If you’ve ever pulled a duplicate 4 or 5-star unit on a Genshin Impact banner, you’ve probably seen that tiny purple gem pop up in your reward list and wondered what it’s worth. Star Glitter is one of the game’s rarest non-premium currencies, and it can unlock everything from limited 4-star characters to free wishes for upcoming banners. If you’re looking for how to get Star Glitter in Genshin Impact, this guide covers every reliable way to farm it, plus the best ways to spend it without wasting your hard-earned stock.
Core Methods of How to Get Star Glitter in Genshin Impact
Unlike Stardust, which you get from every wish you pull regardless of what you get, Star Glitter only drops from specific pulls and rare event rewards. There are only three consistent sources of the currency, and most of your stock will come from your regular wish pulls.
- Duplicate 4-star and 5-star character pulls: Every time you get a copy of a 4-star character you already own, you’ll receive 2 Star Glitter. For 5-star character duplicates, you get 10 Star Glitter per copy until you max their constellations, and 25 Star Glitter per copy once they hit C6.
- Duplicate 4-star and 5-star weapon pulls: Duplicate 4-star weapons reward 2 Star Glitter per copy, while duplicate 5-star weapons give 10 Star Glitter, even if you haven’t maxed their refinement level yet.
- Limited-time event rewards: Once or twice per patch, HoYoverse adds small amounts of Star Glitter to high-tier event reward tracks, usually locked behind endgame combat challenges or full event completion. These rewards are usually only 2 to 5 Star Glitter at a time, so they’re more of a nice bonus than a reliable farming source.
You won’t get any Star Glitter from 3-star weapon pulls, which make up the majority of most players’ wish results, so don’t be discouraged if you go dozens of pulls without getting any. I once pulled 40 times on a limited banner chasing a 5-star unit and only got one duplicate 4-star, netting me 2 Star Glitter total. It happens, but over time, your stock will build up steadily as you pull for characters and weapons you want.
Best Banner Choices to Farm Star Glitter Efficiently
Not all banners are created equal if your goal is to build up your Star Glitter stock. If you’re smart about which banners you spend your fates on, you can double or even triple the amount of Star Glitter you get per 10-pull, without spending extra primogems.
Avoid pulling on the standard banner for Star Glitter first and foremost. The standard banner has a huge pool of 4-star characters and weapons, so you’re far more likely to pull a new 4-star you don’t own yet, which will reward you with Stardust instead of Star Glitter. It’s impossible to target specific units on the standard banner, so it’s a terrible choice for farming this currency.
Instead, pull on limited character banners that have rate-up 4-star characters you already have max constellations for. Every time you pull one of those rate-up 4-stars, you’re guaranteed to get 2 Star Glitter, no chance of a new unit that gives you the lower-value Stardust instead. For example, if you already have Xingqiu at C6 and he’s a rate-up 4-star on the current limited banner, every copy of him you pull gives you guaranteed Star Glitter.
Weapon banners are a bit riskier for Star Glitter farming, but they can be worth it if you already have most of the 4 and 5-star weapons in the limited pool. Just keep in mind that weapon banners have a higher chance of giving you new weapons you don’t own, so you’ll get less Star Glitter per pull on average unless you have a very deep roster of weapons already.
How to Maximize Your Star Glitter Gains Without Wasting Primogems
You don’t have to spend extra primogems or real money to build up a solid stock of Star Glitter. Most free-to-play players can get 10 to 20 Star Glitter per month just by using the free wishes they earn through regular gameplay, if they’re smart about when they use them.
Claim all free wishes from events, daily commissions, Spiral Abyss rewards, and maintenance compensation first. These free wishes add up fast – you can usually get 5 to 10 free intertwined or acquaint fates per patch just from playing regularly. I save all of my free wishes for banners with rate-up 4-stars I already have at C6, so every 4-star pull I get from those free wishes gives me guaranteed Star Glitter.
Don’t waste your primogems on pulls just for Star Glitter, though. It’s never worth skipping a limited 5-star character you really want just to farm a few extra pieces of currency. Only use leftover fates you have after pulling for the units and weapons you want for Star Glitter farming, so you don’t miss out on the content you’re excited for.
One little-known bonus for long-time players: once you max a 5-star character’s constellations, every subsequent copy of that character you pull gives you 25 Star Glitter instead of the usual 10. That’s a huge payout, so if you have a C6 5-star on rate-up, pulling for extra copies will give you far more Star Glitter per 5-star pull than any other banner option.
The Best Ways to Spend Your Hard-Earned Star Glitter
Star Glitter never expires, so you don’t have to rush to spend it the second you get a few pieces. The Paimon’s Bargains shop resets on the first of every month, with a rotating selection of characters, weapons, and items, plus a permanent section of rewards that never changes.
The best value purchase for 90% of players is Intertwined Fates from the permanent shop section. They cost 5 Star Glitter each, and you can buy up to 5 of them per month. Intertwined Fates let you pull on limited character and weapon banners, so this is the most flexible use of your Star Glitter, and it gives you more chances to get the units you want for free.
If you already buy all the Intertwined and Acquaint Fates you want each month, the next best use is the rotating 4-star characters in the Paimon’s Bargains shop. They cost 34 Star Glitter each, and they rotate every month, so you can pick up constellations for powerful 4-star units like Xiangling, Fischl, or Bennett if you haven’t maxed them yet.
You can also buy Blackcliff series weapons from the shop for 24 Star Glitter each. These weapons are solid options for DPS characters if you don’t have better 4 or 5-star weapons for them, but they’re not worth buying if you already have comparable weapons for your roster. Avoid wasting Star Glitter on common items like Mora, Hero’s Wit, or ascension materials – you can farm all of those for free in the overworld, so they’re a terrible use of this rare currency. I made that mistake when I was a new player, spent 10 Star Glitter on Hero’s Wit to level up a new character, and I still regret it now that I know how much value that currency has for fates.
At the end of the day, learning how to get Star Glitter in Genshin Impact is all about being intentional with your wishes and focusing on banners that give you the highest chance of duplicate drops. You don’t have to spend hundreds of dollars to build up a solid stock, just save your free wishes for the right banners and avoid wasting your currency on low-value items. If you follow the tips we covered, you’ll have enough Star Glitter to grab all the fates and characters you want in no time, without having to skip out on the limited units you’re excited to pull for.