Clash of Clans: Best Looting Techniques to farm like a pro

Never run out of resources with these useful tips!

Farming is the lifeblood of progression in Clash of Clans. No matter how many gems or magic items you have, efficient farming is the true skill that separates casual players from long-term legends. Whether you’re a free-to-play warrior or a gold pass grinder, mastering the art of looting ensures that your upgrades never stop and your base keeps evolving. In this article, we’ll break down the top farming strategies that are currently in the meta, organized by Town Hall level, with deep dives into troop comps, loot targeting, trophy ranges, and resource management.

If you want to kickstart your Town Hall as fast as you can, you should probably look into acquiring Clash of Clans accounts to get bases that are already in tiptop shape. This leaves the more relaxing aspect of the game, the managing of resources, up to you!

Why Farming Is Essential in Clash of Clans

Upgrading buildings, troops, heroes, and walls all require enormous amounts of gold, elixir, and dark elixir. While Clan Wars and Clan Capital raids can offer rewards, they’re too infrequent or capped to rely on. Farming, on the other hand, is limitless. With the right technique, you can consistently earn millions of resources per session, and keep all five or six of your builders busy around the clock.

The Golden Rule: Efficiency Over Trophies

The first mistake many players make is assuming that higher trophies equal better loot. This isn’t always true. Trophies, in essence, is a numerical value that represents your skill level. This means that the higher amount of trophies you have, the harder foes you will have to take down. That’s why it’s not a good idea to have a lot of high amount of trophies while at low Town Hall level. In fact, many of the most loot-rich dead bases exist in mid to low trophy ranges, especially during off-seasons. Dead bases often have full collectors and minimal defenses, making them perfect targets for low-cost farming armies. Your goal as a farmer isn’t to win trophies — it’s to come out ahead in resources gained versus army cost.

Trophy Range Sweet Spots by Town Hall (TH)

Finding the right trophy bracket is critical. Here’s a general guide:

TH7 to TH9: 1200–1600 trophies.
TH10 to TH11: 1800–2200 trophies.
TH12 to TH13: 2300–2700 trophies.
TH14 to TH16: 2700–3200 trophies.

At these ranges, you’re likely to encounter a steady mix of dead bases and poorly maintained villages ripe for looting. If you climb too high, matchmaking becomes slower and tougher.

Best Farming Armies Per TH Level

The best farming army is one that’s cheap, fast to train, and effective at grabbing loot. Here are the top picks per TH level:

TH7 to TH9: BARCH (Barbarians + Archers)

Cost-effective, trains quickly.
Great for sniping exposed collectors.
Bring some lightning spells to grab dark elixir from drills.

TH10 to TH11: GiBARCH (Giants + BARCH)

Adds tankiness to your standard BARCH.

Use Giants to distract defenses while Archers snipe resources.
Can reach storages on low-defended bases.

TH12 to TH13: Miners or Hybrid Lite

Miners alone can sweep weak bases for all resources.
Hybrid (Miners + Hogs) if you’re more confident.
Use Queen Charge to open sections.

TH14 to TH16: Sneaky Goblins & Super Archers

Sneaky Goblins are top-tier for loot raids — they bypass everything to target resource buildings.
Use invisibility + jump spells to break deep into bases.
Super Archers also excel at collector sniping if paired with a Warden or Queen Walk.

Collector vs. Storage Raiding

You have two main loot options in Clash:

Collector Raiding (Dead Bases)

Fast and efficient.
Just snipe collectors outside walls.
Use cheap troops (BARCH, Sneaky Goblins, Archers).
Avoid using expensive spells or siege machines.
Great for long farming sessions.

Storage Raiding (Active Bases)

Slower and requires a strong army.
Use Hybrid, Electro Dragons, or Queen Charge strategies.
Often combined with trophy pushing.
More rewarding but higher risk and cost.

Most players should stick to collector raiding for consistent gains and only switch to storage raiding when looking to spend resources and stay online actively.

Builder Management for Maximum Loot Usage

Farming is only as good as your ability to spend loot efficiently. Here’s how to keep your builders always working:

Plan long upgrades before logging off.
Always keep one builder free for walls or flexible upgrades.
Use overflow loot on walls when you’re capped.
Prioritize resource-generating buildings early: mines, collectors, and storages.

Also, time your raids around Builder Potion boosts to get the most value out of short upgrade windows.

Dark Elixir Farming: A Delicate Art

Dark elixir is the most valuable resource due to how slowly it accumulates and how many things require it (heroes, dark troops, pets). To farm it effectively:

Use light elixir/gold armies (e.g., BARCH or Sneaky Goblins) to avoid spending dark.
Focus on raiding drills and dark storage only.
Attack during boost events to increase rewards.
Don’t use heroes that cost dark while you’re trying to save it.

When to Use Loot Boosts and Training Potions

Supercell provides frequent events and rewards that boost your farming:

Training Potions: Reduce troop training to 1/4th of the time. Use these in sync with loot boosts.
Star Bonus Events: Get massive loot boosts once per day after 5-star wins.
Season Boosts (Gold Pass): Reduce training cost and time, making farming even more profitable.
Resource Potions: Speed up collectors for 1 day — pair with sneaky goblin raids for collector sniping.

Try to stack multiple boosts at once for hyper-efficient farming sessions.

Managing Storage Overflow

Sometimes you’ll farm so well that you overflow your storages. Here’s how to deal with it:

Upgrade walls to dump extra gold/elixir.
Use Runes or Books before claiming storage-filling rewards.
Don’t claim Season Bank or event rewards until storage space is available.
Spend loot in the Laboratory, on heroes, or in Clan Capital if nothing else is urgent.

Builder Base and Clan Capital: Extra Farming Opportunities

While most loot comes from the main village, don’t neglect your side systems:

Builder Base: Win three battles daily for loot; use it to speed up OTTO Hut and gear-up buildings.
Clan Capital: Raid weekends give Capital Gold and Raid Medals — which can be traded for resources and magic items.
Use Raid Medals to buy resources directly, especially dark elixir when farming is slow.

Stay Consistent: The Secret to Long-Term Farming

You don’t need to farm 5 hours a day. Just stay consistent:

Set mini goals (e.g., upgrade Archer Queen today).
Play short bursts during breaks.
Use auto-cooked armies for quick raids.
Don’t push trophies too high, or you’ll get discouraged.

Clash of Clans is a marathon, not a sprint. The players who farm smartly — not just hard — end up with maxed bases long before those who wing it.

In Conclusion

Farming in Clash of Clans is more than just hitting “Next” and dropping troops. It’s a skill that rewards planning, strategy, and time management. Whether you’re collector-sniping with BARCH or diving deep into active bases with a Hybrid Queen Charge, the core principle is the same: maximize loot, minimize cost. Find your rhythm, manage your builders wisely, and stay in that farming mindset. Before you know it, you’ll be staring at a maxed base and wondering what to upgrade next — because you already upgraded everything!