Clash of Clans upgrade priority

Clash of Clans upgrade priority in one line: upgrade what makes everything else faster first, so the Laboratory, army capacity, Clan Castle and heroes, then new buildings and splash defences. Below: why, and what is new at every Town Hall.

Last updated 3 November 2026

The short answer

After a new Town Hall, upgrade whatever makes everything else faster first: the Laboratory, then your army capacity and Clan Castle, then heroes, and keep heroes going the whole time. New buildings and splash defences come next, traps fill the gaps, and walls take your spare resources. The rest of this page explains why, and lists exactly what changes at each Town Hall from 10 to 18 using numbers from the game files.

Upgrade order after a new Town Hall

Laboratory, on day one. Research is one-at-a-time and it is the only queue you can't add workers to. Start the Lab upgrade the moment the Town Hall finishes, and never let it sit idle.
Army: Army Camps, Clan Castle, Spell Factories. More housing space and a bigger Clan Castle make every single attack stronger, which means more loot for everything else. They are short upgrades compared with defences.
Heroes, non-stop. Heroes are the longest chains in the game. A hero that falls behind is the most common reason a Town Hall drags on. Keep at least one, ideally two, upgrading at all times.
Storages (only if you need them). Upgrade storages when the next upgrade costs more than you can hold. Otherwise they can wait.
New buildings and splash defences. Anything new at your Town Hall starts at level 1 and gives the biggest jump in defence per day of builder time. Splash and area defences stop more attacks than single-target ones.
Point defences and traps. Traps are cheap and quick, so use them to fill builder gaps between long upgrades. Point defences come after the big splash damage.
Walls with whatever is left. Walls are instant and don't need a builder, so they soak up spare Gold or Elixir when every builder is busy.

Why this order works

Think of your village as three production lines: builders, the Laboratory and the Pet House. Builders can be multiplied (five huts, B.O.B as a sixth, the Apprentice), the other two cannot. So the Lab and Pet House set a minimum time for every Town Hall, and you want them running from the first hour.

Builders are the opposite problem: you have lots of them, but the jobs are very uneven. A single hero chain can be longer than every defence combined. If you leave the longest chains until the end, one builder finishes weeks after the others. Starting the longest jobs first keeps all builders finishing at roughly the same time. Our upgrade planner does this calculation for your own levels.

Offence before defence is about loot. Every attack you win pays for upgrades, and a stronger army wins more often. Defences only matter when you are attacked, and at higher Town Halls most bases get three-starred by strong attackers anyway.

Adjust it to how you play

Farmers: Move storages and Gold Mines/Collectors earlier, keep your army cheap and fast to train, and push walls whenever you are close to full storage.
War and CWL players: Move heroes, Clan Castle, Eagle Artillery, Scattershots and your Town Hall's newest defences earlier. Matchmaking weights offence, so a rushed defence hurts less than a rushed army.
Trophy pushers: Prioritise hero levels and the defences that protect your Town Hall core. Legend League attacks reward strong heroes above everything else.

What changes at each Town Hall

For every Town Hall from 10 to 18: what is new, what gets higher caps, and how long it takes. Times are totals of every upgrade, from "previous Town Hall maxed" to "this Town Hall maxed", before any boosts.

Town Hall 10 upgrade priority

Builders: 118d 7h of building work plus 57d 10h of hero upgrades. Laboratory: 66d 12h. The longest single builder chain is the Barbarian King (23d 18h), so start it in your first week. New at TH10: Inferno Tower.

Heroes

Barbarian King: level 30 → 40
Archer Queen: level 30 → 40
Minion Prince: level 10 → 20

Defences

Cannon: level 11 → 13 (+1 more)
Archer Tower: level 11 → 13 (+1 more)
Wizard Tower: level 7 → 9
Air Defense: level 7 → 8
Mortar: level 7 → 8
Hidden Tesla: level 7 → 8
X-Bow: level 3 → 4 (+1 more)
Inferno Tower: new, up to level 3
Air Sweeper: level 5 → 6
Bomb Tower: level 3 → 4 (+1 more)

Traps

Bomb: level 6 → 7
Spring Trap: level 4 → 5
Air Bomb: level 4 → 4 (+1 more)
Giant Bomb: level 3 → 4 (+1 more)
Seeking Air Mine: level 2 → 3 (+1 more)
Skeleton Trap: level 3 → 4 (+1 more)

Army buildings

Army Camp: level 7 → 8
Barracks: level 11 → 12
Laboratory: level 7 → 8
Clan Castle: level 5 → 6
Spell Factory: level 4 → 5
Dark Barracks: level 6 → 7
Dark Spell Factory: level 4 → 5
Blacksmith: level 2 → 3
Hero Hall: level 3 → 4

Resources

Elixir Collector: level 12 → 13
Gold Mine: level 12 → 13
Dark Elixir Drill: level 6 → 7

Troops

Barbarian: level 6 → 7
Archer: level 6 → 7
Goblin: level 6 → 7
Giant: level 6 → 7
Wall Breaker: level 5 → 6
Wizard: level 6 → 7
Dragon: level 4 → 5
P.E.K.K.A: level 4 → 6
Minion: level 5 → 6
Hog Rider: level 5 → 6
Valkyrie: level 4 → 5
Golem: level 4 → 5
Witch: level 2 → 3
Lava Hound: level 2 → 3
Bowler: level 1 → 2
Baby Dragon: level 2 → 4
Miner: level 1 → 3

Spells

Lightning Spell: level 6 → 7
Healing Spell: level 6 → 7
Jump Spell: level 2 → 3
Freeze Spell: level 2 → 5
Poison Spell: level 3 → 4
Earthquake Spell: level 3 → 4
Haste Spell: level 2 → 4
Clone Spell: level 1 → 3
Skeleton Spell: level 1 → 3
Bat Spell: level 1 → 3

Town Hall 11 upgrade priority

Builders: 168d 8h of building work plus 86d 20h of hero upgrades. Laboratory: 87d 12h. The longest single builder chain is the Barbarian King (30d), so start it in your first week. New at TH11: Eagle Artillery, Tornado Trap, Grand Warden.