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GTA San Andreas is a huge game, even by modern standards. After all, its map is constructed of three cities, a desert, and a forested wilderness, and the story takes place across all of these locations. What makes the game really feel massive, however, is that amidst all of the criminal activities you undertake in the game's story missions, there's a large variety of side missions too.
These may be ways for you to earn a small bit of money, or they might be required to get 100 percent completion. Not all of these missions are remembered fondly (looking at you, Supply Lines), but overall, they make San Andreas feel like a world that you live in, rather than just simply existing.
10 Robbery Missions
The robbery missions can only be done in a Black Boxville between 8pm and 6am in-game, and your role is to break into people's houses and steal their stuff. You'll need to ensure the occupants don't spot you and call the police, and then you need to deliver the goods to the lock-up.
Los Santos is the best location for this because the houses are located fairly close to each other. If you can steal $10,000 worth of goods in one night, you'll earn $3,000 and unlimited sprinting.
9 Freight Missions
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The train in San Andreas is infamous for being linked to one of the most annoying story missions, but it's also possible to drive it (GTA 5 take note). Doing so will allow you to access the freight missions, which task you with traveling to stations and delivering cargo within a time limit.
These missions are also the only time in San Andreas where you can derail the train by going too fast around a corner. Complete ten deliveries and you'll receive a hefty payment of $50,000.
8 Paramedic
The Paramedic mission makes a return from Vice City and operates under the same rules: whilst in an ambulance, deliver injured civilians to the nearest hospital before they die. Fortunately, San Andreas makes this mission much easier if you do it in the town of Angel Pine near Mount Chiliad.
The town's small size means it takes less time to collect a patient and then deliver them to the hospital. Your reward for completing level 12 is your health bar increasing to its maximum size.
7 Mount Chiliad Bike Racing
San Andreas' tallest mountain already provides plenty of entertainment in the form of BASE jumping and ramping vehicles off of the peak, but there are also three mountain bike challenges at the top which you can try between 7am and 6pm (in-game time). These are races down the mountain, and each courses is more challenging than the last.
You can potentially afford one crash and still have a chance to win (your reward being some money), since the AI isn't the smartest and your opponents tend to smack into trees.
6 Driving School
This mission is located in San Fierro and acts as a small course in stunt driving, ranging from a cone slalom to driving on two wheels. Criteria for passing is based on your final position, your final heading, avoiding damage, and an overall score.
Earning a 70 percent rating for all objectives is needed to pass all challenges at a bronze medal (which unlocks a Super GT), but if you want to also earn a Bullet and the very rare Hotknife, you'll need to get 100 percent for all challenges instead.
5 Valet Parking
This side mission is located in Downtown San Fierro, and you'll need to be wearing a valet uniform to actually do it. Your goal is to park the required number of cars within the time limit. You'll want to enter a vehicle before the other valets and then park it as quickly and neatly as possible, since you gain more time for a cleaner parking job.
The hotel will be unlocked as an asset if you manage to complete all five levels, and you'll also earn a cool $1,000.
4 Quarry Missions
The quarry is located all the way out in the desert, in Bone County, and the missions are where you can access vehicles like the Dumper. There are seven missions in total, and their objectives range from having to clear the paths before the next deliveries come in, to hiding bodies before the time runs out.
Once completed, you'll be rewarded with a lot of money, you'll gain the quarry as an asset, and the Dumper and the Dozer will become permanent spawns here too.
3 Trucker Missions
These are situated in the countryside and are available after completing Catalina's "Tanker Commander" mission. There are eight missions to do and they all involve you delivering cargo to a destination with certain requirements.
Some will ask you to deliver within a certain time limit, others will have fragile goods so you'll have to drive carefully, and some may even combine these objectives together. Your reward for completing these missions is a hefty sum of cash and acquiring RS Haul as an asset.
2 Import/Export
This side activity becomes available after you've completed Cesar's garage missions in the game's main story. Your task is to complete three lists of vehicle deliveries to the crane at Easter Basin Docks in San Fierro (ten per list). Exporting a car will allow you to then purchase it yourself, but this is dependant on the day of the week (in-game).
Your payout will be better if you can deliver each vehicle untouched, but you'll still earn a total of $350,000 once all the lists are completed.
1 Vigilante
Another side activity returning from Vice City, the Vigilante missions are much more fleshed out in San Andreas thanks to the wider selection of available vehicles. The goal here is the same as before: pursue and eliminate criminals via any method of your choosing. You'll fail if you die, are arrested, exit your vehicle for longer than a minute, run out of time or deactivate the mission.
If you manage to complete all 12 levels, you'll complete the mission and your maximum armour total will go up to 150.