In World of Warcraft gold-making, one metric matters more than most: estimated LPH, or liquid gold per hour. Whether you are farming herbs, mining ore, flipping items on the Auction House, or running transmute cooldowns, knowing your actual gold per hour helps you decide which activities are worth your time. This article explains what estimated LPH is, how to calculate it using addons like TradeSkillMaster (TSM) and Auctionator, and how to improve it through better routes, profession choices, and market timing.
What Is Estimated LPH?
Estimated LPH stands for estimated liquid gold per hour. It is a measure of how much raw gold you can earn in one hour of focused activity, after subtracting costs like repairs, consumables, and auction fees. The term is most commonly used in the gold-making community on websites like Warcraft Wealth, where players share farming routes and strategies with their measured LPH.
There are two main types of LPH:
- Raw LPH, Gold earned from vendoring items, looting coins, or selling trade goods directly to the Auction House without further processing.
- Processed LPH, Gold earned after crafting, prospecting, milling, or disenchanting raw materials into higher-value items before selling.
For example, a miner farming Draconium Ore in the Waking Shores might earn 15,000 raw LPH from selling the ore directly. But if they prospect the ore into Illimited Diamonds and sell those cut gems, their processed LPH could rise to 22,000 gold per hour, depending on current market prices.
How to Calculate Your Own LPH
To calculate your estimated LPH, you need three pieces of data: total gold earned, total time spent, and any expenses incurred. Here is a step-by-step method using widely available tools.
Step 1: Track Your Time and Loot
Use an addon like TSM or Auctionator to record what you loot and sell. TSM’s Accounting module automatically logs every sale and purchase. For raw farming, you can also use a stopwatch and a simple notepad. Run a farming route for exactly one hour, then count all items looted and any gold coins picked up.
Step 2: Determine Market Value
Check the current Auction House prices for each item you looted. Use The Undermine Journal to see region-wide price averages, or rely on TSM’s dbmarket price source. Multiply the quantity of each item by its market price to get the gross value of your loot.
Step 3: Subtract Costs
Deduct any expenses incurred during the session:
- Auction House cut (5% of sale price for most items, 15% for commodities without a deposit waiver)
- Repair costs (typically 100-500 gold for a one-hour farming session in Dragonflight)
- Consumables used (flasks, potions, food, e.g., a flask of Iced Mana Potion costs around 200 gold)
- Travel costs (hearthstone, flight paths, or portal fees)
For example, if you looted 200 Hochenblume worth 30 gold each (6,000 gold gross), paid a 5% AH cut (300 gold), spent 150 gold on repairs, and used 100 gold in potions, your net LPH would be 6,000-300-150-100 = 5,450 gold per hour.
Step 4: Calculate Processed LPH (Optional)
If you process materials, repeat the calculation after crafting. For instance, if you turn 200 Hochenblume into Potion of Withering Dreams and sell those, your gross might be 8,000 gold, with higher AH fees and material costs. Always compare raw vs. processed LPH to see which is better.
Addons That Estimate LPH Automatically
Several addons can calculate estimated LPH for you in real time or from historical data. The most popular are TradeSkillMaster (TSM) and Auctionator. Each has strengths and weaknesses.
TradeSkillMaster (TSM)
TSM is the gold-making standard. Its Accounting module tracks every transaction and displays gold per hour for each of your characters. To see your LPH:
- Open TSM (default hotkey:
Ctrl+Shift+M). - Go to the Accounting tab.
- Select a time range (e.g., last 7 days).
- Look at the Gold per Hour field at the top of the window.
TSM calculates this by dividing total net gold (sales minus purchases and fees) by the total time logged in that period. This is a true average LPH, not a session-specific estimate. For more precise per-session tracking, you can also use TSM’s Operations to set up groups and monitor farming runs.
Read our TSM setup guide for detailed installation and configuration instructions.
Auctionator
Auctionator is lighter than TSM and includes a Shopping List feature that shows estimated profit per item. While it does not have a dedicated LPH calculator, you can manually compute LPH by dividing the total profit shown in the Sell Log by your playtime. Auctionator is easier for beginners and works well for simple flipping or crafting.
See our comparison Auctionator vs TSM to decide which is right for you.
Other Addons
- FarmHUD, Displays a real-time overlay showing gold earned per hour while farming nodes. It uses current AH prices (from TSM or The Undermine Journal) to estimate value.
- Rarity, Tracks rare mob kills and loot, but does not calculate LPH directly. Useful for mount farmers who want to know time spent per drop.
- SavedInstances, Shows how many lockouts you have left per character, helping you plan farming routes efficiently.
For a full list of recommended addons, check our article on best addons for gold-making.
Raw Farming LPH Examples (Dragonflight and Shadowlands)
Below are real-world estimated LPH figures for common farming activities in Dragonflight and Shadowlands, based on region-wide averages from early 2025. These numbers will vary by server, time of day, and competition.
Herb Farming
Herbalism remains one of the most consistent raw LPH activities. In Dragonflight, the best routes are in the Waking Shores and Azure Span.
- Hochenblume, 12,000-15,000 LPH (Waking Shores, northern loop)
- Serevite, 10,000-13,000 LPH (Azure Span, riverbanks)
- Writhebark, 8,000-11,000 LPH (Ohn’ahran Plains, tree clusters)
Use our herb farming route for Dragonflight to maximize nodes per minute.
Ore Farming
Mining is slightly less profitable than herbalism in Dragonflight due to lower demand from crafting, but it is still solid.
- Draconium Ore, 10,000-14,000 LPH (Waking Shores, cave loops)
- Khaz’gorite Ore, 7,000-9,000 LPH (Zaralek Cavern, rare nodes)
For Shadowlands, Laestrite Ore still sells well for transmog and leveling crafting. See our ore farming loop for Shadowlands for optimal routes.
Skinning
Skinning LPH depends heavily on mob density and respawn rates. The Ohn’ahran Plains and Thaldraszus have high-density beast packs.
- Adamant Scales, 8,000-12,000 LPH (Ohn’ahran Plains, centaur camps)
- Dense Hide, 6,000-9,000 LPH (Thaldraszus, mammoth herds)
Check our skinning farming tips for pull strategies and group farming.
Cloth Farming
Cloth is less valuable per stack but can be farmed in dungeons with large trash pulls.
- Shrouded Cloth (Shadowlands), 4,000-6,000 LPH (De Other Side, first boss area)
- Wild Cloth (Dragonflight), 3,000-5,000 LPH (Ruby Life Pools, trash packs)
Our cloth farming zones guide lists the best spots per expansion.
Elemental Farming
Elemental materials like Rousing Frost and Rousing Fire can be farmed from specific mobs in Dragonflight.
- Rousing Frost, 7,000-10,000 LPH (Azure Span, frost elementals)
- Rousing Fire, 6,000-9,000 LPH (Waking Shores, fire elementals near Obsidian Citadel)
See our elemental farming spots for detailed coordinates.
How Professions Affect Estimated LPH
Your LPH can increase significantly if you combine farming with a processing profession. Here is how each profession can boost your gold per hour.
Alchemy, Transmutes and Potions
Alchemy’s Transmute: Primal to Primal cooldown can yield 1,000-2,000 gold per day with minimal time. More importantly, crafting potions from farmed herbs often yields higher LPH than selling herbs raw. For example, turning 200 Hochenblume into Potion of Withering Dreams might increase your LPH from 12,000 to 18,000 if the potion market is strong. Check our alchemy transmute profits guide for current cooldown values.
Jewelcrafting, Prospecting
Prospecting ore is a classic way to increase LPH. One stack of Draconium Ore (200 ore) can be prospected into 4-8 Illimited Diamonds worth 2,500-5,000 gold, plus other gems. The LPH from prospecting depends on your speed and the current gem prices. Read our jewelcrafting prospect guide for optimal buyout prices.
Enchanting, Disenchanting
Disenchanting green and blue items from farming or the Auction House can yield valuable dusts and shards. For example, disenchanting 50 Waking Dreams (green items) might produce Soul Dust worth 3,000 gold. This adds 3,000 LPH to your session if you farm the items yourself. See our enchanting disenchant strategy for a list of profitable items to DE.
Herbalism and Mining, Double Gathering
Having both Herbalism and Mining on the same character lets you gather both nodes, increasing your overall LPH by 20-30% compared to a single gathering profession. In Dragonflight, you can switch between the two with a hotkey (default: Ctrl+Shift+G for TSM groups).
Improving Your LPH Through Market Timing and Flipping
Your estimated LPH is not fixed. You can improve it by farming at the right times and by using Auction House strategies.
Farming on Patch Days
Patch days often see spikes in material prices because players race to craft new gear. For example, when Patch 10.2.7 launched, Rousing Order prices jumped 40% in the first 24 hours. Farming before a patch and selling on release day can double your LPH. Learn more in our market timing on patch days article.
Flipping and Sniping
Flipping (buying low and selling high) and sniping (using addons to buy underpriced items instantly) can yield extremely high LPH, often exceeding 50,000 gold per hour for experienced traders. However, this requires capital and knowledge of market trends. Start with our flipping basics and sniping addon techniques.
Reset Strategies
Resetting a market means buying out all of a certain item to raise the price. For example, buying all 200 stacks of Hochenblume at 25 gold each and reposting at 35 gold can yield a 40% profit if the market holds. This can give an LPH of 20,000-30,000 gold for just 10 minutes of work. See our reset strategies article for risk management.
Common Mistakes When Estimating LPH
Many players overestimate their LPH because they ignore hidden costs or inaccurate price data. Avoid these pitfalls.
- Using vendor price instead of AH price, Some items (like grey junk) vendor for far less than their AH value. Always use market price for trade goods.
- Ignoring auction fees, The AH cut is 5% for most items, but for commodities (like ore and herbs) the deposit is high and non-refundable. Factor this into your LPH.
- Not accounting for competition, If you farm a node and someone else is also there, your nodes-per-minute drops, reducing LPH. Farm during off-peak hours (e.g., early morning on weekdays).
- Using outdated prices, The Undermine Journal updates every 1-2 hours. Check prices just before you sell, not from a week ago.
- Forgetting repair and consumable costs, A flask of Iced Mana Potion costs 200 gold and lasts 1 hour. Add that to your expense list.
Putting It All Together: A Sample LPH Calculation
Let’s walk through a complete example for a Herbalism + Alchemy character in Dragonflight.
- Session: 1 hour of herb farming in the Waking Shores, collecting 220 Hochenblume and 30 Serevite.
- Gross value: 220 Hochenblume × 30 gold = 6,600 gold; 30 Serevite × 15 gold = 450 gold; total = 7,050 gold.
- Costs: Repair 150 gold, flask 200 gold, food 50 gold, flight path 30 gold = 430 gold.
- Net raw LPH: 7,050-430 = 6,620 gold per hour.
- Processing: Use 220 Hochenblume to craft 44 Potion of Withering Dreams (5 herbs per potion). Sell each potion at 250 gold = 11,000 gold. Subtract AH cut (5% = 550 gold), repair (150 gold), flask (200 gold), food (50 gold), flight (30 gold), and material cost of herbs (6,600 gold if you bought them, but you farmed them so opportunity cost is 6,600 gold). Net processed LPH = 11,000-550-150-200-50-30-6,600 = 3,420 gold per hour. In this case, raw selling is better.
Always run both calculations before committing to a processing strategy.