Complete Guide to All Experience Bonuses in Final Fantasy 14

I level jobs in Final Fantasy XIV all the time, and I want to share straightforward, practical ways to get more XP without wasting playtime. I write from experience: I’m a long-time player and I’ve noticed small habits make the biggest difference. Read this as if a friend (yes, a woman who raids and crafts) is giving you tips—short, sharp, usable.

🎯 Core XP mechanics (quick)

XP comes from combat, quests, duties, crafting and gathering. How much you get depends on level difference and the activity type. The main passive you’ll see is the Armoury Bonus: when a job is lower than your highest job you get an increased combat/crafting/gathering XP rate that scales with the level gap (it can be up to roughly +100% in common cases). This bonus doesn’t apply to quest rewards. That matters—big time.

Why that matters: use quest XP on your highest job and combat on the lower one. It’s simple and it works (depends on your niche—there are exceptions).

📈 Food and consumables

Food gives a flat ~3% XP bonus for 30 minutes for most meals. Use it always when actively playing—uptime beats high-end meals if you forget to pop them. I’ve found Boiled Egg or cheaper meals win more often because you’ll keep them active.

Special manuals (company or commercial manuals) boost crafting/gathering/combat XP and have limited total value (often consumed as a set XP pool). Use them on high-return actions, not on filler craft. This doesn’t always work the same for every job—check the manual’s remaining XP value before you burn it.

🏠 Rested (Sanctuary) bonus

Sanctuary/rest doubles combat XP up to a cap that scales with level; you build it by logging out in main cities, inns, or housing. In my experience, logging out in Sanctuary every session is the single most reliable passive gain. We found it stacks multiplicatively with Armoury Bonus and food, so timing matters.

Example (very simplified): base 1000 XP becomes ~4000 XP with full rest, Armoury and food active. Yes, really—if you plan it.

• Log out in Sanctuary when you stop playing.
• Use rest on combat tasks where it multiplies the biggest chunks of XP.

🎊 Events and server bonuses (updated Nov 26, 2025)

FFXIV runs XP campaigns—weekends, seasonal events, anniversary boosts and new-world promos like “Road to 80.” Those can double or heavily increase XP for targeted content. Plan around them. Save manuals and push major jobs through during these windows.

Controversy: starting on a new server for Road to 80 is the fastest route, but it splits communities and can feel like starting over for convenience. Some players think it’s the only efficient way; I disagree. You can do it on an existing server with patience.

⚔️ Combat vs crafting—different playbooks

Combat uses Armoury, rest and food best. Crafting/gathering leans on manuals, collectible turns and specific food buffs. Don’t try to treat them the same.

For combat, my routine is: log with rest, pop food, queue the highest-XP duties first. For crafting, prep manuals, craft high-value items or collectibles, and save manuals for double-XP events. Watch this—timing manuals with events multiplies their value dramatically.

“Use your limited manuals on the highest XP churn you can. Don’t burn them on one-off crafts.”

🔄 Stacking rules and a counterintuitive tip

Bonuses stack mostly multiplicatively, so timing your biggest activities for when multiple bonuses are active yields outsized returns. Counterintuitive insight: a simple boiled egg and perfect timing often outperforms an expensive meal used inconsistently. Uptime matters more than raw meal potency.

Is it worth micro-managing every minute? Depends on your goals. For casual play, don’t stress. For speed runs, you’ll plan blocks: food, rest, manuals, duties.

Practical checklist

1. Logout in Sanctuary each session.
2. Keep a food buff active during play.
3. Save quest XP for your highest job when possible.
4. Use manuals during high-return crafting or events.
5. Queue daily roulettes when rested and buffed.

Here’s a tiny macro idea (paste into chat macro slot):

/ac "Food Name" 
/p Food popped! Time to grind. 🍳

One last odd note: some players hoard manuals and never use them—then complain they’re slow. Use them. Seriously. (Between us, I’ve been guilty too.)

Wrapping—oops—no, final reminder: small habits compound. A boiled egg, a Sanctuary logout, and saving MSQ for the right job will cut weeks off a multi-job leveling plan. There are exceptions and you’ll tweak the approach for your playstyle; I’ll help if you want specific examples for your jobs.!