GTA ONLINE · EVENT · 13 TO 26 AUGUST 2026
Rockstar has split Los Santos between Sprunk and eCola for a fortnight. Brand Wars runs from 13 to 26 August, and behind the branding it is one of the better paying event windows of the year: weekly completion bonuses have reset, Freemode pays quadruple, and there is up to GTA$2,000,000 available for watching streams. Every figure below comes from Rockstar’s Newswire post.
The bonus reset is the real story
Rockstar’s own line is that weekly completion bonuses “have reset, which means you can claim an outsized initial GTA$ payment across a number of Heists and Missions in GTA Online the first time you complete them”. For anyone following our money methods ranking, that is the sentence that matters: your first-run rotation is live again, so this is the week to run each bonused heist once rather than grinding one. The payout database has the figures.
Where the multipliers actually are
Freemode Challenges and Events pay 4X GTA$ and RP, and so do Hotring Circuit Series races, both through 26 August. The Community Series pays 3X. A set of Odd Jobs pays what Rockstar calls a record-high 3X: Paper Route, Firefighter, Forklift Operator, Safeguard deliveries and QuickiePharm medical deliveries.
Freemode Events at 4X is the quiet one worth planning around. They run constantly, cost nothing to set up, and at quadruple rates they out-earn several grind staples per minute of actual effort. And from 21 to 23 August there is a weekend bonus on top: VIP Work pays 5X, the highest multiplier in the event.
The free car, the plates and the drops
Play at any point through 26 August and the Declasse Hotring Sabre is free, along with the Sprunk and eCola plates and the Sprunk x eCola livery for it. Both brand bodysuits are free from clothing stores for the duration.
The Twitch Drops are the largest free number: connect your Rockstar and Twitch accounts, watch selected Team Sprunk or Team eCola streamers between 13 and 26 August, and you earn the matching Sprunk Sweatsuit or eCola Tracksuit plus up to GTA$2,000,000. Which side you end up on is decided by whose streams you watch.
Two weekly challenges, two payouts
The event splits into two challenge weeks. Complete three Business Battles between 13 and 19 August for the Impotent Rage Sweatsuit and GTA$250,000. Win three Races between 20 and 26 August for the Princess Racing Tracksuit and another GTA$250,000. Both are worth doing; neither takes long.
Discounts, in two halves
The discount list rotates midway. Through 19 August: Hands On Car Wash at 40% off, the Bravado Hotring Hellfire and Karin Hotring Everon at 40% off (both Hotring-eligible, useful if you are chasing the 4X races), and 30% off a spread including the Overflod Autarch, Pegassi Osiris, Progen GP1 and Mammoth Patriot Mil-Spec.
From 20 August the headline changes to Bail Office properties, upgrades and modifications at 40% off, with the Declasse Scramjet also at 40% and a fresh 30% list including the Emperor ETR1, Pfister Comet S2 and Ubermacht Sentinel Classic. The Hotring Sabre stays free across both halves, and the Hellfire and Everon stay at 40%.
Who should actually care
If you already run the weekly rotation, the reset alone justifies logging in, and the drops are free money on top of whatever you were doing anyway. If you are new or short of cash, this is one of the better entry windows in months: a free sports car, 4X Freemode with no upfront cost, GTA$500,000 across two challenges, and up to GTA$2,000,000 for leaving a stream on. The beginner guide covers what to do with the head start.
Members get more on top: the new Gallivanter Warden free a week early, plus free Chameleon Paints and Princess Robot Bubblegum apparel. We covered the full August GTA+ update separately.
Sources
- Rockstar Newswire, “Declare Your Allegiance and Determine Who Owns Los Santos in the Brand Wars Event”, 13 August 2026. Read directly; every figure, date and multiplier in this article is taken from it.