Free-to-play

The Free to Play icon

Free-to-play, also known as F2P, is the free version of RuneScape where no payment to Jagex is required to play. Players who play the free version of RuneScape are known as "free players", "F2Ps", or "non-members". This is in contrast to members, who pay a fee for access to a much larger map and a multitude of skills, items, quests, and activities, which are not available to Free to Play users.

Overview

The free part of RuneScape is described by Jagex as being the game with close to 5,000 hours of skills to train to reach the maximum level of 99, while members is considered the expansion version. There is no limit to the amount of time players are able to continue playing for free, although free players are only able to enjoy about 20% of everything RuneScape has to offer. Free players can upgrade and become a member at any time by paying a small fee, granting access to more skills, locations, items, etc.

Formerly, the free-to-play version of RuneScape was its only form, prior to the introduction of members and the subsequent creation of RuneScape 2. The pay-to-play servers were intended by Jagex to benefit all of the RuneScape community.

With respect to gameplay, the majority of new updates within RuneScape are restricted to pay-to-play members with the exception of updates concerning graphics or the addition of new servers. When the members service was announced, Jagex acknowledged that the free version would not be updated as often as it used to be.

The following are free-version updates that have been made available since the launch of the members service:

RuneScape 2 in March 2004
Various graphics updates
Most holiday events
Some community events, such as the Cryptic Clue Fest
Item certificates (the prelude to bank notes) in December 2001
Runecrafting and the Rune Mysteries quest, along with RuneScape 2
The Tutorial Island and its later incarnations
The Stronghold of Security in July 2006
The Party Room
The Grand Exchange in November 2007
The Duel Arena in November 2007
The Misthalin Training Centre of Excellence and Stronghold of Player Safety
Fist of Guthix
RuneScape High Detail (access to resizeable window)
Lumbridge and Draynor Tasks (previously called the Lumbridge/Draynor achievement diary), as well as a few new Tasks that were introduced when Achievement Diaries were renamed tasks.
The Runecrafting Guild in August 2008
The Crafting Guild in May 2002
The Make-over Mage in May 2002
The Mining Guild
Corrupt dragon equipment.
Ability to purchase and wear team capes
Beefy Bill, who sells various items
Musicians and resting feature.
The Blood Pact quest. If it is completed, access to the Lumbridge Catacombs dungeon is granted. Furthermore, the ability/possibility to obtain the Mask of Dragith Nurn, F2P headgear providing a +1 attack bonus to stab/slash/crush/range/magic.
Access to Hank's fishing store in Lumbridge (introduced to Runescape on 17 September 2009)
Tools for games.
The Dungeoneering skill and some resource dungeons.
Ability to use the anvil (introduced 24 June 2010) next to the Lumbridge Furnace.
Quest Swept Away made permanently available to F2P on 24 June 2010 (was temporarily available to free users in 2008).
Quest Myths of the White Lands made permanently available to F2P on 24 June 2010 (was temporarily available to free users in 2008).
Gunnar's Ground quest (and upon completion of this quest, swanky boots, footgear providing a +1 mage attack bonus)
Full access to the 25 August 2010 updated makeover available at Thessalia. (This update brought a larger selection available in customizing the clothing of one's avatar. In addition, changing the base clothing of one's avatar decreased in price from 1000 gp to no cost at all.)
Use of the Wind Rush spell, which costs two air runes to cast (none if a Staff of Air is equipped). (12 October 2010).
Use of the sling, a two-handed ranged weapon requiring no ammunition to use. The sling is the only free-to-play ranged weapon that does not require ammunition to use. (12 October 2010).
Make all feature for skills where numerous objects can be made, in skills such as: Cooking, Crafting, Smithing (Smelting bars in a furnace), etc. (12 October 2010).
Bank-Equip screen update, where one can change armour while inside one's bank account. This update also came with the Bank-Compare object ability, where a person in their bank screen can compare two different items that a player has equipped, in their inventory, or in one's bank account.
Ability to craft clay rings, and the ability to obtain and wear a Ring of Devotion, which can be obtained by having Father Aereck bless a clay ring. The Ring of Devotion gives a universal +1 defence bonus.
The ability to craft and use pottery urns to gain extra experience in certain skills (15 February 2011 update), access to the water well within and to the five new clay rocks south of Barbarian Village (Gunnarsgrunn)
Access to the Artisans Workshop to train smithing (8 March 2011 Update).
Access to building canoes as it was a members' feature before. (15 February 2011 Update).
The Clan vexillium, for players belonging to a clan, which provides unlimited, free teleports to Falador and the closest teleportation spot to Rimmington for F2P (12 April 2011 Update).
Money pouch (6 December 2011 Update).
Toolbelt (6 December 2011 Update).
Access to the Squeal of Fortune, which can be done once daily.
Access to the Lodestone Network teleportation system (13 March 2012 Update).
Dungeoneering toolbelt (11 April 2012 Update).
Runespan (30 April 2012 Update).
Bonfires as additional Firemaking training method (10 May 2012 Update).
Solomon's General Store (18 July 2012 Update).
Botany Bay
The two Kharidian quests (2 October 2012 Update)
What's Mine is Yours quest - (17 October 2012 Update)

In addition to the differences described above, the majority of outside-of-game features (such as the official RuneScape forums) are open to members only, but also to F2P players with at least 2.5 million total experience or a skill total of 350. This requirement was 12.5 million total experience before an update by Jagex on 15 March 2010.