Best Rogue Races in D&D 5e
Published on December 12, 2024
Choose your Rogue’s origin with our breakdown of playable races in Dungeons & Dragons 5th edition. Discover which races offer unique advantages and abilities tailored to stealthy skulker.
Evyn Fong - Wizards of the Coast - Thieves’ Guild Enforcer
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What is this guide?
This guide is meant as a deep dive into the best races for the 5e rogue. For the full overview of the rogue class, check out our rogue class guide.
To allow you to scan through the options quickly, we use the following color rating scheme:
- Red : Isn’t going to contribute to the effectiveness of your character build at all
- Orange : Situationally good, but a below-average option otherwise
- Green : A good option
- Blue : A great option, you should strongly consider this option for your character
- Sky Blue: An amazing option. If you do not take this option your character would not be optimized
Best Races for Rogues
Rogues are the masters of stealth, agility, and precision. Whether lurking in the shadows or weaving through crowded streets, they excel at navigating the unseen, striking with deadly precision when the time is right. In Dungeons & Dragons, Rogues thrive on their Dexterity and exceptional bonuses to ability checks, which allows them to turn almost any situation to their advantage.
They are able to deal high bursts of single-target damage with their Sneak Attack, but their d8 Hit Dice and low AC makes them susceptible to getting caught out in the open.
Tips for Choosing a Race for Your Rogue
While any race can make a solid rogue, some offer unique advantages to boost your stealth and Dexterity-based abilities. Races that enhance Dexterity are your best bet, but if you’re playing with Customizing Your Origin from Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything, you can look for more tactical abilities.
Rogues love static bonuses to defense and can make good use of spells. Racial abilities that rely on Bonus Actions tend to fall by the wayside in favor of Cunning Action and offhand attacks.
Standard Races
Dragonborn:
Rogues need DEX to be effective.
- Gem: The Breath Weapon can be useful when you're caught in melee range and the flight can help you keep out of reach from most melee creatures. The damage resistance helps with survivability and the telepathic communication can help when sneaking.
Dwarf:
CON bonus and Darkvision are nice, but dwarves have a base walking speed of only 25 feet. Mobility can be critical for the rogue Class.
- Hill: More hit points and a WIS bonus. Both are tangentially useful, but there are much better options to choose from.
- Mountain: Rogues don’t need the STR bonus, but medium armor proficiency is decent.
Elf:
A +2 to DEX, Darkvision, and proficiency in the Perception skill. Nice!
- Aereni High: A +2 to DEX, Darkvision, proficiency in the Perception skill, and a free cantrip from the wizard spell list. This is very much so what rogues are looking for and Arcane Tricksters will certainly enjoy the +1 to INT.
- Aereni Wood: +2 DEX is exactly what rogues want. The +1 WIS will help with the all-important Perception skill. The ability to hide better, move faster, and the extra expertise are all things that rogues are interested in.
- Eladrin: +2 DEX and +1 CHA is a solid starting array for a rogue. The free misty step is pure gold for rogues as it's extremely useful for sneaking as well as combat. Because rogue's are usually get single-ability dependent, they'll be able to pump their CHA to make the most out of the misty step's bonus effect.
- Eladrin (Variant): +1 INT isn't what you're looking for, but you already get +2 DEX from the parent class so it's alright for the single-ability dependent rogue. The free casting of misty step is an excellent utility option both in and out of combat.
- Mark of Shadow: +2 DEX is exactly what rogues are looking for and the CHA can be beneficial for social situations. The buff to Steath synergizes extremely well with the rogue's gameplan, and so does the free casting of minor illusion and invisibility. Unfortunately, rogues as-is aren't able to use the Spells of the Mark, but Arcane Tricksters will be able to and they will become nearly unstoppable sneaking-machines.
- Pallid: Great ASI array for rogue and the free casting of sleep and invisibility are both amazing options when sneaking.
- Shadar-kai: DEX and CON are both great ability scores for rogues. The bonus resistance and the teleportation ability will help with battlefield mobility and survivability.
Gnome:
Darkvision is always wanted by rogues. The INT will only really be useful to an Arcane Trickster.
Half-Elf:
No +2 to DEX will be a huge burden for Rogues, but skill versatility can be important for skill monkeys. If your rogue is going to be the party's face, you can get away with a +2 CHA, +1 DEX, and pickup Deception and Persuasion.
Half-Orc:
No DEX for a rogue. Darkvision won’t make up for the poor ability bonuses here.
Halfling:
+2 DEX is exactly what Rogues are looking for. Halfling nimbleness will help you move around the battlefield and Lucky will help make sure you don't crit fail on your Sneak Attacks. +2 DEX and +1 WIS is the ideal starting array for Monks. Lucky will help you as much as Fighters because of all the melee attacks you'll be making.
Human:
- Mark of Making: Arcane Tricksters can receive their INT increase from the Mark of Making and get some interesting melee spells as well.
- Mark of Passage: The Mark of Passage is perfect for a rogue, with a strong ASI spread, movement options, and the pass without trace spell that makes a rogue virtually undetectable.
- Standard: A middle of the road pick because they increase all their ability scores by 1.
- Variant: Variant humans are a good choice, but try to pick a passive feat like Skulker as rogues already have good uses for their bonus action and reaction.
Tiefling:
CHA and DEX subraces are a perfect start for Rogues.
- Bloodline of Dispater: Good ASI and spells for a sneaky rogue.
- Bloodline of Glasya: The ASI are good, and the spells are perfect for any rogue. Most rogues can't cast spells so the tiefling makes the class that much better.
- Variant – Feral: +2 DEX is great to add to any subrace, and the INT is also useful for Arcane Tricksters.
- Variant – Winged: Any rogue will be more than thrilled with flight for infiltration and lining up sneak attacks. Add Feral into the mix for +2 DEX and you've got an incredible character.
Non-Standard Races
Aarakocra:
Solid racial bonuses and flight can get you into situations with advantage for sneak attack quite easily.
- Updated: Both ranged and melee rogues will love the 1st level flight that Aarakocras provide. Because they can use their bonus action to disengage, they'll have no trouble making an attack, disengaging, then flying out of reach. The Aarakocra's Talons allows for a decent offhand option as it does more damage than a dagger, but can't be thrown.
Aasimar:
No DEX will make this tough for rogues.
Aasimar (2024):
Glowing with radiant light isn't the best option for a Rogue looking for subtlety, but a Rogue who likes to interact at range will love the Heavenly Wings transformation.
Air Genasi:
The spells provided by the air genasi's Mingle with the Wind are not only effective in combat, but can majorly help with stealthing around and infiltration. Rogues love additional movement, and Darkvision is always effective.
Astral Elf:
Rogue's typically only need to stack into DEX, which can leave some resources to get CHA or WIS to a reasonable level and pick up sacred flame. The real benefit here is Starlight Step, which can help you navigate the battlefield, sneak more effectively, and get out of sight. This, combined with the free Perception proficiency and floating skill/tool proficiency with Astral Trance makes for a solid base for any rogue. Leaving Astral Trance open to choose a tool or skill you think will benefit you the most in the day is likely the best case scenario, but you could pick up a proficiency with a heavy crossbow if you're looking to output maximum ranged damage.
Auto Gnome:
Boosted AC, a d4 to add to attacks, skill checks, and saving throws, extra healing capabilities, some damage and condition resistances, and tool proficiencies are all appealing to rogues
Bugbear:
+1 DEX is a hard choice for Rogues, but taking the Assassin for the Assassinate trait, combined with Surprise Attack and catching your enemies by surprise can lead to mega damage even at lower levels.
- Updated: The new bugbear is about as good as the original for rogues since they don't get any Extra Attacks. Just like most rogues, Two Weapon Fighting is very worthwhile to improve your odds of landing a Sneak Attack, and in this case, a Surprise Attack as well.
Centaur:
Nothing here for a rogue.
- Updated: Nothing here for a rogue.
Changeling:
Rogues are the best option for changelings. They are already the go-to class for deception and infiltration, and with the Shapechanger trait they will have just about every tool in their back pocket for that task. With the two free skill proficiencies a rogue changeling will be proficient in more skills than not. DEX is the best choice for the free ability score increase.
- Updated: Rogues still are the best option for changelings, with improved racial traits and more freedom when it comes to ASIs.
Deep Gnome:
Rogues are used to being effective out-of-combat and deep gnomes can help them improve on this. Disguise self, improved Darkvision, and advantage on Stealth checks are all useful abilities for a skill monkey rogue to have.
Dragonborn (2024):
Rogues don't love being upfront and personal, so the Breath Weapon and Damage Resistance may not synergize well with their playstyle. If you're looking for innate flight, maybe look at an Aasimar.
Duergar:
The extra Darkvision will really help when sneaking around dark environments, as will the free casting of invisibility. As for enlarge/reduce, you can use the enlarge option to help overcome your STR shortcomings or the reduce option for infiltration missions. Finally, the resistances are always welcome.
Dwarf (2024):
The extra Hit Points and Poison Resistance provide a safety net for Rogues, who can often find themselves in precarious situations. Tremorsense and an improved Darkvision also have applications for detecting hidden foes or traps.
Earth Genasi:
You can get resistance to one attack per round with Uncanny Dodge, and your bonus action is probably best used disengaging and retreating using Cunning Action. Apart from that, pass without trace can up your stealthiness and allow you to bring party members on your endeavors.
Eladrin:
Unfortunately, rogues are just too bonus action-focused to make the most of the eladrin's star feature, Fey Step. Whether they're hiding or dashing with Cunning Action, offhand attacking to try to land a sneak attack, using the Steady Aim optional feature, or using a subclass feature, like the Mastermind's Master of Tactics, Soulknife's Psychic Blades, or Thief's Fast Hands, there are too many uses to commit to the eladrin's playstyle. All of this combined with the bonus action Disengage option provided by Cunning Action means that there's just too much overlap to make an eladrin optimal for rogues.
Elf (2024):
While the spells offered by any of the Elven Lineages are great for Rogues, you can only cast them once per Long Rest without getting access to some other spell slots. Still, you get to take your pick if you'll be more ambush-oriented (Drow), combat-oriented (High Elf), or exploration-oriented (Wood Elf).
Fairy:
The Small creature size, flight, and ability to shrink yourself even further can lead to interesting stealth options as a rogue.
Firbolg:
The firbolg doesn’t have a lot for rogues outside of the Firbolg Magic and Hidden Step, and Arcane Tricksters can gain access to these spells pretty easily.
- Updated: With flexible ASIs, the firbolg is an excellent choice for rogues that don't choose to become Arcane Tricksters but still want some spells to aid with stealth and infiltration.
Fire Genasi:
Nothing here particularly worthwhile for a rogue, especially because you can't sneak attack with flame blade.
Genasi:
- Air: The air genasi has a moderate DEX boost, but nothing else is exciting as a rogue.
- Fire: Arcane Tricksters could consider the fire genasi for the INT and a host of tempting racial traits, though a lack of DEX could prove to be too much of a roadblock to overcome.
Giff:
Nothing here for a rogue.
Gith:
Rogues need DEX to be effective.
Gnome (2024):
The Rogue benefits from Small size and Darkvision, especially in stealth missions. Gnome Cunning protects against mental saves, and Forest Gnome’s Minor Illusion can create distractions.
Goblin:
Nimble Escape is useless as a rogue due to Cunning Action. The DEX and CON boosts are what rogues want but there are other races that have similar ASIs and better racial traits.
- Updated: Nothing has changed enough to make the updated goblin better than the original for a rogue.
Goliath:
DEX is simply too good to consider a STR Rogue without multiclassing.
- Updated: The main draw of the goliath, Stone's Endurance, is made redundant by Uncanny Dodge.
Goliath (2024):
Both Hill's Topple and Cloud's Jaunt are incredible for Rogues. I doubt you'll ever want want to grow to a Large size, with all your sneaking around considered, but the additional combat options are worth it.
Hadozee:
While climbing speed and Glide might make infiltration easier, the hadozee's Dodge is a strictly worse version of Uncanny Dodge.
Halfling (2024):
This race is exactly what Rogues are looking for. Halfling Nimbleness will help you move around the battlefield and Luck will help make sure you don't crit fail on your Sneak Attacks. Plus, you can use your Bonus Action to Hide behind your Medium companions, which is an excellent way to proc Advantage for your Sneak Attack.
Harengon:
A bonus to initiative and Perception will never be wasted on a rogue. The Rabbit Hop ability will allow you to move around the battlefield freely, going wherever your Sneak Attacks will be most effective. The Lucky Footwork ability will also give your Evasion ability a buff and help save you from even taking half damage.
Hobgoblin:
Arcane Tricksters are interested in INT, though without DEX a rogue may struggle.
- Updated: Rogues need their bonus action for some of their most important class features, sidelining Fey Gift.
Human (2024):
Humans are outstanding for Rogues. Heroic Inspiration helps you land Sneak Attacks or hit those important Stealth checks, and the extra skill proficiency adds to your versatlity. For an Origin feat, Alert boosts Initiative, while Lucky improves your reliability on attack rolls, saving throws, or checks.
Kalashtar:
Rogues live and die by their DEX score, and sadly kalashtar have nothing to offer in that regard. Mind Link is interesting if doing a lot of heists or infiltration.
Kender:
Unfortunately, kender don't work particularly well as rogues. While they are known to be good at sneaking and stealing, the rogue's Cunning Action combined with their lack of CHA, INT, or WIS means that Taunt won't be very effective.
Kenku:
Rogues are the archetypical sneaky class, and kenku’s excel at being sneaky. Is there such thing as too many stealth/infiltration options?
Kobold:
Combining Sneak Attack and Pack Tactics means that you have both a chance to trigger Sneak Attack damage and advantage on the attack roll when an ally is near the target. It may seem a bit redundant, but with only one attack per turn, connecting with the target is crucially important. Another interesting concept is to use Grovel, Cower, and Beg followed by Cunning Action to Disengage and get to safety, letting your party members do the heavy lifting for a turn.
- Updated: Draconic Cry gets you advantage with ease, activating your Sneak Attack whenever you wish. Draconic Sorcery an get you booming blade or green-flame blade, opening up more combat options in battle.
Leonin:
A leonin would make for an interesting rogue build. The bonus to your speed is solid, as is the Darkvision and proficiency to Perception granted by Hunter's Instincts. The Daunting Roar feature would work well on a more "brawler" focused rogue who has a pumped CON and isn't afraid of going toe-to-toe with baddies.
Lineage:
- Dhampir: Rogues are pretty single ability dependent, meaning they will have plenty of ASIs to pump their CON after maxing out their DEX. This, combined with the rogue's battlefield mobility and tendency to be in the fray can make Vampiric Bite a solid ability for self healing and ensure you hit on sneak attacks.
- Hexblood: A free casting of disguise self is every rogue's dream. The additional utility and a free casting of hex helps make this class a decent pick up for a rogue.
Lizardfolk:
Rogues are desperate for DEX which is sorely lacking here. However, rogues are always happy to get more skill proficiencies to play with and Natural Armor will eventually give you a huge AC when DEX is maxed out.
Loxodon:
No DEX hurts, and nothing else the loxodon offers is exciting for a rogue outside of Loxodon Serenity and CON. Plus, it’s pretty hard to be stealthy when you’re a 7-foot tall elephant-man.
Minotaur:
Rouges need DEX to be effective, although the free proficiency in either Intimidation or Persuasion is okay.
Orc:
DEX is simply too good to consider a STR Rogue without multiclassing.
Orc (2024):
Unfortunately, Orcs have a key overlap with the Rogue's abilities: Dashing as a Bonus Action. Rogues love to use their Cunning Action to Disengage, Dash, and offhand attack, so you won't be using the Orcs premiere ability all that often. The survivability and extended Darkvision are good, but Rogues should look for a more synergistic choice.
Plasmoid:
If used properly, plasmoids can make for incredibly sneaky rogues. They can fit through small cracks and use their pseudopod to open doors or reel in Tiny objects. This, combined with Darkvision, the ability to hold their breath for an hour, and some defensive bonuses make plasmoids a great choice for rogues.
Satyr:
Extra movement and Magic Resistance can help mitigate only getting a +1 to DEX.
Shadar-kai:
Unfortunately, rogues are just too bonus action-focused to make the most of the misty steps Blessing of the Raven Queen provides. Whether they're hiding or dashing with Cunning Action, offhand attacking to try to land a sneak attack, using the Steady Aim optional feature, or using a subclass feature, like the Mastermind's Master of Tactics, Soulknife's Psychic Blades, or Thief's Fast Hands, there are too many uses to commit to the shadar-kai's playstyle. All of this combined with the bonus action Disengage option provided by Cunning Action means that there's just too much overlap to make an shadar-kai optimal for rogues.
Shifter:
- Swiftstride Shifter: The swiftstride shifter comes with ideal an ASI spread for a rogue, and the subrace features will make for a highly mobile build on the battlefield.
Simic Hybrid:
Getting to +1 DEX is your best choice for the ability score, though rogues typically prefer being able to +2 DEX as it is their most important Ability Score by far. As a sneaky character, Nimble Climber will make your life a lot easier unless you are going for the Thief subclass which already provides this feature.
Tabaxi:
Tabaxi were basically made to be played with the rogue class. DEX and CHA are exactly what most rogues look for, and the skill proficiencies, climbing speed, and Darkvision all fit in perfectly. With two free skill proficiencies, a tabaxi rogue could easily be proficient in nearly half of the skills. To top it all off, combining the rogue’s Cunning Action to Dash as a bonus action and the tabaxi’s Feline Agility means that a character could move up to 120 feet in a single turn while still able to make an attack!
Thri-kreen:
Thri-kreen offer rogues a lot of benefits. Their armor is a straight AC upgrade, especially with the rogue's DEX, and allows for advantage on Stealth checks. This, combined with Darkvision and telepathy can make for an extremely stealthy baseline rogue build. The thri-kreen's Secondary Arms don't offer a ton of mechanical value beyond being able to open doors and interact with objects while your hands are already full.
Tiefling (2024):
Rogues who aren't investing in a spellcasting ability (Wisdom, Intelligence, or Charisma) and those without spell slots won't find a ton of use for this race. That said, it's an amazing choice for Arcane Tricksters.
Tortle:
Rogues do best with high DEX as they rely on it for pretty much everything, making Natural Armor wasted on this class.
Triton:
Rogues live and die by their DEX score, and sadly Tritons have nothing to offer in that regard.
Vedalken:
Rogues are desperate for DEX which is sorely lacking here. However, Tireless Precision and Partially Amphibious would be great for all the sneaky things rogues get up to if you can stomach losing out on ability scores.
Warforged:
Despite their weak hit dice, rogues have many ways to increase their survivability. The warforged adds even more durability to this slippery character class, namely CON, AC, and the benefits of Constructed Resilience.
Water Genasi:
The water genasi's aquatic abilities could be helpful when you're infiltrating areas with water.
Yuan-ti Pureblood:
Arcane Tricksters are interested in INT, though without DEX a rogue may struggle.
Sources Used in This Guide
- : 2014 Player's Handbook
- 2024 PHB: 2024 Player's Handbook
- BR: Basic Rules
- GotG: Bigby Presents: Glory of the Giants
- SotDQ: Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen
- ERLW: Eberron: Rising from the Last War
- EEPC: Elemental Evil Player’s Companion
- EGtW: Explorer’s Guide to Wildemount
- FToD: Fizban's Treasury of Dragon
- GGtR: Guildmasters' Guide to Ravnica
- MotM: Monsters of the Multiverse
- MToF: Mordenkainen’s Tome of Foes
- MOoT: Mythic Odyessys of Theros
- PAitM: Planescape: Adventures in the Multiverse
- PHB: Player's Handbook
- SAiS: Spelljammer: Adventures in Space
- SCoC: Strixhaven: A Curriculum of Chaos
- SCAG: Sword Coast Adventurer’s Guide
- TCoE: Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything
- TTP: The Tortle Package
- WBtW: The Wild Beyond The Witchlight
- : Unearthed Arcana
- VRGtR: Van Richten's Guide to Ravenloft
- VGtM: Volo's Guide to Monsters
- XGtE: Xanathar’s Guide to Everything
Other Rogue Guides
- Rogue 5e Overview
- Best Feats for Rogues
- Rogue Subclasses Overview
- Inquisitive
- Swashbuckler
- Arcane Trickster
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