GTA 5 Missions In Order: Full List Of Story Missions

Los Santos hides more secrets than its glittering skyline suggests-the real challenge begins with knowing which missions open the next and how to trigger them in the right order. Here’s how each storyline connects, letting you progress faster through GTA 5’s tangled web of crime, money, and power.

Storyline missions

The walkthrough descriptions of the main missions have been published in the s guide, more or less in the order that they are unlocked by the game. Still, it is worth knowing that you do not necessarily need to complete them in that same order. What is even more, the missions connected with assassinations, which you are tasked with by Lester, (23: Hotel Assassination, 24: The Multi Target Assassination, 44: The Vice Assassination, 45: The Bus Assassination, 50: The Construction Assassination) can be left for later. Personally, I recommend that you take to them after you have completed the last big heist (The Big Score) because, with several/tens of millions of dollars on your pocketbook, you will be easily able to multiply your assets and, as a result, buy all of the available estates.

At the same time, it is worth noting that it is impossible to complete all of the missions contained in this guide at one sitting, because many of them are bound with specific heist variants. Personally, I recommend that you save the game before you start your preparations for each one of the major heists, which will enable you to check out on all of the missions and, at the same time, select the heist variant that you consider more profitable.

Strangers and freaks

Successive missions from strangers and freaks are unlocked as you make progress in the game but, there is no one specific moment at which a given mission becomes available. That is why I recommend that you check out on the map frequently and make sure that the locations, in which the question marks are supposed to appear, are discovered early enough (fortunately, most side missions take place in Los Santos and Sandy shores).

Many of the stranger and freaks missions come interconnected, and it is usually the case that the next mission from a given person becomes available after the previous one is completed. Many times you will also need to wait for several hours, or days, until it is available.

By analogy to the main missions, most of the side missions can be repeated from the level of the pause menu. The exception to this rule are the missions which consist only of listening to the person in question (e.g. the initial meeting with Omega, Abigail or Nigel).

Random events

Random events become available at various stages of the game and they start appearing already in the initial hours of the game. Most of them start in specific locations but, not necessarily after you visit that location for the first time. If this was the case, you need to visit that place later in the game, in hope that the event reappears.

Unlike the main missions, or stranger and freaks missions, random events cannot be repeated from the level of the pause menu. It is worth knowing, however, that a given event does not repeat if you complete it properly. Several of the events (e.g. attacks on marijuana plantation, ATMs), follow a cyclical pattern, i.e. they repeat on a regular basis.

Property missions

Property missions become available only after you purchase the appropriate estates. Most of the missions connected with estates are random in their character, i.e. you can practically at any moment in the game, receive a phone call, or a message with the information of the availability of a new mission. You, of course, need to be playing the correct protagonist for that to happen – while playing, e.g. as Michael, you will be receiving information from the managers of the estates that he bought, while Franklin’s and Trevor’s estates are inactive.

Best order to complete GTA 5 story missions for 100% completion

GTA 5 requires completing 69 story missions plus specific side content for 100% completion, but the main storyline missions unlock progressively across protagonists without a single rigid order beyond prerequisites. The optimal approach prioritizes story missions first, saves optional Lester Assassinations (except the first) for post-story to maximize stock profits, and interleaves required Strangers & Freaks during natural progression. Non-story tasks like hobbies and collectibles can follow anytime post-game.

Story Mission Sequence

Follow this phased order to unlock all missions efficiently while hitting prerequisites:

Prologue to Trevor unlock: Complete “Prologue,” “Franklin and Lamar,” “Repossession,” “Complications,” “Father/Son,” “Pulling Favors” (unlocks more Franklin missions), “The Long Stretch,” “The Jewel Store Job” setups/heist, up to “Friends Reunited”.
Mid-story branching: Do available missions in any order among Michael (blue), Franklin (green), Trevor (orange)-e.g., “Fame or Shame,” “Dead Man Walking,” “Three’s Company,” heist setups like “The Merryweather Heist”-ensuring “Blitz Play” and “Mr. Richards” advance Trevor/Franklin lines.
Late story and finale: Finish “The Bureau Raid,” “The Big Score” (choose Subtle for easier gold medals), then “The Third Way” ending (recommended to keep all protagonists alive, replayable).

Required Side Content Timing

Integrate these during story gaps to avoid missing 100%:

Franklin’s Strangers & Freaks (10%): Tonya (early, all missions), Barry (Franklin-only, 3 missions), Hao (Shift Work post-“Repossession”), others like Beverly/Dom post-story unlocks.
Lester’s Assassinations: Do Hotel (mandatory early, ~20% story), save Multi-Target/Vice/Bus/Construction for after “The Big Score”.
Post-story: 42 Hobbies (races, golf, etc.), 14/57 Random Events, 16 Misc (properties, collectibles like 50 Spaceship Parts/Letter Scraps).

Progress Tracking

Check Pause Menu > Stats > 100% Checklist or Rockstar Social Club for real-time status; gold medals optional but ideal for achievements. This order ensures full unlocks without save-scumming, totaling ~55% from story alone.

Which assassination order maximizes stock profits for 100

GTA 5’s Lester Assassination missions offer maximum stock market profits when done in a specific order after completing the main storyline (except the mandatory first one), allowing investments with larger cash pools from heists. Perform “The Hotel Assassination” early as required for story progress, then save the remaining four post-game: Multi-Target, Vice, Bus, and Construction Assassinations. This sequence yields up to $2 billion total across all characters by buying low before/after hits and selling at peaks (50-400% returns).

Optimal Assassination Order

Follow this progression, investing with Michael, Franklin, and Trevor on BAWSAQ/LCN exchanges via in-game phone browser:

Hotel Assassination (early, mandatory): Buy Betta Pharmaceuticals (BET) after hit, sell at ~50-80% peak (~24h wait).
Multi-Target Assassination: Buy Debonaire (DEB) before/after, sell ~80-90%; then buy Redwood (RWC) low, sell rebound ~300-400% (48h+ wait).
Vice Assassination: Buy Fruit (FRT) before, sell ~30-60%; buy Facade (FAC) after, sell ~20-40%.
Bus Assassination: Buy Vapid (VAP) after crash, sell rebound ~100% (few days wait).
Construction Assassination (final): Buy Gold Coast (GCD) before, sell ~80% peak.

Profit Maximization Tips

Save manually before each mission/investment; sleep to advance time (8h increments) and monitor stocks daily. BAWSAQ updates real-time (online-linked), LCN faster in-game; double-dip rebounds like Redwood for extras. These contribute to 100% completion (5/5 Assassinations) while funding properties.