DMZ has its own level track from 1 to 70, and level 70 takes 1,165,573 DMZ XP in all. Story Missions pay the most, 12,500 XP each, then Dynamic Ops at 4,000 to 8,000 XP and the bonuses for finishing a deployment. You keep your XP even when you die.
How does the DMZ level work?
DMZ has a level track of its own, from 1 to 70, next to the Multiplayer levels 1 to 55. DMZ XP counts toward both, but Multiplayer and Warzone XP does nothing for your DMZ level.
Your DMZ level belongs to your account, so every Operator you play fills the same bar, and each level brings something: FOB stations such as the Gunsmith at level 10, recipes, Survival Kits, stash slots and bigger bounty payouts. Most of the same XP also raises the Dog Tag of the Operator you play, with a Trait Point at each of its 18 levels; the 12,500 XP for a Story Mission is the exception and only counts toward your DMZ level.
How much XP does each DMZ level take?
About the same for every level. Level 2 costs 15,050 XP and the step from 69 to 70 costs 18,634, so the climb to 1,165,573 XP is long because there are 69 steps, not because the last ones are steep.
What gives the most DMZ XP?
Objectives and the bonuses at the end of a deployment, not kills. In reported runs a Story Mission paid 12,500 XP and a Dynamic Op 4,000 to 8,000 XP. Time in the match pays 450 XP a minute as the Deployment Bonus, 3,901 to 15,041 XP in those runs, and extracting adds 500 plus a fifth of it as the Extracted Bonus. A hostile kill or an opened container pays 75 XP, a door opened with a key 300 and a Side Op usually 150.
One A-rated run of Operation Shopping Hacks came to 30,224 XP, about two DMZ levels. Even at that pace, level 70 takes close to 40 runs like it. The quickest run COD Central timed was Operation Critical Extraction with a squad: 21,206 XP in under nine minutes.
- Story Mission12,500 XP
- Dynamic Op4,000 to 8,000 XP
- Deployment Bonus3,901 to 15,041 XP
How do you level up fast in DMZ?
Replay Story Missions: a finished one pays its 12,500 XP every time, and in COD Central's 71 timed runs that came to about 105,000 XP an hour, with Operation Critical Extraction the quickest. Dynamic Ops back to back come close at about 95,000 XP an hour and pay DMZ Cash too. The DMZ Orders give no XP themselves, but every chapter ends with a Story Mission.
Lieutenants are worth a detour: a kill counts as a Boss Kill and a Lieutenant Kill at 500 XP each, and their Dog Tags pay 1,000 XP. Commanders pay a lot of XP as well, and rival Operators give more XP than AI soldiers, with 1,000 XP for their Dog Tags.
Do not wait out the clock. Time in the match pays 450 XP a minute, about 16,000 for half an hour of hiding, while the same half hour of Dynamic Ops paid about 50,000.
How do you level an Operator fast?
Chain Dynamic Ops. An Operator's Dog Tag fills from the same XP as your DMZ level except the 12,500 for a Story Mission, so back-to-back ops, at about 95,000 XP an hour, level an Operator fastest.
Each Dog Tag level costs about 12% more XP than the one before: the first takes 8,372 XP, and Steel I to Onyx III comes to about 450,000 XP per Operator, around five hours of Dynamic Ops. The Fast Learner and Faster Learner traits add a little Operator XP.
Do you lose XP when you die in DMZ?
No. The DMZ XP you earn in a deployment counts even if you fail to exfil, so a run that ends in MIA still pays its kills and containers. Extracting only adds the Extracted Bonus on top.
Can you use Double XP in DMZ?
Not for your DMZ level. A Double XP Token shows as active in a DMZ match, but in COD Central's runs it doubled the MW4 player rank while the DMZ level filled at the normal rate. Tokens pause outside a match, so DMZ is still a good place to spend them on your player rank.
Double Weapon XP Tokens speed up the gun in your hands, and weapon levels count across Multiplayer and DMZ.
Quick questions
- How long does it take to reach level 70 in MW4 DMZ?
- Level 70 takes 1,165,573 DMZ XP. At about 30,000 XP for a strong Story Mission run, that is close to 40 such runs.
- What is the fastest way to level up in MW4 DMZ?
- Replay Story Missions: each pays 12,500 XP every time you finish it, about 105,000 XP an hour in reported runs. Dynamic Ops back to back come close at about 95,000 XP an hour.
- Do you keep XP if you die in DMZ?
- Yes. DMZ XP counts even if you fail to exfil.
- Does DMZ XP count toward the Multiplayer level?
- Yes, it also fills the 1 to 55 level. Multiplayer and Warzone XP do not count toward your DMZ level.
- Do Double XP tokens work in MW4 DMZ?
- Only on your MW4 player rank. In reported runs the DMZ level filled at the normal rate while a token ran.
- How do you level an Operator fast in DMZ?
- Chain Dynamic Ops. Story Mission XP does not count toward an Operator, so back-to-back ops fill a Dog Tag fastest.