A lot of new Old School RuneScape players when they see a Youtuber playing OSRS find some elements in the game footage that they do not recognize. This also applies to old-timers or players who are alright sticking to the status quo.

These elements, like colored tiles or additional panels with extra details, are generated by third-party OSRS clients. While the additional information is in most cases more welcome than not, 3rd party OSRS clients have been controversial since their introduction.

Players and developers are in a constant argument of what is allowed and what passes into the realm of cheating. This is also a hot topic since cheaters are typically penalized or banned once their accounts have been flagged.

To start, let's discuss first what are OSRS clients and why do players use them?

OSRS Clients

One thing to know about OSRS Clients is that as with any 3rd party program, they fall under “use at your own risk” category. That doesn’t necessarily mean they are unsafe by default, however, they are not made by Jagex and thus Jagex cannot be held responsible for the safety of your OSRS account.

This might look bleak at first glance. The upside is that Jagex is constantly reviewing the various functionalities of these OSRS clients and whether they are fair or not.

OSRS clients can be of much use. For example, if you are training Farming and trying to earn some OSRS gold, you can enable a timer to see when you can harvest your crops! Watching a series on your computer while waiting for another duel?

You safely ALT+TAB it, most clients will warn you of a duel challenge even if you have minimized the game.

Various price trackers and item evaluation tools elevate your money-making capabilities to the next level. Getting an OSRS bond for an F2P account becomes even easier!

Is OSBuddy safe?

OSBuddy is a very popular OSRS client. It comes with such neat features as more convenient experience tracking, looting, etc. OSBuddy has a plethora of features, so you best check them out yourself.

Plenty of other 3rd party clients boast tons of useful features. OSBuddy beats them because of one simple thing: it has been stated by Jagex that they approve of OSBuddy.

This is not only a statement about the client‘s usefulness but also its safety. 3^rdparty clients are always under suspicion, mainly because they have access to your account’s login data.

official runescape client safety analysis

Due to this access to their data, a lot of OSRS players using 3^rd party clients are blaming these clients’ developers whenever they lose fat stacks of OSRS gold to hackers. These said “hackers” as you know may already know are the developers of their game client.

On the one hand, such claims often cannot be proven and many players have lost their gold to silly RuneScape scams and is ashamed to admit it. On the other hand, a 3^rd party entity having access to your account always creates a degree of risk, however small it may be, and it opens the door for speculation.

Is Runelite safe?

Many people consider Runelite to be the best OSRS client out there. It is certainly one of the most popular ones, just like OSBuddy. Well then, why do people hold Runelite in particular in such esteem? Just like OSBuddy, Runelite client contains a myriad of features.

As opposed to OSBuddy, none of them are behind a paywall.

Another important fact to note about Runelite – it is an open-source application. Unlike with OSBuddy, you can actually access the code and see what plug-ins are installed. This means that anyone can see what is under this client’s hood and in turn, this means that any malicious line of code would instantly be noticed by an expert’s eye.

Open source also means that if you are a programmer yourself, you can add your own features as long as they comply with Jagex’s guidelines.

osrs client view map

The team at Runelite is cooperating with Jagex all the time to ensure their client’s compliance with Jagex’s standards. Somewhat recently Runelite developers removed a portion of features Jagex deemed to be too powerful.

Is Runelite safe to use then?

Well, the fact that they cooperate with Jagex closely shows how safe Runelite is. If that’s not enough, then YES – Runelite is SAFE.

Safe OSRS Clients

Runelite and OSBuddy are widely considered to be safe both in terms of your account data safety and eliminates the risk of your account getting banned.

For players using or planning on using other 3^rd party OSRS clients a piece of advice – if a feature feels like cheating, it most likely is cheating.

For example, basically, any feature that reduces the number of clicks a player has to make is considered cheating.

Some clients improve the old school graphics of OSRS. The game can look stunning with those installed, without losing its original vision. Jagex, however, is not fond of such clients. The main problem is that from their side such clients are indistinguishable from botting clients.

In short: avoid graphics altering clients or you'll live with an increased ban risk. Always make sure to check their standing with Jagex.

osrs player conference

All in all, OSRS clients can be a lot of fun. They provide extremely useful features, to the point where you can’t even imagine the game without some of them after a while. From skill training to gold making, every kind of activity can be improved.

Who knows, maybe you will even be able to make real money by selling OSRS gold earned thanks to one of these clients.

Do you need expert help with your RuneScape journey? Join our Discord server and try out our other OSRS services like questing, power leveling, fire cape, and many more.

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Last Updated: 01/11/2021

How Safe Are OSRS Clients? - Everything You Need To Know About Them