Bolts

Bolts are the main form of currency in the Ratchet &amp; Clank series, with which weapons, gadgets, items, and other things are purchased.

Location
Bolts are retrieved from numerous sources. The two most common ways to acquire bolts are to destroy enemies and to smash crates. However, bolts can be retrieved from breakable items such as lamps, vases, and machinery. In Ratchet & Clank, a Metal Detector is acquired from The Plumber on planet Batalia, which allows Ratchet to detect and suck up underground bolts. Bolts are also earned by completing challenges, such as winning a Hoverbike race or surviving an Annihilation Nation gauntlet.



Special bolts
In addition to standard bolts, rarer kinds of bolts, such as gold bolts, platinum bolts, titanium bolts, and hero bolts, are found and used to purchase gold weapons, weapon modifications, or skins.

Planets with high bolt revenues
These planets and missions are places at which large amounts of bolts can be acquired compared to other levels.

Ratchet & Clank

 * Eudora - This breakable-heavy planet is a nice place to earn bolts since you can use the Suck Cannon and the wrench to take out all the enemies without wasting bolts on ammo. Be sure not to miss the breakable machinery flying around!
 * Hoven - As annoying as Hoven can be, there are a lot of boxes and little enemies that don't require a whole lot of effort here.
 * Kerwan - Not only are there a ton breakables here, but there's a pretty large horde of enemies, even in the second time around.
 * Novalis - Though the amounts are small compared to later in the game, you can earn a pretty nice amount just going through the three paths on this planet.
 * Pokitaru - This place is filled with little low-effort enemies that can be taken out with the Pyrocitor, Suck Cannon, or wrench. Not to mention a gold bolt path with more enemies and the underwater boxes.
 * Rilgar - Redoing the hoverboard race is a great way to gain bolts and perfect your skills with a board, but don't forget about the many enemies here that all can be easily defeated with the Pyrocitor. Another way to acquire bolts is to equip the Hologuise gadget, and talk to the lady that lets you into the hoverboard competition. If you use the Hologuise before talking to her as the robot, you will spawn on the track as the robot. Switch back to Ratchet and equip the Taunter, and run to the part of the track that has the crates that you break through on the big jump. Hold circle to use the Taunter and watch the bolts come flowing in. Very easy to exploit!
 * Gemlik Base - in the area with all the Robosquawkers, equip the Morph-o-Ray and/or Suck Cannon, stand in the tight corner behind the boxes so that they can only attack you from one side, and go to town; it's hypothetically possible to gain an infinite number of bolts using this method, so long as at least one generator remains intact.
 * Kalebo III - There are a lot of enemies to be found on this planet, with varying difficulty. With a little practice Kalebo III might turn into a goldmine.

Going Commando

 * Oozla - Repeating this planet over and over will get you enough bolts to purchase some of the earlier weapons. Don't forget about the breakables either!
 * Barlow - Redoing the hoverbike race a few times and going around the two paths will get you an pretty nice amount.
 * Boldan - this is a great spot to earn up, second to Dobbo. There are plenty of breakables as well as many well-paying enemies.
 * Damosel - lots of breakables, lots of little enemies, and a few enemies that are hard enough to supply you with an adequate amount of bolts by the end.
 * Dobbo - This is probably the best spot in the game to earn quickly. The TONS of breakables, easy and well-paying enemies, and many crates make this planet the perfect bolt collector's planet.
 * Grelbin - Though the Y.E.T.I. are tough, the Moonstones fetch a pretty penny with the New Age Mystic. Not only the moonstones, but the Receiver Bots and the crates hold a lot of bolts.
 * Maktar Nebula - The casino has many breakables to count, and slot machines that, with luck, will give up to 300 bolts. Also don't forget about the Gladiators Games arena either.
 * Tabora - Again, the crystal collecting earns you a lot, however, don't forget the enemies guarding the crystals. Defeating the Dune Monsters with the Seeker Gun or Plasma Coil is another effective way to earn blots.
 * Notak - This place is breakable-heaven. Much like the Maktar Nebula, there are many lamposts and crates that can be destroyed.
 * Smolg - Breakables, counting crates, are just about everywhere. The Grulches and Snappers give out  a large number of bolts per death, and the freight vessels also provide some bolts.
 * Joba - Breakables, well-paying enemies, and the Megacorp Games and Hoverbike Races will give big plenty of bolts. Also don't forget the Impossible Challenge.
 * Todano - Breaking stuff here is lots of fun. There may not be a large amount of things to bust, but just watching that rocket fall down on the tourists is hilarious! Or fly away! Anyway, a good strategy here (especially on challenge mode) is to go to the bridge, and break all the gate-holders, jump off and do it again. Just make sure you got a continue point and the Box-Breaker.

Up Your Arsenal

 * Annihilation Nation - Try going as far as you can in the battles and gauntlets. And destroy the cameras hovering around, they're breakable.
 * Aquatos - Collecting the sewer crystals for The Plumber will earn you a lot. It is best to use the Qwack-O-Ray or Qwack-O-Blitzer since it doesn't need ammo.
 * Aridia - Repeating the missions on Aridia will get you a lot of bolts, even if the amount does decrease.
 * Koros - If you haven't realized just how much you can earn on this planet, you haven't been there yet. The enemies earn you a ton, yes, but the breakables are the main bolt-earning medium here. Make sure you have the Bolt Grabber V2 from the Zeldrin Starport and start hyperstriking all over this place because this planet will have thousands flying at you all at once!
 * Marcadia - there are quite a few breakables on this planet, but what will earn you the most is repeating the missions at the Presidential Palace.
 * Metropolis - The increased strength of the robotic Tyrranoids will earn you a lot here, not to mention the breakables. Going through this level on challenge mode with the bolt multiplier on 20 can get you at least 500,000 bolts from start to the Hover Train.
 * Rilgar - once again, the missions on Rilgar will earn you plenty.

Deadlocked
There really isn't a best place to earn bolts, save for the battle below, but the best method is not to skip many enemies. They give out a lot of bolts in DreadZone, so take advantage of it! Complete most of the missions, and win as many battles as you can.


 * Endzone (DreadZone Station) - This battle is fun, easy with the right weapons, and gives an extremely high ratio of bolts to effort, especially in challenge mode. Simply equip the Shock Mod to your Scorpion/Leviathan flail and whack when the group of swarmers comes. When a larger enemy crashes in, just whack them with the flail and the smaller enemies will get destroyed by the shocks. When you can afford to, keep attaching jackpot mods to the flail and you can earn millions at a time. However, an even better weapon to use was the Vulcan Cannon while strafing left and right across the endzone; especially when the weapon is at v99. By attaching nothing but Jackpot, ammo, range, and Shock mods, your bolt count would total in the millions in the first play, and ten million in challenge mode (as your bolt multiplier didn't even have to reach its maximum).
 * Another way to do this is by standing near the endzone barrier, and equipping the Mine Launcher and Turret Launcher (this is best with co-op play). For the rest of the challenge, continuously shoot mines and turrets (you should get ammo from any boxes because of the turrets) and just watch the carnage. In normal mode this should earn you 1.6 million bolts if done correctly, but in challenge mode (with a full multiplier) this challenge will pull in up to 15 million! Hope this helped.
 * The alien soil at Sarathos contains a glitch. If you go to the hacker ray part, hack one of the orbs, then quickly regroup them. Loads of swarmers will appear. Installing a shock mod and/or a jackpot mod to the weapon of your choice will help a lot; it will allow harvesting of extreme amounts of bolts in rapid succession. However, be careful, should you be unable to shoot the swarmers fast enough, the screen will freeze. This method is, in addition to generating lots of bolts, great for weapon upgrades. Redoing "King of the Leviathans" and "Where the Leviathans Roam" would also be good ideas when you already are at Sarathos.

Size Matters

 * Metalis - Once you have the Polarizer you can access a hidden area where you'll find a Titanium Bolt, and after that has been completed a teleporter can take you to your ship and back. When you come back at the hidden area, there's a ring of boxes. With 12x Bolt Multiplier and Box Breaker, this can earn you a lot. Enter the secret area, save game, load, and repeat. There are also the Clank Challenges that'll earn you a little.
 * Quodrona - There are many boxes to break making earning bolts an easy task. Break everything possible, fly to another planet, return, and once again break everything.
 * Dayni Moon - At the starting area there are a good amount of bolts here. You should try going to Metalis, then here, then back to Metalis etc. with 12x Multiplier. There are also the Clank Challenges.

Tools of Destruction

 * Mukow - The fight festival gives you thousands of bolts and it is very easy to do if you have reasonably good armor, weapons, health, and a tendency to kill everything around you. Lacking these four things, it still seems to be an easy challenge.
 * Ardolis - It is a planet full of Pirates, hence, there are a huge amount of crates to be found.
 * Sargasso - Grunthors can be found on this planet. Hunt them down and sell their souls to the Smuggler. It will earn you a lot of bolts. Destroying crates and defeating enemies are also viable ways to earn bolts.

A Crack in Time

 * Agorian Battleplex - This easily accessed space arena has four sets of challenges, one of which is required to complete the story mode of the game. The challenges include the required Bronze Cup, and the extra Silver Cup, Gold Cup, and Raritanium Cup. Along with winning thousands of bolts, Zoni, Holoplans for the RYNO V, and extra weapons can be obtained by completing challenges.
 * Great Clock - The many sectors of the clock contain many time puzzles and gold bolts. Upon completion of any time puzzle, bolts are earned according to the difficulty of the puzzle. If a player is good at completing these puzzles, they can easily gather bolts with no real effort. This does not give as many bolts as the Agorian Battleplex, but it offers a peaceful alternative to the violence-centered arena challenges.  The crates also have lots of bolts inside.
 * Nefarious Space Station - The space station is great for raking in hundreds and thousands of bolts. Hide behind barriers when possible, and be sure to bring Buzz Blades, the Negotiator, the Constructo Pistol, Tesla Spikes, and the Groovitron Glove to help defeat the plentiful enemies found there.

Trivia

 * Between Ratchet & Clank and Going Commando, the value of bolts seems to decrease significantly. For example, the price of the R.Y.N.O. in the first game - 150,000 bolts - was an exorbitant amount difficult to reach. However, in Going Commando, the price of the RYNO II shot up to a million bolts. This may be supported by the increased easiness with which bolts may be acquired in the games following Ratchet & Clank. For example, a real, literal bolt is worth 1 bolt in the first game, but in the following games it is worth multiple amounts such as 10 or 20. New varieties of bolts are also introduced, worth amounts upwards of 1,000. Due to these changes, the prices of weapons, gadgets, and even plot devices were all significantly increased.
 * In all Ratchet & Clank games except the original, playing Challenge Mode after completing the game introduces the bolt multiplier, a mechanic where bolts can be acquired in higher amounts depending on how many enemies Ratchet defeats without being hit.
 * In the transverse of all the games the bolts seem to have slight color variations. E.G: In the first game of the series the bolts have a gray, rusty color. Then in Going Commando, Up Your Arsenal and Deadlocked the bolts are a faint, gold color and black in Deadlocked (with gold bolts as titanium bolts). Size Matters has the addition of more springs - even though they first appear in the third installment, they are uncommon, and a darker color to bolts. In the last few installments to the series, the color of bolts are varied between gray and gold, and have a faint blue shine.
 * In later Ratchet & Clank games, bolts faintly glow orange, green or pink, seen in Size Matters, Secret Agent Clank & Tools of Destruction. Earlier Ratchet & Clank games either don't have a glow (the original) or have a gold glow.
 * In Ratchet Deadlocked, there were no special bolts, only stars, which you were awarded for completing challenges on different difficulties.
 * In Tools Of Destruction maximum amount of bolts is 500 000 000. You can get above that value but it will soon go below that value. You can have about 600 000 000 bolts but it will go to beneath 500 000 000 bolts suddenly after you travel to other planet.

Appearances

 * Ratchet & Clank
 * Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando
 * Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal
 * Ratchet: Deadlocked
 * Ratchet & Clank: Going Mobile
 * Ratchet & Clank: Size Matters
 * Secret Agent Clank
 * Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction
 * Ratchet & Clank Future: Quest for Booty
 * Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack in Time
 * Ratchet & Clank: All 4 One
 * Ratchet & Clank: Full Frontal Assault

Non-canon

 * PlayStation Move Heroes
 * PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale
 * Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time