Soft caps are milestones of each stat in Elden Ring where you stop getting as many bonuses as you did before.
For instance, the first soft cap for Vigor is at level 40 since you stop receiving +26 HP per level up and instead receive +13 HP only. Each stat has multiple soft caps, with each one reducing the stat’s bonuses even further.
In this guide, I will list all of Elden Ring’s soft cap stats in 2023 to help you invest your runes in the best way possible.
How Soft Cap Works in Elden Ring
The soft cap is the milestone level for each stat in which it starts giving less benefits for each level afterward.
Each attribute has multiple soft caps and each following cap will reduce your ROI (return on investment) even more.
Thus, even if you want to focus on a Strength build, the game encourages you to split your points between Strength, Vigor, Endurance, and even Dexterity instead of just putting everything on Strength.
Lastly, each skill also has a hard cap at level 99, after which it gains zero benefits from leveling up further.
All Elden Ring Soft Cap Stats in 2023
Let’s examine all the soft caps for each stat in Elden Ring.
| Attribute | First Soft Cap | Second Soft Cap | Third Soft Cap | Fourth Soft Cap | Hard Cap |
| Vigor | 40 | 60 | 90 | – | 99 |
| Mind | 20 | 50 | 55 | 60 | 99 |
| Endurance | 12 | 18 | 32 | 50 | 99 |
| Strength | 20 | 55 | 80 | – | 99 |
| Dexterity | 20 | 55 | 80 | – | 99 |
| Intelligence | 20 | 55 | 80 | – | 99 |
| Intelligence (Sorceries) | 60 | 80 | – | – | – |
| Faith | 20 | 55 | 80 | – | 99 |
| Faith (Incantations) | 60 | 80 | – | – | – |
| Arcane | 20 | 55 | 80 | – | 99 |
| Arcane (Incantations) | 30 | 45 | – | – | – |
Keep in mind that while progressing through the game, and especially during New Game+, you’ll have to go through some of the Soft Caps for certain builds.
However, in the early game, make sure to not go over them immediately and instead spread your points a bit between at least two different stats.
Wrapping up
To summarize, these are all the Elden Ring soft cap stats in 2023 that will help you level up your attributes efficiently.
If you have the points to spare and want to equip a weapon that requires going over the soft cap of a stat, that’s totally fine. However, avoid reaching the hard cap if you have just enough points and are hoping to increase your raw damage.
Which attribute are you leveling up? What’s your go-to build for Elden Ring? Let us know in the comments below.
If you’re a fan of souls-like games, don’t forget to check out our guide on how to defeat the first boss in Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty. With gameplay similar to Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, it’s definitely worth a try.