Top 20 Feats In D&D 5e, Ranked (2023)

In Dungeons & Dragons Fifth Edition, feats are one of the prime ways of customizing a character. They're optional abilities that players can take for their characters instead of gaining Ability Score Increases. They give powerful and wide-ranging features unlike anything seen in any of 5e's classes or subclasses.

A great 5e feat will either shore up a weakness or enhance existing strengths. The best feats do both and/or introduce new options to a character's arsenal. Many feats will completely alter how a character plays in or out of combat, and they can be great opportunities for players to fully customize their characters in terms of both flavor and mechanics.

Of course, every class and build requires a different selection of feats. Some are better for melee-focused front liners like fighters and barbarians, while others help expand a spellcaster's roster. But there are some feats that are almost always a good choice, no matter what build or role a character is aiming for.

Class-Specific Feat Guides

Updated May 22nd, 2023 by Isaac Williams: Feats are the best way to customize a character in D&D 5e. However, they're also few in number. A player has to make each one count. To help players pick the best feats for their characters, this list has been updated with even more of 5e's very best feats.

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20 Magic Initiate

Player's Handbook pg. 168

Magic Initiate allows a player to choose another class and learn one first-level spell and two cantrips from that class's spell list. This versatility lets almost any character fill holes in their loadout. Melee characters can get ranged cantrips, spellcasters can get a panic button melee attack, and combat-focused classes can learn some utility spells.

Easy access to magical ranged attacks
Enhanced utility and combat
Expanded spell options without requiring multiclassing

Finally, the paladin can get some cantrips, the barbarian can get a little magic in their life, and the warlock gets one extra spell slot at the first level. Since the spells chosen will use the same ability score the class does, characters are somewhat limited in which classes they can pick from. However, that doesn't stop this from being one of the best feats in 5e. It's especially useful for smaller parties who might lack a designated healer or utility caster.

19 Resilient

Player's Handbook pg. 168

Saving throws are a big part of survival in D&D 5e, and they see a lot of use both in and out of combat. However, most characters only get proficiency in two saving throws. They have to rely on their ability score modifier alone — which often won't be enough in the later levels of the game.

Provides proficiency in a saving throw of the player's choice
Increases the ability score associated with the saving throw

Resilient lets players gain proficiency in one ability score of their choice. Wisdom is an excellent choice to prevent many status effects like Paralyzed and Charmed. Constitution prevents many harmful effects and helps spellcasters with their Concentration. This feat can help a tanky character broaden their defenses, or ensure a more fragile caster has a little more survivability.

18 Flames Of Phlegethos

Xanathar's Guide to Everything pg. 74

This feat is available only to tieflings, but it is extremely worthwhile for any that focus on fire magic. Besides boosting Charisma or Intelligence, Flames of Phlegethos helps ensure the user never rolls minimum damage on their fire damage attacks.

Grants additional benefits while not losing out on an ability score boost
Helps increase reliability of damage
Keeps enemies out of melee

Additionally, Flames of Phlegethos allows the user to surround themself with flames, dealing damage to anyone who dares get close. Fire is already the most prolific damage type in 5e's spells. Any caster with Flames of Phlegethos is already more effective with a huge number of offense spells, in addition to having a way to punish enemies who catch them off-guard.

17 Tavern Brawler

Player's Handbook pg. 170

16 Great Weapon Master

Player's Handbook pg. 167

Most D&D fights come down to reducing the other side's hit points. Heavy two-handed weapons are already some of the most damaging weapons in the game, but Great Weapon Master ramps their threat up significantly.

A -5 penalty to hit with heavy weapons in exchange for a +10 bonus to damage
Bonus action attacks following a critical hit or lethal blow

The +10 bonus to damage rolls provided by this feat is huge, even at later levels. Great Weapon Master is one of the best feats in 5e because of how much more lethal it makes a melee fighter. Fighters, paladins, and barbarians all benefit hugely, especially if they have a way to boost their accuracy.

15 Crossbow Expert

Player's Handbook pg. 165

Most characters looking for a ranged weapon in immediately reach for a bow, but Crossbow Expert helps even the playing field. It eliminates the need to spend time reloading, allowing a character to make their full number of attacks each turn. It also allows crossbows to be used in melee at no penalty, something not easily done with bows.

Gives a character access to an under-utilized weapon
Helps facilitate a classic fighting archetype
Increased versatility for characters who like to be in and out of melee range

Anyone looking to dual-wield can take advantage of its third feature, which basically allows the normal dual-wielding rules to apply to a hand crossbow as well. The classic "stab and shoot" build for a rogue relies on this feat to be functional, and it's well worth taking.

14 Alert

Player's Handbook pg. 165

Alert is perfect for any party whose DM likes to ambush them at every opportunity. It grants a +5 bonus to initiative, as well as negating most of the advantages other creatures get from surprising the character in question. It also prevents a creature from being surprised while unconscious. This mitigates the threat of ambushes, letting at least one character tilt the odds back in the party's favor.

Keeps the party safe from ambushes
Lets any character serve as the party sentry
Helps reliably act first in combat

This can be used to great effect on an already dextrous character to ensure they always go first. It can be equally valuable on a character with an otherwise terrible initiative score. A party really only needs one Alert character to help warn everyone else about impending danger.

13 Elemental Adept

Player's Handbook pg. 166

The Elemental Adept feat is limited to casting classes, as it requires the ability to cast at least level one spell. Nonetheless, it can be extremely useful for casters. In particular, it benefits those that focus on one type of damage, like a Draconic Bloodline sorcerer or a Pact of the Fiend warlock.

Empowers single-damage type builds
Helps get around resistances
Can be selected more than once for more well-rounded builds

RELATED: Elemental Adept allows the user to ignore all resistances to that damage type, essentially negating the biggest drawback of focusing on one damage type. It also ensures that they never roll minimum damage on a spell, as it upgrades all damage rolls of one into twos. Casters that focus on a single element are a classic trope in fantasy fiction, and the Elemental Adept feat is essential for translating that to D&D 5e.

12 Sharpshooter

Player's Handbook pg. 170

Attacking from range is quite strong in D&D 5e, as it allows the attacker to deal damage without being hit in return. One of the biggest limiting factors on ranged attacks, however, is a battlefield full of covering terrain. In addition, ranged weapons impose disadvantage when used at their full range.

Ignores half and three-quarters cover
Stops ranged attacks at long range being made at disadvantage
Lets players take -5 to hit in exchange for +10 damage

The Sharpshooter feat does away with both of these limitations. A character with Sharpshooter ignores everything except total cover and can attack at their weapon's long range without disadvantage. On top of that, characters can take an accuracy penalty for significantly more damage. Sharpshooter is easily the best feat in 5e for ranged attackers like rangers and rogues.

11 Tough

Player's Handbook pg. 170

Hit points are an essential resource to maintain in D&D 5e. A character falls unconscious and begins to make death saving throws when their hit points reach zero. As such, most characters want to keep their hit points as high as possible. The Tough feat goes above and beyond in that regard.

Gives an additional two hit points on every level up
Applies to previous levels, potentially providing a large number of hit points at once

Tough provides a character with two additional hit points per level, making it as effective in boosting hit points as four additional points in Constitution. It also applies retroactively to levels where the character didn't have Tough. It's one of 5e's best feats because almost nothing can match the extra hit points it grants.

10 War Caster

Player's Handbook pg. 170

Essential for any character looking to cast spells while engaged in melee combat, War Caster has several amazing perks. First, it grants advantage on Concentration saving throws. This is hugely useful for any spellcaster as it makes their most powerful spells last longer. It's most useful for melee characters, as they take damage and have to make Concentration throws more often.

Enables melee-caster builds
Helps maintain concentration for any kind of caster
Allows armored casters to use somatic spells freely

Perhaps the most powerful feature, however, is the ability to cast spells as opportunity attacks. This opens up a huge variety of options in combat, as the spell cast need not be exclusively a damage spell. Being able to bind a creature with Hold Monster as a reaction can be an extremely powerful combat trick for locking down mobile foes.

9 Lucky

Player's Handbook pg. 167

Rolling dice is the core mechanic of D&D, so a feat that essentially offers free rerolls is always going to be extremely powerful. Lucky grants the user three luck points, which can be used to reroll almost any d20 roll. Lucky is applicable in basically every situation, from trying to fix a missed attack to fishing for success on an important skill check.

Useful on any character or build
Can be used defensively or offensively
Useful in and out of combat

Lucky can even be used on attacks made against the character, helping them avoid nearly certain death. The sheer versatility of Lucky is what makes it so good. It's one of D&D 5e's best feats for any build in the game.

8 Athlete

Player's Handbook pg. 165

Besides boosting Dexterity or Strength by one, Athlete provides a slew of small benefits that will be of use to just about any character looking to improve their mobility. Adventurers who focus on the dungeons part of Dungeons and Dragons will love that climbing no longer costs them extra movement. Furthermore, they can make long jumps with shorter run-ups.

Keeps the character mobile
Allows a character to run and climb with ease
Helps keep up ability score increases in addition to other effects

More combat-focused heroes will enjoy being able to stand with only five feet of their movement. This allows them to spring to their feet after being healed and renter the fray immediately. Being able to leap, climb, and run to reach any location is useful on almost any character, especially at low levels when mobility spells are few and far between.

7 Healer

Player's Handbook pg. 167

The healer's kit is already a great item in D&D 5th Edition, as it allows the user to stabilize a dying creature instantly. However, the Healer feat allows the user to use a healer's kit to heal party members more proactively.

Access to reliable healing at low levels
Allows a non-magical character to serve as the party healer
Saves money on potions in the early levels

Healer's kits have 10 uses, and a character with the Healer feat can spend one use to heal a target for a solid amount. This feature is limited to once per rest per character. However, it's an excellent choice for a party lacking in magical healing, or as a back-up in case of emergency. Healer drops off in usefulness as more powerful healing magic becomes available, but it can be a lifesaver at early levels.

6 Sentinel

Player's Handbook pg. 169

Sentinel lets a character protect their allies and restrict the movement of enemies. It grants the user several abilities that allow them to lock down any opponent that tries to evade them. It even allows them to make reactive attacks against a creature that attacks anyone but them.

Allows any character to defend their allies
Lets a melee character lock down enemies almost at will
Grants a ton of battlefield control

Picking the Sentinel feat sets the character up to serve as the party's tank. A character with Sentinel can keep enemies in place and punish them for trying to harm more fragile allies. It pairs extremely well with the Polearm Master feat to create a near-impenetrable spear wall.

5 Polearm Master

Player's Handbook pg. 168

This feat functionally gives the user an extra attack when they wield a polearm. After making regular attacks, they can strike with the blunt end of their weapon as a bonus action for 1d4 damage. The most notable feature of Polearm Master, however, is the ability to strike at anyone who enters the character's reach.

Grants attack reactions and bonus actions
Part of a nearly broken combo with Sentinel
Helps enable a classic fighting archetype

Besides adding a lot more opportunities for damage output every round, this pairs remarkably well with the Sentinel feat. The two together essentially halt any attempts to pass within ten feet of the user. Few builds are better at locking enemies down than those that combine the two feats.

4 Ritual Caster

Player's Handbook pg. 169

Most spells consume a spell slot to use. However, certain utility spells have the Ritual tag. This lets a spellcaster take more time to cast them, in exchange for them not consuming a spell slot. Ritual Caster gives any character the ability to cast one class' ritual spells, even if they're not themselves a spellcaster.

Lets characters cast the ritual spells of a class
Characters can find more ritual spells and add them to the list they can cast
Gives any character useful utility spellcasting

Ritual Caster has almost no combat benefits. However, it's one of the . Any character can learn useful utility spells and cast them at no cost. Although the selection is limited, it includes some of the best out-of-combat spells in the game.

3 Mobile

Player's Handbook pg. 168

Plenty of characters can benefit from increased speed, and Mobile does that and more. It increases a character's base speed by 10 feet. This is a significant increase for any character. It helps slower races keep up with their allies, and lets faster races like wood elves harness their full potential.

Improves speed, great for slow and already fast characters alike
Almost negates opportunity attacks
Lets a character get into or out of melee with ease

Its most fundamental change, however, is allowing the user to ignore opportunity attacks from creatures they hit. Being able to strike a creature and rush out of the way is extremely powerful. Mobile facilitates hit-and-run attacks, which makes it invaluable for classes like the rogue or monk.

2 Mounted Combatant

Player's Handbook pg. 168

Mounted combat isn't conducive to every campaign. When it does work, however, it's very powerful. A character with Mounted Combatant can take hits in place of their mount, helping to mitigate the fact that most mounts have extremely low AC and/or hit points. It also grants the mount an evasion ability to enhance its survivability.

Enables an iconic character archetype
Keeps mounts healthy and safe in combat
Grants an extremely strong attack boost

Perhaps the most useful feature, however, is advantage on attack rolls against creatures smaller than their mount. The archetypical mounted combatant is, of course, an armored knight, but it applies to other classes. A rogue with this feat would get access to Sneak Attack every turn, assuming they fight humanoids and other medium creatures.

1 Fey/Shadow Touched

Tasha's Cauldron Of Everything pg. 79 and 80

Getting access to more spells is always powerful in D&D, and this pair of feats is one of the best ways to do so. Unlike Magic Initiate, these feats provide a bonus to an ability score in addition to granting some spells.

Helps boost ability scores
Access to powerful spells without the need for a spell slot
Grants non-caster classes extra options in and out of combat

Each feat grants a predetermined spell, Misty Step for Fey Touched and Invisibility for Shadow Touched. They also give a choice of another spell from some set schools of magic. These feats offer a supreme level of customizability, and any class will be able to find some spell on the list that compliments their build.