The 10 best DnD character sheets for different play styles

Without DnD character sheets, there is no Dungeons and Dragons game. Sure, you could try and track your character’s stats and backstory on a napkin, but you’re better off taking notes in the tidy boxes of a tailored Dungeons and Dragons character sheet.

We may sing the praises of Wizards of the Coast’s official DnD 5e character sheet, but this isn’t your only option. Your perfect sheet might be more advanced, more accessible, or even more child-friendly. Whatever you need, we can help you choose the right piece of paper.

This is a major first step for any player, so make sure to choose well. After that, you can start noting down your choice of DnD classes, 5e backgrounds, DnD races, and 5e feats. With your DnD character build nailed, the next step is to grab your DnD dice – and get playing.

These are the best DnD character sheets:

1. Standard DnD character sheet PDF

The original 5e character sheet, recognized by many.

Pros:

• Easily recognizable by most players
• Easy to find free and fillable versions

Cons:

• Can be difficult to read for new players

If you’re only after the standard 5e character sheet, it’s as simple as downloading a DnD character sheet PDF from the resources page on the official Wizards of the Coast website. You can also purchase 20 DnD character sheets and a dedicated folder straight from Wizards of the Coast.

The 5e character sheet bundle contains the basic version, as well as a slightly adapted form in a different format. Both character sheets are printable and usable straight out of the gate. If you’re playing D&D 5e solely online, however, or would prefer not to print, check out the ‘fillable’ PDF version, which lets you type in its contents without spilling any ink.

Speaking of online, virtual tabletops like Roll20 often have their own, built-in DnD character sheets. These are fillable and semi-automated, so there’s minimal work for you to do when leveling up or casting 5e spells and DnD cantrips in combat. There’s also no need to download them at all; they’re saved along with your campaign.

Basic but sufficient, the standard character sheet is likely to meet most people’s needs. It has space for all your character’s DnD stats, as well as two optional pages to record your character’s appearance, events of your adventure, and the list of spells you may learn in the DnD level up process.

If you’re still not impressed, consider D&D Beyond. Not only is it free to use, and inclusive of all 5e material that can be freely accessed under the game’s Open Game License, but its character sheet is interactive.

Every stat can be clicked to bring up an explanatory info panel, and ability rolls or skill checks can be made at the click of a button. It even shares dice scores in a shared log for each of your DnD campaigns, so you check no one’s cheating. And if you do decide to take your roleplaying out of the digital world, D&D Beyond’s character sheets can be exported into fillable PDFs. 

2. Class-specific DnD character sheets

A more personal sheet tailored to your playstyle.

Pros:

• Easily find your character’s important features

Cons:

• Comes at a cost

For a more ergonomic option, check out these class-specific DnD character sheets. They revamp the basic sheet to include additional boxes and panels, specific to each of the game’s classes.

There’s space to record your optional class features as you level up, your pick of subclass, as well as your mandatory abilities, such as the Barbarian 5e class’ Rage. There’s no chaff with these – everything you need to play your chosen class is ready and waiting on the piece of paper in front of you.

Class-specific DnD character sheets do cost, however. But at only $0.50 (£0.40) each or $4.95 (£3.95) for the whole set, they’re not exactly steep. Plus, they’re fully fillable and editable. 

3. Dyslexic-friendly and visually impaired DnD character sheets

A DnD character sheet that makes the game accessible for all.

Pros:

• Easily readable by all
• Available for free

Cons:

• Some sections changed or missing

DnD is at its best when it welcomes everyone to the tabletop, and these accessible sheets do well to encourage that. First up, check out some dyslexic-friendly DnD character sheets, designed by Twitter user Axelle. Here are Axelle’s dyslexic-friendly DnD character sheets.

Intended to be easier to read for those with dyslexia, they’re written in large comic sans, are color-coded, and feature added shapes and icons. They’re also available in German and Italian.

If you’d rather read a character sheet written in the OpenDyslexic typeface (specifically designed to aid the reading of those with dyslexia), consider these character sheets shared on Reddit. Bear in mind that they’re not exact reproductions of the standard sheet, with some boxes changed or missing, but they contain more than the bare essentials.

Those with a visual impairment might be interested in this character sheet on the Dungeon Masters Guild. Free to download, it’s a redesigned character sheet written in Arial Bold, in a large font, with large spacing, and color coding. Again, it’s missing some information, but it contains all the main elements, from DnD races to DnD alignments. 

4. Advanced DnD character sheets

A detailed DnD character sheet for highly experienced players.

Pros:

• Lots of customization
• Covers feats, companions, and more

Cons:

• More difficult to read
• Costs money to use

If you’re a seasoned player who’s bored of combing through DnD books, and after a little more customization, you can’t do much better than an advanced DnD character sheet.

We recommend MorePurpleMoreBetters’ 5e Character Record Sheet (or MPMB, for short). Halfway between a full character builder and a typical recording sheet, MPMB is fully fillable, automated, and has all the optional pages you could want. Fill a page with all the feats you’ve acquired, and companions found, or stick some handy rule references down.

There’s a lot of customization here, including the ability to import your own scripts (or those you pluck from an internet forum) to add more content and functionality. Its automation is the main draw, however. Being able to select a companion, have them automatically added to your sheet with all relevant stats, or generate a complete list of your known spells in an instant is a huge time saver.

This isn’t free, however, and requires a subscription to MPMB’s Patreon page to use. 

5. New player DnD character sheets

A simplified DnD character sheet to help you learn the ropes.

Pros:

• Easy to read
• Includes rules reminders

Cons:

• Less room for advanced features

Character sheets can be overwhelming for fresh-faced adventurers, so new player DnD character sheets are designed to be as helpful as possible. With so many boxes, stats, and roleplaying reminders, it’s easy to become confused by the amount of information sitting before you. Fortunately, there’s a host of character sheets designed for new players, better arranging the information into mechanical groups, and explaining their use.

This free character sheet on the Dungeon Masters Guild is a no-frills document that outlines basic combat rolls and spellcasting for those totally new to the game. This sheet, meanwhile, provides a handy list of the possible player actions you can take in a combat encounter, for those who might forget they can do more than wave their sword about.

Finally, this sheet highlights what a player can do on their turn, and explains what stats you need and rolls you need to make in common situations like combat or healing. Super simple. 

6. 5e character sheet generator

A DnD character sheet that does all the hard work for you.

Pros:

• Easy for newbies

Cons:

• No control over your character

Perhaps you need a character built quickly so a last-minute sub can join your game. Perhaps you just like to put your character’s life in the hands of fate. Whatever your reasons, there are plenty of automated (and even randomized) 5e character sheet generators about.

We’ve already talked about D&D Beyond, but did we mention its character builder had a ‘randomize’ option? You can choose your character’s name level, race, class, and whether feats and multiclassing are on the table. Or you could choose none of these and see what kind of character you get.

For another free generator, try Fast Character for size. This offers some slightly more in-depth customization, and it covers some of D&D’s optional and more advanced rules. It doesn’t appear to support DnD multiclassing, though. 

7. DnD character sheets for children

A DnD character sheet for games with younger players.

Pros:

• Simple and colorful

Cons:

• Wordy in places

D&D can be a great way to spend time together as a family, but younger relatives might struggle with large, wordy character sheets. That’s where DnD character sheets for children come in – one of our favorite examples comes from Emmet Byrne, a creator on the digital D&D marketplace, DMs Guild.

This character sheet is colorful, and it offers plenty of space for a kid’s larger-than-usual handwriting. It even explains your character’s key skills – sleight of hand has never been so simple. On top of this, the character sheet is totally free. 

8. DnD character sheets for towns

Designed for Dungeon Masters who want to build a believable world.

Pros:

• Helps add detail to a game

Cons:

• Complex to fill out and read

This might sound a little unorthodox, but hear us out – there are DnD character sheets for towns, too. This free Towninator character sheet comes from designer Andreas Barbesgaard, who designed it as a storytelling tool that could bring DnD cities and towns to life. You can read more about the town character sheet at Wargamer before you download.

The gist is this – your town has upgradeable stats like Wealth, Order, and Culture. It has specialties it’s known for, important buildings, and memorable NPCs that can all be tracked on the sheet. They can grow as the campaign progresses, and adventurers may even find their relationship with the town and its inhabitants evolving too.

This is quite an in-depth sheet, so you’ll need Barbesgaard’s tutorials to properly fill it out. The complete, up-to-date version of this character sheet also currently costs money – but you can still use the older version for free. 

9. Premium DnD character sheets

A fancy DnD character sheet you’ll want to keep after the campaign ends.

Pros:

• Lots of room for detail

Cons:

• Comes with a premium price

Most of the character sheets we recommend are free, but sometimes you’re looking for something a little more flashy. If you’ve got the cash to splash, you might enjoy a premium DnD character sheet.

If so, here’s our advice: more is more. Don’t stop at a character sheet; invest in a whole character journal.

Character journals give you plenty of room to expand. They can split the cramped 5e character sheet across multiple pages (often with some nice visuals to boot).

They also give you plenty of room to record your inventory, as well as your lovingly crafted backstory. If you’re attached to your character and committed to your campaign, a premium D&D journal can be a nice keepsake after the boss has been defeated.

There are quite a few options out there for D&D journals, but here are a few of our favorites. Everything Dice does a swish-looking journal that looks like a high-end bullet journal. Meanwhile, R-N-W offers a printable character journal for those who can’t wait for shipping, as well as physical copies with a variety of gorgeous covers. You’re looking at spending at least $10 in both cases here, but you did say you were after a premium option.

10. Mobile-friendly DnD character sheets

The fastest way to start playing DnD, no printers needed.

Pros:

• Portable and free

Cons:

• Struggles to present all the important info clearly on a small screen

Sometimes you can’t (or won’t) print a physical DnD character sheet. In those times, you need a solid, mobile-friendly DnD character sheet.

We already recommended D&DBeyond once, and it’s worth mentioning again as its mobile app works pretty well. Plus, if you’re going to be switching from desktop to mobile regularly, it’s handy to have all your character details stored in one place.

If D&DBeyond’s interface is a bit too much, we also recommend Fifth Edition Character Sheet. It’s a free app for iOS and Android that provides a simple but effective sheet for portable play. It’s not quite as polished as D&DBeyond, but it’s easy to pick up and definitely gets the job done.

What goes on my DnD character sheet?

Your DnD Character sheet is where you’ll record everything there is to know about your DnD character, both in terms of their backstory and any gameplay stats you need to know to play them.

This means there’s space to record your choice of races, ability scores, and backgrounds. You can keep a record of what DnD languages your character speaks, as well as the DnD armor and DnD weapons they prefer to use in combat. Oh, and don’t forget to choose an appropriate DnD name.

If you need help filling out a character sheet, the official tutorial video above can help you get started. While it’s designed for the official 5e character sheet, almost all character sheets capture the same information, they just do it in a different way.

If you’ve found your perfect DnD character sheet, now’s a good time to think about what other RPG tools you might want to enhance your game. In-person gamers can spruce up their table with some DnD maps and DnD miniatures. For the DMs out there, a DnD encounter builder can help make campaign planning a breeze.

Source: Wargamer