Project Zomboid – What Is the Best Starting Location?

You are currently viewing Project Zomboid – What Is the Best Starting Location?

In Project Zomboid, you can customize every element according to your liking. Choosing the starting location is vital since it affects your ability to secure essential resources like food, water, etc.

With so many potential starting locations available, it’ll be challenging to determine where to start.

Recommended Read: What to Do First in Project Zomboid

In this article, let’s see all possible starting locations in Project Zomboid as well as their advantages and disadvantages!

In the early game of Project Zomboid, you have four starting locations to explore. Although each location has pros and cons, it depends mostly on your taste. Rosewood should be your choice if you are a newbie to the game. On the other hand, Muldraugh or West Point is ideal if you are a seasoned veteran.


Table of Contents


What Is the Best Starting Location in Project Zomboid

Before discussing what location suits you best, let’s figure out how to select a location in Project Zomboid.

Choose A Location In Project Zomboid

Picking a location to spawn in Project Zomboid is one of the first simple yet vital missions you must surpass in the early game.

From the Project Zomboid home screen, left-click “Solo” to start single-player mode. Then choose your “Scenario“. The “Select Spawn Location” screen then appears to showcase four possible starting locations:

  • Muldraugh, KY
  • Riverside, KY
  • Rosewood, KY
  • West Point, KY

The re-selected location option is also available if your character died previously, especially due to a zombie bite. Select “Continue” or “Load” on the home screen to choose your following location.

The Best Starting Location in Project Zomboid

Let us walk you through the pros and cons of each starting location in Project Zomboid!

Rosewood, KY

In the map’s southwest area, Rosewood has the lowest zombie population in the game, making it the ideal location for newbies to get used to the post-apocalyptic world or someone who prefers the calm.

Rosewood offers a high amount of loot and plenty of good buildings.

There are a few isolated farmhouses outside the town you can get for yourself and a construction site in the southwest that’s a great spot to find building supplies.

Rosewood has a school where you can get a backpack for extra storage, a police station for powerful weapons, etc.

This location also gives you many secure areas. Houses or bases are boarded up with fences, high walls, and blocks, which are very helpful in preventing the undead, even if the zombie density is insignificant.

Riverside, KY

Riverside is a small yet wealthy town near the Ohio river.

As the name implies, Riverside is well located near a river, offering fresh fish and a water supply.

This town also has a lot of infrastructure and resources to explore. The stores and residential houses are diverse and offer a safe place to live.

This is also a place you can get the generator early.

Melee weapons can be found in the hardware store. There are books at the post office or school. At the same time, you can get fuel at Gas-N-More and pick up other stuff in stores.

Firearms, however, are tough to obtain in Riverside.

Whereas accessing the armory in the police station can be a challenge. The space is limited, and you must either get a key or use force to break down the door to gain entry.

Despite having the second-lowest zombie population in Project Zomboid, which is suitable for new players, Riverside, on the other hand, is far from every location. So it takes more time to get to the next destination, even if you’ve got a good car.

Muldraugh, KY

Muldraugh is a military town located north of Fort Knox and sits only on one side of Dixie Hwy, south of Louisville.

This place has quite several businesses and landmarks, most of which are abandoned, which makes sense for scavenging.

This town is also vast and contains a variety of looting opportunities.

There are numerous parking lots throughout the southern part of the town, along with intersections leading to Rosewood and warehouses outside the city limits.

The parking lots allow you to get good-condition vehicles that are accessible to ride to other locations.

The Southwest of Muldraugh is ideal for looting supplies as there are warehouses and medical centers, and you’ll get lots of resources for survival.

Plus, several lakes to fish and industrial sites are not too far from most spawning locations.

Depending on your chosen occupation (Police Officer, Chef, Fire Officer), there’s a chance of spawning in a house with a fence and near the forest. It provides a better defense and is beneficial for building a secure base.

On the contrary, Muldraugh has a moderate zombie population.

As the days move on, the population of zombies increases, and the parking lots where you find items may end up being an undead roadblock.

It also can be overwhelming if you come across a highway because this place is full of zombies. Moreover, although the town offers many resources, most aren’t useful for long-term use.

West Point, KY

West Point, a town in Kentucky, is well-known for having the highest zombie density in Project Zomboid.

West Point is the best place for looting items and supplies, as it has a large supermarket, a pharmacy, and a hardware store.

The town also has a police station, a gun store, a gas station on the east, and farms on the west.

Furthermore, West Point is the closest location to Louisville. So if your goal is to reach Louisville, don’t hesitate to spawn in West Point.

However, as mentioned above, this is the habitat of the undead, with the large number of zombies in the downtown area.

We suggest avoiding the downtown area unless you’re ready to face your fear of zombies.

However, because zombies appear mostly downtown, it’s reasonable to stay on the outskirts to collect resources, level up some skills, and use stealth to enter the inside.

To wrap up, relying on our outline, you should choose Rosewood as your first location if you are new to Project Zomboid. Nonetheless, consider choosing West Point or Muldraugh if you’re a ten-thousand-hour player.


That’s the guideline for the best starting location in Project Zomboid.

Have any suggestions for this guide? Let us know in the comment section below.

Binh Tran

As a game writer, my goal is to craft engaging, informative, and concise articles. Whether it's diving into the latest gaming trends or writing game guides, I'm always excited to share my insights with others.

Leave a Reply