Bows have long been treated as an afterthought in Elden Ring, often shelved in favor of flashier weapon types. Yet those who give these ranged tools a fair chance will find real reward hiding behind the string. In this Elden Ring Bow Tier List, we rank every bow weapon in version 1.17 Tarnished Edition, pair each with a working build setup, and point out when a particular pick shines over the rest.
Elden Ring Bow Tier List 2026
Best Bow Weapons & Builds in 1.17 Tarnished Edition
Bows in Elden Ring 1.17 give you a projectile attack that costs no FP, which keeps the game forgiving since you can hang back at a safer distance, pick enemies apart, and swap between every damage type and status effect by rotating arrow stacks. The game splits bows into three categories: light bows that fire quickly and support jumping shots, rolling shots, and horseback use; medium bows that trade speed for extra damage and range while pairing well with skills like Rain of Arrows, Barrage, and Mighty Shot; and greatbows that hit the hardest, send smaller foes flying, and host some of the best Ash of War options in the game. The DLC added a few new entries that fit nicely alongside status arrows, Storm arrows, and the Radahn's Spears passive buffs, giving builds like quality archery a real identity. With that quick setup done, let's move into the actual tier list and look at each bow in detail along with its recommended build.
1. Ansbach's Longbow (S Tier)
Ansbach's Longbow sits at the top of the list and basically carries any bow build in the DLC. It is technically a medium bow with some of the lowest damage in its class, yet it shares the exact same moveset as a light bow. That means you get the jumping attack into landing attack combo, strong rolling attacks, and a fast fluid feel while retaining medium bow damage and range. The real draw is its Ash of War, Barrage Fire-Off (Fan Shot), which fires eight arrows at once for only 11 FP. Pair it with the Shard of Alexander, Arrow's Sting Talisman, Arrow's Reach Talisman, and the Divine Beast Tornado Talisman alongside Stormwing Bone Arrows, and you can routinely dump 1,500+ damage per volley. Status buildup stays the same at any range, and it staggers hard. The only reasons it misses pure S tier approval are the bad scaling late into New Game Plus and the eight arrows consumed per shot, which drains ammunition fast.
Build Setup:
Stats: Quality build with roughly 54 Strength and 43 Dexterity (the Dex requirement is high for this bow)
Talismans: Shard of Alexander, Arrow's Sting Talisman, Arrow's Soaring Sting Talisman, Enraged Divine Beast Talisman
Armor: Rakshasa's Set for the 2% per piece damage boost, Divine Beast Helm for extra storm damage
Arrows: Stormwing Bone Arrow for Fan Shot bursts, plus bleed and sleep arrows as swap options
2. Lion Greatbow (S Tier)
The Lion Greatbow is the top pick among greatbows for pure boss shredding. Its unique skill, Radahn's Rain, is a juiced version of Rain of Arrows that fires roughly 50% more projectiles, which melts large bosses even faster when they're pinned under a ceiling or in tight corridors. Pairing it with Radahn's Spears unlocks a 20% damage buff, and running a second Lion Greatbow on the back stacks the passive even further. The downsides are a higher FP cost per cast of the skill and the price of Radahn's Spears, so a solid Mind investment helps.
Build Setup:
Stats: Quality split with heavy Strength investment (around 60 Str / 25 Dex), plus 25 Mind for consistent skill use
Talismans: Shard of Alexander, Arrow's Sting, Arrow's Soaring Sting, Great-Jar's Arsenal
Armor: Rakshasa's Set for stacking damage, Lord of Blood's Exultation for bleed boost
Arrows: Radahn's Spears as the primary projectile for the passive buff
3. Golem Greatbow (S Tier)
The Golem Greatbow has the highest raw AR of any bow in the game. For base game sniping, this is the go-to pick, locked with Through and Through, which synergizes beautifully with Golem Arrows to pierce enemies and strike multiple times. It upgrades with somber stones only, hits incredibly hard, knocks enemies flat, and gives you time to reposition between shots. Later in New Game Plus the regular Great Bow with Igon's Drake Hunt can out-damage it, but for sheer early-to-mid game power and accessibility, the Golem Greatbow earns its top three spot.
Build Setup:
Stats: Strength focused around 55-60 Str, 18 Dex
Talismans: Arrow's Sting, Arrow's Soaring Sting, Shard of Alexander, Spear Talisman for counter hits
Armor: Any heavy armor set to maintain poise under return fire
Arrows: Golem's Great Arrows for pierce damage and knockdown setups
4. Greatbow (A Tier)
The regular Great Bow is one of two infusible great bows and the better pick at higher levels thanks to its quality-based scaling. For quality builds that would otherwise lack a seal or staff for ranged options, this weapon fills the projectile gap perfectly. With infusion open, you can slap on Rain of Arrows to melt large bosses, or run Igon's Drake Hunt in New Game Plus for a top-tier sniping tool. Combined with Through and Through access via Golem Arrows, the Great Bow handles so many scenarios it is severely underrated.
Build Setup:
Stats: Quality build at 50 Str / 50 Dex
Talismans: Shard of Alexander, Arrow's Sting, Arrow's Soaring Sting, Ritual Sword Talisman for full HP damage
Ash of War: Rain of Arrows for group fights, Igon's Drake Hunt for single targets
Arrows: Great Arrows, Radahn's Spears for added passive buffs
5. Composite Bow (A Tier)
If you want a primary bow build in the base game, the Composite Bow is the one to grab. You get it right at the start, it weighs almost nothing, and the stat requirements are low. The light bow moveset shines in 1v1 situations where the jumping attack into landing attack combo can be spammed from a safer distance. It accepts infusion, meaning Rain of Arrows works on it for larger boss encounters. Simple, early, flexible, and effective.
Build Setup:
Stats: Dex focused at 40+ Dex, 12 Str
Talismans: Arrow's Sting, Arrow's Soaring Sting, Sharpshot Talisman, Blue Dancer Charm (if light load)
Ash of War: Rain of Arrows or Mighty Shot
Arrows: Mix of bleed, poison, and standard arrows
6. Pulley Bow (A Tier)
The Pulley Bow holds the title of highest damaging medium bow in the game, with boosted range that rivals great bows. It is locked to Mighty Shot, so its role is pure sniping, which great bows do better. Still, with only 11 strength and dex required and very low weight, it slips onto almost any build looking for a lightweight long-range option. If you don't have the endurance for the heavier great bows, the Pulley Bow is the answer.
Build Setup:
Stats: Any build with 11 Str and 11 Dex minimum, Dex scaling preferred
Talismans: Sharpshot Talisman, Arrow's Sting, Arrow's Soaring Sting, Ritual Sword Talisman
Ash of War: Mighty Shot (default)
Arrows: Head shot arrows for free aim sniping
7. Bone Bow (B Tier)
The Bone Bow is a DLC addition and a light bow with lower damage than the Composite Bow, but its unique skill Rancor Shot sets it apart. For 3 FP per shot, it fires rapid arrows with ridiculous tracking that hits mobile enemies consistently at long range. Paired with Stormwing Bone Arrows and the storm-boosting setup, each shot stacks damage quickly. The downside is a post-DLC patch that nerfed status buildup heavily in PVE, so bleed procs with Rancor Shot now take upwards of 60 arrows against basic bosses. Fun to use, especially in invasions.
Build Setup:
Stats: Quality build or Dex focused (40+ Dex)
Talismans: Shard of Alexander, Arrow's Sting, Arrow's Soaring Sting, Enraged Divine Beast
Ash of War: Rancor Shot (unique)
Arrows: Stormwing Bone Arrow for buffed damage, sleep or bleed arrows for status work
8. Black Bow (B Tier)
A medium bow with the lowest damage in its class, but the Black Bow shares much of its moveset with light bows. That means you get the jumping attack into landing attack combos, solid rolling attacks, and a fluid aggressive feel paired with medium bow range and damage. For 1v1 fights, this would be the ideal pick if it weren't for two issues: it cannot be infused and is locked to Barrage, and the DLC's Ansbach's Longbow gives you the exact same moveset with better damage and a vastly superior skill.
Build Setup:
Stats: Dex focused, 40+ Dex
Talismans: Arrow's Sting, Arrow's Soaring Sting, Sharpshot, Blue Dancer Charm
Arrows: Status arrows paired with Barrage for rapid buildup
9. Longbow (B Tier)
The Longbow is an infusible medium bow available right at the beginning of the game. Medium bows generally fall behind light bows for DPS and behind great bows for sniping, so the Longbow sits in an awkward middle ground. Its appeal is convenience: no farming required, low stat demands, and infusion access for Rain of Arrows or Mighty Shot. A decent utility pick for players who want a projectile option without heavy stat investment.
Build Setup:
Stats: Quality build around 40 Str / 40 Dex
Talismans: Shard of Alexander, Arrow's Sting, Arrow's Soaring Sting, Ritual Sword
Ash of War: Rain of Arrows (strong infusion choice)
Arrows: Rot arrows, bleed arrows, frost arrows depending on the fight
10. Albinauric Bow (B Tier)
The Albinauric Bow is the higher damaging infusible medium bow, directly out-damaging the Longbow at every stat spread. The problem is the farm in the Consecrated Snowfield off the Albinauric archers, which is painful. The damage upgrade over the Longbow is not large enough to justify the grind for most players. If you push through, you get the best infusible medium bow in the game.
Build Setup:
Stats: Dex focused build around 50+ Dex
Talismans: Shard of Alexander, Arrow's Sting, Arrow's Soaring Sting
Ash of War: Rain of Arrows or Mighty Shot infusion
11. Misbegotten Shortbow (C Tier)
The Misbegotten Shortbow is another infusible light bow that scales best off strength and delivers the highest damage in its class. The catch is the worst range of any short bow, and since bows suffer heavy damage falloff, that short range causes other short bows, especially the Composite Bow, to out-damage it in actual combat. Fine as an early game pick, but outclassed in practice.
Build Setup:
Stats: Strength focused, 50+ Str
Talismans: Arrow's Sting, Arrow's Soaring Sting, Spear Talisman for counter hits
Arrows: Standard and status arrows for close range work
12. Erdtree Bow (C Tier)
The Erdtree Bow is a faith-based medium bow with split holy damage. When paired with Golden Arrows and a faith build, it can post respectable numbers thanks to the holy damage scaling off faith as well. Its best use is clearing catacombs and dungeons full of skeletons without burning FP. However, holy damage is widely resisted in the base game, and faith builds already have plenty of holy spells for the same job. The lack of infusion hurts its ceiling.
Build Setup:
Stats: Faith focused at 50+ Faith
Talismans: Arrow's Sting, Arrow's Soaring Sting, Sacred Scorpion Charm
Arrows: Golden Arrows for the holy aura buff
13. Erdtree Greatbow (C Tier)
The Erdtree Greatbow follows the same template as the Erdtree Bow but in great bow form. Faith scaling with split holy damage, synergy with Golden Arrows for a 20% damage boost, and bonus utility against enemies weak to holy. If it could be infused with Rain of Arrows, it would be a wrecking ball against the Death Birds and other holy-weak targets. As is, it is niche. Mighty Shot is its only skill, which caps its potential.
Build Setup:
Stats: Faith focused at 50+ Faith
Talismans: Arrow's Sting, Arrow's Soaring Sting, Shard of Alexander
Arrows: Golden Great Arrows for maximum Holy damage
14. Igon's Bow (D Tier)
Igon's Bow is a DLC newcomer and sits in the infusible great bow category. It gets a better strength scaling than the regular Great Bow, but the regular Great Bow's quality scaling with even minor dex investment pulls ahead at the levels where you naturally acquire Igon's. For a pure strength great bow, the Golem Greatbow does more damage. For infusion builds that want Rain of Arrows, the Lion Greatbow's Radahn's Rain outperforms it. The result is a weapon without a clear niche.
Build Setup:
Stats: Strength focused at 55+ Str
Talismans: Shard of Alexander, Arrow's Sting, Arrow's Soaring Sting
Ash of War: Rain of Arrows infusion
15. Horn Bow (D Tier)
The Horn Bow is a split-magic medium bow, so it always deals a bit of magic damage regardless of the arrow fired. Its intelligence scaling is weak, so even on an int build the damage bump is minor. Paired with magic arrow buffs, it can push into the highest damaging medium bow territory, but int builds already have plenty of sniping spells, which cuts into its practical use.
Build Setup:
Stats: Intelligence focused at 50+ Int
Talismans: Magic Scorpion Charm, Arrow's Sting, Arrow's Soaring Sting
Arrows: Magic Arrows and Magic Great Arrows
16. Serpent Bow (D Tier)
The Serpent Bow is technically a medium bow, though its tiny size would suggest a light bow would have been more fitting. Damage is among the lowest in its class, it cannot be infused, and it is locked to Mighty Shot. The Arcane scaling only boosts status buildup, not raw damage. It gives a bonus 15 poison per shot, but regular poison does so little damage over time that higher-damage bows with poison arrows usually net more total output. For status proccing at range, there are better options.
Build Setup:
Stats: Arcane focused at 50+ Arc, with Dex for damage
Talismans: Kindred of Rot's Exultation, Arrow's Sting
Arrows: Poison arrows, serpent arrows
17. Shortbow (D Tier)
The Shortbow is an infusible light bow with quality-based scaling that just doesn't hold up. At higher levels it performs worse than other infusible light bows, and it is outclassed by the Composite Bow in nearly every scenario. Its only saving grace is availability at the start of the game, giving quick access to the light bow moveset. Put two more points into strength and the Composite Bow becomes the clear upgrade.
Build Setup:
Stats: Quality build, 25 Str / 25 Dex minimum
Talismans: Arrow's Sting, Arrow's Soaring Sting, Sharpshot
Arrows: Standard arrows for early game
18. Red Branch Shortbow (F Tier)
The Red Branch Shortbow is an infusible short bow that scales best off dexterity, yet it loses to the Composite Bow in almost every way. The Composite Bow weighs half a unit more but is available immediately, deals more damage, and only has a slightly higher strength requirement that nearly every build already meets. Add in an annoying farm for the Red Branch, and there is basically no reason to pick it.
Build Setup:
Stats: Dex focused at 40+ Dex
Talismans: Arrow's Sting, Arrow's Soaring Sting
Arrows: Status arrows for utility
19. Harp Bow (F Tier)
Sitting at the bottom is the Harp Bow, the lowest damaging bow in the entire game. It is a short bow that cannot be infused and is stuck with Barrage, which is fine but works on nearly every other bow. The Harp Bow is slightly lighter with lower requirements, but the gap is not large enough to justify the terrible damage, especially since you pick it up later in the game.
Build Setup:
Not recommended for serious builds; keep it as a lightweight secondary at best
Bows will never top the DPS charts, but with the right setup they can carry you through the hardest fights in the DLC. Ansbach's Longbow and the Lion Greatbow define the ceiling of what archery can accomplish in version 1.17, while the Composite Bow and Great Bow remain the most flexible all-rounders for players who want simple access and solid output.
For pure bow builds, lean into quality stats so you can wield Ansbach's Longbow's 43 dex requirement while keeping strength high for great bows. Stack the Arrow's Sting Talisman, Arrow's Reach Talisman, Shard of Alexander, and situational picks like the Sharpshot Talisman for free aim or the Divine Beast Tornado Talisman for storm arrow builds. Pair all of that with the Rakshasa's armor set to squeeze out extra damage per shot, since arrow counts are limited per encounter.
Try Ansbach's Longbow with Barrage Fire-Off at least once, and you'll see why it has become the defining weapon of the bow meta in 2026.
