ESO Classes Overview & Tier List

In Elder Scrolls Online, the choice of class is crucial to your gameplay experience, influencing everything from combat style to the role you play in groups. This guide will break down each class, highlight their strengths, and provide a Tier List (February 2025) based on their effectiveness in both PvE and PvP.

Key Takeaways

• Check the ESO Classes Tier List to pick the best builds for your playstyle, whether it’s PvE, PvP, or solo.
• S and A-Tiers classes offer top damage, versatility, and survivability, perfect for tough content.
• B and C-Tiers classes with the right builds, gear, and skill, these classes can still perform well and provide unique gameplay.
• Success depends on choosing the right stats, skills, and equipment for your role and class.

ESO Classes Overview

ESO offers seven unique classes, each with three distinct class skill lines that define their playstyle. ESO Classes provide a flexible foundation for your character, allowing you to create builds tailored to your preferred role: DPS, Tank, or Healer.

Unlike most MMORPGs, where classes have rigid playstyles, ESO classes are built with versatility in mind, allowing you to experiment with different weapons, armor, and abilities to create a build that perfectly suits your playstyle.

Class	Description	Strengths
Dragonknight	A tanky, fire-wielding powerhouse drawing from ancient Akaviri martial arts. Pros: Best tanking class with strong defensive skills and DOT-based damage. Cons: Weak healing makes solo play more gear-dependent.	Tanking, fire damage, survivability. Skill Lines: Ardent Flame, Draconic Power, Earthen Heart. Synergy: Shackle and Ignite.
Nightblade	A stealthy assassin skilled in critical strikes and damage-over-time abilities. Pros: High single-target damage with stealth and escape mechanics. Cons: Relies heavily on light attacks for damage and resource management.	Stealth, burst damage, mobility. Skill Lines: Assassination, Shadow, Siphoning. Synergy: Hidden Refresh and Soul Leech.
Sorcerer	A master of magic and summons, capable of controlling lightning, fire, and the battlefield. Pros: Exceptional self-healing, shields, and shock damage for easy survival. Cons: Limited group utility beyond damage synergies.	Ranged DPS, summoning, mobility. Skill Lines: Daedric Summoning, Dark Magic, Storm Calling. Synergy: Charged Lightning and Conduit.
Templar	A radiant warrior who uses light-based attacks and excels at healing and support. Pros: Beginner-friendly with great healing and AoE damage, perfect for group play. Cons: Struggles with healing early on in non-magicka builds.	Healing, AoE DPS, sustain. Skill Lines: Aedric Spear, Dawn’s Wrath, Restoring Light. Synergy: Blessed & Luminous Shards, Supernova & Gravity Crush and Purify.
Warden	A nature-inspired class wielding frost magic and healing abilities, with strong damage output. Pros: Excellent support class with strong healing, buffs, and debuffs. Cons: Solo play often requires reliance on external skills for sustain.	Healing, frost damage, support. Skill Lines: Animal Companions, Green Balance, Winter’s Embrace. Synergy: Frozen Retreat and Harvest.
Necromancer	A dark summoner who manipulates flesh and bone to create offensive and defensive abilities. Pros: High damage and strong debuffs, excelling in both PvE and PvP. Cons: Skills have short durations and using some abilities in towns increases your bounty.	Summoning, tanking, utility. Skill Lines: Grave Lord, Bone Tyrant, Living Death. Synergy: Pure Agony and Grave Robber.
Arcanist	A versatile spellcaster utilizing Apocryphal Runes for offense, defense, and healing. Pros: Extremely versatile with great healing, shielding, and damage options in all roles. Cons: Unique mechanics like Crux can be hard to master for some players.	Burst damage, utility, support. Skill Lines: Herald of the Tome, Soldier of Apocrypha, Curative Runeforms.

How to Choose the Best ESO Class

When selecting a class, consider your preferred role:

• Magicka (DPS/Heals): For players who enjoy dealing high damage in battles, both single-target and AoE. Classes like Magicka Templar excel here.
• Stamina (DPS/Tank): If you want to absorb damage and protect your team, Dragonknight and Warden are top-tier options.
• Health (Tank): Support your group by providing healing and buffs. Templar and Warden are standout healers in ESO.

If one playstyle doesn’t work for you, respec and try another.

Understanding ESO Classes Tier List

Classes are ranked from S-Tier to C-Tier, based on their strength versatility, and performance in PvE, PvP, and solo play.

• S - Tier: These classes excel in every role with great damage, utility, and survivability. Perfect for any content.
• A - Tier: They perform well but may need specific builds or strategies to shine.
• B - Tier: They can work with the right gear and skills but lack the versatility of higher tiers.
• C - Tier: These classes are more for unique builds than optimal performance.

ESO Classes Tier List

Here’s our ESO Classes Tier List for 2025, ranked from S-Tier to C-Tier based on their performance in all aspects of the game:

S	Stamina Arcanist Magicka Templar Stamina Templar Magicka Sorcerer
A	Magicka Arcanist Stamina Sorcerer Magicka Nightblade Stamina Nightblade
B	Stamina Warden Magicka Warden Stamina Dragonknight Stamina Necromancer
C	Magicka Necromancer Magicka Dragonknight

ESO Tier List Explanation

S-Tier

Class	Description
Stamina Arcanist	Best for PvE and PvP with high burst damage, great sustain, and AoE power (e.g., Fatecarver).
Magicka Templar	A hybrid powerhouse. Puncturing Sweeps deliver strong AoE damage while healing for survivability.
Stamina Templar	Reliable DPS with Biting Jabs, offering strong single-target and AoE damage for all content.
Magicka Sorcerer	Perfect for solo play. Pets like Twilight Matriarch add DPS, healing, and crowd control.

A-Tier

Class	Description
Magicka Arcanist	Strong in AoE and group support, offering good damage and survivability.
Stamina Sorcerer	Mobile and consistent. Abilities like Hurricane and Crystal Weapon handle various fights.
Magicka Nightblade	Stealthy with burst damage. Swallow Soul provides healing and sustain, great for PvP.
Stamina Nightblade	Amazing for single-target damage. Surprise Attack hits hard but needs good rotation skills.

B-Tier

Class	Description
Stamina Warden	Decent AoE and crowd control but lacks raw DPS for tougher content.
Magicka Warden	Good support class with decent AoE but needs strong teammates to shine.
Stamina Dragonknight	High survivability but limited AoE and slower combat.
Stamina Necromancer	Balanced tank/DPS hybrid, though weaker in pure damage compared to others.

C-Tier

Class	Description
Magicka Necromancer	Gear-heavy and good in niche setups but struggles in sustained damage content.
Magicka Dragonknight	Strong defense but low damage and mobility make it weak for tanking roles.

ESO Best Classes for PvE and PvP

Best PvE Classes

For PvE, Stamina Arcanist and Magicka Templar shine in trials, dungeons, and overland content due to their high DPS and survivability. Magicka Sorcerer is also an excellent choice for solo content.

Best PvP Classes

In PvP, Stamina Nightblade is king for its stealthy, high-burst playstyle. Also for PvP, Dragonknight and Arcanist offer great utility and survivability, while Templar provides healing and burst damage.

ESO Best Solo Class

For solo adventurers, Magicka Sorcerer remains the top choice. Its strong shields, self-healing, and pet mechanics make it perfect for surviving tough battles and exploring the world alone.

Tips & Tricks for ESO Classes

• Experiment with Builds: Try different combinations of weapons, armor, and skills to find a build that suits your playstyle.
• Master Skill Rotations: Efficient skill rotations are key to maximizing DPS or healing.
• Leveling: To dominate in ESO, progression is key. With ESO Character Boosts, you can level up fast, get key gear, and unlock upgrades with help from pro players.
• Stay Updated: Keep an eye on patch notes as ESO Classes often undergo balancing changes.

Сonclusion

What makes ESO special is its freedom. Your class doesn’t lock you into one role — you’re not stuck as just a healer or damage dealer. The class you pick is just a starting point, and you can customize it to match your playstyle. Some of the best moments come from creating unique builds that suit you!

Stay in touch

Don't miss out on special deals exlusive to Discord users⚡

Service request Join Discord

Change Log

• 24.01.2025 - ESO Classes Overview & Tier List published.