Becoming Thane

After you kill the dragon in the Main Quest Dragon Rising, Jarl Balgruuf the Greater decides to give the Dragonborn the title of Thane of Whiterun, giving a housecarl (Lydia), and allowing the purchase of property in the city. Guards will also think twice before arresting a Thane.

Whiterun isn't the only Hold where you can become Thane. This page is here to help you if you decide to take your lust for power to the other holds in Skyrim. The standard formula for the smaller holds (that is, holds like Morthal, Dawnstar, Falkreath, and Winterhold) is to complete a specific quest or objective for the Jarl and then help out a specific number of citizens within the hold, either by doing quests, miscellaneous objectives, or helping out some other way.

Hjaalmarch
Becoming Thane of Hjaalmacrh is fairly straightforward. First, you investigate the house that burned down, and then complete the subsequent quests. The grateful Jarl will tell you that she'd be happy to make you Thane as long as you are "known through her Hold." This translates into helping three different people, most of whom can be found in Morthal.
 * Idgrod the Younger asks you to deliver a note to Danica Pure-Spring in Whiterun.
 * Challenge and beat Benor to fisticuffs, thus getting him as a follower.
 * Chop firewood and sell it to Jorgen located at the mill.
 * Deliver a message from Gorm to Captain Aldis in Solitude.
 * Sell ore at Rockwallow Mine.

You are also given the Blade of Hjaalmarch.

Markarth
To become Thane of Markarth the player needs to kill groups of Forsworn for the Jarl and his steward, and then retrieve Hrolfdir's shield (this quest is only given when the player is level 20 or higher). The player must then help five citizens of Markarth and own Vlindrel Hall to become Thane.

Alternatively, the player can side with the Stormcloaks and take The Reach by force through the Civil War quests.. This will change the Jarl to Thongvor Silver-Blood and the player will immediately be granted the permission to purchase property and become thane without doing the quest for Igmund's shield or helping out the people of Markarth. This is the easiest way to become thane of Markarth.

The above is also possible if the player negotiated the exchange of Markarth during Season Unending.

You are given Blade of the Reach.

Haafingar
Talk to Falk Firebeard in the Blue Palace, and he will give you the quest The Man Who Cried Wolf, summoning you to investigate lights and sounds coming out of Wolf Skull Cave which is located in the mountains west of Solitude. After completing the quest, talk to Falk again and he will reward you. You may then speak directly to the Jarl herself, and she will thank you and give you one more task.

She will ask you to place Torygg’s War Horn on the Shrine of Talos as a tribute to her late husband. Take the War Horn to the specifed Shrine and place it at the foot of the statue of Talos, then return to Elisif for your reward.

After you have completed this task go back and talk to the Jarl. She will invite you to be a thane of hers but in order to be a Thane, you must first own property in Solitude and be known throughout the hold. This property can be purchased from Falk for 25000 gold pieces. Being known throughout the hold is done by helping out 5 of the citizens with their miscellaneous quests. Once you buy the property and help the citizens, go and talk to her, and she will appoint you to be a Thane of Haafingar.

You will also be given the Blade of Haafingar.

Note: Some time after you clear out Wolf Skull Cave and after you have levelled at least once, you will receive a letter from a courier asking you to speak to Falk once more. This is a quest to hunt down Potema's spirit, The Wolf Queen Awakened, but is not required to become Thane.

Falkreath
This Hold is as straightforward as Hjaalmarch: Obtain a drink for the Jarl, then kill the assigned Bandit Leader. Complete three quests/miscellaneous objectives for locals and you're set. -Quest objective for the Jarl will be different depending on civil war quests.
 * Sell vegetables at Corpselight Farm
 * Deliver ashes to the Hall of the Dead for Thadgeir.
 * Retrieve Runil's Journal from an ambient location.
 * Sell firewood at Half-Moon Mill.

Riften
Connected to the Thieves Guild Quests.

It is possible to become Thane without completing any of the Thieves' Guild quests. Speak to the Argonian named Wujeeta on the dock immediately outside the city. Give her the Potion of Healing that she asks for, then ask her about her skooma dealer. Speak to the Jarl to begin the Skooma Trade Quest. Then complete the help x people requirement, and you become Thane, pending purchase of Honeyside.

NOTE: If you become Thane before Maven is possibly made Jarl, then you will receive an Iron Warhammer of Sparks. (Xbox 360 confirmed)

Windhelm
Via Imperial Legion questline:

-Complete "Blood on the Ice."

-After completing the Reunification of Skyrim quest, Brunwulf Free-Winter will become Jarl of Windhelm. Speak to him, he will offer you the title of Thane contingent on you helping 5 people of Windhelm and purchasing Hjerim from his steward. Once you've completed those two objectives, Brunwulf will grant you the title of Thane, give you a levelled weapon (unknown) of Eastmarch and appoint you a housecarl.

NOTE : For some players the quest is bugged

BUG: Finishing the Imperial Legion quest line gets rid of a critical guard NPC to the quest Blood on the Ice. Doing it before Blood on Ice makes it impossible to become Thane as the quest will not start and you will not be able to buy the house. (PS3 confirmed). On PC, you may purchase Hjerim and start the quest that way.

OR

Via Stormcloak questline:

-Complete Blood on the Ice.

-Progress through the Stormcloak quests until Liberation of Skyrim: Liberate Falkreath Hold. Ulfric will then say the men have been calling you the "Bone-breaker" or some such and offer you the option to purchase a home in Windhelm and hand you a levelled weapon. Speak to Jorleif to purchase Hjerim.

NOTE: You are not Thane at this point, but at least you have a home in Windhelm.

-After liberating all of the holds that were originally under Imperial control (Falkreath, The Reach, and Hjaalmarch), Ulfric will tell you that it's time to move on Solitude, to report to the Stormcloak camp, and promote you to Stormcloak Officer and give you a set of Stormcloak Officer armor. If you speak to him again, he will offer you the title of Thane contingent on helping 5 people of Windhelm and purchasing Hjerim. Once you've completed those two objectives, Ulfric will grant you the title of Thane, give you a levelled axe or battleaxe of Eastmarch and appoint you a housecarl.

The Pale
Thane of The Pale is obtained by completing the following tasks:

The quest Waking Nightmare begun by talking to Erandur in the inn.

Then complete three minor quests A fifth quest for the local museum also exists, but it does not count towards the quest.
 * Give a drink to Karl, one of the miners.
 * Sell ore to the iron mine owner Beitild.
 * Bring Night Falls on Sentinel to Rustleif
 * Fetch Fine cut Void Salts for Captain Wayfinder.

Winterhold
Retrieve the helm from a radiant location for the Jarl, and then as usual, help three of the people.


 * But Ranmir in the Frozen Hearth a drink, either Ale or Mead.
 * Encourage Ranmir to pay his bar tab.
 * Invest in Brina's Oddments.
 * Steal Nelacar's staff for the Jarl's Steward.
 * Sell Ore at Whistling Mine.

Reward: Blade of Winterhold

Note: It is possible, after helping Ranmir with a drink, and then encouraging him to settle his debts, that you can sleep in the Inn's bed's for free.

Whiterun

 * If siding with the Stormcloaks, after capturing the city, Vignar Gray-Mane will offer the title of Thane to you again. However, you may find Brill, Vignar's new Steward, dead at the front gates with nothing equipped. This is only an issue if you have not bought Breezehome from Avenicci already.

Riften

 * After completing the skooma quest in Riften for the Jarl, a miscellanious quest indicates to return to and speak to her. When you're done, you are to buy Honeyside from her steward. Immediatly after, do NOT visit your house or purchase decorations. This will result in the dialogue option concerning you becoming Thane to disappear (PC fix: Player.setstage FreeformRiftenThane 200). Simply talk to the Jarl right after purchase and she will give you the title. You are then free to visit your home and purchase decor.
 * When you become Thane you may receive a Blessed Iron Warhammer instead of the Blade of the Rift.

Markarth

 * Occasionally when you first speak to the Jarl, instead of offering you quests he will immediately name you thane of Markarth, and allow you to purchase property and a housecarl. The circumstances for this occurring are currently unknown.
 * If you choose to aid the Forsworn in the quest No One Escapes Cidhna Mine before starting the quest chain to become Thane, the Steward may no longer offer you the quests required, making that route to becoming Thane inaccessible.
 * (Xbox 360) Argis the Bulwark may not be appointed as housecarl and never appears in Vlindrel Hall.

Solitude

 * Jarl Elisif will tell you that you may become Thane by buying a house and helping 5 people within her hold, though the quest doesn't initiate. This causes it to be impossible to become Thane of Solitude (though the player may still purchase the house). (360)
 * Despite being named Thane, it will still show up in uncompleted misc quests to help the people of Solitude, despite it saying you have helped 5/5. This doesn't prevent any quests though, and is but a small annoyance. (360 & PC) (Fix: On PC, use the console command "setRelationshipRank player 2" while targeting a citizen in Solitude, this will cause them to regard you as a friend, update the journal objective to 6/5, and auto-complete. Simply setting the related global variable will not update the journal, so this method must be used).
 * The quest to help 5 people (Assist the People of Haafingar) may get "stuck" (i.e. not update after completing quests for citizens), thus preventing the player from becoming Thane. Irrespective of how many people helped, the value may always read 4/5 even though the trophy is awarded for becoming well known in the region.(PS3)(Fix: Invest in a store with the investor perk.)
 * You cannot complete the quest to become Thane or buy the house in Solitude if you complete the Storm Cloak quest line. This is due to Jarl Elisif being spawn some where unreachable on the map.(360) (unconfirmed? Spawns in Blue Palace regardless of Stormcloak Questline for 360)
 * After Completing the quest to place Jarl Elisif's husband horn at the Shrine of Talos, do not pick it back up as it does not allow for the dialog box to appear on return of the completedd quest (xbox 360)

Winterhold

 * During the quest it is possible for Ranmir to be killed by the magical orbs that invade winterhold rendering his quest unavaible.
 * Sometimes if the Dragonborn becomes the Archmage of the college before speaking to the Jarl, the Jarl may not give the option to become a Thane. (Xbox360)