What are the best survivor perks in Dead by Daylight?

Not all perks are created equal. In fact the perks range from being completely useless to ultimate game changers. But how do you know which ones are the best? The following are the top 10 Survivor perks in Dead by Daylight.

(Each perk has a Tier system that affects parts of the perk’s stats. The numbers represent Tier I/Tier II/Tier III.)

Perk Score is based on how much it helps the well-being of the Survivor versus the negative effects (if there are any). The time that it is useful also affects the score.

10. We'll Make It

Available to everyone.

Dwight struggles for his life on the hook as his injuries worsen, hoping help will come soon.

Getting hooked is never good. And even after you , you are still injured. For most Survivors, after they are unhooked, their is to heal up, it is harder for the Killer to find and down them. With “We’ll Make It” equipped, you can unhook a fellow Survivor and get a boost in healing.

The Stats: For each you unhook, you gain an additional 25/50/100% speed increase to healing up to a maximum of 100% for 30/60/90 seconds.

In Good Hands: The perk is especially useful for altruistic players ready to help everyone survive. If you are usually the one doing the rescuing and healing, use this perk to boost your stats.

Just Remember: This perk only applies to those that unhook the Survivor, so stay alert and make sure the others know you are going to rescue the hooked Survivor. Also, do not be too anxious to heal. The Killer is alerted when you unhook someone and may be on their way. Follow the injured Survivor or make sure they are following you to a secluded corner to heal them. After you , if you are near any other injured Survivors, take time to heal them too, especially when you have Tier III equipped.

For those who are : The 1.9.3 Patch made it to where “We’ll Make It” now alerts the rescued Survivor if their rescuer has the perk. If you get this notification, stick to your rescuer.

Perk Score: 79/100

9. Dead Hard

Unique to David King until Level 35

David’s heart beats furiously as he launches himself through a window.

A tough guy, eh? Ready to take a beating? “Dead Hard” makes it dead hard to get put into a dying state when you use it. When you are injured, you feel the rush of adrenaline as it propels you forward and away from the Killer.              

The Stats: After you press the Active Ability button while running, you dash forward. During this dash, you cannot take damage. After, however, the perk causes “exhaustion” for 60/50/40 seconds. This effect will prevent you from using another sprint-inducing perk. Exhaustion will not recover while you are running. The duration of the dash is stated as 0.5 seconds and the movement speed curve peaks at 250% of the Survivor’s base running speed.

In Good Hands: If you are someone who struggles with stealth, really likes playing the role of the distractor, or you just want to make sure you aren’t downed easily, and you end up getting chased a lot, this perk is right for you. This perk helps you get the upper hand in a chase and gives you time and a speed boost to create distance between you and the Killer. Think of all those times the Huntress downs you with a hatchet, or the Hag injures you and then you trigger her trap.

Just Remember: Activating “Dead Hard” will remove the Survivor’s hit-box during the dash. So, you can run through a bear trap without getting caught. If you are playing against the Nurse, use it against her post-blink lunge to avoid damage and force her to fatigue. Do not use it too soon because the Nurse can counter it with another blink.

Perk Score: 80/100

8. Iron Will

Unique to Jake Park until Level 30

Jake Park begins the game, ready to face the dangers ahead with an “Iron Will.”

So you have escaped the Killer but not without some injuries? Grit your teeth and rub some dirt on it. Your cries of pain are giving you away! Use your “Iron Will” to numb the pain and stifle your grunts.

The Stats: You reduce the grunts of pain caused by your injuries by 50/75/100% at any time. (“While Standing Still” requirement for Tier I and Tier II was patched out in 2.3.0)

In Good Hands: If you haven’t unlocked “Self-Care” or are not confident that you will find others to heal you, “Iron Will” makes it more difficult for the Killer to find you while you are still injured. Some Killers rely on sounds to track a Survivor they have lost. You eliminate this form of tracking with “Iron Will” and can become undetectable by sounds you make while injured.

Just Remember: “Iron Will” does not work while in the Dying State. Also, the perk can be countered by a Killer perk “Stridor.” Even if they can’t hear your cries, they can still see the scratch marks where you ran and, yes, you are still visible. Have a good plan of escape or a way to hide where they won’t find you, or the perk becomes useless.

Perk Score: 80/100

7. Deliverance

Unique to Adam Francis until Level 35

The Spirit approaches a hook with Adam. It’s only a matter of time before Adam unhooks himself.

No good deed goes… unrewarded? That’s not how that goes, but in the case of “Deliverance,” it is true.

The Stats: After you perform a safe hook rescue on another Survivor, “Deliverance” activates. You now have a 100% chance to unhook yourself during an escape attempt.

After you successfully escape, “Deliverance” triggers the “Broken” status effect for 100/80/60 seconds. This status effect means you cannot be healed.

In Good Hands: Because of the duration of “Broken,” Deliverance is not higher up on this list. While the escape is OP, you are vulnerable for a considerable amount of time. The perk is also pretty situational, and things need to line up for its success. If you are hooked before you rescue someone, this perk is obsolete.

Just Remember: You can only unhook yourself if you have performed a safe hook rescue on someone else. A safe hook rescue means that the rescued Survivor is able to make a clean getaway. Therefore, you cannot be the first to be hooked, and you need to make sure that when you rescue someone, the Killer is not chasing after you.

Perk Score: 81/100

6. Lithe

Unique to Feng Min until Level 35

Ace vaults over a pallet effortlessly to get away from the Trapper.

Quick as a tiger, quiet as a mouse, “Lithe” makes it easier for you to make a fast getaway during a chase.

The Stats: After performing a vault, you break into a sprint at 150% of your normal running speed for a maximum of three seconds. After the sprint is finished, “exhaustion” is activated for 60/50/40 seconds.

In Good Hands: Vaulting through windows and over pallets is a great way to break the Killer’s line of sight. Add in the speed boost from “Lithe,” and you can put some distance in between you and the Killer.

Just Remember: This perk only activates when you are in a chase so pay careful attention to where the Killer is. You can become an escape artist when “Lithe” is paired up with some other perks. “Lithe” works well with “Dance with Me” and “Quick & Quiet” to help you escape the Killer without providing any indication as to where you are at. If you are a fan of vaulting off of high places, keep in mind that the fall time and landing stagger will reduce your overall speed benefit. “Balanced Landing” will partially alleviate this issue.

Perk Score: 81/100

5. Adrenaline

Unique to Meg Thomas until Level 40

The Killer approaches as the Exit Gates power up, and the Adrenaline kicks in.

You live for this feeling. Your heartbeat quickens and your body tenses as “Adrenaline” courses through your veins. You are so close to tasting the sweet, sweet victory of a successful escape.

The Stats: When the Exit Gates are powered, you instantly heal one health state (Dying state to Injured, Injured to Healed) and sprint at 150% of your normal running speed for 5 seconds. After the 5 seconds, “exhaustion” sets in for 60/50/40 seconds.

In Good Hands: “Adrenaline” is an easy way to get an edge on the end game. IT also ignores any “exhaustion” caused by other perks and will wake you up if you are asleep when it triggers.

Just Remember: Do not relax or give up because you are in a state where “Adrenaline” cannot help you. If the Exit Gates are powered while a Survivor is on a hook or being carried by the Killer, “Adrenaline” will apply after they are unhooked, dropped by the Killer, or escape the Killer's grasp. Also, you will not be healed if you are being affected by “Broken,” but you will get the speed boost.

Perk Score: 83/100

4. Borrowed Time

Unique to William “Bill” Overbeck until Level 35

Bill limps away from a hook, ready to save a hooked Survivor with “Borrowed Time.”

With “Deliverance,” you only want to perform safe hook rescues so your perk can be activated. However, there are cases where you need to perform a quick save as the Killer approaches, which isn’t safe. But what if the Killer goes for the unhooked Survivor, and your save actually gets them killed? No survivor will be left for dead when you are around with “Borrowed Time.”                            

The Stats: For 15 seconds after you unhook a Survivor within the Killer’s Terror Radius, any damage to the unhooked Survivor will instead trigger a bleed-out timer for 15/20/25 seconds. When the bleed-out timer ends, or the unhooked Survivor sustains damage during the timer, the unhooked Survivor will be downed.

In Good Hands: This perk is good for quick saves when the Killer has excellent map awareness. If you cannot distract the Killer from the recently unhooked Survivor, you still give the hooked Survivor one last chance to save themselves.

Just Remember: If you are caught by a bear trap while under the effects of the bleed-out timer, and then you are freed, you will return to the injured state. Though the bleed-out tier gives the Survivor a chance to get away, if it looks like they won’t escape, use that time to distract the Killer.

Perk Score: 84/100

3. Decisive Strike

Unique to Laurie Strode until Level 40

Laurie watches Michael, She's not afraid of him because she isn't helpless, She can fight back.

Laurie Strode has always been a Survivor. She has fought against Michael countless times. Take a page out of her book, stop hiding, and fight back! It’s best to avoid getting hooked at all. Each time you are hooked, you are one step closer to your death and losing the game. Therefore, it is useful to wiggle out of the Killer’s grasp before they can hook you. But wiggling takes a bit of time and is virtually impossible against an efficient Killer. So “Decisive Strike” gives you the opportunity to fight back with more power and gives you a better chance of escaping.

The Stats: If you are the Killer’s “obsession,” you can perform a skill check once per trial when you are in the Killer’s grasp. If you succeed in the skill check, you automatically escape the Killer’s grasp and stun them for 3/3.5/4 seconds.

If you are not the “obsession,” you can still succeed a skill check to escape the Killer’s grasp once the wiggle meter has reached 45/40/35%.

In Good Hands: This perk allows you one “do-over” after getting caught by the Killer. In theory, you can get hooked by the Killer up to 3 times, but it could be less. So it is incredibly important to avoid getting caught at all. This perk helps you escape and stuns the enemy for a short amount of time. But it is enough time for you to get away.

Just Remember: If you are not the “obsession,” keep wiggling and try to escape as close to the hook as possible. The Killer won’t expect the sudden escape, and it gives you an idea of which direction to run in. Also, the skill check for “Decisive Strike” is affected by the Doctor’s Madness and the perk “Unnerving Presence” so you will need to be on high alert when performing the skill check.

Perk Score: 89/100

2. Urban Evasion

Unique to Nea Karlsson until Level 35

Nea sneaks quickly and quietly to her next objective.

Do you want to be stealthy but hate dealing with the slow crouch walk? Imagine it; you are running from the Killer, spreading scratch marks everywhere. You want to slow down, but if you walk, you will still be easy to spot. So you crouch. Now your speed is reduced considerably, and you won’t be able to put enough distance between you and the Killer! Whatever shall you do? Equip Nea’s “Urban Evasion” before the game!

The Stats: Your movement speed while crouching is increased by 90/95/100%

In Good Hands: Crouching is a key part of hiding from the Killer. You can hide behind obstacles and trees, or underneath windows, and still keep watch on the Killer. This perk makes it easier to hide like this, even when you are moving. Many of us get too impatient to stay crouched, and the more time it takes to fix generators, the higher the opportunity is that the Killer will get you. This perk allows you to reduce that time and still hide.

Just Remember: Since your speed is boosted considerably, it should take less time to crouch from one place to the next. Try a game where you crouch more while traveling. You can still move at a reasonable pace, and it is easier to hide from the Killer’s gaze.

Perk Score: 85/100

1. Self-Care

Unique to Claudette Morel until Level 40.

Dwight frantically heals himself with Self-Care.

If you have ever been a low-level Survivor without a med-kit, you know the pain of hunting down another Survivor and tea-bagging the ground next to them until they get the message and heal you. Being injured makes you vulnerable but getting someone else to heal, especially if no one is around you or you get separated, is a pain and a time-waster. That’s why you need to go back to school and learn how to take care of yourself, or at least keep playing the game and unlock “Self-Care” as a teachable perk. The latter sounds more fun.

The Stats: “Self-Care” unlocks the ability to heal yourself without a med-kit, with a 50% speed reduction. It also increases the efficiency of a med-kit self-heal by 10/15/20%.

In Good Hands: There is no question in the Dead by Daylight community that “Self-Care” is the best Survivor perk in the game. You gain back a bit more autonomy. Use this to play selfishly, or look it as a way of becoming the reliable one for saves.

Just Remember: Do not pair “No Mither” with “Self-Care.” “No Mither” cancels the awesome benefits of “Self-Care” which means you wasted a perk slot. You can also use “Self-Care” to fail a skill check and wake up from the Dream World while playing against Freddy. Remember to take advantage of your perk as much as possible and heal up.

Perk Score: 95/100

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