The GTA Online special crates were a rare type of crate drop, announced in gold text, that could hold super heavy armor, 5000 RP, a Minigun or Carbine Rifle, and $5,000. Your first special crate pickup also unlocked the Los Santos Belle T-Shirt. Crate Drops were removed from the enhanced edition in the Freemode Events Update, so they are no longer available. They stayed on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 only until access to GTA Online ended there in December 2021.
Key facts
- Unlocked: at rank 12, after the first missions for TPI, when Ron explains the air-drops
- Warning: special crates are announced 10, 5 and 3 hours ahead, in game time where one hour lasts two minutes in real life
- How to spot them: the message text is gold instead of white
- Contents: super heavy armor, 5000 RP, a Minigun or Carbine Rifle, $5,000, sometimes an event item
- First pickup bonus: the Los Santos Belle T-Shirt, sold in clothing stores for 427 dollars
- Status: removed in the enhanced edition
How special crates worked
- A message says a plane is on its way to drop a crate. Special crates show their text in gold.
- A large green circle marks the general drop area on the map.
- When the crate lands, the circle becomes a small question mark that shows its exact position.
- Beat the heavily armed NPCs guarding it, usually The Professionals.
- Pick up the loot and keep it.
You can walk away from the fight at any time. If nobody collects a crate for a while, it disappears with a message that arms smugglers took it. Note that the Minigun from a special crate lasted only for the online session if you were not high enough level to buy it at Ammu-Nation.
Special crates and event items
During some events, special crates carried exclusive clothing, such as the Beer Hats and the Statue of Happiness T-Shirt in July 2014. The full list is in Special Crates and T-Shirts, and the hats are covered in Beer Hats and Statue of Happiness T-Shirt.
Special crates are not Special Cargo
Special Cargo is a different CEO feature from the Further Adventures in Finance and Felony update. You buy cargo for your warehouse from the SecuroServ terminal: 1 crate costs $2,000, 2 crates cost $8,000 and 3 crates cost $18,000. Browse other jobs in the GTA Online category.
Related guides
- All Armored Truck Locations (Random Event): another event removed in the same update
- Finders Keepers Event
- GTA Online collectibles guide
Video walkthrough
Prefer to watch? This video shows it in action.
FAQ
Can you still get special crates in GTA Online?
No. Crate Drops were removed from the enhanced edition in the Freemode Events Update, and they stayed only on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 until December 2021.
How can you tell a special crate from a normal one?
The announcement text for special crates is gold, and you get warnings 10, 5 and 3 hours ahead in game time.
What did special crates contain?
Super heavy armor, 5000 RP, a Minigun or Carbine Rifle and $5,000, plus a special item during some events.
What did the first special crate unlock?
The Los Santos Belle T-Shirt, which clothing stores sold for 427 dollars.
