Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas: Complete Guide

A practical guide to the original PC San Andreas (Steam app 12120). It covers CJ's stats and skills, the story route across the state, the missions that stop people, collectibles and 100% completion, cheats, and how to get the old PC release running well today.

Researched September 2026 — current as of the final Steam build (the December 2014 re-release). Live games change; check the linked sources if something differs.

Store status: the original Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is no longer sold on Steam. Its store page says "Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is no longer available on the Steam store." Rockstar pulled the classic PC versions from digital stores in late 2021, ahead of Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition. If you already own it, it stays in your library and still downloads and plays. New buyers can only get the Definitive Edition on Steam.

Quick Start

CJ is a stats character. Stamina, Muscle, Fat, Lung Capacity, driving, flying, bike, cycling and weapon skills all go up with use. Doing something is how you get better at it.
Eat, but not too much. If you don't eat for a long time, CJ starts losing Muscle. Eating too much builds Fat. Go to the gym to turn Fat into Muscle.
Grind weapon skills to "Hitman." At Hitman level CJ can dual-wield pistols, sawn-off shotguns, Micro SMGs and Tec-9s. It makes the late game much easier.
Save at safehouses often. There's no checkpoint save on the old PC release. Failing a long mission sends you back to the trigger point.
Buy assets to earn money. Businesses such as Zero RC, Wang Cars, Verdant Meadows and the casinos pay out over time once you finish their missions. Collect from the pickup at each property.
Use the schools. Driving, Pilot, Boat and Bike schools unlock licences and vehicles, and they hugely improve the related skill.
Recruit gang members for combat missions. Aim at a Grove Street member and press the recruit key. Your Respect stat controls how many will follow you.
Know that some areas are locked early. San Fierro and Las Venturas are closed off and you get a Wanted level for entering early. Wait for the story to open them.

CJ's Stats and Skills

Stat	How to raise it	What it does
Stamina	Running, cycling, swimming, treadmill	Sprint longer
Muscle	Gym weights, fighting	More melee damage; affects how people react to you
Fat	Eating (fast food)	Slower, worse at climbing; gym turns it into Muscle
Lung Capacity	Swimming underwater	Stay underwater longer. Needed for underwater missions and the oysters
Driving Skill	Driving, Driving School	Better car handling
Flying Skill	Pilot School, flying	Required for the flight-heavy late missions
Bike / Cycling Skill	Riding motorbikes and bicycles	Less likely to fall off, better handling
Weapon Skill	Killing with that weapon type	Poor, then Gangster, then Hitman. Hitman unlocks dual-wield for some weapons
Respect	Missions, gang territory, killing rivals	More recruitable gang members
Sex Appeal	Clothes, cars, body	Affects girlfriend dates

Fighting styles

There are three gyms, one per city, and each teaches a style once your Muscle is high enough:

Gym	City	Style
Ganton Gym	Los Santos	Boxing
Cobra Martial Arts	San Fierro	Kung Fu
Below the Belt Gym	Las Venturas	Kickboxing

Story Route Outline

Region	Main contacts	What happens
Los Santos	Sweet, Big Smoke, Ryder, OG Loc, Cesar	CJ returns for his mother's funeral, rebuilds the Grove Street Families, gang wars
The Badlands (countryside)	Catalina, The Truth, Cesar	Robberies with Catalina, and the move into the country
San Fierro	Wu Zi Mei, Zero, Jizzy, the Loco Syndicate, Driving School	Building a new operation in the city
The Desert	Toreno, Verdant Meadows	Government-agent jobs and your own airstrip
Las Venturas	Woozie, Salvatore Leone, Ken Rosenberg	Casinos, the Mafia, and the big heist planning
Return to Los Santos	Madd Dogg, Grove Street	Taking the city back and the finale, "End of the Line"

Missions that stop people (and how to beat them)

Mission	Problem	Fix
Wrong Side of the Tracks	Big Smoke can't shoot the Vagos on the train	Drive the bike close alongside the train, match its speed, and stay level so he has a clean line
Supply Lines...	Zero's RC plane runs out of fuel	Fly directly toward targets, stay low, and don't chase at bad angles
Just Business	A long motorbike chase with Big Smoke shooting	Keep the bike straight and slow in the tight sections, and let Smoke shoot
Pilot School (Verdant Meadows)	Needed to continue the story	Go gently on the controls and practise landings and stunts until they're consistent
Freefall	Catching the plane mid-air	Pitch the plane down to match speed and descend onto the target
Black Project / Green Goo	Stealth, then the jetpack and the train	Take it slowly. Hide behind crates and follow the guards' patterns
End of the Line	Long, with no mid-save	Bring full armour and plenty of ammo. Level your SMG and pistol skills first

Collectibles and Assets

Collectible	Count	Where	Reward
Tags (spray paint)	100	Los Santos	Extra weapons at the Johnson House
Snapshots	50	San Fierro	Weapons at the Doherty garage
Horseshoes	50	Las Venturas	Weapons at the Four Dragons Casino and extra gambling luck
Oysters	50	Underwater, statewide	Max Sex Appeal and extra Lung Capacity

Assets worth buying or unlocking

Zero RC (after Zero's missions): passive income.
Wang Cars (after the car import/export list): passive income plus car pickups.
Verdant Meadows airstrip: Pilot School, aircraft spawns and later missions.
Four Dragons Casino (via the story with Woozie): Las Venturas income.
Safehouses in every city: each is a save point and some have garages.

100% Completion Notes

100% completion covers the story, the schools, the main side activities (such as Courier, Quarry, Trucking, Valet, Firefighter, Paramedic, Vigilante and Taxi, depending on the category), stadium events, races, and buying key assets. The biggest time sinks:

Races: some air races and the later road races need patience.
Schools: getting at least bronze on every lesson is the minimum. Silver and gold unlock extra vehicles.
Quarry and Trucking: tedious but not hard.
Rewards for 100%: extra vehicles, max Respect and more. Check an up-to-date checklist before you grind.

Cheats (PC)

Type these during gameplay (not in a menu):

Code	Effect
HESOYAM	Health, armour and $250,000
BAGUVIX	Semi-infinite health
AEZAKMI	Never get a Wanted level
ASNAEB	Clear your Wanted level
FULLCLIP	Infinite ammo
LXGIWYL	Weapon set 1
PROFESSIONALSKIT	Weapon set 2
UZUMYMW	Weapon set 3
ROCKETMAN	Jetpack
JUMPJET	Hydra
OHDUDE	Hunter helicopter
CVWKXAM	Infinite oxygen
BUFFMEUP	Max Muscle

Cheat warning: some cheats (world-state ones like riots or changing pedestrians) can stick to a save. Keep a clean save in a separate slot before experimenting. Don't save during missions with cheats on.

Running the Old PC Version Today

Framerate and physics: San Andreas physics were built around ~30 fps. Keep the in-game Frame Limiter on. Very high framerates break some physics, swimming and animation timings.
Widescreen: the game supports widescreen resolutions, but HUD and FOV can look stretched. The community Widescreen Fix by ThirteenAG corrects aspect ratio and HUD.
SilentPatch: a well-known community patch that fixes many engine bugs and crashes on modern Windows.
The 2014 Steam re-release: Rockstar replaced the Steam version with an updated build in December 2014. It added controller support but removed some licensed radio songs and changed files many mods rely on. Players who want the classic modding experience use a community downgrader to go back to the version most mods target.
Multiplayer mods: SA-MP and the open.mp project both need the classic executable, so downgrade before installing.
Alternative: the Definitive Edition is what Rockstar sells today, with updated visuals and modern controls. The classic release is still preferred for modding.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Skipping the gym, then struggling in melee. A few gym sessions early make a big difference.
Not grinding weapon skills before Las Venturas. Dual-wield SMGs at Hitman level are a big power spike.
Entering locked areas early and getting a four-star Wanted level in the countryside.
Starving CJ. Losing Muscle to hunger is easy to overlook.
Saving mid-way with cheats that change the world state.
Uncapping the framerate on the classic PC version.

Advanced Tips

Early weapon skill grind: stand at a gang war spot or the Ammu-Nation shooting range to max pistol and SMG skills.
Money early: HESOYAM is the cheat route. The clean route is doing Courier, Valet and assets as they unlock, and gambling carefully once you have the horseshoe luck bonus.
Gang wars: start them in Grove Street-adjacent zones with a full crew and armour. Winning spreads your territory and makes Los Santos safer.
Stamina trick: cycling around Los Santos early raises Stamina and Cycling Skill together.
Swimming for Lung Capacity: needed for underwater story work such as "Amphibious Assault" and useful for oysters.

FAQ

Can I still buy the original San Andreas on Steam? No. The store page says it's no longer available. Existing owners can still download and play it. The Definitive Edition is the version sold now.

Why are some radio songs missing? The December 2014 Steam update removed some licensed tracks.

Do cheats disable anything? The classic PC version has no achievements to lose, but some cheats permanently change a save's world state. Keep a separate clean save.

How do I dual-wield? Raise the weapon skill to Hitman for pistols, sawn-off shotguns, Micro SMGs or Tec-9s.

Where are the gyms? Ganton Gym (Los Santos, Boxing), Cobra Martial Arts (San Fierro, Kung Fu) and Below the Belt Gym (Las Venturas, Kickboxing).

Why does the game feel broken at 144 fps? The engine assumes a low framerate. Turn on the Frame Limiter.