Clash Royale Heroes: how to unlock them and which are best
A Hero form costs 200 Hero Coins, which you get from the free side of Pass Royale. You can choose which Hero to unlock. Heroes go in the Hero slot (from Arena 5) or the Wild slot (from Arena 10), and each has an ability that costs extra Elixir.
Heroes at a glance
- Hero slot
- Arena 5
- Wild slot
- Arena 10
- Cost to unlock
- 200 Hero Coins
- Hero Coin limit
- 200
- Heroes in a deck
- Up to 2
How Heroes work
A Hero is a version of a normal card with an ability, like a Champion's. In battle, the ability button appears above your hand while the Hero is alive, and using it costs Elixir. Since the 4 August 2026 balance update, every Hero ability is single use.
Your deck has three special slots: one Evolution slot, one Hero slot (from Arena 5) and one Wild slot (from Arena 10) that takes either. Champions share the Hero and Wild slots, so you can run two Heroes, or a Hero and a Champion.
How to unlock a Hero
- Collect Hero Coins from the free side of Pass Royale.
- Pick the Hero. Since the March 2026 update you choose which Hero form to unlock.
- Spend 200 Hero Coins. Like a Wild Card, Hero Coins fill the whole cost in one go.
- Put it in your Hero or Wild slot and upgrade the base card as normal. The Hero uses that card's level.
Hero Boxes were removed in February 2026. Some wiki pages still mention older ways of getting Heroes, so check the Pass Royale and Shop screens in game for the current season.
Video: all 18 Heroes ranked (November 2026)
Ranking All 18 Heroes from WORST to BEST (November 2026) by Vlakx. The video loads from YouTube only when you press play.
All 18 Heroes, ranked by this week's Ranked results
RoyaleAPI, Ranked, last 7 days (retrieved 3 November 2026). Ability costs are from the Clash Royale Wiki. The two newest Heroes aren't listed there yet.
| Hero | Rating | Win rate | Usage | Card Elixir | Ability Elixir |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Electro Wizard | 55 | 52% | 7% | 4 | – |
 Ice Wizard | 55 | 52% | 9% | 3 | – |
 Goblins | 54 | 52% | 2% | 2 | 1 |
 Barbarian Barrel | 54 | 52% | 4% | 2 | 1 |
 Mega Minion | 52 | 51% | 3% | 3 | 2 |
 Bowler | 52 | 51% | 6% | 5 | 2 |
 Giant | 52 | 51% | 3% | 5 | 2 |
 Balloon | 50 | 50% | 4% | 5 | 2 |
 Berserker | 50 | 50% | 2% | 2 | 3 |
 Dark Prince | 49 | 50% | 3% | 4 | 3 |
 Tombstone | 47 | 49% | 2% | 3 | 5 |
| Mini P.E.K.K.A | 47 | 49% | 9% | 4 | 1 |
 Knight | 47 | 49% | 9% | 3 | 2 |
 Ice Golem | 45 | 48% | 2% | 2 | 2 |
 Valkyrie | 43 | 48% | 10% | 4 | 3 |
 Musketeer | 43 | 48% | 3% | 4 | 3 |
 Magic Archer | 43 | 48% | 1% | 4 | 2 |
 Wizard | 40 | 47% | 3% | 5 | 1 |
See where Heroes sit among all cards on the tier list.
Which Hero to unlock first
- A Hero for a card you already play and have levelled. The Hero uses the base card's level, so a high-level card makes a strong Hero straight away.
- Check usage as well as rating. A Hero with high usage (this week: Valkyrie, Ice Wizard, Mini P.E.K.K.A, Knight) fits lots of decks, so it's a safer unlock.
- Remember the ability cost. A 1-Elixir ability (Goblins, Barbarian Barrel, Mini P.E.K.K.A, Wizard) is easy to fit into a cycle deck. Tombstone's 5-Elixir ability needs a slower deck.
Try a Hero in the deck builder, or copy one of the best decks.
Common mistakes
- Holding 200 Hero Coins. That's the cap, so any more you earn are wasted until you spend them.
- Unlocking a Hero for a card you never use.
- Firing the ability straight away. It's single use, so save it for when it swings a fight.
Sources
- Clash Royale Wiki: Heroes
- Clash Royale Wiki: Magic Items (Hero Coin)
- RoyaleAPI: popular cards (Ranked, last 7 days)
Checked 3 November 2026. Supercell, Century Games and Lilith change these games often. If something in game disagrees with this page, trust the game and let us know through the contact page.
FAQ
How do you get Hero Coins in Clash Royale?
From the free side of Pass Royale. 200 Hero Coins unlock one Hero form, and you can hold 200 at most, so spend them before the next batch arrives.
Can you choose which Hero you unlock?
Yes. Since the mid-March 2026 update you pick the Hero, rather than getting a random one.
How many Heroes can be in a deck?
Up to two: one in the Hero slot and one in the Wild slot. Champions use the same slots, so you can also run one Hero and one Champion.
How do you upgrade a Hero?
Like its base card: with cards and Wild Cards of that card's rarity. Unlocking the Hero doesn't change the card's level.
Related
- CR guidesClash Royale guides: how to get Evolution Shards, how Heroes and Hero Coins work, and beginner tips that win more games.
Tier listClash Royale tier list for November 2026 from a week of Ranked games: every card, Evolution and Hero ranked with win rate and usage.- Evolution ShardsHow Card Evolution works, every way to get Evolution Shards and Wild Shards, and which Evolutions are winning the most Ranked games this week.
- Deck builderFree Clash Royale deck builder: average elixir, 4-card cycle, this week's card win rates and the closest top decks, then copy it into the game.