D&D 5e Point Buy Calculator

How D&D 5e Point Buy Works

Point buy is one of the official ways to generate ability scores in Dungeons & Dragons 5th edition, alongside rolling dice or using the standard array. Every ability starts at a base of 8, and you spend points from a shared pool — 27 points by the core rules — to raise each score up to a maximum of 15 before racial bonuses are applied. Unlike rolling, every character built with the same budget ends up with genuinely comparable power, which is why a lot of tables use it by default.

The catch is that the cost per point isn't flat — pushing a score from 13 to 14 costs more than pushing it from 9 to 10, so point buy rewards spreading points out somewhat rather than maxing a single stat.

How to Use This Calculator

Enter the six ability scores you're considering, each between 8 and 15. The calculator adds up what they cost under the standard point buy table and compares it to your budget — 27 by default, though some tables use a different number, so adjust it if your DM allows a variant.

How We Calculate It

Each score maps to a fixed cost from the Player's Handbook point buy table: scores of 8 through 13 cost 0 through 5 points one-for-one, but 14 costs 7 points and 15 costs 9 — the last two points each cost double. We total the cost across all six abilities and subtract it from your budget to show what you have left, or how far over you've gone.

Score	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15
Cost	0	1	2	3	4	5	7	9

A Few Notes

This calculator uses the standard 5e point buy table and default 27-point budget from the Player's Handbook. Some settings or DMs use variant budgets or house rules — for example, allowing scores down to 6 or up to 16 before racial bonuses — so treat the default range here as the common case, not a universal rule, and adjust the point budget field if your table plays differently.