Item set arbitrage: combining and splitting armour sets
How GE item sets work, when combining pieces or splitting a set pays after tax, and the biggest set gaps on the Grand Exchange right now.
Offerbook · Published · 4 min read
Many armour sets can be traded on the GE as a single item set: one box that holds the helm, body, legs and so on. The Grand Exchange clerks will swap a set for its pieces, or the pieces for a set, for free. Because the set and the pieces are priced separately, the two sometimes drift apart, and the gap is profit.
Two directions
- Combine: buy every piece, have a clerk pack them into a set, and sell the set. This works when the set sells for more than the pieces cost, plus tax.
- Split: buy the set, have a clerk unpack it, and sell each piece. This works when the pieces together sell for more than the set, plus tax on every piece.
Splitting pays more tax, because each piece is a separate sale. A set of four pieces pays tax four times, once on each, where combining pays it once on the set.
The biggest gaps right now
| Set | Combine | Split |
|---|---|---|
| Dragon armour set (sk) | 8.58m gp | -14.5m gp |
| Saradomin armour set (lg) | 21,731 gp | -68,043 gp |
| Guthix armour set (lg) | 18,069 gp | -52,911 gp |
| Verac's armour set | -109k gp | -479 gp |
| Rune armour set (sk) | -4,942 gp | -11,483 gp |
Combine buys the pieces and sells the set; split buys the set and sells the pieces. Both are after tax.
Things to watch
- The slowest piece decides. A combine needs every piece to fill. If one piece trades rarely, your gp sits in the other pieces until it does.
- Buy limits per piece. The number of sets you can make is the lowest buy limit among the pieces.
- Prices move while you wait. A combine can take a while to finish, and a gap of a few percent can close before you sell.
The item set calculator lists every set with both directions after tax and the volumes on each side. For other ways to use price gaps, see potion decanting and the Strategies page.
Offerbook is gp only and has nothing to do with real-world trading. Prices move, so nothing here is a promise of profit. Every trade is one you make yourself in game.