Point buy calculator
Build a character's six ability scores the 5th edition SRD way: spend 27 points on scores from 8 to 15, or place the standard array, then add your increases and read off every modifier.
Each of 15, 14, 13, 12, 10 and 8 is used once. Picking a number another ability holds swaps the two.
| Ability | Score | Cost | Increase | Final | Modifier |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Strength | 0– | 8 | −1 | ||
| Dexterity | 0– | 8 | −1 | ||
| Constitution | 0– | 8 | −1 | ||
| Intelligence | 0– | 8 | −1 | ||
| Wisdom | 0– | 8 | −1 | ||
| Charisma | 0– | 8 | −1 |
Increases: +2 to one score and +1 to another, or +1 to three.
How point buy works
Every score starts at 8 and you have 27 points to raise them. Each step costs one point up to 13; 14 and 15 cost two points a step. No score can go above 15 or below 8 before increases, and you can't spend more than 27.
| Score | Cost | Score | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | 0 | 12 | 4 |
| 9 | 1 | 13 | 5 |
| 10 | 2 | 14 | 7 |
| 11 | 3 | 15 | 9 |
The standard array is 15, 14, 13, 12, 10 and 8, which happens to cost exactly 27 points. Add your increases in the Increase column. The modifier is the score minus 10, halved and rounded down: 15 gives +2, 8 gives −1.
Sources
- System Reference Document 5.2 (SRD 5.2), “Character Creation”, page 21: the 27 points, the Ability Score Point Costs table, the standard array, and increases of +2 and +1 or +1, +1 and +1, none raising a score above 20. Point buy and the standard array are not part of SRD 5.1.
- System Reference Document 5.1 (SRD 5.1), “Using Ability Scores”, page 76: the Ability Scores and Modifiers table.
This work includes material taken from the System Reference Document 5.1 (“SRD 5.1”) by Wizards of the Coast LLC and available at https://dnd.wizards.com/resources/systems-reference-document. The SRD 5.1 is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License available at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode.
This work includes material from the System Reference Document 5.2 (“SRD 5.2”) by Wizards of the Coast LLC, available at https://www.dndbeyond.com/srd. The SRD 5.2 is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, available at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode.
Questions
Why can't I buy a 16?
The point cost table stops at 15. Scores above that come from increases afterwards: a 15 with a +2 increase makes 17.
Which is better, point buy or the standard array?
Neither gives more in total: the array costs exactly 27 points. Point buy lets you trade, for example three 15s and three 8s, or a flatter 14, 14, 14, 12, 10, 8.
What if my table uses different increases?
Set them anyway. The calculator notes when increases don't match +2/+1 or +1/+1/+1 but never blocks them, and it caps every final score at 20.