What does it cost to level Alchemy right now?

3.3kg in reagents at today's TW auction prices, over about 78 crafts. Sell the results and it comes back to 3.2kg.

Where do these numbers come from?

The skill thresholds are read from the game client data for build 12.1.0.68914. The prices are the region-wide auction house, refreshed every few minutes; these are the snapshot taken at 15:54 UTC.

Why does the route change when I reload?

Because the prices did. The cheapest recipe for a stretch of skill is whichever one's reagents are cheapest at that moment, and that moves through the day.

Profession leveling · Cataclysm Alchemy · TW · prices as of 15:54 UTC

Alchemy leveling 1 → 75 · Cataclysm Alchemy

3.3kg in reagents over about 78 crafts. Sell what you make and it comes back to 3.2kg.

Start skill

Trainer recipes only

Recipe names carry the colour the profession window gives them: orange is a point every craft, yellow is three in four, green is one in four.

Before the first craft — buy it all at once

One trip to the auction house. Vendor lines are cheaper from the profession vendor than from the board.

ReagentNeedEachTotal

Elementium Bar×2540

1,000

×251,000

Twilight Jasmine×4220

Total3,288

Step 1 · Skill 1 → 5

Yellow

Draught of War

About 6 crafts.125

per skill point31

Cinderbloom×6

Step 2 · Skill 5 → 10

Orange

Deathblood Venom

trainer

About 5 crafts.150

per skill point30

Stormvine×10

Step 3 · Skill 10 → 50

Orange→Yellow

Elixir of Mighty Speed

trainer

About 42 crafts.1,512

per skill point37

Stormvine×42

Twilight Jasmine×42

Crystal Vial×42

Step 4 · Skill 50 → 75

Orange

Pyrium Bar

trainer

About 25 crafts.1,499

per skill point59

Elementium Bar×25

Volatile Earth×25

Skill 75 — done. Now sell what you made.

Crafted itemUnitsEachTotal

Pyrium Bar7560

7545

Draught of War660

Elixir of Mighty Speed422

4284

Deathblood Venom102

1020

Capped at what the market takes in 3 days, so a route never pretends to sell hundreds at once.

Back in your pocket3,238

What's worth crafting with Alchemy right now

Questions

How this route is built

What does it cost to level Alchemy right now?: 3.3kg in reagents at today's TW auction prices, over about 78 crafts. Sell the results and it comes back to 3.2kg.
Where do these numbers come from?: The skill thresholds are read from the game client data for build 12.1.0.68914. The prices are the region-wide auction house, refreshed every few minutes; these are the snapshot taken at 15:54 UTC.
Why does the route change when I reload?: Because the prices did. The cheapest recipe for a stretch of skill is whichever one's reagents are cheapest at that moment, and that moves through the day.

A first craft pays Knowledge, not skill, so it is shown as a badge and left out of the craft count. Vendor reagents are priced at the lower of the vendor and the auction house.