Dark Souls 3 has a lot of customization when it comes to builds. The most important part of your build besides your weapon is what Rings you choose to equip. You can only have 4 Rings equipped at once, and each one can give you bonuses like more defense or even boosts to your damage. There are 116 Rings in the game, and we will review which ones are the best.
We have 20 Rings on this list that will help with defense and buffs. Not every Ring on this list will pertain to your build, but these are the Rings that give the most bonuses for stat-boosting. Each one can be easily found, and they are all important in some way or another.
We know that not all Rings on this list will be liked by everyone, so if we didn’t put your favorite Rings on this list, then too bad. Each of these Rings is great, and their bonuses are worth having them equipped. It is up to you to determine which ones you want to use.
1. Life Ring
Location: Can be selected as a Burial Gift during character creation. It can be bought from the Shrine Handmaid in the Firelink Shrine for 1500 souls after acquiring the Dreamchaser’s Ashes.
The Life Ring is one of the most important Rings you can use when you start a brand new character. Yes, it is not the greatest Ring, but you can start with it if you choose it as your Burial Gift.
It increases your HP by 7%, which is a lot once you start leveling up your Vitality stat. Every single upgrade will give you more and more health.
If you don’t choose it as your Bur Gift, you can buy it from the Shrine Handmaid after you get the Dreamchaser’s Ashes. It is annoying to find, but if you explore enough, you won’t have that much of an issue locating it. It is the best Ring to start your playthrough off with.
2. Estus Ring
Location: Found at the bottom of the Tower on the left side of the Firelink Shrine. Requires the Tower Key, sold by the Shrine Handmaid in Firelink Shrine for 20,000 Souls.
This is the best ring you can find at the beginning of your playthrough. You can’t make it your Burial Gift, but it is not super hard to get. It increases HP restored from your Estus Flasks by 20%. This also stacks with your Bone Shard upgrades, so it is worth getting.
You will need about 20,000 Souls to get into the tower where it is located, but you get a bunch of stuff, including this Ring, when you get inside. If you have a lower Bonfire level, equip this Ring because you will heal more when you use your Estus Flasks.
3. Chloranthy Ring
Location: Found in Undead Settlement. After defeating the Demon alongside Siegward of Catarina, scale the nearby building and exit onto the adjacent tower by jumping from the roof. Maneuvering down the tower, the ring will be located under several wooden boxes near the Mirrah Armor Set.
Stamina is the most important stat to level up because you will need a lot to get through the game without rage quitting. You will realize pretty early on how important it is, so when you finally find this Ring; you will be guaranteed to equip it immediately. It boosts your Stamina recovery speed.
Who doesn’t want more stamina when fighting a boss or going through an extremely annoying area? You will need a ton of Stamina to get through Farron Keep, which is poisonous. More stamina means getting through it faster. If you do find it, make sure to use it if you need more Stamina.
4. Havel’s Ring
Location: Soul Transposition using the Soul of a Stray Demon. A +1 version can also be found in Archdragon Peak. Go back down the steps from the altar that gives you the Twinkling Dragon Torso Stone. The ring is to the right of the doorway.
If you enjoy the series, this Ring is a must-have. You are missing out if you have played all the Dark Souls games and don’t know who Havel is. He is a massive knight with super heavy armor. He also has a massive club that he can turn to rock. This Ring is based on him. He wears this Ring so that he can carry all that heavy armor.
This Ring increases your maximum equip load by 15%, which is huge if you want to use a heavy armor set. You must defeat the Stray Demon above Farron Keep and use the soul to transpose it into the Ring. Try not to use the Boss Souls until you check out what each gives you.
5. Ring of Favor
Location: Defeat Sulyvhan’s Beasts near Archdeacon McDonnell. A +1 version can also be found in the Pontiff Sulyvahn’s bonfire room but is located upstairs. It can be accessed by the shortcut in the room or by taking the path around.
This is by far our favorite Ring in the game. It gives you a boost in health, stamina, and equipment load. It is the perfect Ring if you want to maximize the number of buffs you get from your Rings.
This Ring has no downside since it doesn’t get destroyed when removed like in Dark Souls 1. The buffs aren’t as good as in the other games, though.
It is a great Ring to get, and the game has even better versions. We only put the location of the basic Ring, but you can look up where to get the + versions of the Ring if you also want those. If you want an all-around great Ring, this one is a no-brainer.
6. Prisoner’s Chain
Location: Soul Transposition using Soul of Champion Gundyr.
Similar to the Ring of Favor, this one gives you a boost in multiple areas. It will increase your health, stamina, and equip load, and it will also decrease damage by 4% from any enemy or boss. This is a great Ring to pair with the Ring of Favor because every bonus stacks with one another. It does take a little bit to get.
You will have to defeat Champion Gundyr to get this Ring, but believe me; it is worth going through the optional area to get it.
You will have to defeat the Dancer and Oceiros to even fight Champion Gundyr, but his fight is one of the best in the entire game, so it is worth doing. You also will get access to one of the optional endings to the game.
7. Ring of Steel Protection
Location: Found in the boss arena where you fight the Ancient Wyvern. After entering through the fog gate, head up the stairs until you locate the bell. Then proceed to the right, downstairs. There are three items lying on the ground. Next to the items is a thin ledge that players can walk along. At the end of the path is the ring.
This is another Ring you won’t get until later in your playthrough. It is another optional area, but it is worth going to it. You will need to go to Archdragon Peak.
You can find the Ring among random objects near the Ancient Wyvern fight. It is not an easy Ring to get, but it helps defend against every attack by decreasing physical damage.
8. Speckled Stoneplate Ring
Location: Found on a corpse in Smouldering Lake, behind a destructible wall on the other side from which you enter. Lure a ballista shot to break the wall apart.
This Ring is a mix of all the elemental absorption Rings. If you have the individual Rings, it will help more against specific elemental attacks. Each absorption has been lessened with this Ring, but the upside is that it helps with all 4 elements.
It is a great Ring if you always want to have it equipped. Otherwise, use the individual Rings. Even those are worth getting.
9. Fleshbite Ring
Location: Found in the Grand Archives, near the top floor of the building just beyond the area with a balcony overhead and multiple Scholars, there will be a set of bookcases to the right of the stairs, which lead you to the room. The ring will be located in the corner past the Clawed Curses.
You need this ring if you are dying a lot of specific debuffs. It helps against Poison, Bleed, Frost, and Curse by adding 40 points to your resistance. Even if you don’t struggle against them, having an extra defense against them is nice.
It is a great Ring to use if you want to trudge through a poisoned area or go through Smoldering Lake with the Curse Frogs. It is a must-have for those situations.
10. Covetous Gold Serpent Ring
Location: Found next to Siegward of Catarina when he is trapped in Irithyll Dungeon.
If you want to farm for specific items from enemies, this is a necessary item to have. It is not super hard to get. You need to find it in Irithyll Dungeon, and we don’t think you have to follow Siegward’s questline to get it.
It is not necessary if you want to have it equipped, but if you need that extra boost to your Discovery trait, it is definitely worth getting.
11. Covetous Silver Serpent Ring
Location: In a chest behind an illusory wall at the top of Firelink Shrine. Located behind Picklepum’s indoor nest.
You can get this Ring after you get to the Firelink Shrine. It is a ring you should equip before doing anything in the game because you get more Souls from every enemy you defeat.
If you want to level up faster, this is a ring you must put on. You also have a ton of room for it since you probably don’t have any other Rings when you finally get it.
12. Ring of the Sun’s First Born
Location: In Irithyll of the Boreal Valley. From Pontiff Sulyvahn’s room, head back towards the railing and fall straight onto the altar below.
If you are into Miracles in the game, this is a very good Ring. It boosts your Miracle damage by 20%, which is massive if you use it as your main weapon.
You can stack this with similar Rings, and it will just give you the boosts you need to get that extra damage output. You can get this Ring after defeating Pontiff, so don’t expect to get it early in your playthrough.
13. Dusk Crown Ring
Location: Located in the Irithyll Dungeon. The ring is in a cell beside the open area with six patrolling Jailers.
Using this Ring has pros and cons because you lose 15% of your HP when you have it equipped. The plus is that your FP consumption is reduced by 25%.
This is a huge deal for magic users because you can use your FP Flasks less often meaning more uses for your weapons. If you are playing a Mage build and aren’t using this Ring, you should equip it.
14. Ring of the Evil Eye
Location: Obtained when Anri relocated to the Church of Yorshka. A +1 version can be found just before the Deacons of the Deep fight, at the back of the altar.
This Ring is good for pretty much any build in the game. It is a life-steal Ring. It will give you 30 HP for every enemy you defeat. This is massive if you are going through an area with many enemies. It is not the best option for boss fights, but it is one of the best Rings for exploration.
You basically can’t die if you can defeat a bunch of enemies and it will also save you from using up all your Flasks quickly.
15. Flynn’s Ring
Location: Looted from a corpse on the top of a roof at Undead Settlement: In the area where you fight the Fire Demon with Siegward of Catarina.
This is a very good Ring that most people don’t know about. It is extremely good since it boosts your attack power by 15%. It also lowers your equipment load by a little bit as well. It isn’t better than Havel’s Ring regarding the equipment load, but that extra attack boost is the part that you should focus on with this Ring.
It is worth the detour to get this item, and Siegward’s questline is also one of the best in the game. However, you don’t have to follow his quest to get this item.
16. Red Tearstone Ring
Location: Facing away from the Dragonslayer Armour Boss, to the left, there is an elevator. Beside the elevator is a door to the balcony. Follow the balcony to the right to find this ring.
This is a Ring that a lot of speedrunners use. It increases all damage outputs by 20% if your health is lower than 20%. Many speedrunners will purposefully let themselves get below that health percentage so they can get that extra boost in attack. It is a fun Ring to use, but it is not that useful if you will heal a lot.
If you use it, make sure you know what you are doing because it can get really difficult if you are in low health and don’t know the moves of the enemy you are fighting.
17. Lloyd’s Sword Ring
Location: On a corpse inside the Cathedral of the Deep, near the entrance on a ledge next to the Giant who attacks you when running by.
This is similar to the Tearstone Ring but is almost the opposite. It gives you a boost in attack rating if you are above 99% health. It is the opposite because to lose the attack boost, you will have to get hit once and won’t have it anymore. Of course, it is not as good as the previous Ring, but if you are good at dodging, either one is a good pick.
It depends on how comfortable you are on both sides of the spectrum. Are you willing to stay at total health or drain your health for a bonus?
18. Wood Grain Ring
Location: Purchased from the Shrine Handmaid after Easterner’s Ashes is turned in.
One very annoying part of the Dark Souls series is how all weapons are durable. This Ring increases your weapon durability by 20%, keeping your weapon from breaking. Thankfully, your weapons don’t go away when they break because you can fix them.
You can fix them by going to Andre the Blacksmith or resting at a Bonfire if it isn’t fully broken. This Ring will help keep your weapon intact, so you don’t have to spend Souls to fix them.
19. Farron Ring
Location: Acquired by talking to Hawkwood after defeating the Abyss Watchers.
If you use Skills on your weapons, this Ring is a must-have. The skills aren’t as in-depth as in something like Elden Ring, but they are helpful. This Ring reduces your FP consumption while using skills which means you can do more damage without using up your FP Flasks more quicker than normal.
You need to watch your FP, and this Ring will help drain it slower so you can get more attacks out. Just ensure you have enough FP Flasks in your inventory unless you will have difficulty getting through the fight.
20. Hornet Ring
Location: Found in Untended Graves, behind a Black Knight standing guard where the Starved Hound is found at the Firelink Shrine.
This is a great Ring if you have Riposte or Backstab a lot. It is also a great Ring for those who like to Parry. It will boost all those attacks by 30%, which is massive if you do it a lot. It can be found in the Untended Graves right before you fight Champion Gundyr. It is a good Ring to get if you do Critical Damage moves a ton.