Tier lists
How we rank races for each spec
Each spec's Races tab ranks every race that spec can be, best first. Every spec is ranked on the same rubric, one for PvE and one for PvP. That rubric is here, once.
In PvE
Forecast. Rated from the client data and our research, before anyone has played it at this level on this build. Where the data stops, the write-up says what it assumed. Rated as of , builds 1.60.1.70450 and 1.60.1.70532.
For each of the 28 specs, every race that can play it, ranked against each other for that spec: what the race's racials give it in PvE, leveling 1 to 60 and then in dungeons and raids at 60. It answers one question per spec: which race should I pick for it?
A tier says how far a race trails the best race for the same spec, never how it compares with another spec's races: an S 
Dwarf Protection 
Warrior and an S 
Undead Fire 
Mage are each the best for their own spec. The best race of every spec is S. Each spec also says how much the choice matters: on some specs the best and worst races are a few percent apart, on others one racial decides it.
The scores are the racials' worth on fixed anchors (1 to 5). The tier comes from the weighted score's gap to the spec's best: 5 minus 1.5 times the gap, against the thresholds, so S is within 0.50 of the best and F more than 1.83 behind.
The racials are rated from their tooltips and the client's numbers; none has been measured in play. The percentages are estimates, and no racial is worth more than about 3% of a spec's output, so a damage spec's races are often close and its pick is a matter of a few percent.
Where a racial answers something a spec cannot do without, the gap is larger: 
Stoneform for a tank, a mana return for a healer, a fear break for a melee spec. Those specs say race matters a lot.
| Criterion | Weight | What it measures |
|---|---|---|
| The spec's job | 55 | What the racials add to what the spec is for at 60: damage for a damage spec, healing and mana for a healer, survival and threat for a tank. 5: about 3% or more of the spec's output, or one racial the role leans on most fights (a tank's Stoneform, a healer's large mana return). 3: about 1 to 1.5%, or a role racial that helps on some fights. 1: nothing that adds to the spec's job. |
| Survival and utility | 25 | Racials that keep this spec alive or help its group, beyond its main job: removing or ignoring a common danger (fear, poison, disease, curse, stun), a damage cut, a threat drop, an interrupt or stun the spec lacks. 5: helps on most fights. 3: one racial that helps on some fights. 1: nothing. |
| Leveling and downtime | 20 | Makes leveling this spec quicker or easier: less eating and drinking, more health, speed, a strong solo cooldown. 5: a large help throughout. 3: helps a little, or helps some of the levels. 1: nothing. |
What each tier means
The tiers compare the races of one spec, not one spec with another.
- S 0.50 or less behind the best
- The best race for this spec, or as good as makes no difference.
- A 0.83 or less behind the best
- A little behind the best; a fine pick if you prefer it.
- B 1.16 or less behind the best
- Behind the best, but nothing you will notice most nights.
- C 1.50 or less behind the best
- Clearly behind the best on what this spec needs.
- D 1.83 or less behind the best
- Well behind the best; pick it for other reasons.
- F more than 1.83 behind
- The furthest behind for this spec.
What the ratings assume
- Racials as of the stated build: the client's tooltips, cooldowns and numbers, after the 15–16 Oct racial rework.
- The spec played as its class guide sets it out, in its usual group role at 60, and leveled as that spec.
- Gear: leveling gear, then pre-raid blues at 60.
- No Legacy perks and no world buffs.
- Faction is not rated. Both factions' races sit on one scale, and each spec names the best pick on each side.
- The game rules of the stated build. A patch that changes a racial makes a new version.
In PvP
Forecast. Rated from the client data and our research, before anyone has played it at this level on this build. Where the data stops, the write-up says what it assumed. Rated as of , builds 1.60.1.70450 and 1.60.1.70532.
For each of the 28 specs, every race that can play it, ranked against each other for that spec in PvP: what the race's racials give it at level 60 in open-world fights and battlegrounds, against players of similar level and gear. It answers one question per spec: which race should I pick for it in PvP?
A tier says how far a race trails the best race for the same spec, never how it compares with another spec's races. The best race of every spec is S. Each spec also says how much the choice matters.
The scores are the racials' worth on fixed anchors (1 to 5). The tier comes from the weighted score's gap to the spec's best: 5 minus 1.5 times the gap, against the thresholds, so S is within 0.50 of the best and F more than 1.83 behind.
The racials are rated from their tooltips and the client's numbers; none has been measured in play, and diminishing returns on control in this build are not yet confirmed.
A break from the control a spec suffers most weighs most: a stun break for a melee spec that must stay on its target, a fear break for a spec that can't answer fear itself. Where a spec already has its own answer, the racial is worth less to it.
| Criterion | Weight | What it measures |
|---|---|---|
| Breaks and escapes | 30 | Racials that free this spec from the control it suffers most. 5: an on-use break from a whole family of control (all stuns, or all fears and charms) on a cooldown of 2 to 3 minutes, or an always-on cut to control that works every fight. 3: a break for a narrower family (roots and slows, or one effect type such as curses or poisons), or one that only partly fits how this spec is controlled. 1: nothing. |
| Burst | 25 | Racials that raise this spec's damage (or a healer's healing) against players in its burst window. 5: about 10% or more, lined up with its own cooldowns, or an always-on gain the spec uses fully. 3: a smaller gain, or one the spec only partly uses (a physical bonus on a mostly spell spec). 1: nothing. |
| Defensives | 25 | Racials that keep this spec alive against players. 5: one that turns a losing fight: a large damage cut or immunity on use, more health, or healing in combat that a player can't stop. 3: a small or narrow one: a few % cut against one school, a small health or dodge gain, a heal that damage interrupts. 1: nothing. |
| Mobility and detection | 20 | Tools that win fights outside the numbers. 5: an area stun or interrupt the spec lacks, stealth or stealth detection that changes its fights, a lasting speed boost that works in combat. 3: one such tool, or several small ones (a short sprint, a safe fall). 1: nothing. |
What each tier means
The tiers compare the races of one spec, not one spec with another.
- S 0.50 or less behind the best
- The best race for this spec, or as good as makes no difference.
- A 0.83 or less behind the best
- A little behind the best; a fine pick if you prefer it.
- B 1.16 or less behind the best
- Behind the best, but nothing you will notice most nights.
- C 1.50 or less behind the best
- Clearly behind the best on what this spec needs.
- D 1.83 or less behind the best
- Well behind the best; pick it for other reasons.
- F more than 1.83 behind
- The furthest behind for this spec.
What the ratings assume
- Racials as of the stated build: the client's tooltips, cooldowns and numbers, after the 15–16 Oct racial rework.
- The spec in a PvP-minded build, as its class's open-world PvP research sets it out.
- Gear: pre-raid blues. No honor gear yet.
- Opponents of any class and race, so a racial is worth what it does against the whole field, not one matchup.
- Faction is not rated: population, queue times and which faction's classes are stronger are not part of the score. Each spec names the best pick on each side.
- The game rules of the stated build. A patch that changes a racial makes a new version.
Each class's best races: its guide's Races tab, from every class.