You’re standing outside a nondescript warehouse in Del Perro, the neon "After Hours" sign flickering just enough to give you a headache. Inside, Solomun is spinning a set that costs you $100,000 just to book, and your digital bank account is ticking upward every single second. It’s been years since the After Hours DLC dropped, but the Grand Theft Auto 5 club—the Nightclub, specifically—remains the undisputed king of passive income for anyone playing GTA Online.
It's weird.
Most players buy the club because they want to see their character dance or because they think owning a spot in Los Santos is the ultimate flex. Then they realize the sheer complexity of the basement. The Nightclub isn't just a place to drink Macbeth Whiskey and pass out in the bathroom; it's a front. It’s a massive logistics hub that ties every other business you own into one streamlined interface. Honestly, if you aren't running your illicit empire through a club in 2026, you're basically leaving millions of GTA dollars on the table.
The Reality of Running a Grand Theft Auto 5 Club
Let's get one thing straight: the "safe" money and the "warehouse" money are two completely different beasts. When you first walk into your Grand Theft Auto 5 club, Tony Prince—good old Gay Tony—will hype you up about the fame and the popularity.
Popularity matters. It really does.
If you keep that popularity bar topped out by doing those annoying "drive the VIP home" or "toss the rowdy drunk out the back door" missions, you’re pulling in $50,000 every in-game day. That goes straight into your wall safe. It adds up fast. You can go AFK, watch the security cameras, and just let that safe fill up to its $250,000 capacity. But that is pennies compared to the basement technicians.
The real magic happens under the dance floor.
You need to hire the technicians. There are five of them. If you don't have them, your club is just a loud, expensive room. These guys don't require you to run supply missions. They don't ask you to steal vans or intercept planes. As long as your other businesses—like the Coke Lockup, the Bunker, or the Meth Lab—are "active" (even if they have zero supplies), your technicians will slowly, quietly, and efficiently funnel goods into your club's central warehouse.
What Most Players Get Wrong About Technicians
Don't buy the Mule Custom.
🔗 Read more: Among Us Spider-Man: Why Everyone Is Still Obsessed With These Mods
Seriously. Everyone thinks they need the mid-sized delivery truck. You don't. The Speedo Custom, which comes free with the Grand Theft Auto 5 club, is faster and more agile for small sales. If you wait until your warehouse is totally full, you’ll need the Pounder Custom. The Mule is a trap—it’s slow, it handles like a boat on land, and it makes you a massive target in a public lobby.
Focus on these five specific categories for your technicians:
- South American Imports (Cocaine)
- Pharmaceutical Research (Meth)
- Sporting Goods (Bunker/Arms)
- Cargo and Shipments (Hangar or Special Cargo Warehouse)
- Organic Produce (Weed) or Cash Creation (Counterfeit Cash)
Technically, the top three are non-negotiable. They offer the highest value per hour. If you’re trying to optimize your time, you ignore the documents. Nobody wants the Document Forgery Office. It’s the worst-paying business in the game, and even within the Nightclub ecosystem, it’s barely worth the technician's salary.
Location, Location, Location
Where you put your Grand Theft Auto 5 club matters more than the decor.
A lot of people go for the Elysian Island spot because it’s the cheapest. Big mistake. Huge. You’ll spend half your life driving over those winding bridges and through the industrial maze of the docks just to start a sell mission. It’s a nightmare.
The Vinewood locations are okay, but they’re crowded. If you’re in a "hot" lobby, expect someone to be camping outside with an Oppressor Mk II. Del Perro or Vespucci Canals are generally considered the sweet spots. They have easy access to the highway, meaning when you’re driving that massive Pounder Custom filled with $1.5 million worth of product, you can hit top speed almost immediately.
The Tony Prince Tax
Tony takes a 10% cut of every sale. It caps at $100,000.
This means if you sell $1,000,000 worth of goods, Tony takes $100k. If you sell $2,000,000 worth of goods, Tony still only takes $100k. There is a mathematical incentive to wait until your warehouse is nearly overflowing before you hit that "Sell All" button. It’s the only time the game actually rewards you for being greedy.
💡 You might also like: Why the Among the Sleep Mom is Still Gaming's Most Uncomfortable Horror Twist
But there’s a risk.
The longer you wait, the more likely you are to get raided by the NPC cops. Or worse, you’ll have to defend the shipment for a longer period against other players. Use the "Ghost Organization" ability from the CEO menu. It costs $15,000, but it hides your cargo from the map for three minutes. Those three minutes are often the difference between a massive payday and watching your hard work go up in a cloud of orbital cannon fire.
Upgrading the "After Hours" Experience
You cannot ignore the Equipment Upgrade.
It’s expensive—upwards of $1.4 million. Buy it anyway. It doubles the speed at which your technicians gather goods. Without it, the Grand Theft Auto 5 club is a slow crawl. With it, it’s a money-printing machine.
The Staff Upgrade is less vital, but it slows down the rate at which your popularity drops. If you hate doing the management missions (like swapping DJs or putting up posters), the staff upgrade is your best friend. Speaking of DJs, the first time you book a new one (Solomun, Tale Of Us, Dixon, or The Blessed Madonna), it costs $100,000. After that, it’s just $10,000 to swap them.
Each swap bumps your popularity by 10%.
It’s a "lazy" way to keep the club's passive income high. Just go to your computer in the office, swap Dixon for Solomun, and boom—your club is the hottest spot in town again. No driving, no shooting, no fuss.
The Social Aspect and "The Music Locker"
It’s easy to forget that the Grand Theft Auto 5 club scene expanded beyond just the player-owned spots. The Music Locker, located under the Diamond Casino, changed the vibe significantly. It introduced Keinemusik and Moodymann, adding more "real-world" credibility to the game's soundtrack.
📖 Related: Appropriate for All Gamers NYT: The Real Story Behind the Most Famous Crossword Clue
But here’s the thing: The Music Locker is a social hub. Your Nightclub is a business.
Don't confuse the two. You don't make money from the Music Locker unless you're doing specific missions for the DJs. Your Nightclub, however, is your retirement fund.
Why You Need a Terrorbyte
You can’t talk about the club without mentioning the Terrorbyte. This specialized truck can only be stored in your Nightclub’s dedicated garage level.
The Terrorbyte allows you to launch steal missions for all your other businesses from anywhere on the map. It cuts out the travel time back to your office or your clubhouse. If you’re serious about the Grand Theft Auto 5 club lifestyle, the Terrorbyte is the "brain" that makes the whole operation feel cohesive. Plus, it’s the only way to upgrade the Oppressor Mk II, which—love it or hate it—is the most efficient way to get around Los Santos.
Is the Nightclub Still Worth It in 2026?
With all the new updates, the heists like Cayo Perico, and the Mercenaries content, people wonder if the club is obsolete.
The answer is a hard "No."
The Nightclub is the only business that requires zero active "stealing" of supplies once it's set up. Every other business requires you to either pay for supplies (which eats into profits) or steal them (which takes time). The Nightclub technicians do it for free. They are the ultimate employees. They don't complain, they don't get arrested, and they work while you’re off doing heists or racing supercars.
It's the backbone of a successful GTA Online portfolio.
Actionable Next Steps for Nightclub Owners
- Check your technicians. Ensure they are assigned to the "Big Three": Cocaine, Meth, and Bunker. If one is sitting idle, you’re losing money.
- Move your location. If you’re still at the docks, trade it in for a spot in Del Perro or Downtown Vinewood. The time saved on sales is worth the cost.
- Invest in the Equipment Upgrade. If you only buy one thing today, make it this. It literally doubles your production speed.
- Manage Popularity via the Master Control Terminal. If you own an Arcade, use the MCT to swap DJs without even walking into the club. It’s faster and keeps the $50k daily payments rolling in.
- Ignore the Mule. Sell your stock in smaller batches with the Speedo or wait for the Pounder. Never buy the middle-child truck.