This page covers how skill XP is multiplied in Build 42 and the quickest repeatable way to raise each of the 35 skills. It explains starting skill bonuses, Fast Learner, skill book bands and the TV and VHS limit, then gives one row per skill with the best action, the book or tape that boosts it, and a tip. Written for Build 42 (42.22), November 2026.
Build 42 has 35 skills. Four names differ from older guides: Sprinting is now Running, Farming is Agriculture, Metalworking is Welding, and the animal skill shows as Animal Care (the book items still use the old name Husbandry). Blacksmithing, Pottery, Masonry, Carving, Knapping, Glassmaking, Butchering and Tracking are new. What each one does is on the skills page.
Every regular skill needs 75 XP for level 1 and 32,775 XP in total for level 10. Strength and Fitness start at level 5 and need 450,000 more XP to reach 10.
Each gain is then multiplied by:
Strength and Fitness ignore starting levels, traits and books.
24 skills have five volumes each. A book gives no XP itself. It multiplies the XP you earn by doing the skill, and only inside its band. Guides label the bands two ways; the table shows your current level while the bonus applies.
| Volume | Your level | Pages | Most skills | Aiming, Reloading, Long Blade |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I | 0 to 1 | 220 | ×3 | ×1.5 |
| II | 2 to 3 | 260 | ×5 | ×2.5 |
| III | 4 to 5 | 300 | ×8 | ×4 |
| IV | 6 to 7 | 340 | ×12 | ×6 |
| V | 8 to 9 | 380 | ×16 | ×8 |
The bonus grows by a tenth for every 10% of pages read. A volume too far above your level cannot be read, and one below it does nothing. The physical skills and every melee weapon skill except Long Blade have no books. Titles and loot spots are on skill books.
Life and Living airs on TV channel 203 at 06:00, 12:00 and 18:00 for roughly the first nine days. Woodcraft trains Carpentry, The Cook Show trains Cooking, and Exposure Survival covers Fishing, Foraging, Trapping and Agriculture. The same episodes exist as VHS tapes, and Carzone tapes train Mechanics. Home tapes cover several other skills (see the table).
Build 42 changed the value of this. Media XP stops once the skill reaches level 3 on default settings, and each line pays a character only once. Media XP does pass through the normal multipliers, so read volume I before the episode. Schedule and tape list: TV and VHS.
XP figures are base values before multipliers.
| Skill | Best repeatable action | Book or tape | Tip |
|---|---|---|---|
| Strength | Exercise menu (push-ups, dumbbells, barbell). Also carrying above half weight. | None | Protein in the good range gives ×1.5 (one source). See fitness. |
| Fitness | Exercise menu (squats, sit-ups, burpees) and running. | None | Gains stop at Fitness 6 and above while very underweight or obese (one source). |
| Running (was Sprinting) | Jog and sprint while endurance lasts. | None | XP is a chance roll while moving. |
| Lightfooted | Move quietly close to zombies. | None | More zombies nearby means more XP. |
| Nimble | Walk in combat stance. You must change tile. | None | Safe at base but slow. Fence climbing gives nothing. |
| Sneaking | Crouch-walk near zombies that have not seen you. | None | Chasing zombies count for less. See stealth. |
| Axe | Hit zombies with any axe. | None | Melee XP is 0.9 × damage, capped at 3 base per hit (one source). |
| Long Blunt | Hit zombies with bats and crowbars. | None | Hit count matters more than damage. |
| Short Blunt | Hit zombies with hammers and wrenches. | None | Same cap applies. |
| Short Blade | Hit zombies with knives. | None | Knives wear out fast. Carry spares. |
| Long Blade | Hit zombies with machetes and swords. | Long Blade I to V (reduced rate) | The only melee weapon skill with books. |
| Spear | Hit zombies with spears. | None | Assembling spears also pays Maintenance XP. |
| Maintenance | Melee hits, plus repairing and sharpening gear. | Maintenance I to V | Durable weapons pay less per hit (one source). |
| Aiming | Hit targets with firearms. Base XP equals targets hit. | Aiming I to V (reduced); home tapes | ×2.7 below level 5 (one source). A shotgun into a group hits several. See firearms. |
| Reloading | Load rounds and magazines. | Reloading I to V (reduced) | 4 base XP per round below level 5, then far less (one source). |
| Carpentry | Wood floors (10 base XP, 1 plank and 1 nail), then walls, crates and stairs (60) (one source). | Carpentry I to V; Woodcraft | Dismantling furniture gives no XP on default settings. See carpentry. |
| Cooking | Cook meals and add ingredients to recipes. | Cooking I to V; The Cook Show | Cook every meal. |
| Agriculture (was Farming) | Harvest crops you planted. | Agriculture I to V; Exposure Survival | Healthier crops pay more (one source). |
| First Aid | Treat real wounds: bandage about 5, stitch or splint about 15 (one source). | First Aid I to V; home tapes | Treat every wound yourself. |
| Electrical | Dismantle TVs, radios and other electronics. | Electrical I to V; home tapes | Dismantling still pays here by default. |
| Welding (was Metalworking) | Dismantle car wrecks, then make metal sheets with a torch. | Welding I to V; home tapes | Furniture no longer pays. Wrecks: about 17 XP per 10 torch uses (one source). |
| Mechanics | Uninstall and reinstall parts on spare cars. | Mechanics I to V; Carzone tapes | Rotate between cars. See mechanics. |
| Tailoring | Knit beanies and scarves (9 XP), then armor and leather pieces (one source). | Tailoring I to V; home tapes | Patching and ripping clothes also count. See tailoring. |
| Blacksmithing | Small iron bands (10 XP), then bar work, then steel sheets (45, level 4) (one source). | Blacksmithing I to V; home tapes | Stock charcoal first. See blacksmithing. |
| Pottery | Shape and fire clay items, crucibles first. | Pottery I to V; home tapes | Forage or dig for clay. |
| Masonry | Crush large stones to level 1, then stone blocks (20 XP) (one source). | Masonry I to V | The blocks build your forge and furnace. |
| Carving | Small handles and wooden rods (10 XP), then medium handles (20) (one source). | Carving I to V | Needs only a knife and wood. |
| Knapping | Sharp flint flakes from flint nodules. | Knapping I to V; home tapes | Recipes thin out near level 6 (one source). |
| Glassmaking | Glass panes (25 XP, no level needed), jars later (75, level 5) (one source). | Glassmaking I to V | Needs a furnace, crucible and blowpipe. |
| Fishing | Catch fish with a rod. Bigger fish pay more. | Fishing I to V; Exposure Survival | Net checks pay little. |
| Trapping | Collect animals from baited traps. | Trapping I to V; Exposure Survival | Placing traps pays little. Run many. |
| Foraging | Search mode in forest. Discarded finds also count. | Foraging I to V; Exposure Survival | See foraging. |
| Tracking | Inspect animal tracks found in search mode. | Tracking I to V | Level it while hunting. |
| Animal Care (Husbandry) | Daily care: water, milk, shear, collect eggs. | Animal Care I to V; home tapes | Chickens plus one milk animal. See animals. |
| Butchering | Butcher carcasses on a hook. Filleting fish counts. | Butchering I to V | XP roughly follows meat yield (one source). See butchering. |
Opinion Do not grind a skill at ×0.25 without its book. Read volume I, then repeat the cheapest action in the table. Unemployed with no book, a wood floor pays 2.5 XP and level 1 takes 30 floors; with volume I read it takes 10 (one source).
Opinion In week one, use the TV for Carpentry and Cooking, then forage and exercise. Leave Blacksmithing, Glassmaking and Pottery until you have a base and charcoal. Combat skills come from fighting you would do anyway.
There are 35. Build 42 added Blacksmithing, Pottery, Masonry, Carving, Knapping, Glassmaking, Butchering, Tracking and Animal Care, and renamed Sprinting to Running, Farming to Agriculture and Metalworking to Welding.
A skill you started at level 0 earns only a quarter of the base XP. Read the matching skill book, which multiplies XP by 3 at the first two levels, or pick an occupation or trait that gives a starting level in that skill.
Yes, but on default settings TV and tape XP stops once the skill reaches level 3. Each line of a show also pays a character only once.
No. Fast Learner multiplies XP by 1.3 for other skills, but Strength and Fitness ignore traits, books and starting bonuses.
Not on default settings. The dismantling XP level cap is 0, so only Electrical still gains XP from taking electronics apart.
Strength, Fitness, Running, Lightfooted, Nimble, Sneaking, Axe, Long Blunt, Short Blunt, Short Blade and Spear. They only level through use.
The skill list, XP thresholds, starting-level rates, trait multipliers, book multipliers and the level 3 media cap each appear in at least two fan sources written for Build 42.19 to 42.21. Per-action XP values are marked as single-source and were not checked in 42.22. Sources: PZFans: B42 XP mechanics · PZFans: skills guide · Pindrop: Build 42 skills · Build 42 Guide: skill leveling · ProjectZomboid.wiki: skill books and TV. Your game is the final word: if it disagrees with us, tell us and we will fix the page.