Path of Exile 2 Stash Tabs: What to Buy First (And What to Skip)

Start Here: Why Your Free Stash Will Fill Up in One Weekend

You just started Path of Exile 2. You kill monsters, pick up shiny orbs, and finish the first few acts. Then you open your stash and see four small tabs. They are already half full. By the time you reach the endgame, you will have no space left.

This is not a trick to make you pay. It is simply how the game works. Path of Exile 2 drops thousands of different items. The developers give you four free tabs as a trial. After that, you decide what to buy.

In this guide, I will help you pick the right stash tabs without wasting money. I will also tell you which tabs look cool but are not useful for most players.

First Rule: Always Buy During a Stash Tab Sale

Grinding Gear Games runs a stash tab sale every three weeks. It starts on Thursday and ends on Monday. During the sale, almost all tabs are 30% to 50% off.

If you buy tabs at full price, you will feel bad later. So wait for the sale. Put a reminder on your phone. The only exception is if you absolutely need space right now – but even then, try to hold on for a few days.

Now let’s look at each tab type, from most useful to least useful.

Currency Tab: The One Tab No Player Should Skip

What it holds: Orbs, scrolls, shards, and other crafting materials. Examples: Orb of Transmutation, Chaos Orb, Jeweller’s Orb, Chromatic Orb.

Why a normal tab fails: In a regular stash tab, one stack of Scroll of Wisdom is 40 scrolls. If you have 200 scrolls, that takes five slots. And you have 20 different currency types. Very soon, half of your free tabs are just currency.

What the Currency Tab gives you:

• A separate box for every single currency type.

• Each box holds up to 5000 items.

• Automatically stacks new currency when you Ctrl-click it in.

How it feels to use: Like going from a tiny drawer to a whole wall of labeled bins. You will wonder how you ever played without it.

Cost: Normally 75 points. On sale, about 45–60 points.

Verdict: This is the Best stash tabs to buy in Path of Exile 2 for every player, no matter if you are new or a veteran. Buy this first.

Map Tab: Your Endgame Best Friend

What are maps? In Path of Exile 2, maps are items that open monster-filled areas. There are over 100 different maps, each with 16 tiers (levels). You will collect hundreds of them.

Without the Map Tab: You need 5 to 8 normal tabs just for maps. You have to sort them by tier yourself. You will accidentally put a tier 11 map next to a tier 3 map. Finding a specific map becomes a slow headache.

With the Map Tab:

• All maps are shown in a grid by tier.

• You see which maps you have completed for bonus objectives.

• You can store 72 copies of each map in one slot (the tab counts them for you).

One change for PoE2: The new atlas system is different from PoE1. But the developers confirmed that the Map Tab will be updated for free. So it is safe to buy now.

Verdict: Buy this second, right after Currency. It turns map management from a boring job into a two-second look.

Fragment Tab: For Boss Fights and Endgame Keys

What are fragments? Small items that open special doors or summon bosses. Examples: Offering to the Goddess (for Labyrinth), Sacrifice at Midnight (for Atziri), and Scarabs (to add modifiers to maps).

Why fragments are annoying: They do not stack in normal tabs. One Mortal Grief takes one slot. You will have 20 different fragments. Each takes one slot. They mix with your other items. You lose track.

The Fragment Tab solves this:

• Every fragment type has its own cell.

• You can see how many of each you have at a glance.

• It also holds Scarabs, which are very important in PoE2 endgame.

Who should buy it: Anyone who plans to fight endgame bosses. If you only play the campaign and stop, you can skip it. But most players enjoy the endgame. So buy it third.

Essence Tab: Great for Crafters, Fine for Casual Players

What are essences? Items that let you craft guaranteed mods onto gear. For example, Essence of Greed gives life to an item. You find them by opening trapped monsters.

Why a special tab helps: There are about 25 essence types. Each has 7 tiers (whispering, wailing, shrieking, etc.). That is 175 different variations. A normal tab would drown in them.

The Essence Tab:

• Groups essences by type and tier.

• Stacks up to 5000 of each.

• Makes it easy to see which high-tier essences you own.

Do you need it? If you like crafting your own gear, yes. If you sell all essences to other players, you still need a place to store them until you sell. But you could also use one normal tab for essences and accept the mess.

Verdict: Buy this after Currency, Map, and Fragment. It is very good but not as urgent.

Divination Card Tab: For Collectors and Gamblers

What are divination cards? Cards that drop in stacks. When you collect a full set (like 4 of The Doctor or 8 of The Patient), you turn them in for a fixed reward – a unique item, currency, or gear.

The storage problem: There are over 300 different cards. Each card type needs its own slot. In a normal tab, they eat space like crazy.

The Divination Tab:

• Has a slot for every existing card.

• Shows how many of each you have.

• Tells you which sets are almost complete.

Should you buy it? Only if you enjoy picking up cards and slowly collecting sets. Many experienced players skip this tab. They use a tool called “stash tab affinity” (more on that later) to dump cards into one normal tab. Then they sell all cards in bulk without looking.

Verdict: Low priority. Buy only if you love the card system.

Unique Collection Tab: Almost a Waste for Normal Players

What it does: Holds one copy of every unique item in the game. Uniques are orange items with special effects.

The bad news: There are thousands of unique items. Most are very weak. You will never fill this tab unless you play 10,000 hours.

The good news: It looks nice. Collectors enjoy seeing their museum.

Verdict: Do not buy this unless you are a hardcore collector with money to spare. For everyone else, use a single premium tab for uniques that are actually good.

Premium Tabs: You Need at Least One for Trading

What is a premium tab? A normal stash tab that you have upgraded to “premium”. This lets you:

• Change the tab’s name and color.

• Set the tab to public.

• Put individual prices on items (like “5 chaos orbs”).

Why public is so important: Without a public tab, you cannot list items on the official Path of Exile trade website. That means no one can see your items for sale. You would have to spam trade chat – which almost no one uses anymore.

How to get one: You can upgrade an existing normal tab for 15 points. That is cheaper than buying a new premium tab (40 points). Or you can buy a Premium Tab Bundle (6 tabs for about 200 points on sale).

Verdict: Buy at least one premium tab upgrade. If you plan to trade a lot, buy a bundle of 6. This is as important as the Currency Tab for many players.

Stash Tab Affinity: The Feature That Saves Your Sanity

Before you buy anything, learn about stash tab affinity. This is a setting in Path of Exile 2 (same as in PoE1).

Here is how it works:

1. You tell the game “Currency items go to my Currency Tab.”

2. You tell the game “Maps go to my Map Tab.”

3. Then, when you Ctrl-click items from your inventory, they automatically jump into the correct tab.

You do not have to open each tab. You do not have to sort anything. The game does it for you.

This feature makes the Best stash tabs to buy in Path of Exile 2 even more valuable because they work together like a perfect filing system.

What to Skip Completely (For Now)

Some tabs are not worth buying in Path of Exile 2 – at least not yet.

• Delve Tab: Delve may not be in PoE2 at launch. Wait and see.

• Betrayal Tab: Betrayal mechanics are different in PoE2. Hold off.

• Metamorph Tab: Metamorph is likely gone. Skip.

• Gem Tab: Gems work differently in PoE2 (they no longer level up in sockets). A gem tab may not be needed.

Only buy league-specific tabs after you have played that league for many hours and know you love it.

A Simple Shopping Plan for Three Budget Levels

Budget $10 (100 points, during sale):

• Currency Tab (~55 points)

• Upgrade one normal tab to Premium (15 points)

• Save 30 points for future.

Budget $20 (200 points, during sale):

• Currency Tab (~55)

• Map Tab (~55)

• Fragment Tab (~45)

• Upgrade two normal tabs to Premium (30 points)

• Total: ~185 points. Perfect.

Budget $30 (300 points, during sale):

• All of the above (185 points)

• Essence Tab (~45)

• Divination Tab (~45)

• Leftover for another premium tab upgrade.

This covers 99% of your storage needs forever.

Final Answer: Which Tabs Give the Most Fun for Your Dollar?

After playing Path of Exile for thousands of hours, here is the honest truth:

• Currency Tab – You will use it every single login.

• Map Tab – You will use it every single endgame session.

• Fragment Tab – You will use it often if you fight bosses.

• One Premium Tab – Needed to sell items.

• Everything else – Nice but optional.

So when someone asks “What are the Best stash tabs to buy in Path of Exile 2?”, tell them: Currency, Map, Fragment, and one Premium. That is the core four.

Buy them on sale. Set up affinities. Then forget about storage and go kill monsters. That is the real game.