs and get to work because there is lots of money to be made here. However, you will have to invest lots of money to gain access to the majority of these dynamic loot spawns, as they are locked behind doors. Do you know what that means? It is time to buy around 18 keys; trust me, it's worth it.

Sanitar is accompanied by two armed guards and can be relatively easy to kill; he has no protection as a boss but has a lot of health. With roughly three times your health and a plethora of ways to heal himself.  Be careful, because the second you shoot Sanitar, he will run away and heal while his guards engage you. Overall, I would highly recommend this map due to its profitability and PvE combat.

Shoreline information: https://escapefromtarkov.fandom.com/wiki/Shoreline

3. Interchange

The entrance to ULTRA Supermarket on Interchange

Interchange Gameplay

Interchange is an important transport location for the city of Tarkov, and at the centre of Interchange is the ULTRA shopping mall. ULTRA is home to the big bad boss, known as “Killa.” Killa is Tagilla’s brother and is much, much worse. Killa is better equipped and has a large number of spawn locations on this map; his armour is powerful, and his weaponry is dangerous.

Killa information: https://escapefromtarkov.fandom.com/wiki/Killa 

This map has plenty of hidden stashes, along with a maximum player count of 14 players. The reason this map is so high on this list is because of its loose loot. You can come to Interchange and loot tons of loose loot worth a decent sum. It is less appealing to most players, as they would rather aim for rare, high-value items than a few more common stash items or random loot.

Within ULTRA are three sections, OLI, IDEA, and Goshan. Each holds different types of items. Looting OLI is the main objective yet, there are some tech stores for players to loot for electronics and graphics cards.

Interchange information: https://escapefromtarkov.fandom.com/wiki/Interchange

2. Lighthouse

Usec Rogue camp on Lighthouse

Lighthouse Gameplay

Lighthouse is one of the newer maps in Escape From Tarkov and is highly profitable for any type of raid. Whether you’re looking for rogues in the water treatment plant or raiding for loose valuable loot, the lighthouse part of the map has only just opened up, along with the introduction to the rogue bosses, who also reside on this map, as well as Shoreline and Customs.

Up to 12 players can be on the map in a match, and random loot is everywhere. The most consistent loot areas are the treatment facility and the two lodges. Bear in mind, that all the loot in these areas is unlocked and open, apart from a few safes. 

The downside here is that the majority of the time the loot will be gone by the time you reach most of the spawns, so Lighthouse is not one of my go-to maps.  That doesn’t mean it’s a bad map; I’ve had a few million-ruble raids on it.

Lighthouse information: https://escapefromtarkov.fandom.com/wiki/Lighthouse 

1. Woods

The Lumbermill on Woods

Woods Gameplay

Woods is, in my honest opinion, the best map in Escape from Tarkov. It has the most to offer in terms of loot, PVP, and PVE. Firstly, there are lots of locations for players to loot, with specific loot items ranging in value. The image above is of the lumber mill; it is the home of “Shturman,” who is possibly one of the more well-known bosses of this game.

Shturman information: https://escapefromtarkov.fandom.com/wiki/Shturman 

Shturman has a chance of dropping the “Red-Rebel” pickaxe upon death, which is worth several million rubles, and he also has very good ammunition on him. This map has it all in terms of PVE, cultists, Shturman, and rogue bosses. It is a big map that fits a maximum of 14 players. Later in the wipe, sugar is quite valuable and is very common in Woods.

With lots of loot for lots of players, you are essentially guaranteed to come out of the woods with a decent profit no matter the number of players present. That is, if you survive the woods. Expect long-range combat and plenty of patient snipers. Woods is easily one of my favourite maps and is easy to learn. Customs and Woods are the first maps you should learn if you want to succeed in this game.

Woods information: https://escapefromtarkov.fandom.com/wiki/Woods 

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