Small Keys hide some of Resident Evil 4 Remake’s best secrets, tucked away in drawers and chests that could easily be missed. Here’s where to track each one down so you won’t leave any treasure behind on your way through Capcom’s reimagined classic.
Regardless of whether you’re looking to complete the merchant’s treasure maps in the Resident Evil 4 remake or just want to make bank, below are all Small Key locations scattered in the game. If you’re curious about what each locked drawer has trapped inside, you can find each reward and its worth in the last section.
How to open locked drawers in Resident Evil 4 remake
Locked drawers can only be opened with Small Keys, which are single-use items you find throughout each region of the game. Any Small Key works on any locked drawer, so you do not need to match specific keys to specific drawers. Once you have a key, approach a drawer marked with the small padlock icon and interact with it to use the key and claim the treasure inside.
For every locked drawer you find in the Resident Evil 4 remake, there is a Small Key for it hidden somewhere in the region. You can open them in any order, and there isn’t a specific key for a specific drawer.
The only thing to note is that, once you cross the point of no return of a region, you won’t be able to go back and grab any treasures you’ve missed – unless you made a manual save beforehand. If you start a new game plus save after finishing the game once, you’ll have to pick up all treasures again, so you can restart your search then.
All Resident Evil 4 remake Small Key locations
Small Keys in the Resident Evil 4 remake are scattered throughout the early chapters and can be found tucked inside drawers, barrels, and side rooms. Each one opens a locked drawer containing valuable treasures or rare items that boost your resources. Players should check side paths, abandoned houses, and merchant areas carefully, as some keys are easy to miss on the first pass. Once collected, every Small Key serves a single-use purpose, so keeping track of which drawers remain sealed helps ensure nothing is left behind.
There is a total of eight Small Keys to gather in the Resident Evil 4 remake, spanning the first two regions. There are no more locked drawers once you enter the Island, so make sure to grab everything you need before leaving the Village and the Castle.
As a quick note, while we’re including the number of the chapter in which you’ll encounter the item for the first time, you can grab them at any point as long as you don’t cross the point of no return. In the Village, that point happens when you’re heading over to the extraction point with Ashley. In the Castle, it’s when you head inside the clocktower.
Below, here are all Small Key locations in the Resident Evil 4 remake:
Valley Small Key
Chapter: 2
Region: Village
Location: Inside the shack underneath the hexagonal emblem. Using the eastern entrance as a reference, you’ll find the key inside an open box on a cupboard in that small room on the right, next to a barricaded window.
Village Chief’s Manor Small Key
Chapter: 2
Region: Village
Location: As you’re following the main path, you’ll end up inside the Village Chief’s Manor. Head over to the southwestern corner of the ground floor (using the map as reference) to grab the key on top of a pile of papers, in between the couch and the window.
Fish Farm Small Key
Chapter: 3
Region: Village
Location: Inside a drawer in the western corner of the area, just south of the marker for the boat fuel, there’s a small shack with the key inside.
Lakeside Settlement/Forest Altar Small Key
Chapter: 4
Region: Village
Location: Use your boat to head back to the settlement, and then use your Insignia Key to unlock the path up north, which culminates in the Forest Altar. Once up there, grab the key from the western side, on top of a carriage.
Church Small Key
Chapter: 4
Region: Village
Location: Once you’re inside the church, head over to the pulpit and look to your right to grab another key in that southern corner of the area (when looking at the map as reference!).
Bindery Small Key
Chapter: 8
Region: Castle
Location: After you go through the Bindery puzzle, you’ll end up in an L-shaped corridor. Once Leon is scared of that creature that crawls rapidly over the wall, head to your left (or the southern corner of that corridor when looking at the map) and grab the key on top of the crate next to the window.
Grand Hall Small Key
Chapter: 9
Region: Castle
Location: As you’re looking for the three statue heads and you’re going over to the room up north (while looking at the map), grab the key from inside a cupboard on the upper left corner of that hall with the armors (where Ashley tells Leon he’d like dashing in one of them). It’s on your way to the knights’ encounter, so if you miss it, just enter the room again afterward.
Ballroom Small Key
Chapter: 12
Region: Castle
Location: Once you return to the castle area after your ventures with Luis in the mines, you’ll come across the trader as well as a train rail that takes you to the clock tower. Before you do that, move to the right side of the train to find a briefcase with the key inside.
Locked drawer rewards for using Small Keys
Locked drawers often contain valuable rewards such as gemstones, treasure items, or upgraded weapon parts that can be sold or used for improvements. Each Small Key you find grants access to one of these drawers, scattered throughout the village, castle, and island areas. Opening them adds worthwhile bonuses to Leon’s inventory, making exploration and careful searching highly rewarding during the campaign.
As mentioned above, there are eight treasures to grab from inside locked drawers using Small Keys. Most of them are for sale only, but there is also a gemstone and a treasure with slots to increase its price with gems.
In terms of locations, they are all super straightforward to find. If you’re in doubt, trading Spinels for the area’s treasure map at the merchant shot will pinpoint where they are. Doing so does not disclose Small Key locations, but hey, that’s why we’re here to help.
The locked drawer rewards in Resident Evil 4 remake are the following:
- Abandoned Factory locked drawer: Elegant Mask (worth 5,000 ptas. without gems)
- Village Square locked drawer: Vintage Compass (worth 8,000 ptas.)
- Quarry locked drawer (merchant’s post): Brass Pocket Watch (worth 8,000 ptas.)
- Lakeside Settlement locked drawer: Gold Bar (L) (worth 15,000 ptas.)
- Church locked drawer: Yellow Diamond (worth 7,000 ptas. on its own, but always best when combined with treasures)
- Audience Chamber locked drawer: Gold Bar (worth 10,000 ptas.)
- Bindery locked drawer: Brass Pocket Watch (worth 8,000 ptas.)
- Castle Battlements locked drawer: Ornate Beetle (worth 12,000 ptas.)
What treasures are in each Small Key drawer
Each locked drawer opened with a Small Key contains one fixed treasure, and there are eight in total.
Small Key drawers – treasures inside
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Valley drawer (Abandoned Factory area, Village)
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Treasure: Vintage Compass – a sell-only treasure.
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Village Square drawer (Village Chief’s Manor / Village route)
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Treasure: Elegant Mask (a multi-slot treasure you can inlay gemstones into).
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Lakeside Settlement drawer (Luis’s shack area)
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Treasure: Gold Bar – high-value sell-only bar.
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Lake Merchant drawer (Merchant by the boat dock)
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Treasure: Velvet Blue – a gemstone-type treasure.
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Church side-room drawer (Village)
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Treasure: Yellow Diamond – single inlay gem for slot-type treasures.
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Bindery drawer (Castle, Bindery room)
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Treasure: Brass Pocket Watch – sell-only treasure.
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Castle Audience Chamber / reception-type drawer
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Treasure: Gold Bar – another large bar to sell.
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Castle Battlements drawer (near Ballroom / clock tower route)
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Treasure: Ornate Beetle – high-value sell-only treasure.
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If you tell me which chapter you’re in, I can point out exactly which remaining drawers you can still reach so you don’t miss any before going to the Island.
How to sell treasures for maximum value in RE4 Remake
To get maximum value, always inlay gems into combinable treasures and aim for the best color-bonus multipliers before selling.
Core rules for selling treasure
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Never sell combinable treasures or loose gemstones on their own if you care about money; always combine them first.
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Prioritize filling treasures with more gem slots (like Elegant Crown, Ornate Necklace, Butterfly Lamp) because they can reach higher multipliers and total value.
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Use the in-game “Gemstone Bonuses” chart in the inlay menu; it shows which color combinations give the best multiplier for that item.
Gem values and colors
Round/square gems and their base sell values:
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Ruby – 3,000
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Sapphire – 4,000
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Emerald – 5,000
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Alexandrite – 6,000
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Yellow Diamond – 7,000
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Red Beryl – 9,000
Higher-value gems (Yellow Diamond, Red Beryl, Alexandrite) should usually go into multi-slot, late-game treasures rather than early small pieces.
Gemstone bonus multipliers (concept)
The game applies a multiplier depending on how many colors you match in one treasure:
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Same-color sets (like two of the same gem) give one type of bonus.
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Mixed-color sets give higher bonuses the more different colors you use (up to “Five Colors” on 5-slot items, which is a 2.0x multiplier).
Practical takeaway:
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For 2-3 slot treasures, using duplicate rubies/sapphires is fine if that hits a strong same-color or duo bonus.
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For 4-5 slot treasures, aim for as many different colors as possible to reach the top multiplier.
Example: 100,000 ptas crown
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Elegant Crown base value: 19,000 ptas.
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Inlay 5 different colors (Emerald, Sapphire, Alexandrite, Yellow Diamond, Red Beryl) to trigger the “Five Colors” 2.0x bonus and hit 100,000 ptas total; this also unlocks Astute Appraiser.
You can squeeze a bit more than 100k out of the crown by stacking extra Yellow Diamonds/Red Beryls, but that consumes rare gems you could instead use to boost other treasures, usually lowering your overall run income.
Simple strategy to follow
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Early game:
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Save almost all gems; only fill a treasure if you’re desperate for cash.
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Use common rubies/sapphires to complete 2-3 slot items you’re about to sell.
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Mid/late game:
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Reserve Yellow Diamonds, Alexandrite, Red Beryl for 4-5 slot treasures.
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Aim for “Four Colors” or “Five Colors” bonuses whenever possible.
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Always check the inlay menu’s bonus chart and compare: higher color bonus with slightly cheaper gems often beats dumping all your best gems into one item. Over a full playthrough this yields the most money overall.
If you tell me what treasures and gems you’re currently holding, I can lay out the best exact inlay combos for your inventory.
