Night Elf is the best Druid race on the Alliance in WoW Forever, and on the Horde the choice splits: Windshaper Skyborne for damage and Tauren for tanking and PvP. Four races can be Druids, both Skyborne branches among them for the first time, and the October 26 update decided the Horde side when Tauren Endurance went back to 5% Health only. Below, we compare all four races for Balance, Feral, bear tanking and Restoration, for PvP and for leveling, and show how to use each racial in and out of your forms.
A Druid plays four roles, so the best race depends more on the role than for any other class. Damage Druids want crit and Haste, bear tanks want Health and threat on the pull, healers want Mana and cast speed, and everyone wants to move fast in the open world.
The table grades each race on a simple scale: S is the top pick, A is close behind, B gives up a little more. The gaps between races are a percent or two.
| Race | Faction | Key racials for a Druid | Damage | Tank | Healing | PvP | Leveling |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Night Elf | Alliance | Elune's Light, Shadowmeld, Quickness | S | S | A | A | A |
| High Order Skyborne | Alliance | Wind Blessed, Read Leyline | A | B | S | B | A |
| Windshaper Skyborne | Horde | Wind Blessed, Skysight | S | B | A | B | A |
| Tauren | Horde | Endurance, War Stomp, Plainsrunning | B | S | A | S | S |
Every race and class combination is in our WoW Forever races and classes chart.
The Alliance has two Druid races, Night Elf and High Order Skyborne. Night Elf covers damage and tanking, while High Order Skyborne is the stronger healer.
Night Elf is the default Alliance Druid. Elune's Light adds 10% critical strike chance to all spells and attacks for 15 seconds every 3 minutes, and since healers and damage over time can crit in Forever, it helps every role. In Cat Form it fits your Tiger's Fury burst, and in Bear Form it gives you more Rage from crits and a threat lead on the pull. Quickness adds 1% dodge, 2% movement speed and makes you harder to spot in Prowl, and Shadowmeld makes enemies stop attacking you when used in combat.
High Order Skyborne is the healer's pick. Read Leyline raises Health and Mana regeneration by 50% for 15 seconds, more if you cast it at a leyline, and Wind Blessed adds 2% Haste to every Rejuvenation, Regrowth and Wild Growth cast. Balance Druids short on Mana like it too. One limit: Read Leyline cannot be used while Innervate is on you. The race also needs the Skyborne Heroic Pack or a higher edition.
Both Skyborne branches are covered in our WoW Forever Skyborne race guide.
The Horde also has two Druid races, Windshaper Skyborne and Tauren. Since the October 26 update, Windshaper Skyborne leads for damage, while Tauren stays the pick for tanking and PvP.
Windshaper Skyborne took the Horde damage spot after the October 26 update. Wind Blessed adds 2% Haste to every Wrath, Starfire and Cat Form swing, and Tauren has no damage racial left. Skysight adds movement speed in the open world, more if you cast it at an elemental convergence. In PvP the race has no defensive button.
Tauren is the bear and PvP pick. Endurance adds 5% Health, which grows with the Health bonus of Dire Bear Form, and War Stomp stuns up to five enemies for 2 seconds every 90 seconds. Plainsrunning builds up to 60% movement speed on foot before your first mount. It drops when you stop or take damage, so it helps more while traveling than in a fight.
The best Druid race depends on your role. This section sums up the picks, so you can go straight to your own plan.
Night Elf and Windshaper Skyborne lead. Elune's Light lines up with your Starfire burst, and Wind Blessed speeds up every cast. High Order Skyborne is close behind for Balance Druids who run out of Mana.
Night Elf leads the Alliance: Elune's Light adds crit to every Shred and Ferocious Bite, and Shadowmeld can drop threat in a raid. On the Horde, Windshaper Skyborne is the damage pick with 2% Haste on every swing.
Tauren and Night Elf are the best tanks. Tauren is the sturdiest with Endurance and War Stomp, Night Elf holds the most threat with Elune's Light on the pull and 1% dodge from Quickness. Our WoW Forever tank tier list ranks every tank class.
High Order Skyborne leads the Alliance with Read Leyline for Mana. On the Horde, Windshaper Skyborne and Tauren are close: Haste speeds up Wild Growth, which now has a 3-second cast, while Tauren is sturdier in PvP. Night Elf heals fine too, since heals can crit.
Tauren leads the Horde with War Stomp, a stun no other Druid race has. Night Elf leads the Alliance with burst from Elune's Light, extra speed from Quickness and Shadowmeld to break targeting. Both Skyborne branches trail in PvP.
Tauren levels fastest thanks to Plainsrunning, which you can keep up between quests before your first mount and before Travel Form. Night Elf and both Skyborne branches follow with Quickness, Skysight and Read Leyline.
The fastest route to 60 is in our WoW Forever Druid leveling guide.
Blizzard reworked every race in the October 15 beta build and made a final pass on October 26, with cooldown changes added on October 27. These are the changes that moved the Druid rankings.
No racial changed in the class hotfixes of October 30 and 31, but Druid talents did: Feral lost Berserk and gained Lacerate, Shifting Power has an 8-second cooldown, and Wild Growth now has a 3-second cast. Every racial with exact numbers is in the tool below.
All class and racial changes are collected on our WoW Forever patch notes page.
A Druid shifts between roles more than any class, so it pays to know which racial helps where.
Every form and its changes are covered in our WoW Forever Druid forms guide.
These guides cover the rest of the Druid class and race choice for every class.
These are the questions players ask most about choosing a Druid race.
Night Elf on the Alliance. On the Horde, Windshaper Skyborne for damage and Tauren for tanking and PvP.
Night Elf and High Order Skyborne on the Alliance, Tauren and Windshaper Skyborne on the Horde.
Skyborne for damage, since Wind Blessed adds 2% Haste and Tauren has no damage racial. Tauren for bear tanking and PvP, thanks to Endurance and War Stomp.
Yes. Elune's Light adds 10% crit to all spells and attacks, and heals can crit in Forever, so it helps Restoration Druids too.
High Order Skyborne on the Alliance for the Mana from Read Leyline. On the Horde, Windshaper Skyborne and Tauren are close.
No. The gap between the races is a percent or two, far less than gear, talents and how well you switch forms.
