WoW Classic Era DPS Tier List: Classes for Level 60 Raids
In this Classic Era DPS tier list, Fury Warrior is the only class in S tier, with Mage and Rogue right behind it in A. The ranking is for PvE raids at level 60, from Molten Core to Naxxramas, and it is our reading of two published guide rankings: a Naxxramas ranking updated on and a ranking for pre-raid gear reviewed on .
We could not get a current Era-only summary of raid logs, so this is not a list of live parses from April 2026. Blizzard does not publish a tier list, and Era has the original Vanilla talents with no runes.
Classic Era DPS tier list for level 60 raids
| Tier | Classes |
|---|---|
| S | Warrior (Fury) |
| A | Mage, Rogue |
| B | Warlock, Hunter, Feral Druid (Cat), Elemental Shaman |
| C | Shadow Priest, Enhancement Shaman, Retribution Paladin, Balance Druid |
Both rankings put Warrior alone at the top and Mage and Rogue in the next tier. The four C tier specs sit low in both, and raids take them mainly for what they give the group.
Warrior and the leading raid damage builds
Fury Warrior is the best DPS in Classic Era because most bosses die fast once a raid is geared. Its cooldowns Death Wish and Recklessness give it a burst that no other class matches in a short fight, and it also has the strongest cleave on two to four targets. The price is that a Warrior needs a lot of gear and consumables, and it has to watch its threat on the tank.
Mage is in A for its damage and for the best large AoE in the game. In Molten Core and Blackwing Lair many enemies resist fire, so Mages play Frost there and switch to Fire later, in the Ahn’Qiraj raids. Rogue is the second strongest melee. It can keep up with a Warrior on a long single target fight, but it lacks the Warrior’s big cooldowns, and outside Blade Flurry it has little AoE.
Caster, ranged and hybrid choices
B tier
- Warlock is where the two rankings disagree most. The pre-raid ranking puts it in A, and the Naxxramas ranking in B. Shadow Bolt causes a lot of threat, so a Warlock often has to hold back, and its best AoE with Hellfire needs it in melee range. Warlocks gain a lot from a Shadow Priest in the raid.
- Hunter is the lowest of the pure damage classes, and raids still take two to four for Tranquilizing Shot, which removes Frenzy from bosses, and for Trueshot Aura.
- Feral Druid in Cat Form hits hard early thanks to the Wolfshead Helm and the Manual Crowd Pummeler, and it scales well with Strength and Agility. It needs a lot of mana for shifting forms, it has weak AoE, and most raids bring one at most, often as a backup tank too.
- Elemental Shaman is low in the pre-raid ranking and B in the Naxxramas one, so it gains more from late gear than most specs. It is Horde only, like every Shaman in Era.
C tier
- Shadow Priest does little damage of its own, and raids bring one for Shadow Weaving, which makes the boss take more Shadow damage and so helps every Warlock.
- Enhancement Shaman ranks low in both lists. Any Shaman can put down Windfury Totem for the melee group, so a raid rarely needs Enhancement for that.
- Retribution Paladin does low damage, and its Sanctity Aura only helps Holy damage, which mostly means other Retribution Paladins. Holy Paladins bring the same blessings.
- Balance Druid has the lowest damage in the Naxxramas ranking. It brings some utility, but a raid usually gets that from Druids who heal or tank.
Why gear and the raid change the ranking
The two rankings were made for different gear, and that explains most of the gaps. In pre-raid gear and in Molten Core, melee profits more from the world buffs and consumables that exist in Vanilla, and casters have little spell power on their gear. By Naxxramas the casters have caught up a lot, and specs like Elemental move up.
Every raid is open at the same time in Era, so ask which raid a guild actually runs before you judge a class by one letter. If you are gearing a fresh 60 for raids, our Classic Era dungeons and raids guide shows the path, and our Classic Era pre-raid gear service can get you ready faster.
World buffs, build choices and runes
World buffs such as Rallying Cry of the Dragonslayer and Spirit of Zandalar raise damage a lot, and many raid logs are made with them. When you compare numbers, check whether a log had world buffs, since they change the result a lot.
Your faction matters too. Alliance raids have Paladin blessings, Horde raids have Shaman totems, and that changes how much each melee class gets from its group. Builds in Era use the original three talent trees only. Season of Discovery runes do not exist here, and Dual Spec only lets you switch between two talent builds.
Does this apply to Hardcore, leveling or PvP?
No. This list ranks raid damage at 60, and there is no measured ranking that covers leveling, Hardcore survival or PvP in the same way. A class that tops a raid meter can be risky to level on a one life realm. For the tank side, see our Classic Era tank tier list, and for which version to play at all, our Classic Era vs Anniversary vs SoD guide.
Frequently asked questions
Fury Warrior. Both rankings we used put it alone in S tier, because Death Wish and Recklessness give it unmatched burst in short boss fights. Mage and Rogue follow in A tier.
It is our reading of two published guide rankings, one for Naxxramas updated on April 19, 2026 and one for pre-raid gear reviewed on January 6, 2025. We could not get a current Era-only summary of raid logs, so it is not a list of live parses.
Warlock is a solid raid DPS, and the two rankings disagree on it: A tier in pre-raid gear, B tier for Naxxramas. Threat from Shadow Bolt often holds it back, and it gains a lot from a Shadow Priest in the raid.
Frost in Molten Core and Blackwing Lair, where many enemies resist fire, and Fire later in the Ahn’Qiraj raids. Dual Spec makes switching easier now.
No. Runes belong to Season of Discovery. Classic Era uses the original Vanilla talent trees, and Dual Spec only switches between two talent builds.
No. It ranks raid damage at level 60. Leveling, Hardcore survival and PvP reward other strengths, and we know of no comparable measured ranking for them.
Change Log
- April 19, 2026: WoW Classic Naxxramas ranking updated.
- January 6, 2024: WoW Classic Era DPS Tier List published.