Elden Ring AR Calculator & Weapon Scaling Explained

Attack Rating (AR) is a weapon's total damage output — physical plus any elemental damage types it deals — after your stats, affinity, and upgrade level are factored in. It comes from two parts: the weapon's base damage at its current upgrade level, plus a scaling bonus determined by your stats and the weapon's scaling grades (E through S) for each stat it uses.

Scaling Grades, Explained

Every weapon lists a scaling grade for each stat it benefits from. Higher grades convert more of your invested stat points into bonus damage.

Scaling grade → relative bonus
Grade	Relative weight	What it means
S	1.60×	Exceptional scaling — rare, usually on a weapon's signature stat
A	1.10×	Strong scaling, close to S-tier value
B	0.70×	Solid, dependable scaling
C	0.45×	Moderate scaling — noticeable but not a priority stat
D	0.25×	Weak scaling, minor bonus from the stat
E	0.12×	Negligible scaling, barely worth investing in
—	0×	No scaling — the weapon doesn't use that stat at all

A weapon with an S grade in Dexterity turns Dexterity investment into far more AR than the same points would give a weapon with a D grade in Dexterity — which is why picking a weapon that matches your build's main stat matters more than raw base damage.

How Affinity Changes Scaling

Affinity (Standard, Heavy, Keen, Quality, Fire, Cold, Blood, Occult, and others) reshapes a weapon's scaling grades and sometimes adds a new damage type or status effect. Heavy shifts scaling toward Strength, Keen shifts it toward Dexterity, and Quality balances both — so the same weapon can favor a completely different stat depending on which affinity you apply. Elemental affinities like Fire or Cold typically remove some scaling from your primary stat in exchange for flat elemental damage or a status buildup, which is why they're strongest on builds that don't invest heavily in Strength or Dexterity anyway.

Two-Handing Math

Two-handing a weapon multiplies your effective Strength by 1.5× for both scaling and requirement checks — capped at an effective 99 Strength. It's the single biggest free AR boost available on a Strength-scaling weapon, since it works exactly like adding real Strength points without spending any runes on the stat.

Upgrade Levels

Standard weapons scale from +0 to +25; somber weapons scale from +0 to +10. Both base damage and the effectiveness of your scaling grades increase with upgrade level, so an underupgraded weapon will underperform its scaling grades suggest — always compare AR at your actual upgrade level, not a weapon's theoretical maximum.

Compare two weapons side-by-side at your exact stats, affinity, and upgrade level:

Open the AR Calculator

AR Calculator FAQ

What does AR mean in Elden Ring?

AR stands for Attack Rating — the total combined damage a weapon deals across all its damage types (physical, magic, fire, lightning, holy) after your stats, upgrade level, and affinity are applied. It's the single number most players use to compare weapon damage output.

What affinity gives the highest AR?

It depends on which stat your build invests in most. Heavy affinity maximizes Strength scaling, Keen maximizes Dexterity scaling, and Quality balances both — so the highest-AR affinity is whichever one lines up with your build's dominant stat. Elemental and status affinities (Fire, Blood, Cold, and similar) usually trade some raw AR for an extra damage type or status buildup.

Does two-handing increase AR?

Two-handing doesn't add a flat AR bonus by itself — it multiplies your effective Strength by 1.5 for scaling and requirement purposes. That higher effective Strength can push you further up a weapon's Strength scaling curve, which is what actually raises the AR number.

What's the difference between standard and somber upgrades?

Standard weapons upgrade from +0 to +25 using Smithing Stones. Somber weapons — a smaller pool that includes most legendary, boss, and unique-style weapons — upgrade from +0 to +10 using Somber Smithing Stones instead. Both tracks raise base AR and scaling similarly relative to their max level.

Elden Ring AR Calculator & Weapon Scaling

Scaling Grades, Explained

How Affinity Changes Scaling

Two-Handing Math

Upgrade Levels

AR Calculator FAQ

More Elden Ring Guides