Borderlands 3 Achievements Guide

Borderlands 3 was the long-awaited sequel that arrived in 2019. Putting players back into the role of vault hunters once again, it made a number of gameplay changes and improvements. The game also recently became available for next-gen consoles. The enhanced version looks and plays better than ever before on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S.

Of course, just like its predecessors, Borderlands 3 has a long list of achievements and trophies for players to unlock. Those wanting to get them all or get the platinum trophy in Borderlands 3 will have a tough time. There’s just so much to do and so many places to visit in the large in-game world that it becomes tricky to keep track.

Thankfully, this Borderlands 3 trophy guide and achievement roadmap should help players.

Achievement roadmap for Borderlands 3

In total, the Borderlands 3 trophy list contains 45 different achievements to unlock. The vast majority of these are available through singleplayer without the need for online multiplayer. However, three of them do require an active internet connection and being signed in to the platform’s network. The achievements themselves are not too difficult to unlock but do require a solid time commitment. Players can expect to spend somewhere in the region of 50 hours to complete every achievement or trophy in Borderlands 3.

Thankfully, because of the non-linear system used in Borderlands 3, players should only need one playthrough. There are no requirements for playing as a particular class or difficulty, but there are some secret achievements for Borderlands 3.

The five currently-released DLC packs all contain extra achievements and trophies, along with additional Borderlands 3 rewards cards. However, each of these expansions has its own sections at the end of the guide.

How to get all story achievements

All Borderlands 3 story-related achievements can be unlocked at any time simply by progressing through the campaign. Players simply have to go through the game completing every quest they get access to.

The only exception to this rule is the Kill Quests that can be found on Sanctuary’s Notice Board. These quests do not count towards any achievement or trophy.

Players can complete all side missions and story quests in any order they want. Just make sure you try and finish up every available job.

Completing the wave-based trials

Like its predecessors, Borderlands 3 also has several wave-based trials. These are arena competitions where players can prove themselves against hordes of enemies.

The two that need to be completed are the Eridian Proving Grounds and the Circles of Slaughter. Each of them becomes progressively harder as the trial progresses. This means that by the end stages, they can be very challenging.

In fact, they might well be one of the most difficult things to do in Borderlands 3. But they both count as side quests and must be completed in order to unlock the Borderlands 3 platinum trophy.

Getting the rest of the offline achievements

After completing all of the side quests and story missions, there are still some offline achievements available to players. These essentially involve collecting a number of items or visiting every location on the map. In particular, players should ensure to do all of the following:

Hammerlock’s Legendary Hunts — find and hunt all of the creatures indicated by a green skull on the map

Zero’s Targets of Opportunity — take out the targets designated with a crossed swords symbol on the map

Eridian Slabs — the Eridian Writing Slabs show up as white triangles on the map, although they can only be accessed later in the game

Unique Vehicles — interact with every different type of vehicle on the map

Named Locations — visit every single named location within the in-game world of Borderlands 3, but DLC locations do not count

Any BL3 trophy guide would be remiss to exclude a few helpful hints for certain achievements. The following are all easier to complete early on in the game for various reasons. Players should try to unlock these as quickly as they can.

Florida Man — downing yourself with a grenade or explosion is a simpler task when your health is still relatively low

Barreled Right Over Them — this achievement involves killing an enemy with an explosion, something that is also easier with low-level opponents

On Fleek — to unlock this achievement, players must equip every inventory slot with a purple or orange item, so players should keep every such weapon and piece of gear they collect from the start of the experience

By the time players have completed all quests and finished all the collection tasks, they will almost certainly be level 50.

Unlocking online and multiplayer achievements

There are two achievements that are focused on multiplayer. These involve winning a duel against another player and reviving a teammate. While the intent is clearly to have players match up with others online, this is not technically necessary.

Users can instead sign in with a guest profile on a second controller on the same console. This method gets rid of the need to actually go online and makes the trophies easy and quick to unlock.

On the other hand, an achievement that is usually unlocked offline sees the player having to get a perfect score on the Firing Range. Playing the challenge with others makes it a far simpler task.

Getting all the DLC achievements

Like all the previous Borderlands games, Borderlands 3 has several DLC add-ons. These not only expand the story but also provide even more Borderlands 3 trophies and achievements. The DLC packs in order of their release are:

Moxxi’s Heist of the Handsome Jackpot DLC

Guns, Love, and Tentacles DLC

Bounty of Blood DLC

Psycho Krieg and the Fantastic Fustercluck DLC

Designer’s Cut DLC

For the most part, the DLC achievements are very similar to the ones in the main game. The vast majority will be gained by completing the quests and collecting items or visiting certain locations. A few involve beating particular bosses in combat, although these are rare. But because none of them are missable, it’s easy to go back and complete them even after finishing up each campaign.

Full list of Borderlands 3 achievements

You Got Skills – Reach level 2.

Star Bound – Reach level 10.

Vaulting Your Way To The Top – Reach level 25.

Biggest Badass In The Borderlands – Reach level 50.

Bolt-Ons – Unlock 10 Character Heads or Skins.

Mechani-Cool – Unlock 10 Vehicle Parts via hijacking.

Tips Appreciated – Tip Moxxi.

I Hope You Didn’t Tea-bag – Win a duel.

Stay Away From The Light – Revive another player.

Gun Pals! – Send an item to a friend.

Dropping Loads – Win a live grenade at a Slot Machine.

Good Against Remotes Is One Thing – Get a perfect score at the Firing Range on any difficulty.

My Name Is Earl – Buy 20 cosmetic items from Crazy Earl.

Tales From The Eridian Slab – Decipher all of the Eridian Slabs.

Slaughterhouse 3 – Complete all the Circles of Slaughter.

A Hundred Names For Sand – Discover all named locations on Pandora.

Swamped – Discover all named locations on Eden-6.

City Slicker – Discover all named locations on Promethea.

Exoarchaeolo—You Get The Gist – Discover all named locations on Nekrotafeyo.

Master Of All You Survey – Discover all named locations.

À La Carte – Complete 20 Side Missions.

Getting A Little On The Side – Complete all Side Missions.

100-Proof – Clear all the Eridian Proving Grounds.

Got Big Game – Defeat all of Hammerlock’s Legendary Hunts.

Zer0ed In – Defeat all of Zer0’s Targets of Opportunity.

Barreled Right Over Them – Kill an enemy with an exploding barrel.

Feelin’ A Little Stabby – Kill an enemy, knifing them with a gun blade.

Stick It To ‘Em – Kill two or more enemies with a single sticky grenade.

On Fleek – Equip purple-rated gear or better in every slot.

Rewards Card – Earn a Loyalty Package from each weapon manufacturer.

Welcome to the Crimson Raiders – Complete mission “Children of the Vault”.

So Long, Pandora! – Complete mission “Taking Flight”.

NOG It Off – Complete mission “Hostile Takeover”.

I Mustache You A Question – Complete mission “Atlas, At Last”.

Gone From My Sight – Complete mission “Beneath the Meridian”.

That Was Cold – Complete mission “Lair of the Harpy”.

Heir To An Empty Castle – Complete mission “Cold as the Grave”.

Cross The Streamers – Complete mission “Blood Drive”.

Apocalypso! – Complete mission “The Great Vault”.

I Am A Goddess, A Glorious Female Warrior – Complete mission “In the Shadow of Starlight”.

Bye, Felicia! – Complete mission “Divine Retribution”.

Florida Man – Down yourself by grenade or explosion.

Stay Golden – Use a Golden Key.

Damn, Gina – Get all Vault Rewards.

Ultimate Vault Hunter – Unlock all Borderlands® 3 Achievements.

Moxxi’s Heist of the Handsome Jackpot:

A Proper Hand-Off – Complete mission “All Bets Off”.

Firebug – Sabotage all statues for Ember.

Killer Look – Complete the Mayor’s outfit.

Scovillain – Destroy all of Mr. Torgue’s hot sauces.

Shoe Money Tonight – Get a 21 in the blackjack minigame.

Don’t Be a Stranger – Return for a chat with the Clapstructor.

Who Collects The Collector? – Defeat the wandering Debt Collector.

Guns, Love, and Tentacles:

Party’s Still On! – Find the party.

Love is the Fifth Dimension – Marry your friends.

Older Than the Trees – Kill the Wendigo.

Good One, Babe – Watch Deathtrap kill 50 enemies.

Industrious in the Face of Cosmic Terror – Complete all Crew Challenges and Side Missions on Xylourgos.

Whispers on the Wind – Collect all ECHO logs on Xylourgos.

A Hunter, Through and Through – Find and kill all 4 rare spawns.

I’m Floundering Up Here – Listen to 25 fish jokes.

Bounty of Blood:

How the West Was Done – Complete all plot missions, side missions, and crew challenges on Gehenna.

That’s Quite Challenging – Complete all crew challenges on Gehenna.

Helpful Hunter – Complete all side missions on Gehenna.

Stone Cold Killer – Complete mission “Blood from a Stone”.

It’s a Wash – Complete mission “The Name of the Law”.

Getting Off Track – Complete mission “Off the Rails”.

Ruin on the Horizon – Complete mission “Riding to Ruin”.

Bounty: Hunted – Complete mission “Where It All Started”.

Psycho Krieg and the Fantastic Fustercluck:

Meat and Greet – Complete mission “Enter the Psychoscape”.

The Blast and the Furious – Defeat Evil Lilith.

Brain Pain Train Slain – Defeat Locomöbius.

Trauma Center – Defeat Dr. Benedict.

Red Wrath and Beyond – Defeat Psychoreaver.

Ye Who Enter – Open the gates to Vaulthalla.

Fustercluck Off – Complete all side missions and crew challenges in Krieg’s Mind.

Designer’s Cut:

In the Eye of a Murdercane – Win a round of Arms Race.

Complex Made Simple – Explore the entire Stormblind Complex.

Treat Yo Self – Extract 100 pieces of gear from Arms Race.

Now that you’ve finished this achievements guide, you’re ready to start playing and earning all the Borderlands 3 hidden trophies!