Ready to dominate your first heists in Payday 3? Mastering the right skills early can turn you from a rookie into a legendary heister, whether you prefer stealthy infiltration or all-out gunfights. From hacking security cameras to boosting ammo capacity and armor regeneration, discover which skill trees will give you the edge on PC, PlayStation, and Xbox as you plan your perfect criminal build.
If you’ve played Payday 2, the first thing you’ll notice is that the skills system has changed considerably with Payday 3 – we’ll explain how skills work in Payday 3, and with that in mind, the best skills to get first. Happy heisting!
If you’re looking to cater your loadout to a specific playstyle, then our best stealth build guide may help.
How skills work in Payday 3
In Payday 3, skills are organized into multiple specialized skill trees, each requiring players to first “research” the initial skill in the tree by gaining experience through heists before unlocking subsequent skills with skill points. Players earn skill points by progressing through Infamy levels, with a maximum of around 21 to 28 points available at max rank, meaning careful selection and strategic planning are essential since you cannot unlock every skill. Skills can be freely respeced, allowing players to adapt their builds to different heists. Additionally, the system features three boosts-Edge (damage increase), Grit (damage resistance), and Rush (movement speed)-which are activated through specific actions during gameplay, adding dynamic tactical layers to skill usage. This refined and somewhat simplified skill system encourages players to focus on their preferred playstyle, whether stealth, combat, or support roles.
Before you enter a heist, you must choose individual skill trees to research and unlock, and as you earn XP, you will eventually unlock the base skill of that tree. Then, you must select the base skill of any tree and continue earning XP to unlock the subskills associated with that tree.
Depending on how many skill points you have, you can progress multiple skill trees at a time by selecting multiple base skills, but you need to have researched the skill tree first.
It’s slightly confusing, but you’ll get used to it eventually. Fortunately, it means that if you like the look of certain skills, you can get to them fairly quickly by focusing on specific skill trees.
Additionally, when you kick off your criminal career in Payday 3, your skill point allocation will be severely limited. For reference, I’m Level 38, and while I’ve researched every skill tree in its entirety, I still only have 11 skill points to allocate.
Your level only dictates how many skill points you can have active at any one time; you can access any skill you want as soon as it is researched, even at a low level. In the early game, this means you’ll need to be wily about which skill trees you research first and which skills you commit to your build.
It’s also worth mentioning that many of your skills in Payday 3 are tied to a new trio of buffs that can be activated and refreshed with certain skills:
- Edge: You deal 10% extra damage
- Grit: You take 10% less damage
- Rush: Your movement speed is increased
Whatever you choose – you can also refund all of your skill points at any time, so nothing is set in stone if you don’t like your build.
The best skills to get first in Payday 3
For players starting out in Payday 3, the best skills to get first focus on versatility and effectiveness in both stealth and loud playstyles. Key early picks include the Grifter skill tree, which enhances stealth by granting Rush when unmasked near civilians and intimidating nearby NPCs upon masking up, allowing smoother navigation and control during casing. The Hacker skill tree is essential for stealth as it enables hacking cameras and looping CCTV feeds to avoid detection, making it invaluable for quiet heists. For loud approaches, investing in the Ammo Specialist tree boosts ammo capacity and damage, while the Enforcer and Tank trees improve survivability and combat efficiency by granting damage buffs and faster armor regeneration. Additionally, the Bagger skill from the Infiltrator tree is highly recommended early on because it speeds up looting bags, a crucial advantage in all heist scenarios. Prioritizing these skills provides a solid foundation for success in Payday 3’s varied heist challenges.
At a glance, we’d recommend these as the best skills to get first in Payday 3:
- Secure Loop (Hacker)
- Quick Fingers (Infiltrator)
- Battering Ram (Escapist)
- Open Mic (Grifter)
- Stockholm Syndrome (Manipulator)
- Glitch Protocol (Hacker)
- Bagger (Infiltrator)
Rather than incremental buffs, our recommendations cater to the skills that will give you the most tangible early-game benefits across stealthy and loud heists. Let’s go through all these skills, one-by-one.
Secure Loop (Hacker)
Nothing is certain except death, taxes and cameras in a Payday 3 heist. They’re everywhere, on every difficulty, whether you’re casing the joint or gunning your way through it. Secure Loop is the second skill in the Hacker tree, and it allows you to hack a camera and loop its footage so it won’t spot you slinking towards a vault in a secure area or engaging in any kind of criminal activity, for that matter.
If you’re not yet adept at courting a camera’s perspective or simply too impatient to wait, Secure Loop lets you proceed where you would otherwise be stuck.
Quick Fingers (Infiltrator)
Another certainty in Payday 3 is the humble lockpicking minigame. It’s often what stands between your heisting crew and copious wads of cash. Quick Fingers allows you to instantly finish the minigame with a single successful jiggle if you have the Rush buff activated. Thankfully, you’ll need to have the base Infiltrator skill unlocked to use it, and the base skill provides you with Rush when you pick a lock or kill an enemy with a throwing knife.
Primarily, this means that if you’re in a room with multiple locked doors or a bank vault with a ton of deposit boxes, after you pick the first door, you can crack the rest in quadruple time and get away before the next assault hits.
Battering Ram (Escapist)
Battering Ram is the final skill in the Escapist tree, and it allows players to barge through any locked door by sprinting at it, as long as they have any of the three buffs active. As well as being a good chaser to any Edge or Grit build, you’ll need the initial Escapist skill to activate it, which gives you Rush if you sprint consistently for 3 seconds.
This is mighty useful in many situations, and it’ll often happen naturally, but it also means you can run in a circle quickly to earn Rush and then barge through any door that would usually take ages to lockpick.
Open Mic (Grifter)
The Grifter tree is mainly concerned with helping you during maskless stealth runs, where you’re trying to get in and out without even leaving casing mode. Every skill in this tree is very useful for stealth, but one that persists across all manner of builds is Open Mic, which allows you to answer radios 50% faster.
This means that if you have to shoot multiple guards to avoid getting found out, you have a much higher chance of answering each radio and delaying the assault for a little while longer.
Stockholm Syndrome (Manipulator)
It’s already worth progressing the Manipulator skill tree for the initial ability, which lets you tie up and trade hostages 50% faster, as whether you’re going loud or creeping around, you’ll be interacting with civilians in some regard.
However, if you are more of a guns-blazing type, it’s worth progressing to the end of this tree for the Stockholm Syndrome skill, which allows you to shout at hostages or cowering civilians and make them revive you. This is especially useful during solo runs, as the AI bots can be a bit spotty with the pick-ups.
Glitch Protocol (Hacker)
A second Hacker skill makes the list, but not without reason. Glitch Protocol allows you to hack a guard’s radio and distract them for five seconds. Primarily, you can use this brief window to steal a key item or slip into a secure area undetected.
However, it’s also helpful if you get caught. If you hack a guard’s radio when they’re escorting you, they’ll forget about it and start patrolling. Similarly, if they’re about to arrest you, they can be hacked to enter Search mode instead.
Bagger (Infiltrator)
Once you’ve tied up your hostages, picked all the locks, deactivated cameras and answered the guard radios, the only thing left to do is secure your loot. The Bagger skill in the Infiltrator tree offers a simple 50% speed boost when you’re picking up precious cargo, and it can be the difference between escape or certain death when you’re besieged by an army of cops. You need the Rush buff to activate this benefit, which will activate if you pick a lock or kill an enemy with a throwing knife, thanks to the base skill of the Infiltrator tree.
What are the top skills to unlock first for a stealthy Payday 3 playthrough
For a stealthy Payday 3 playthrough, consider these top skills to unlock first:
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Secure Loop (Hacker): This skill allows you to manipulate security cameras, making them ignore you or even causing them to explode on lower difficulties, which is incredibly useful for avoiding detection . Looping cameras can also allow you to choose which cameras are hacked at any time . This can be essential in stealth heists .
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Quick Fingers (Infiltrator): With Quick Fingers, you can pick locks much faster while you have rush active .
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Rush: The infiltrator skill tree is a great way to trigger or refresh your Rush passive . Having Rush active makes it less likely for your actions to be detected . You can gain Rush by standing next to an employee . Grabbing a human shield or picking up a bag also gives you Rush .
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Walk the Walk (Grifter): This skill is all about improving your Casing Mode skills, and helps with several stealth mechanics .
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Social Engineering (Grifter): Improves your Casing Mode skills .
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Open Mic (Grifter): Improves your Casing Mode skills .
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Slippery (Grifter): Improves your Casing Mode skills .
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Appliance Breach (Hacker): Allows you to interact with lures from a distance .
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Routed Ping (Hacker): Allows you to interact with lures from a distance .
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Signal Protocol (Hacker): Allows you to interact with lures from a distance .
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Signal Catch (Hacker): Allows you to interact with lures from a distance .
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Strategist (CQC Specialist): Improves your stealth capabilities when masked up .
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Groundskeeper (CQC Specialist): Improves your stealth capabilities when masked up .
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Pressure Points (CQC Specialist): Improves your stealth capabilities when masked up .
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Cover-Up (CQC Specialist): Improves your stealth capabilities when masked up .
Which skills are essential for avoiding detection in Payday 3 stealth
The essential skills for avoiding detection in a Payday 3 stealth playthrough focus mainly on the Grifter, Infiltrator, and Hacker skill trees:
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Strategist (CQC Specialist): Allows you to mark additional targets and extend the duration of marks, helping you navigate and avoid guards, cameras, and civilians by seeing them through walls.
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Grifter: Grants RUSH when near civilians or employees, boosting movement speed and aiding stealth. The aced version intimidates nearby civilians and employees when masked, reducing the chance of being spotted. Key skills include Walk the Walk, which prevents cameras from detecting you while unmasked in private areas, and Social Engineering, which helps civilians and employees ignore illegal actions.
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Open Mic (Grifter): Speeds up answering pagers after taking out guards, minimizing the risk of detection during this vulnerable moment.
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Infiltrator: Provides RUSH when picking locks or killing with throwing knives, and the aced version grants RUSH when guards start detecting you, allowing faster escapes or actions to stay hidden.
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Quick Fingers (Infiltrator): Enables instant lockpicking while RUSH is active, reducing the time spent on suspicious activities.
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Hacker: Allows manipulation of security cameras to ignore or explode on lower difficulties, and interaction with lures from a distance, which is crucial for stealthy distractions.
Combining these skills creates a stealth build that enhances speed, reduces detection by cameras and NPCs, and improves handling of stealth mechanics like lockpicking and pager answering.
