Our guide will provide you with tips on how to forage in Project Zomboid. Foraging doesn’t mean searching only for food, it also means searching crafting materials, medicinal plants, dead animals, etc.

How to Forage in Project Zomboid

Investigate Area

The first thing you want to do is investigate the environment you’re in. In order to do this you need to select the “Investigate Area” option from the left menu, indicated by the magnifying glass icon.

This simple action will enable a search mode. Search mode shows info about the environment your character stands in, whether it’s an urban area or a wilderness, what kinds of inhabitants live there, as well as what kinds of materials and foods you can find.

But that’s not it, as the new investigation process requires you to search around for a little bit. Here’s what you need to do:

Walk around the area with the search mode enabled Stop once an eye icon appears above your head Look around and click your mouse in this area Once you stumble upon an object, it will be indicated by its tag Double-click the item tag to pick it up

The objects of interest are usually obscured, but once you identify them, you will see them clearly and decide whether you want to put them in your backpack or not.

The more items you find, the more XP you earn. The more XP you earn, the better and rarer things you find. Your search radius will increase and this helps immensely when you’re looking for specific items.

Improve Your Foraging

As you progress through the game, you will notice that certain actions help you find hidden items, while others prevent it. So how can you improve your foraging?

Choose Correct Occupation

There are several occupations that directly influence the success of foraging, including:

Park Ranger Fisherman Chef Lumberjack Veteran Farmer

These occupations increase your radius of investigation, reduce weather effects that may prevent you from finding items, and reduce darkness effects.

Such occupations like Park Ranger and Fisherman even add a point or two to your foraging skill in the skill tree. But being unemployed is also beneficial for foraging skill, so consider it as well.

Choose Correct Traits

If you’ve already chosen an occupation that is not on the list above, then you can improve your foraging with the help of the following traits:

Lucky Hiker Former Scout Hunter Eagle Eyed Gardener Outdoorsman Cook Cat’s Eyes Nutritionist Herbalist

All of these traits increase your radius of investigation, and some even reduce weather and darkness effects, such as Hunter and Outdoorsman.

You also need to avoid some of the traits that will reduce your foraging skills and abilities, such as:

Unlucky Agoraphobic Short Sighted

Perform Correct Actions

Lastly, certain actions may strongly influence the success of foraging, either negatively or positively.

The following actions will increase the chance of finding items:

Aiming Sneaking Walking

These actions will decrease the chance of foraging:

Running Sprinting

You should also avoid specific types of equipment, which may prevent you from identifying objects on the ground, including:

Helmets Face Masks Glasses Eyepatches

Project Zomboid Foraging Items List

Here you will find a list of all items that can be foraged in Project Zomboid, including the corresponding foraging levels.

No Foraging Level Required

Junk Berries Mushrooms Stones Branches Twigs Violets

Foraging Level 2

Wild Vegetables Grape Leaves Worms

Foraging Level 3

Wild Onions Logs

Foraging Level 4

Rosehips Crickets Cherries Recipe Magazines Logs Rare Junk

Foraging Level 5

Oranges Dead Rats

Foraging Level 6

Jalapenos Jabaneros Limes Lemons Insects

Foraging Level 7

Grapes Dead Birds Frogs

Foraging Level 8

Wild Eggs Strawberries Pears Grapefruits Corn Dead Squirrels

Foraging Level 10

Dead Rabbits

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That’s all you need to know on how to forage in Project Zomboid. If you need more Project Zomboid tips and tricks articles, then be sure to check out our dedicated hub page.