How To Make Money With Workshops In Mount And Blade II: Bannerlord

Workshops are one of the best ways to make passive denars in Mount & Blade II: Bannerlord, but many players end up buying random workshops and then wonder why profits are low.

The key thing to understand is that Bannerlord’s economy constantly changes. A workshop that performs well in one campaign might perform poorly in another depending on wars, caravans, prosperity, nearby villages, and trade routes.

How workshops work

Every workshop depends on raw materials coming from nearby villages.

Examples:

• Hardwood → wood workshops

• Iron ore → smithies

• Grapes → wine presses

• Olives → oil presses

• Clay → pottery workshops

Before buying a workshop, always check the villages connected to the town. Hover over them and look at their production.

If nearby villages produce matching resources, the workshop will usually perform well.

How to buy a workshop

Once you find a good town:

1. Enter the town

2. Press Alt to highlight workshops

3. Talk to a workshop owner

4. Choose: “I’d like to buy this workshop”

Most workshops cost around 15,000 denars.

You can either keep the current production type or convert it.

Important: avoid having multiple identical workshops in the same town, as they will compete and reduce profits.

How to find good workshop locations

A simple method is checking market prices inside a town.

• Expensive jewelry → silversmith is good

• Expensive tools/weapons → smithy is profitable

• Expensive wine → wine press may be missing locally

In general, the best workshop is often the one the town lacks.

How to increase workshop profit

To maximize income, you can manually supply workshops:

• Enable: “Get inputs from warehouse”

• Store materials in the town warehouse

• Let the workshop process them

Example:

• Buy cheap silver from villages

• Store it in warehouse

• Silversmith turns it into jewelry

• Sell jewelry at higher prices

This requires more effort but increases profits significantly.

Why town safety matters

Workshops rely on caravans and villagers.

• Villagers supply raw materials

• Caravans buy finished goods

If they are attacked by bandits or war:

• Workshop profits drop

• Trade routes break

• Production slows down

Safe towns = stable income.

Prosperity matters

High-prosperity towns almost always generate better workshop profits.

Richer towns:

• Buy and sell goods at higher prices

• Increase workshop product value

• Provide more stable income

Best perks for workshops

Useful trade perks:

• Rapid Development

• Caravan Master

• Great Investor

Great Investor is especially strong because it gives:

• +1 renown per profitable workshop per day

Common workshop mistakes

Expecting instant profit

Workshops take time to stabilize.

Buying in enemy kingdoms

War can completely shut down income.

Ignoring villages

No matching resources = weak production.

Building in unsafe areas

Bandits and wars destroy trade flow.

Final thoughts

Workshops are one of the safest passive income methods in Bannerlord once you understand how the economy works.

Focus on:

• Nearby village production

• Local market prices

• Safe towns

• Supply and demand (not random builds)

If done correctly, workshops become a reliable long-term income source throughout your campaign.