Point Buy Calculator (D&D 5e)
Build your character's ability scores with the standard 27-point budget. Step each score from 8 to 15, watch the points and modifiers update live, layer on 2024-style origin bonuses, and quick-fill the standard array when you just want a solid spread.
Points remaining
27 / 27
2024-style origin bonuses (optional)
The 2024 rules grant a +2 and a +1 from your background (or +1 to three different scores). The 2014 rules instead give bonuses from your race. Either way, bonuses apply after point buy and can raise a score past 15.
Point cost per score
| Score | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cost | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 9 |
Point buy vs. standard array vs. rolling
Fifth edition offers three ways to generate ability scores. Point buy gives everyone 27 points and full control — you decide exactly where the strengths and weaknesses go, and every character at the table is built from the same budget. Standard array (15, 14, 13, 12, 10, 8) is point buy with the choices pre-made: it costs exactly 27 points, which is why it doubles as a sanity check for this calculator. Rolling (4d6, drop the lowest, six times) is the traditional method — higher on average but wildly uneven, which is fun in some campaigns and frustrating in others.
Point buy is the default for organized play and most online games precisely because it removes luck from character creation. If your table does roll, a dice roller handles the 4d6 method, and a random number generator works when there are no dice in reach. Deciding who rolls up their character first? Spin the wheel spinner or draw from the random name picker.
Common point buy builds
The most popular spread is 15 / 14 / 13 / 12 / 10 / 8 — the standard array — because it spends all 27 points while keeping one dump stat. Single-stat classes (sharpshooter rangers, blaster sorcerers) often prefer 15 / 15 / 15 / 8 / 8 / 8: three maxed scores, three dumps, exactly 27 points. A rounder option is 14 / 14 / 14 / 12 / 10 / 8, trading the 15s for an extra playable score. The reason 14 costs 7 points is the 2-points-per-step premium above 13 — it makes each 15 a genuine sacrifice elsewhere.
Whichever spread you pick, aim your +2 bonus at your class's primary ability. A bought 15 with a +2 origin or racial bonus starts play at 17 with a +3 modifier — one ability score improvement away from the 18 cap's +4 at level 4.
Where the bonuses come from
Point buy only covers the base scores of 8–15; the bonuses that push past 15 arrive afterward. Under the 2014 rules, your race provides them — a hill dwarf's +2 CON / +1 WIS, for example. Under the 2024 rules, the bonuses moved to your background: +2 to one ability and +1 to another, or +1 to three different abilities. The calculator's origin-bonus dropdowns model the 2024 +2/+1 pattern, and the final column shows each ability's total score and modifier with bonuses included. Rules referenced here come from the freely licensed System Reference Document; D&D is a trademark of Wizards of the Coast and this tool is an unofficial fan project.