Pillar Guide · 6 min read
How Offline Earnings Work
Your empire keeps earning while you're away — here's exactly how much, for how long, and how to get the most out of it.
What are offline earnings?
Offline earnings are the money your businesses generate while the game isn't open in your browser. When you return, Tycoon Cards compares the current time to the last moment it recorded your progress and calculates how much passive income you would have earned in between — then pays it out in a single "Welcome back" bonus.
The formula
offlineEarned = min(secondsAway, 28800) × passiveIncome × 0.5
In plain terms: your elapsed time away is capped at 8 hours, then multiplied by your live per-second passive income, then reduced to 50% efficiency.
The 8-hour cap explained
No matter how long you're away — a day, a week, a month — offline earnings only ever account for a maximum of 8 hours. This cap exists so that returning after a long break still feels rewarding without letting players skip active play entirely by checking in once a month for a windfall.
The 50% efficiency rate
Offline income runs at half the rate of active play. This is a common idle-game design pattern: it keeps the game moving while you're away, but still rewards you for opening the tab and engaging with businesses, packs, and prestige decisions in real time.
Example earnings at different passive income levels
| Time away | Hours counted | Formula applied |
|---|---|---|
| 1h | 1h | 1 × income/hr × 50% |
| 2h | 2h | 2 × income/hr × 50% |
| 4h | 4h | 4 × income/hr × 50% |
| 8h | 8h | 8 × income/hr × 50% |
| 24h | 8h | 8 × income/hr × 50% |
Example: if your passive income is $1.00K/second, being away for 4 hours earns $7.20M — the full 4 hours count since they're under the 8-hour cap.
Maximising offline earnings before you close the tab
- Buy businesses with spare cash rather than leaving it unspent.
- Level up passive-income and all-income cards before logging off.
- Avoid prestiging right before a long break — it resets your businesses, which lowers the passive income rate the offline formula uses.
What doesn't count offline
Card packs are never opened automatically, prestige never triggers automatically, and casino games and stock market trades never happen while you're away. Offline time only ever produces passive business income.
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
Does the 8-hour cap reset every day?
+
Does the 8-hour cap reset every day?
+The cap applies per session away from the game, not per calendar day. If you're away for 20 hours, you still only earn based on 8 hours of that time — the remaining 12 hours don't carry over or stack.
Does prestige affect offline earnings?
+
Does prestige affect offline earnings?
+Yes, indirectly. Prestige multiplies your passive income, and offline earnings are calculated from that same passive income rate. More prestige points means more money earned per offline hour, up to the same 8-hour cap.
Does closing the browser tab count as offline, or do I need to close the whole browser?
+
Does closing the browser tab count as offline, or do I need to close the whole browser?
+Both work. The game records the timestamp of your last active tick and calculates elapsed time whenever you next load the page, regardless of whether you closed the tab, closed the browser, or your phone locked.
Can I increase the 50% efficiency rate?
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Can I increase the 50% efficiency rate?
+Not currently. The 50% rate is a fixed game design constant that keeps offline progress meaningful without making active play pointless.
Why did I earn less than I expected while away?
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Why did I earn less than I expected while away?
+Check whether you had any businesses at all — offline earnings are 50% of your live passive income, so a run with zero businesses (click-only) earns nothing offline. Also confirm you were away for less than 8 hours, since anything beyond that is capped.
Do card packs or prestiges happen automatically while offline?
+
Do card packs or prestiges happen automatically while offline?
+No. Offline time only accrues passive income. Card packs must be opened manually, and prestige must be triggered manually when you return.
Last updated April 2026 · Written by the Tycoon Cards development team · Reviewed against live game code · 6 min read