Buy the Cheapest Agency, Then Let the Contracts Pay for It
The direct answer is simple: buy the Little Seoul Agency for GTA$2,010,000, add the Vehicle Workshop for GTA$800,000 when you can, and earn the money back through Security Contracts, Payphone Hits and the Dr. Dre VIP Contract.
Every Agency has the same interior, the same jobs and the same payouts. Location changes only the price and the drive, so paying extra for a fancier address buys you nothing extra in income.
The Agency is not a passive money machine. Its safe income is small, and the real value is active work you can repeat solo, plus Imani Tech upgrades you cannot fit anywhere else.
Buy it for the contracts and the workshop, in that order. If you expect the safe alone to repay more than GTA$2 million, you will be disappointed and should look at a production business instead.
Key Takeaways
- Little Seoul at GTA$2,010,000 is the best buy, because all four Agencies are identical inside.
- Security Contracts pay about GTA$31,000 to GTA$70,000 by tier, with a five-minute cooldown.
- Payphone Hits pay GTA$15,000 plus a GTA$30,000 assassination bonus for the leader at the time of writing.
- The Dr. Dre VIP Contract is a repeatable story chain, and its finale payout is update-sensitive.
- Imani Tech needs the GTA$800,000 Vehicle Workshop, and the Missile Lock-On Jammer alone costs GTA$400,000.
- The office safe caps at GTA$20,000 per in-game day and holds GTA$250,000, so empty it regularly.
1. Buying an Agency and Choosing the Best Location
You buy an Agency through the Dynasty 8 Executive website on your in-game phone. Franklin Clinton then brings you in as his partner in F. Clinton and Partner, the celebrity solutions firm from The Contract update.
The four base prices, before any sale week, are Little Seoul at GTA$2,010,000, Vespucci Canals at GTA$2,145,000, Rockford Hills at GTA$2,415,000 and Hawick at GTA$2,830,000.
Little Seoul is the sensible pick for most players. It is central enough for contract work, and the GTA$820,000 you save against Hawick covers the Vehicle Workshop on its own.
Every Agency includes a 20-car garage. Current guides also list a small daily charge of GTA$250 for the property, plus GTA$10 for the garage mechanic, which is minor beside the contract income.
2. Setup, Upgrades and What to Buy First
No upgrade is required to start working. You can run Security Contracts and unlock the VIP Contract from a bare Agency, so do not delay your first jobs while saving for extras.
The Vehicle Workshop at GTA$800,000 comes first. It is the only place that fits Imani Tech, and it turns the Agency from a job hub into lasting protection for your best cars.
The Armory at GTA$720,000 is second. It works as a private weapon store inside the building and is where you access weapons added with The Contract, including the Stun Gun and the Compact EMP Launcher.
Accommodation at GTA$275,000 is optional. It adds personal quarters, a wardrobe and a spawn point inside the Agency, which is convenient but earns nothing.
Art, wallpaper and highlight colours are cosmetic only. Prices vary by choice, they can add a lot to the total bill, and they should always be the last thing you buy.
A lean and sensible build is Little Seoul plus the Vehicle Workshop, at GTA$2,810,000 in total. Add the Armory later and your all-in cost is GTA$3,530,000, still below a fully decorated Hawick build.
3. Security Contracts: The Repeatable Core of the Agency
Security Contracts are short free mode jobs launched from the computer in your Agency office. You need to be registered as a VIP, CEO or MC President to select one.
Three contracts are offered at a time across six types: Asset Protection, Gang Termination, Liquidize Assets, Recover Valuables, Rescue Operation and Vehicle Recovery.
At the time of writing, payouts run by tier. Professional jobs pay roughly GTA$31,000 to GTA$42,000, Specialist jobs about GTA$44,000 to GTA$56,000, and Specialist+ jobs about GTA$60,000 to GTA$70,000.
There is a five-minute cooldown after you complete a contract before the next one can start. Most jobs take around five to fifteen minutes depending on travel, enemies and how many objectives spawn.
The board is worth managing. If the three offers are all low tier, logging back into the computer can refresh the choices, so you are not forced to grind the cheapest work all night.
Your first completed contract unlocks the path to the VIP Contract, and three completed contracts unlock Payphone Hits. Fifty completed contracts also earn a trophy for your desk, a small marker of how much work the office has done.
There is no shortcut around this grind, and there never has been a legitimate money cheat for this game, which is exactly the point covered in why there is no money cheat in GTA games. The Agency rewards steady, repeatable work instead.
4. The VIP Contract: Dr. Dre, the Data Leaks and the Finale
The VIP Contract is the story at the heart of The Contract. Dr. Dre has lost a phone containing unreleased music, copies of the data have leaked, and Franklin needs you to recover every copy before it spreads.
After your first Security Contract, Franklin calls you to meet him at the Los Santos Golf Club for the opening meeting, often listed as On Course. Some players report needing a second contract first, so finish two if the call has not arrived.
Back at the Agency, you run Setup: Data Recovery at FIB Headquarters. That opens three leak strands, each with two setup jobs and a finale, and you can tackle the strands in any order.
The strands are usually called the Nightlife Leak, the High Society Leak and the South Central Leak.
Completing the strands unlocks the closing jobs, ending with the finale Don’t F*ck With Dre. The full chain is around a dozen jobs and is designed to be playable solo, although a friend makes the heavier fights faster.
Payout needs care because it has changed over time. Older guides quote GTA$1,000,000 for the leader, while current guides at the time of writing put the standard leader payout at about GTA$900,000, with a higher first-completion-in-the-week figure reported after recent updates.
Treat that finale figure as update-sensitive and check the amount shown in game before planning around it. Event weeks can also raise Agency payouts, so the same run can be worth noticeably more on a bonus week.
It helps to contrast this with the future game only in passing. How crews might handle scores in Leonida is a separate, unconfirmed topic covered in how heists and robberies work in GTA 6, while the Dr. Dre chain is playable, finished content you can run today.
5. Payphone Hits: Small Jobs, One Rule That Matters
Payphone Hits unlock after three completed Security Contracts. Franklin will call when a hit is available, and you can also request work by calling him or answering a ringing payphone marked in free mode.
Each hit names a target and then reveals an assassination bonus condition. It might ask for a specific vehicle, weapon or staged accident, and following that instruction is the whole job.
At the time of writing, the leader earns GTA$15,000 base pay plus a GTA$30,000 assassination bonus, for GTA$45,000 in total. Associates earn GTA$15,000 plus a GTA$10,000 bonus, for GTA$25,000.
Ignore older guides still quoting GTA$85,000 for the leader. That higher bonus was cut in January 2024, and the trade-off was a much shorter request cooldown, now ten minutes between hits.
There are eight hit types in total. Six can be done solo, but The Dealers and The Hitmen need at least two players in your organisation or motorcycle club, so skip requesting those when you are alone.
The biggest mistake is rushing the target with whatever gun is in your hand. Read Franklin’s bonus instruction first, set up the requested method, and only then make the kill, because a fast kill without the bonus throws away two-thirds of the pay.
6. Imani Tech: The Workshop Upgrades Worth Paying For
Imani is the Agency’s hacker, and Imani Tech is her vehicle work. It is fitted only in the Agency Vehicle Workshop, which is why that GTA$800,000 upgrade matters so much.
The headline upgrade is the Missile Lock-On Jammer at GTA$400,000. With it fitted, homing missiles cannot lock onto that vehicle, which removes the easiest kill available to an Oppressor Mk II or a Homing Launcher user in free mode.
The alternative in the same slot is the Remote Control Unit at GTA$235,000. It lets you drive an eligible parked personal vehicle remotely and detonate it on demand, which is fun and occasionally useful, but it does not protect you while driving.
You cannot have both on the same vehicle. Choose the Jammer for any car you actually drive in public lobbies, and save the Remote Control Unit for a spare vehicle you bought for that purpose.
Other Imani Tech options on eligible cars include Armor Plating at GTA$150,000, Primary Weapons at GTA$297,000 and a Slick Proximity Mine at GTA$135,000, at the time of writing. Add the Jammer first and build the rest around it.
The core Imani Tech list covers 20 vehicles that can take the full package, including the Bravado Buffalo STX, Dewbauchee Champion, Enus Jubilee, Declasse Granger 3600LX, Annis 300R, Enus Deity and Ocelot Virtue.
Jammer compatibility has since been widened to many more vehicles in later updates. Because that list keeps changing, check the workshop menu for the exact car in front of you rather than trusting any fixed list, including this one.
For a new owner, the best first Imani Tech buy is usually a Buffalo STX or a Jubilee you already own, fitted with the Jammer and Armor Plating. That gives you a four-door, armoured daily driver for contracts, hits and free mode errands.
7. The Office Safe, Daily Rhythm and How the Agency Fits Your Empire
Your Agency office has a wall safe that fills passively as time passes in GTA Online. It earns per in-game day, and an in-game day is 48 real minutes.
The rate grows with your lifetime Security Contract count. Current guides describe it rising in GTA$500 steps for every five contracts finished, starting from a very small amount, and capping at GTA$20,000 per in-game day once you pass roughly 200 contracts.
The safe holds a maximum of GTA$250,000. Once it is full, it stops earning, so walk in and empty it whenever you are at the Agency rather than leaving it capped for days.
Be honest about the scale. Even at its ceiling, the safe pays less per in-game day than a well-run Nightclub safe, and it takes about 200 contracts to get there, by which point the contracts themselves have paid far more.
The Agency fits best alongside other earners rather than replacing them. Run a Cayo Perico finale for a big solo payout, sell Bunker stock when it is ready, let an Acid Lab delivery fill a gap, and use Agency work as the flexible filler that is always available.
Thinking long term is fair too. Players often ask whether this kind of empire carries forward, and that open question is covered in will GTA Online progress carry over to GTA 6. Nothing about the Agency depends on the answer, because it earns its cost back in the current game.
It also helps to keep the future in its place. What GTA 6 Online is remains an unannounced follow-up at the time of writing, so the Agency is not a placeholder purchase — it is a working business in the game you can play now.
8. Common Agency Mistakes That Cost You Money
The most expensive mistake is buying Hawick for GTA$820,000 more than Little Seoul and expecting better jobs. The jobs are identical, and that money would have bought the Vehicle Workshop instead.
The second mistake is decorating first. Art, wallpaper and colours can add well over GTA$800,000 to a build while adding no income, no protection and no new jobs.
The third mistake is ignoring the assassination bonus on Payphone Hits. Killing the target the wrong way turns a GTA$45,000 job into a GTA$15,000 job, and doing that all evening is a large, avoidable loss.
The fourth mistake is letting the safe sit full at GTA$250,000. A full safe earns nothing, and at the ceiling rate that is GTA$20,000 per in-game day quietly going nowhere.
The fifth mistake is fitting a Remote Control Unit to your main car instead of the Jammer. Remote driving is a novelty, while missile protection changes how safely you can work in public lobbies every single day.
The last mistake is treating the Agency as your only earner. Its strength is availability, variety and Imani Tech, so pair it with a heist, a Nightclub or another business rather than asking it to do everything alone.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which Agency location is best in GTA Online?
Little Seoul is best for most players at GTA$2,010,000. All four Agencies share the same interior, jobs and payouts, so the cheapest location leaves more money for the Vehicle Workshop.
Do I need any upgrades to start Security Contracts?
No. Security Contracts, the VIP Contract unlock and Payphone Hits all work from a basic Agency with no upgrades bought. Upgrades add convenience and Imani Tech, not access to the jobs.
How much do Security Contracts pay?
At the time of writing, roughly GTA$31,000 to GTA$42,000 for Professional, GTA$44,000 to GTA$56,000 for Specialist and GTA$60,000 to GTA$70,000 for Specialist+ contracts. Event weeks can raise these figures.
How do I unlock Payphone Hits?
Complete three Security Contracts from the Agency computer. Franklin then starts offering hits, which you can take by calling him or by answering a ringing payphone in free mode.
How much do Payphone Hits pay now?
The leader gets GTA$15,000 base pay plus a GTA$30,000 assassination bonus, for GTA$45,000 at the time of writing. Older GTA$85,000 figures come from before the bonus was reduced in January 2024.
How much does the Dr. Dre VIP Contract pay?
Current guides put the standard leader payout at about GTA$900,000, while older guides quote GTA$1,000,000 and recent updates added a higher first completion each week. Check the in-game figure, because Rockstar has adjusted it more than once.
Can I play the VIP Contract and Security Contracts solo?
Yes. Security Contracts are solo-friendly free mode jobs, and the full Dr. Dre chain can be completed alone. Two Payphone Hits, The Dealers and The Hitmen, are the exception and need at least two players.
What is the Missile Lock-On Jammer and what does it cost?
It is an Imani Tech upgrade costing GTA$400,000 that stops homing missiles locking onto that vehicle. It is fitted in the Agency Vehicle Workshop and shares a slot with the Remote Control Unit, so a vehicle can only carry one of the two.
Which vehicles can use Imani Tech?
Twenty vehicles take the full Imani Tech package, including the Buffalo STX, Champion, Jubilee, Granger 3600LX, 300R, Deity and Virtue. Jammer support has since spread to many more vehicles, so check your own car in the workshop menu.
How much passive income does the Agency safe make?
It rises with completed Security Contracts and caps at GTA$20,000 per in-game day, which is 48 real minutes, once you pass roughly 200 contracts. The safe stores up to GTA$250,000 and must be emptied by hand.
In Short
The Agency earns its place through availability. Whenever you log in, there is a contract on the computer, a payphone that may ring, a safe quietly filling and a workshop that can make your favourite car far harder to kill.
Buy Little Seoul, add the Vehicle Workshop before any decoration, favour Specialist and Specialist+ contracts, and never waste a Payphone Hit bonus. Do that, and the Agency repays its cost while still feeling like story content rather than a chore.
It will not beat a dedicated passive business on safe income alone, and it was never meant to. Its real prize is Imani Tech on your daily driver and a Dr. Dre storyline you can replay whenever the rest of your empire is on cooldown.
