Top 16 BEST Bows in Elden Ring

There are different types of Bows in Elden Ring. Light Bows and Crossbows are extremely quick but don’t deal much damage. Then, we have Greatbows. These offer a good range and can deal massive damage with each hit. However, they are slow. And finally, we have the regular Bow. This one falls between the other types as it’s neither too strong nor too weak. 

Having the right Bow in your hands in Elden Ring can help you gain a huge advantage in combat. Sure,  having Ashen Remains fighting by your side is great and all, but you’ll need to rely on your weapons most of the time. Therefore, it is important to know about the best ones available. Keep in mind that the following list is based on our personal choice, and you might find some other Bows better than these ones. That is okay as the choice varies from player to player. Also, if the developers decide to add some new ones to the game, we’ll make sure to add them to the list as well if they are better than any of these. 

Best Bows

Shortbow

The first bow that I would like to mention in our list is the Shortbow, which happens to be a Light Bow. For those who don’t know, Light Bows in Elden Ring are meant to be ranged weapons that can fire an arrow quickly. You don’t have to worry about charging your shots, as this type of bow can immediately fire an arrow towards your target, even if you just got up from falling down a cliff. As for the Shortbow, it is easily one of the best ones available in the game. 

The Light Bow scales well with Strength and Dexterity. However, it does not have high wielding requirements, making it easy to use. While this weapon isn’t something that can deal a huge amount of damage with each attack or help you quickly take down tough enemies, it’s still amazing for the early stages of the game. This is mainly because you won’t be facing extremely powerful foes during the early parts, and when you do, you’ll most likely have some other powerful bow in your arsenal. This bow also has a special skill attached to it called Barrage. Thanks to it, you can fire shots in rapid succession. 

To get your hands on the Light Bow in Elden Ring, you will need to visit a merchant. This one can be bought from the Nomadic Merchant, who can be found south-east of Costal Cave. He will sell this weapon to you for 600 Runes. However, if you choose the Bandit starting class for your character, this bow will be available in your inventory from the start. Marionette Soldiers wielding a bow, who can be found at different locations on the map, such as the Liurina of the Lakes, also have a chance of dropping this bow. 

Composite Bow

Next up, we have the Composite Bow. Just like the bow mentioned above, this one also happens to be a Light Bow, meaning that you can fire shots quickly through it. However, compared to the Shortbow, its wielding requirements are somewhat more as you’ll need 15 Strenght and 15 Dexterity to use it properly. It also happens to be a weapon that offers a good range and can help you get some stealth kills.

The Composite bow also scales with Strength and Dexterity, and you’ll need to focus on boosting these stats of yours if you want to improve the weapon. The thing which I love about this weapon is the skill that comes with it. The Composite Bow comes paired with Mighty Shot, which happens to be one of the best Ashes of War for Bow users. This allows the user to charge a shot by pulling the bowstring to its limit and firing it towards the target to deal great damage. This shot can pierce through armor sets and can break the enemy’s defense easily. 

The Composite Bow has a price tag of 3,500 Runes, and you can purchase it from the Nomadic Merchant in the Liurnia of the Lakes. He can be found near the Bellum Church. The price tag is absolutely worth it, considering the kind of stuff you can do with this weapon.  guide.

Greatbow

Now, the Light Bows are amazing and all, but what happens when you need something more powerful? What happens if you see a tough enemy far away, but the Light Bow isn’t even making a dent on them? This is where the Greatbow comes in. This type of Bow offers some of the highest damage with each hit among all ranged weapons in the game, and this alone is something that makes it one of the best bows in Elden Ring.

The Greatbow can deal a whopping 125 damage with each hit, meaning that it will not only prove to be effective against regular enemies that you can find wandering around the Lands Between, but you can also trust it against powerful opponents, including bosses. Furthermore, the range of Greatbow is also more than the Light Bow, almost double of what it offers. Therefore, not only will this weapon let you drain your enemy’s health quickly but will also let you target them from a great distance.

However, since the Greatbow is heavy, you’ll need 20 Strength and 20 Dexterity to wield it properly. Furthermore, another thing to keep in mind is that Greatbows are slower than Light Bows, but this is something that you would already expect from a weapon that can do a good amount of damage. Another thing that makes the Greatbow an amazing range weapon is its skill, Through and Through. As its name implies, it lets the wielder fire a powerful arrow that can pierce through almost anything. No matter how many enemies are in its path, the arrow will go through all of them and will not rest until it has achieved its goal. This is something that can prove useful when you’re fighting a group of enemies in a tight space, such as on a bridge or inside a cave. 

To get the Greatbow in Elden Ring, you will need to go to the Highway Lookout Tower located at the Atlus Plateau. There, you can find this bow inside a chest. Another method of getting the Greatbow involves going to Fort Gael, which is located on the Caelid map. There, you will encounter a Radahn Knight who might drop this bow after you take him down. 

Erdtree Bow

While Light Bows specialize in firing shots quickly and Greatbows can deal a massive amount of damage, regular Bows fall somewhere between the two of them. They are neither too powerful nor too weak. These types of Bows serve the basic purpose; that is to help you deal damage to your enemy while staying at a safe distance. As for the Erdtree Greatbow, it’s an excellent bow that scales well with Strength, Faith, and Dexterity. 

Unlike the Bows mentioned above, the Erdtree Bow is capable of dealing Holy damage as well, meaning that it can be used against different types of enemies. Furthermore, its range is also amazing, almost similar to the Greatbow. YIts wielding requirements are also somewhat low, as you’ll need 8 Strength, 12 Dexterity, and 14 Faith to wield it. If you want to boost the stats of your weapon, then you’ll need to focus on these three attributes of your character. The Erdtree Bow also has the Might Shot skill attached to it. This allows you to fire a powerful shot towards your target that does a good amount of damage. Keep in mind that you can not use any Ash of War with this weapon, but you can upgrade it through Somber Smithing Stones. 

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Unlike the Erdtree Greatshield that can be acquired by taking down the duo of Tree Sentinels, the Erdtree Bow can be found inside a chest. To get it, you will need to go to Leyndell, Royal Capital. There, you will need to look around for a building that has the Erdtree Sancturacy site. The chest containing the Erdtree Bow can be found inside a room on the second floor of this building. 

Black Bow

Elden Ring has a lot of stuff that can be traced back to the Dark Souls games. After all, the game is a combination of all the previous Souls games. Because of this, you also find weapons that were found in those games. As for the Black Bow, it is an excellent Bow that was first seen in Dark Souls. There, it was known as the Black Bow of Pharis. For me, the Black Bow is easily one of the coolest looking Bows in the entire game. A lot of you might disagree with this, but I happen to be someone who loves minimalistic designs. 

The thing which makes the Black Bow one of the best bows in Elden Ring is its ability to work as both a regular Bow and a Light Bow. As discussed before, Light Bows are the type of Bows that can fire arrows quickly. But even though the Black Bow is a regular Bow, its speed is similar to Light Bows, while its damage output is also amazing. This makes it a ranged weapon that can be used in multiple situations. Its skill, called Barrage, is something that adds to its greatness as it lets the wielder fire shots in rapid succession, thus allowing you to drain more of your enemy’s health in a short period. Its range is also pretty amazing. However, it has high Dexterity requirements as you’ll need 20 of it and 9 Strength to wield it properly. 

To get the Black Bow in Elden Ring, you will need to go to a rooftop located northeast of the Avenue Balcony Site of Grace. This Site of Grace is located in the Leyndell, Royal Capital. On the rooftop, you’ll be able to pick up this bow from a corpse. 

Serpent Bow

Serpent Arrow in Elden Ring is a special type of arrow that can do much more than just dealing damage with each hit. This arrow resembles the shape of a snake, and it can cause heavy poison buildup in the enemies. And when you pair these arrows with the Serpent Bow, you can create the ultimate combination of a weapon that can deal a good amount of damage to those enemies who are weak against poison. You can also check out the best Poison Build in Elden Ring, as this Bow can go well with it as well. 

The Serpent Bow scales well with Dexterity, and you’ll need to boost this stat if you want the weapon to become more powerful. Furthermore, you’ll need 8 Strength, 15 Dexterity, and 11 Arcane to wield this weapon properly. The thing which makes it one of the best Elden Ring bows is its ability to deal a good amount of poison damage when paired with Serpent arrows. There are many enemies in Elden Ring who have poison as their weakness, and this weapon can help you take down such enemies quickly while staying at a safe distance. 

The Serpent Bow also comes with the Might Shot skill, thanks to which you’ll be able to fire an extremely powerful shot at your target. If you’re facing a boss whose weakness is poison, you can use the power of the might shot and the poison effect of the serpent arrows to quickly take it down. 

To get your hands on this amazing bow in Elden Ring, you will need to travel to the Abandoned Cave, where you’ll find it in a pool of rot. 

Crepus’ Black-Key Crossbow

Crossbows in Elden Ring work differently than the Bows, but they have the same purpose; to help you damage your target while staying away from their range. Instead of arrows, Crossbows use bolts, and there are different types of bolts available in the game. Each one comes with some kind of special effect, such as the Bloodbone bolt having the capability of causing blood loss buildup in the enemy. As for the Crepus’ Black-Key Crossbow, it is easily one of the best ones available in the game.

Unlike all of the weapons mentioned above, the Crepus’ Black-Key Crossbow does not scale with any stat. This means that you can only upgrade it by using Somber Smithing Stones. In terms of damage, the weapon can deal 68 Physical damage with each hit, and it has a decent range as well. To wield it properly, you will need 14 Strength and 16 Dexterity. 

The thing which I love about the Crepus’ Black-Key Crossbow is the skill that comes attached to it. It’s called Kick, and as its name suggests, it can be used to push the enemy back. This skill can prove extremely useful when a group of enemies is trying to get close to you. But using Kick, you can keep on pushing all of them back. You can either use this time to either get your health back up or make a quick escape. Furthermore, the Kick skill can also let you break the stance of your enemy. 

Overall, the Crepus’ Black-Key Crossbow is amazing. Many players consider it one of the best Crossbows in Elden Ring. To get your hands on this weapon, you will need to open the first sealed door at the Roundtable Hold. 

Red Branch Shortbow

The Red Branch Shortbow is yet another Light Bow in our Elden Ring best bows list. Like the ones we mentioned before, this one can also help you quickly put a lot of arrows in your enemy’s body. This makes it an ideal choice against a group of enemies as you can target all of them instantly. The Red Branch Shortbow scales with Strength and Dexterity, and you will need 8 Strenght and 16 Dexterity to use it properly. 

The Red Branch Shortbow is almost similar to the Composite Bow, which we mentioned earlier on our list. Both of them can deal the same amount of damage with each shot. Furthermore, they also happen to offer the same range. But the thing which makes them different from one another are their skills.

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While the Composite Bow has the Might Shot skill, which lets the user send out a powerful arrow, the Red Branch Shortbow has the Barrage skill. This is something thanks to which it can fire arrows even more quickly. Therefore, if you were looking for an extremely fast bow, then your search should stop after getting the Red Branch Shortbow. Its speed, paired with the damage output, can prove to be against powerful foes that you’ll find lurking around the Lands Between. Furthermore, another amazing thing about this bow is that it can be infused with Ashes of War. 

To get your hands on the Red Branch Shortbow, you will need need to go to Leyndell, Royal Capital, where you’ll need to take down an Assassin who can be found past the group of Trumpeteers. It is also dropped by Pages in the underground area of the Tombsward Ruins. 

Erdtree Greatbow

The Erdtree Greatbow is another bow that is capable of dealing a good amount of damage with each hit. But the thing which makes it special is that it can also deal Holy damage. Therefore, if you’re facing enemies who are weak against this type of damage, then you’ll be able to take them down instantly. And as it’s a Greatbow, its range is also amazing and you can trust it with taking down targets that are far away. 

The Erdtree Greatbow has the Through and Through skill attached to it. When you combine the range of the bow with this skill, you’ll be able to quickly take down even the toughest opponents, no matter how far they are. The Through and Through skill is designed in such a way that it lets the arrow pierce through multiple targets. No matter how strong the enemy is, the arrow will rip through their flesh and make its way to the next target. Furthermore, if you want to boost its strength, then you’ll want to focus on increasing the Faith attribute. And to wield it properly, you will need 20 Strength, 14 Dexterity, and 14 Faith. The requirements are high, but this is expected from such a powerful weapon.

To get your hands on the Erdtree Greatbow, you will need to kill the Chariot, who can be found in Fringefolk Hero’s Grave. 

Arbalest

Like the Black-Key Crossbow in our list, the Arbalest also happens to be a weapon brought to the game from the Dark Souls games. As it’s a Crossbow, the Arbalest uses bolts instead of arrows, and you need to reload before firing each shot. Just like most of the other Crossbows in the game, this one also does not scale with any attributes. However, you still need 18 Strength and 12 Dexterity to use it. 

While the weapon does not scale with anything, it’s still worth carrying around as it can deal a decent amount of damage with each shot. Furthermore, its range is also amazing, so you can take down your target silently without worrying about getting close to them. The Arbalest Crossbow also has Kick as its main skill, thanks to which you’ll be able to push enemies away if they get too close to you. This can be effective against a group of enemies who are trying to eliminate you instantly. There can also be times when you’re unable to use a healing potion because the enemies are too close to you. But by using this weapon, you can clear some space for yourself. 

The Arbalest can be found in the Stormveil Castle. This castle is swarming with powerful enemies, so make sure you’re carrying around some powerful weapons in your arsenal before going there. Otherwise, getting the Arbalest might become a challenging task. 

Full Moon Crossbow

Out of all the Crossbows in Elden Ring, the Full Moon Crossbow is easily one of the most unique-looking ones. Just by taking a look at it, you’ll be able to tell that this weapon is designed for some special purpose. If you do, you’re pretty right, as this Crossbow can deal Magic damage as well. This makes the Full Moon Crossbow the first Crossbow in our Elden Ring best bows list that can deal another type of damage instead of just Physical damage.

The Full Moon Crossbow can deal 50 Magic damage with each hit, making it a decent weapon to use with an Intelligence build. Furthermore, unlike the previous Crossbows that we mentioned, this one scales with Strength and Dexterity, so you’ll need to focus on increasing these two attributes of your character if you want this Crossbow to become more powerful. And for those wondering, its wielding requirements are 10 Strength, 10 Dexterity, and 14 Intelligence. The Full Moon Crossbow also comes paired with the Kick skill. As discussed before, you can push your targets away by using this skill. 

The Full Moon Crossbow in Elden Ring can be found in the bell tower next to the Raya Lucaria Academy rooftops. 

Golem Greatbow

The second Greatbow on our list is the Golem Greatbow. Without a single doubt, this is easily one of the best Bows to use in Elden Ring. It scales with Strength and Dexterity, and you’ll need 24 Strength and 18 Dexterity to use it. Although the requirements may be high, this weapon’s damage makes it worth carrying around.

With each shot, the Golem Greatbow can deal a massive 130 damage. Furthermore, it offers a good range as well. These two things make the Golem Greatbow an ideal weapon to use against bosses. You can stay at a safe distance and keep on dealing a good amount of damage to them until you run out of arrows. This is when you’ll need to switch to your other weapons. But until then, you can keep on depleting your enemy’s health by using this bow. 

The Golem Greatbow comes equipped with the Through and Through skill. As discussed before, this skill becomes useful when fighting a crowd of enemies in tight spots. You can use it to make a single arrow pierce through all of your targets. In other words, you can deal damage to multiple targets in a single shot. However, keep in mind that firing the shot blindly will not benefit you in any way. Therefore, you will need to make sure you position yourself correctly before firing it.

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The Golem Greatbow in Elden Ring can be picked up from the corpse of a Golem archer. These archers can be found at different locations on the map, such as the Castle Morne, Limgrave Tower Bridge, and so on. Keep in mind that not every Golem archer is going to drop this bow. So you will need to keep on eliminating them until you pick up the weapon. 

Horn Bow

The Horn Bow is yet another amazing Bow that is capable of dealing two types of different damage. Along with Physical damage, the Horn Bow can also do a good amount of Magical damage with each hit. This makes it a perfect weapon to use against enemies who are weak against Magic. If you have a pure Magic-based build, then we’ll recommend you give this bow a try.

There also exist Magic arrows in Elden Ring, which can also be used to take down enemies quickly if Magic is their weakness. And when you combine these arrows with the Horn Bow, then you’ll be able to take down such enemies even more quickly, that too from a good distance. You will need 10 Strength, 14 Dexterity, and 12 Intelligence to use the bow. However, you don’t need to worry about scaling Intelligence as its power can only be boosted by increasing Strength and Dexterity. The Horn Bow also comes equipped with the Mighty Shot skill. If you’re facing a powerful enemy who is weak against magic, you can use this skill to deliver an extremely powerful shot to eliminate them within seconds. 

To get the Horn Bow in Elden Ring, you will need to pick it up from a corpse. This corpse can be found in Siofra River, under the stairs that lead to the Hallowhorn Grounds.

Pulley Bow

The range is perhaps the most important thing about a bow. These weapons are designed to help you eliminate targets that are far away from you, and having a bow that does not has a good range is only going to put you at a disadvantage. As for the Pulley Bow, it is one of the best bows in Elden Ring because of its amazing range. Its range is one of the highest among all the other Bows available in Elden Ring, and this is enough for you to choose it.

Having a weapon with such a range will put you at a great advantage in combat. You will be able to target enemies that are pretty far away, and you can take them down without alerting the nearby enemies about your presence. Another amazing thing about the Pulley Bow is that it deals 77 damage with each hit, which is a lot for a Bow. Usually, Greatbows are the only types of Bows that deal a good amount of damage, but the Pulley Bow isn’t far from them.

The weapon also scales well with Strength and Dexterity, and its wielding requirements are also pretty slow. You’ll only need 11 Strength and 11 Dexterity to properly use it, meaning that you won’t have to worry about increasing your attributes to a great extent before using this weapon. As for its skill, the Pulley Bow comes equipped with the Might Shot. Thanks to this and the range the weapon offers, you can fire a powerful shot at your target from a great distance. You can also use an Ash of War with the Pulley Bow.

To get the Pulley Bow in Elden Ring, you will need to go north of Gelmir Hero’s Grave Site of Grace. There, you’ll find a siege tower near the Mt. Gelmir Campsite. The bow is located at the top of this tower, on a sitting corpse. 

Pulley Crossbow

Out of all the Crossbows in Elden Ring, the Pulley Crossbow is easily the best one. The thing that makes the Pully Crossbow one of the best Elden Ring Bows is its ability to fire three bolts simultaneously. That’s right, while other Bows and Crossbow fire only a single arrow or bolt, this one fires a burst of three shots. Each bolt is capable of dealing 65 damage. This means that you’ll be able to deal around 195 damage if you manage to land each bolt on your target.

The biggest downside about the Pully Crossbow is that its range is not that great compared to the other Crossbows in the game. This is because there is a slight spread between bolts, and you can not make all of them hit your target until you’re pretty close to them. Another thing that you’ll need to keep in mind while using the Pulley Crossbow is that you’ll run out of bolts pretty quickly as you’ll be firing three bolts with each shot. Therefore, you will need to make every shot count.

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However, despite these two reasons, the Pully Crossbow is still a great weapon to carry around as you can even trust this weapon against powerful bosses. The Pully Crossbow also features the Kick skill, thanks to which you can quickly push back your enemies to create some distance with them. 

To get the Pully Crossbow in Elden Ring, you will need to go to Mt. Gelmir. There, you can find this Crossbow inside the Craftman’s Shack.

Lion Greatbow

Now, coming down to the Lion Greatbow. This one holds the title of the best Elden Ring bow because of multiple reasons. The Starscourge Radahn is one of the toughest bosses in Elden Ring, but the fight is pretty fun. The developers made sure to reward players greatly for defeating him, as you get the Lion Greatbow in return. The weapon can deal 120 damage with each hit, and it has a pretty amazing range as well. But this isn’t what makes it the best Elden Ring bow. 

The Lion Greatbow comes with a unique skill called Radahn’s Rain. Using it, you can fire a great number of arrows simultaneously, which will come down on your enemies like rain. This skill can prove to be extremely useful when you’re fighting against a large group of enemies, as it can help you take them down instantly. Out of all the Bows in Elden Ring, this one easily has the best skill attached to it. 

To use the Lion Greatbow, you will need 22 Strength and 18 Dexterity, and it scales with these two attributes as well. Overall, it is an extremely powerful Bow that you can even use as your main weapon throughout the game. Whether you’re fighting a powerful boss or regular enemies, the Lion Greatbow won’t let you down.

To get the Lion Greatbow in Elden Ring, you will need to first defeat the Starscourge Radahn boss. He will drop the Remembrance of the Starscourage, which you can exchange with Enia at the Roundtable Hold in return for the Lion Greatbow. 

These were some of the best bows in Elden Ring. We hope that our guide will help you select the right weapon to take down enemies from a great distance. However, make sure to practice your aim as well after getting a Bow, as the weapon will be useless if you don’t know how to use it properly. Before you leave, make sure to check out our Elden Ring review as well.