Mining vs. Herbalism.. My thoughts..Follow

Before you read this...beware, i wrote a lot. Basically this is why i like Herbalism more than Mining. If you don't feel like reading all of it, which i wouldn't either, then just skip to the pro's and con's of each. Leave a comment if you like, or if i screwed up somewhere...^^

It's a pretty classic question in WoW. I've heard it since the beginning. I've heard it a couple months in the game, people spamming in IF, on the forums, I hear it once a week at least. What am i hearing? Well, it comes in all forms, whether it's a beginner of the game, or a level 60 with 5 epics, they all ask the similar question; "Which gathering proffesion makes more money? Mining or Herbalism?" Well i guess today is the day where i try and answer that question with my thoughts, in this so called mini-guide. I have had 300 mining and 295 herbalism. I can speak for mining, but i guess i may be a little gimped in the herbalism department. Anyways bare with me and here we go:

Mining: Mining is great. From level 1 mining, it can get you money quick. 1 stack of copper bars (20) sells for anywhere between 60s-1g20s. Might not be a lot to all you high levels, but think about being a level 5 or 6 beginner. That could buy 2 new equipment pieces. It only gets better, with the iron for 3-5g per stack, and the mithril for 3-5g per stack (not sure why it's the same but oh well). Then as you hit 250 and 275, you can hit the thorium stage. It gets you about 6g per stack. Throughout mining, you can mine up a rare jewel, such as a shadowgem, tigerseye, or even an acanite crystal. Nice...extra money, on top of all that your making. I won't get into Dark Iron ore, as it is a pain in the *** to forge...

Mining--Pro's:
~good money from the start
~quick buy's
~mithril and iron are pretty easily obtainable, and sell very well
~chance of getting that lucky arcanite crystal (whopping 15-20g)
~Stones can get you some good money too, The higher stones go for 1-2g a stack of 20

Mining--Con's:
~A LOT of competition
~thorium relatively hard to find
~arcanite crystal drop is about 1%
~can go a couple hours w/o finding a node, to only find one that the warrior with all epics has gotten to first
~Cost's a lot of money to put up your bars, even though it is said you get it back if it sells, it seems to me you only get a fraction, for some reason, this confuses the heck outta me. If any1 wants to explain please do lol.

Herbalism: My herbalism only got to 275, and i didn't do it as much as Mining. So if a few herbalists would like to reiterate(sp) some points, then please do. Or if i'm completely wrong, please correct me. Herbalism, is a great source of money. I like herbalism simply for the fact that there is a lot less competition than mining. Now, you might not get a 1g20s for a stack of silverleaf, or peacebloom, but it will still net you some money 20s-50s, and it quickly adds up. If you sell 5 stacks of silverleaf at 50s a stack, thats 2g50s. Might take more time than mining copper, but it does get you money. Then you get into the briarthorn, and kingsblood. Both sell really well on my server.

Like i said, there is a lot less competition, so there is less herbs up on AH. Meaning the price is usually more constant. Bars from mining, can be 5g a stack and suddenly drop to 3g a stack in a couple of hours. Yet along with this there is also a lot less alchemists out there than blacksmiths, engineers, and such.

Herbalism--Pro's:
~Less competition is nice
~Less competition means it's easier and faster to obtain herbs
~hardly a price to put herbs on AH, which is REALLY NICE, for me at least
~certain stacks of herbs can go for 20g a stack
~Swifthistle can be found in plants, and acts like gems found randomly. Swifthistle sells well
~Can supply your friend achemist!!!! (jk, even though this is a good reason)
~You don't have to gather the plant, 2-4 times like mining, you gather once, and you get 1-3 herbs outta it

Herbalism--Con's"
~Starting herbs suck to sell
~Less people to buy your herbs
~No gems or jewels type objects to be found. Unlike mining which has arcanite crystal, herbalism has none of this.
~Not capable of getting 4 herbs, as in mining

Closing notes: wow, i can't believe i wrote so much, This was supposed to be a small thread. LOL. anyways if you guys have anything you see wrong, please post it. In my opinion... Herbalism>Mining. I like both, but if i had to choose one, herbalism is the way to go. If you find a way to do both, please tell me, gatherer add-on isn't a way either, it's still almost impossible with it. ok ok guys, sorry, i'll shut up now.

other than the chance to get some nice blue or purple drop from killing things, imo mining and herbalism are a better way of making consistent money at lvl 60. you can get a nice drop that sells for hundreds of gold and it makes your mob farming seem to even out.

or you can go pick herbs and mine ore which you know will always sell within a 24 hour period and you start each day with 50-100g more than you had the previous day.

assuming no special dropped item, you can definitely get more money per hour with mining and herbalism.

but that's why there are various ways to make money in this game. some people prefer killing things.

OP made some good points for pros and cons of both gathering skills. one other thing i want to add is, since there are some good mid-level items to gather, it's not always recommended to go after the highest level item.