Last updated: 3 July 2026

GTA Online Acid Lab Guide — Setup, Cost & Best Solo Money Method

The Acid Lab is GTA Online's most solo-friendly drug business — a mobile production line built into the Brickade 6x6 truck, with no property to defend, no daily upkeep to babysit, and sell missions built for one player. Here is how to unlock it, what it actually costs to set up and upgrade, and how to run it efficiently.

01How to Unlock the Acid Lab

The Acid Lab is not bought from a website like most GTA Online businesses — it is unlocked by completing a mission chain first.

1. Start the First Dose mission chain — six missions that introduce the acid business and its cast. The chain is triggered by a phone call from Ron Jakowski; after his call, head to Ace Liquor in Sandy Shores to begin.
2. Complete all six First Dose missions. The final one has you stealing a Brickade 6x6 from a wrecked freight train near Palmer-Taylor Power Station and delivering it to The Freakshop, the vehicle workshop at the north end of Mirror Park Railyard.
3. After the final mission, speak to Mutt at the Freakshop and pay $750,000 to convert the truck into a working Acid Lab. GTA+ subscribers get this installation for free.

02Should You Buy the Equipment Upgrade?

Once you have run the business for a while, Mutt (through Dax) offers an Equipment Upgrade for $250,000 — but it is locked behind completing 10 Fooligan Jobs first, a separate string of side missions you call in through Dax.

The upgrade is worth it if you plan to run the Acid Lab regularly: it noticeably speeds up production and increases how much a full batch sells for. Treat it as a mid-term investment rather than something to rush on day one — the base setup already earns money while you save up.

03How Supplies Work

• Buy supplies: pay $60,000 to instantly fill the lab's supply meter — the simplest option if you would rather spend cash than time.
• Steal supplies instead: free, but requires driving out to a random location and bringing product-specific ingredients back within a time limit. Slower and riskier, but saves money if you are cash-poor early on.
• Once supplies are in, production runs on its own — you do not need to stay near the truck for it to keep making product.

You can manually boost production once per real-world day by interacting with the chemistry table inside the lab, which speeds up how fast your current batch fills.

04Selling Your Acid

Once you have enough stock, start a sell mission from the Brickade's laptop. Unlike some other drug businesses, Acid Lab sell missions are built around short, varied delivery scenarios rather than one long run — deliveries, stash drops, and time-pressured handoffs are all part of the rotation, and the mission type changes each time.

A full batch from an upgraded lab sells for roughly $335,000, and because the sell missions are quick and designed for a single player, a fully committed solo session can realistically clear $100,000+ per hour of largely semi-passive income.

05Why the Acid Lab Beats Other Solo Businesses

• No daily operating fee — unlike the Bunker or bigger MC businesses, the Acid Lab does not silently drain your bank account if you leave it idle.
• No raids — there is no rival gang or police mechanic that can destroy your stock while you are away, unlike some other properties.
• Mobile: the entire business lives inside the Brickade truck, so there is no separate property to travel back to before you can resupply or sell.
• Solo-friendly sell missions: most sell scenarios are built to be finished by one player without needing a getaway driver or gunner.