The best crew and approach for each GTA 5 Story Mode heist changes by job. Use Smart with Karim Denz, Packie McReary, and Rickie Lukens for The Jewel Store Job; use Roof Entry with Taliana Martinez, Daryl Johns, and Rickie for The Bureau Raid; then use Obvious with Taliana on the helicopter, Karim on the train, and the two cheapest surviving gunmen for The Big Score. This route trains low-cut specialists early and protects the maximum campaign payout.
This guide covers the five campaign scores where money, approach, or hired crew matter. It does not cover GTA Online. If you need the full campaign order first, use the GTA 5 Story Missions Guide.
Best GTA 5 Heist Crew and Approach: Quick Answer
- The Jewel Store Job: Smart; Karim Denz, Packie McReary, and Rickie Lukens. Maximum gross take: $4,946,153.
- The Merryweather Heist: either approach; there is no cash payout and no hired crew to optimize.
- The Paleto Score: use Norm Richards for the full-campaign route and preserve Daryl Johns for later. Use Daryl only if you care about the largest immediate Paleto cut.
- The Bureau Raid: Roof Entry; Taliana Martinez, Daryl Johns, and Rickie Lukens. Franklin receives about $242,000.
- The Big Score: Obvious; Taliana flies the helicopter, Karim drives the train, and the two cheapest surviving gunmen fill the combat roles. Maximum result: $41,664,000 for each protagonist.
How GTA 5 Heist Crew Choices Work
Crew members take a percentage of the score. Expensive specialists begin with strong skills, while cheap specialists can make mistakes until they gain experience. The useful trick is that a surviving crew member improves after a job while keeping the same cut. A trained Rickie still asks for 4%, and a trained Karim still asks for 8%.
That creates two different kinds of maximum payout. One choice can produce the most money from the current mission but remove a cheap crew member needed later. The better campaign route looks all the way to The Big Score, where even a small percentage is worth millions.
Make a Manual Save Before Every Planning Board
A mission replay can help with medals or let you test another approach, but it does not rewrite the money stored in your main campaign save. Follow the save advice in the GTA V Story Mode beginner guide and keep a manual save before you confirm a crew.
The Jewel Store Job: Best Crew and Maximum Payout
Choose the Smart Approach
Smart is the cleanest maximum-money route. Michael and the crew enter Vangelico in pest-control gear, knock out the customers with BZ gas, empty the cases, and escape on motorcycles. The approach also gives Karim useful driving experience without costing the maximum gross take.
Best Jewel Store Crew
- Driver: Karim Denz, 8% cut. His motorcycles are less forgiving, but he can finish the escape and gains experience for later.
- Gunman: Packie McReary, 12% cut. He performs like the more expensive Gustavo Mota while taking 2% less.
- Hacker: Rickie Lukens, 4% cut. His timer is shorter, but it is enough when you move directly between cases.
Jewel Store Maximum Payout
The maximum gross take is $4,946,153. Martin Madrazo receives $2,500,000, leaving a maximum net take of $2,446,153. With Karim, Packie, and Rickie, Franklin receives $293,539 and Michael receives $1,223,073 after Lester and crew cuts.
Do not use Norm Richards for a clean maximum run. He misses jewelry, crashes during the escape, and drops a bag. You can recover the bag by riding over it, but the lost cabinets and casualty cost still make Packie the better value.
The Merryweather Heist: Which Approach Pays More?
Neither approach pays the protagonists. Offshore and Freighter change the preparation and mission flow, but the target is returned for story reasons and the final cash reward is $0. Choose the version you want to play; there is no crew percentage or hidden payout to protect.
The Paleto Score: Best Gunman for the Full Campaign
Use Norm to Save Daryl for Later
The Paleto Score has no approach choice. The bank starts with $8,016,020, but the crew loses money during the escape and incoming damage can reduce the bags. A weak gunman is hit by a police cruiser and left behind.
Daryl Johns creates the largest immediate protagonist cut because his normal percentage is only 6%. The better full-campaign move is usually Norm Richards. Norm is also lost, but Daryl remains available for The Bureau Raid and The Big Score, where his low cut protects far more money.
Immediate Payout vs Campaign Payout
- Mission-only choice: Daryl. Each protagonist can finish around $464,000 before extra damage losses.
- Full-campaign choice: Norm. Each protagonist finishes around $455,000, but Daryl survives in the roster for two later jobs.
If you do not want to lose anyone, hire Packie or Chef. Both are dependable gunmen with 12% cuts. The immediate payout is lower, but the escape is cleaner and the crew member survives.
How to Protect the Paleto Take
Keep moving, use cover when the route allows it, and avoid exposing the money carriers to unnecessary fire. The displayed take can fall as bullets hit the crew. That loss is separate from the specialist percentage shown after the mission.
The Bureau Raid: Best Crew and Approach
Choose Roof Entry
Roof Entry needs one driver, one gunman, and one hacker. It also avoids the Fire Crew route’s backdraft casualty risk for weak gunmen. Michael declines payment, so the optimized result goes to Franklin.
Best Bureau Raid Crew
- Driver: Taliana Martinez, 5%. She provides the ambulance escape and is both cheaper and more skilled than the other drivers.
- Gunman: Daryl Johns, 6%. He survives Roof Entry and gains experience for the finale.
- Hacker: Rickie Lukens, 4%. If he worked the Jewel Store Job, he enters with useful experience and keeps the same low cut.
The FIB budget is $331,985. With the low-cut crew, Franklin receives about $242,000. Michael receives nothing. A more expensive hacker does not create a larger base budget, so Rickie is the value choice.
The Big Score: Best Crew, Approach, and Maximum Payout
Choose the Obvious Approach
Obvious is the best maximum-money route. It uses four hired crew members instead of the five required by Subtle, avoids the hacker cut, and does not require the same bribe and vehicle-upgrade costs. The maximum gross take is $201,600,000.
Best Big Score Crew
- Driver 1 — helicopter: Taliana Martinez. Her 5% cut and high skill make her the safest cheap pilot.
- Driver 2 — train: Karim Denz. If Karim is still inexperienced, the train is the safe assignment. An inexperienced Karim in the helicopter can crash and lose half the score.
- Gunmen: Daryl Johns plus the cheapest surviving option, usually Hugh Welsh or Norm Richards. Put the more experienced gunman in the more demanding second slot.
Big Score Maximum Payout Breakdown
The gross take is $201,600,000. Lester receives 12%, or $24,192,000. A 26% low-cost crew takes $52,416,000. Michael, Franklin, and Trevor then receive $41,664,000 each.
That money becomes much more valuable if you have saved the optional Lester assassination missions. Use the GTA 5 Money and Stock Market Guide before moving the final score into late-game investments.
How to Unlock the Best GTA 5 Heist Crew Members
How to Unlock Packie McReary
Look for Packie’s Getaway Driver random event outside Dollar Pills in Strawberry, near Franklin’s original home. Pick up Packie and his partner after the robbery, then deliver them safely. Once unlocked, Packie becomes a skilled gunman with a 12% cut.
How to Unlock Rickie Lukens
Finish Friend Request and answer Rickie’s later call. He starts as the cheapest hacker at 4%. Use him at the Jewel Store and Bureau Raid so his experience improves before any later assignment.
How to Unlock Taliana Martinez
After The Jewel Store Job, look for Taliana’s Crash Rescue event on the Great Ocean Highway near Mount Chiliad and Braddock Pass. Get her into a vehicle and take her to Sandy Shores before she dies. She is a high-skill driver with the lowest driver cut in Story Mode at 5%.
Random events also contribute to a broader completion run. If you are clearing everything after the campaign, keep the GTA V 100% completion checklist nearby.
Best GTA 5 Heist Crew Route From Start to Finish
- Before the Jewel Store: unlock Packie and answer Rickie’s call.
- Jewel Store: use Smart with Karim, Packie, and Rickie.
- Before the Bureau Raid: rescue Taliana and keep Daryl available.
- Paleto Score: use Norm for the campaign route; use Daryl only for the immediate mission maximum.
- Bureau Raid: use Roof Entry with Taliana, Daryl, and Rickie.
- Big Score: use Obvious with Taliana on the helicopter, Karim on the train, and two low-cut gunmen.
For the rest of the campaign systems, collectibles, and side activities, return to the GTA 5 Complete Guide.
Common GTA 5 Heist Payout Mistakes
Putting Inexperienced Karim in the Helicopter
Karim is a useful cheap driver, but an inexperienced Karim cannot safely handle the second helicopter in the Obvious finale. Assign Taliana to the helicopter and Karim to the train unless you know his driving experience is high enough.
Paying for an Expensive Hacker When Time Is Not the Problem
Rickie’s short Jewel Store timer looks intimidating, but the low cut is worth it when you know the case route. More expensive hackers buy comfort, not a larger maximum gross take.
Confusing GTA 5 Story Mode With GTA Online
Story Mode crew members, cuts, and campaign payouts are separate from GTA Online. Online heists use real players, setup costs, difficulty settings, and different payout rules. This route applies only to Michael, Franklin, and Trevor’s campaign.
Using Mission Replay to Fix an Old Payout
Mission replay runs outside the normal campaign state. It can improve a medal, but it does not replace the approach, crew, or money already saved in Story Mode. Reload a manual save from before the planning board if you want the financial result to change.
Buying Cars Before the Final Score
Story Mode gives you many mission vehicles and personal cars, so early luxury purchases can wait. If you want practical free or findable options, use the GTA 5 best vehicles guide instead of draining the heist money too early.
GTA 5 Heists FAQ
How Many Heists Are in GTA 5 Story Mode?
There are five main Story Mode heists from The Jewel Store Job through The Big Score. The prologue robbery is part of the story but does not use the later planning-board crew system.
Which GTA 5 Heist Pays the Most?
The Big Score pays the most. The Obvious approach can produce a $201,600,000 gross take and $41,664,000 for each protagonist with the optimized low-cost crew.
Who Is the Best Heist Crew in GTA 5?
There is no single best crew for every job. Packie is the best-value early gunman, Rickie is the best-value hacker, Taliana is the best-value driver, and trained low-cut gunmen such as Daryl are valuable in the Obvious finale.
Do Crew Cuts Increase When Skills Improve?
No. Surviving crew members gain experience without raising their percentage. That is why using Karim and Rickie early can save money later.
Can You Change a Heist Crew After Confirming It?
Not in the active campaign route once the planning choice is locked. Reload a manual save made before the planning board if you need a different crew or approach.
Can You Replay a Heist and Keep the New Payout?
No. Replaying from the mission menu does not replace the money in the main campaign save. You need an earlier save if you want the new crew choice and payout to become part of your story progress.
Do Heist Choices Affect 100% Completion?
The approach and crew are not separate 100% requirements. You still need the relevant story missions, but you can choose the route you prefer. The maximum-money route is about protecting the campaign economy, not unlocking a different completion percentage.
