How To Build All Shelters In The Forest (& What They Do)

The Forest is survival horror at its best, dropping players smack-dab in the middle of a cannibal island. You wake up after a plane crash with no other of the passengers in sight, and with just a Pickaxe and a handful of supplies, you’ll have to survive against the cannibal tribe and mutants roaming around the island while tracking down your son, Timmy.

To survive, you must build Shelters and defenses to protect yourself against the enemy, and there are a couple of different types of Shelters that you can make in the game, with each requiring different resources and granting different bonuses. Below is a rundown on each of the Shelters in The Forest to help you decide what would be best for you.

All Shelter Types In The Forest

There are four types of Shelters you can build in The Forest. Each of them offers different perks and requires different resources to craft. Here’s a quick breakdown of each of them:

To start building a shelter, press B to open your Survival Guide. Then, go to the Shelters tab and choose the one you want to build.

Temporary Shelter

This is the most basic type of Shelter you can make in The Forest. This Shelter serves as a sleep and save point when you’re out exploring and don’t want to go back to your main base for the night.

It offers no protection against the cold and rain. On top of that, it gets destroyed once you wake up after sleeping. The upside is that it costs very few resources, making it a great choice if you want to build a safe spot before you go down to explore a hanging cave.

Hunting Shelter

Like the Temporary Shelter, the Hunting Shelter is also pretty easy to build. It’s the cheapest permanent Shelter in the game, mainly requiring Sticks and Rocks. Unlike the Temporary Shelter, it won’t get destroyed if players sleep in it.

You still won’t get any protection from cold and rain in the Hunting Shelter, though, so don’t use it as the main resting point for your base. The Hunting Shelter is best used as a secondary safe spot in the world when you’re out exploring.

Small Cabin

If you want a Shelter with a door and a window, a Small Cabin is the cheapest one you can craft. Since it’s a permanent Shelter, you can indefinitely use it as a save point.

It also offers protection against cold and rain, making it a viable choice as an early Shelter when building up your settlement.

Log Cabin

The Log Cabin is the most expensive Shelter you can build in The Forest and requires the most resources. It’s a permanent Shelter, complete with windows, a roof, and a door.

You will have enough space inside to put up a few decorations if you want, but since it requires a whopping 87 Logs to build, you’ll have to cut down quite a few trees before you can craft it.

Building A Custom Shelter In The Forest

While most players will rely on the four Shelters mentioned above in the early parts of the game, you can also design a fully custom Shelter in the later stages. Players will first need to set a foundation to build a custom Shelter, then build walls around it, and finally, build a roof.

The number of Logs you’ll need for the project will vary depending on the size of the Shelter you’re building. Building a Shelter this way is extremely expensive, especially early on when resources are limited.

You’ll also need to build a Small Bed in order to save or sleep inside a Custom Shelter.

Besides the ones mentioned here, you’ll also occasionally find camping tents while exploring the world in The Forest. These can serve as temporary shelters, allowing you to save or progress time when you interact with them. You’ll may also find some handy loot nearby, so be sure to check around whenever you see them out in the open.