In games like Minecraft, coal is pretty easy to come by, and doesn't take long to find. In Palworld, however, coal is something that you won't even need until you're quite a few hours into the game.
Though you won't be able to find coal until you start exploring quite far from where you start, it won't be hard to identify once you come across it. Coal is distinguished by its black color and looks like any of the other mineable rock materials in the wild. You'll need an upgraded pickaxe to farm it, such as a Metal Pickaxe. You'll also want to make sure that you've got some armor that protects you from the heat, since the environment you're going into to get the coal will have you sweating if you don't prepare.
More Palworld Resource Guides:
Palworld coal location
For anyone who has spent a fair bit of time exploring in Palworld, they'll know that the map is pretty big, and without a mount or fast travel, it can be a pain to get anywhere quickly.
Coal is found almost in the center of the map. There is a desert area just north of the center of the map that contains a high concentration of coal deposits, and can be used to farm it. The area where players can find a lot of the material quickly is highlighted in red in the image below.
If the coal deposits, or any material you need an abundance of for that matter, is far from your base, you can put down a Palbox near it and use it to fast travel so that you can mine and then deposit the material without running from the closest Fast Travel point. You can also find High-Quality Pal Oil here from Digtoises.
Coal is used for crafting Refined Ingots, which is then used in the making of guns such as the Shotgun, Assault Rifle, and Rocket Launcher, among others. You'll need an Improved Furnace to smelt the Refined Ingots, which is unlocked at level 34 in the technology tree.
