The Ultimate Skyrim Follower Tier List 2024: Ranking Every Companion from S-Tier to D-Tier

In the vast, untamed wilderness of Skyrim, a hero's journey is rarely a solitary one. The province is home to over fifty unique potential followers, each offering a distinct presence alongside the Dragonborn. These companions are far more than mere pack mules or hired blades; they are integral to shaping the player's entire experience in Tamriel.

Choosing the right ally is a critical decision that profoundly impacts gameplay on multiple levels. A companion's combat specialty—be it a heavily-armoured tank, a stealthy archer, or a powerful mage—directly dictates tactical options and overall effectiveness in battle.

Beyond mere statistics, a follower's personality, personal quests, and moral alignment are pivotal for role-playing immersion. A virtuous paladin will openly scorn a life of crime, while a cynical rogue might applaud a deftly picked pocket. This dynamic interaction breathes life into the world, making the choice of who stands at your side a defining element of your story.

Understanding Skyrim Follower Ranking Criteria

Followers in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim are evaluated through a well-established set of criteria. These criteria balance raw power with practical utility and personal preference.

Combat Effectiveness and Level Caps

The primary ranking factor is combat effectiveness. This is determined by a follower's base stats, skill proficiencies, and level cap. A follower like J'Zargo (The College of Winterhold) is consistently S-Tier because he has no level cap, meaning his power scales infinitely with the player's. His developing Destruction magic skills make him exceptionally potent.

Utility and Specialized Abilities

Beyond pure damage, utility functions are a critical differentiator. Followers provide invaluable services such as increased carry capacity. Specialized abilities add significant strategic value, such as:

• Faendal's (Riverwood) skill in Archery, which can train the player.
• A follower's innate capacity to detect and disarm traps.

Personality Versus Performance

This creates a common personality-versus-performance trade-off. A follower like Mjoll the Lioness (Riften) is highly valued for her essential status (cannot be killed) and robust combat skills. However, her incessant dialogue can become a drawback for some players.

Conversely, a utilitarian mercenary like Jenassa (Whiterun) may offer less personality but reliable performance.

Multifaceted Excellence

The most elite followers excel in multiple categories. Serana (Dawnguard DLC) is universally considered top-tier due to her unique, advanced AI package. She can raise the dead and use both frost and restoration magic strategically, combined with her essential status and deeply integrated storyline.

This multifaceted excellence establishes a clear hierarchy. It separates mere pack mules or cannon fodder from truly indispensable companions who enhance the Dragonborn's journey through both might and utility.

S-Tier Companions: The Undisputed Champions

Within the vast roster of Skyrim followers, three consistently rise to the top as S-Tier companions. Their standing is due to unparalleled combat prowess, unique mechanics, and near-flawless utility.

Serana (Dawnguard DLC)

As a pure-blood Daughter of Coldharbour, Serana is arguably the most powerful companion by design. Her advanced AI package allows her to intelligently wield a devastating arsenal of high-level vampire spells.

• She frequently summons undead, including a powerful Death Hound or a Frost Atronach.
• Offensively, she employs Ice Spike and the exclusive Vampiric Drain.
• Her Reanimate Corpse spell provides a persistent third ally.

Unlike most mages, she is a true spellsword, capable of engaging in melee when necessary. Her essential status ensures she cannot be killed, making her a reliable partner for the most dangerous encounters.

Mjoll the Lioness

Mjoll's primary claim to fame is her essential status. This makes her one of the few permanently unkillable base-game followers—a massive advantage for players seeking a permanent tank. She is a master of Heavy Armor and Two-Handed weapons, capable of wading into the thick of combat and drawing aggression away from the player.

Her high base health and stamina, combined with her preferred gear, make her incredibly durable. Her cheerful and morally upright disposition, coupled with her immortality, secures her position as a fan-favorite warrior.

Frea (Dragonborn DLC)

What Frea may initially lack in raw power, she makes up for with a high level cap. As a Skaal Warrior, her combat skills have a level cap of 60; they will continue to improve alongside the player until reaching this limit.

• She is proficient in One-Handed weapons, Light Armor, Alteration, and Restoration.
• This makes her a versatile and dynamic damage-dealer.

Furthermore, she possesses a unique resistance to many magical effects and cannot be knocked down by shouts like Unrelenting Force. This scaling ensures she remains a potent and relevant force from mid-game through the highest-level adventures.

A-Tier Companions: Exceptional Battle Partners

While S-Tier followers represent the pinnacle of raw power, the A-Tier is populated by exceptionally skilled specialists. Their unique builds offer immense value, albeit with specific limitations. Cicero, Aela the Huntress, and Teldryn Sero are prime examples.

Cicero

Cicero stands out as one of Skyrim's most unique companions. As an essential (unkillable) NPC, his value for players seeking a permanent follower is immense. His combat specialization is pure assassin: he wields a dagger and possesses a skill level of up to 90 in Light Armor, One-Handed, and Sneak. This makes him devastating in ambush scenarios.

However, his focus on stealth and light weaponry leaves him vulnerable in prolonged, direct melee engagements against heavily armored foes. This is a weakness not shared by more versatile S-Tier tanks.

Aela the Huntress

Aela is the archetypal archery companion. As an Expert-tier Archery trainer, her Archery skill can potentially reach high levels, allowing her to deliver massive ranged damage throughout the game. She also possesses the Ranger perk, enabling her to fire arrows faster while moving.

Her critical weakness is her level cap of 50. While formidable at this stage, she is eventually outscaled by followers with no cap, who continue gaining health and stamina indefinitely.

Teldryn Sero

Teldryn Sero, a spellsword for hire in Raven Rock, offers remarkable versatility. He combines proficient one-handed combat with a robust arsenal of Destruction and Conjuration spells, notably summoning a Flame Atronach. His level cap of 60 allows him to remain relevant for a significant portion of the game.

Teldryn's strength is his ability to adapt to ranged and melee threats. However, his jack-of-all-trades nature means he doesn't excel in any single area to the supreme degree an S-Tier follower can.

B-Tier Companions: Reliable but Situational

Within Skyrim's follower tier list, B-Tier companions are defined by their reliability in specific contexts. They are, however, hampered by notable flaws that prevent broader excellence. This tier is populated by steadfast housecarls, the Circle brothers Farkas and Vilkas, and most dedicated mages.

Housecarls

The housecarls awarded for thanehood, such as Lydia or Iona, are the quintessential B-Tier followers. Their primary strength is a uniform, maximum-level proficiency in heavy armor and one-handed weapon skills. This makes them exceptionally durable and consistent melee tanks.

However, this is also their limitation. They lack any specialization or unique perks, rendering them highly effective yet ultimately generic combatants with no utility outside of drawing enemy aggression.

Farkas and Vilkas

Farkas and Vilkas of the Companions represent a unique case. Their immense value lies in their ability to train the player in Heavy Armor and Two-Handed, respectively, up to skill level 90. This utility is unparalleled.

As followers, however, their effectiveness is inconsistent. Despite their warrior reputations, their base stats are not min-maxed for combat, often making them less durable in practice than a well-equipped housecarl.

Dedicated Mages

Finally, mage followers like Marcurio or Illia exemplify the situational nature of B-Tier. Their high-damage spells can decimate opponents from range. Yet, their AI pathing and spell selection are profound liabilities.

• Their area-of-effect spells frequently cause catastrophic friendly fire.
• They cannot be outfitted with custom staves or enchanted gear to direct their spell choices.

This leaves their powerful but unpredictable offense as both their greatest asset and their most dangerous flaw.

C-Tier and D-Tier: Niche Picks and Bottom Barrel

The C and D-Tiers are reserved for companions chosen for novelty, aesthetic, or completionist purposes. These followers, including specific animal followers and certain Creation Club additions, are plagued by fundamental design flaws.

Defining Flaws of Low-Tier Followers

The primary issues defining these tiers are:

• Severe level caps, often as low as 10 or 20, making them obsolete within hours of gameplay.
• Poor AI that sees them frequently stuck in the environment or failing to engage enemies.
• A complete lack of unique perks or useful abilities.

A quintessential example is the Skeleton Dog from the Creation Club's "Pets of Skyrim." While thematically amusing, it is moderately effective in a fight, dealing moderate damage and dying instantly to any Area-of-Effect spell or shout.

Niche and Annoying Companions

Similarly, the Nix-Hound, another Creation Club addition, is almost universally criticized for a single, immersion-breaking flaw: its incessant, metallic screeching due to a known bug. The creature produces a loud, clanging noise with every single step it takes, a jarring sound that quickly grates on the player's nerves (though community patches exist to fix this).

These followers are not designed to be competitive choices. They are novelty picks, curiosities for a single, themed playthrough, or silent (or, in the Nix-Hound's case, very loud) mannequins to carry extra loot.

Conclusion: Finding Your Perfect Skyrim Travel Partner

Ultimately, the "best" follower in Skyrim is a deeply personal choice. It is heavily dependent on your character's playstyle and your own preferences as a player.

Matching Playstyle to Follower

For the magic-wielding Dragonborn, the vampiric Serana is an unparalleled partner. She offers powerful ranged destruction spells and invaluable necromancy. For warriors who wade into the thick of combat, the stalwart Mjoll the Lioness is an ideal tank, boasting essential status and a relentless, aggressive approach.

Stealth archers, meanwhile, will find a kindred spirit in Aela the Huntress. Her mastery of the bow and supportive Beast Form perfectly complement a covert playstyle.

DLC Advantage and Personal Preference

A clear trend is that followers introduced in the Dawnguard and Dragonborn DLCs, like Serana and Frea, generally possess more depth. They often have unique dialogue and superior combat effectiveness than their vanilla counterparts.

However, raw power is not the sole consideration. A follower's personality, personal story, and the chemistry they share with the player often outweigh pure statistical advantages. A follower you enjoy traveling with will always enhance the adventure more than a min-maxed mercenary.

Therefore, the optimal strategy is to experiment. Recruit different companions and venture into the wilds of Skyrim with them. The best choice seamlessly blends practical effectiveness with your personal enjoyment, creating a memorable partnership that defines your journey through Tamriel.