The best Cleric feats in DnD 5e are those that complement their playstyle and base class features well. Clerics are naturally tanky, able to wear medium armor (and heavy armor on some subclasses) and shields, and proficient in Wisdom saving throws. They’re also full spellcasters with access to some of the best spells in the game.
Cleric spells are able to deal big damage, provide heals to the party, control the battlefield, and buff allies while debuffing enemies in ways that tilt the scales of power in your party’s favor.
Then there’s the divide between backline Clerics, who typically cast ranged spells and provide utility from a distance, and melee Clerics, who can absorb damage for the party while keeping enemies from reaching the party’s squishier members.
While feats can add versatility to your Cleric’s kit, I’d recommend maximizing your Wisdom score before picking any up. Overall, having your Cleric spells hit and deal full damage more often will provide more value to you (and your party) than any feat can.
With all these factors in mind, I’ve broken down the 5 best Cleric feats, as well as some good Cleric feat runners-up that can work well depending on your character build.
DnD 5e Best Cleric Feats (Tank)
1) War Caster
Advantage on concentration checks, can perform somatic components of spells with your hands full, and can cast single-target spells in place of opportunity attacks. All three of these features are dead handy for Clerics.
For starters, many of your most powerful spells require concentration (Bless, Shield of Faith, Hold Person, Spirit Guardians, to name a few), and maintaining concentration on these spells is essential for optimal play. Plus, as a frontline spellcaster (as many Clerics are), you’ll be attacked more often than most, meaning you’ll also be making concentration checks more often.
Being able to cast spells with somatic components while wielding a weapon and a shield is also important as a Cleric. Sure, Clerics can put their spellcasting focus on their shield to cover the material component of spells, but they still need a free hand to cast spells that JUST have a somatic component (and no material component; yea, the rules are weird here). This isn’t the best part of the feat, but it’s a welcome way to stop thinking about these weird rules.
The final feature of the War Caster feat is much more straightforward and beneficial for Clerics. Being able to cast spells instead of making a weapon attack as an opportunity attack is almost always the superior choice, especially since most Clerics don’t actively put points into Strength. Cantrips like Toll the Dead or Sacred Flame (or Booming Blade or Thorn Whip if you acquire them via subclass/feat choices) are great to use as opportunity attacks, or even Inflict Wounds if you’re feeling extra spicy.
2) Resilient (Constitution)
+1 Constitution and proficiency in Constitution saving throws. The half-ASI is great for bringing an odd-numbered Constitution score up to boost your hit points by 1 per character level and boosting your Con saves.
But the proficiency in Con saves is why I really recommend this feat. All things being equal, the advantage on concentration checks from War Caster will be more valuable than proficiency until at least level 9 (when proficiency bonuses hit +4) and possibly until level 13 (+5).
However, Resilient affects ALL your Con saves, not just concentration checks. If you’re getting your first feat at a later level (say 8 or 12) or don’t really care about the spellcasting opportunity attack feature of War Caster, Resilient is the superior defensive feat for Clerics.
And there’s no reason not to get both and have your concentration be nigh-impossible to break!
DnD 5e Best Cleric Feats (Utility)
3) Magic Initiate
+1 1st-level spell and +2 cantrips from any full spellcaster’s spell list. The 1st-level spell is usable once per day without expending a spell slot (you can’t cast the spell using your own spell slots, unless you have that class).
The popular choice here is to pick Druid and get Goodberry as your 1st-level spell as a Life Cleric. Their Disciple of Life subclass feature will increase each Goodberry to heal 4 hit points instead of 1, meaning that one spellcast provides 40 points of healing(!) to your party — it’s impossible to beat that efficiency with a 1st-level spell.
As a cantrip, Thorn Whip is quite useful for Clerics. Every time an enemy escapes the range of your Spirit Guardians, you can use Thorn Whip to pull them back in, forcing them to take damage immediately. It’s equally good for protecting your party by pulling enemies out of their opportunity attack range, allowing them to run away, and trapping the enemy in YOUR opportunity attack range.
Another popular option is choosing Wizard and getting Booming Blade, which pairs well with War Caster — now, enemies will have to decide if they really want to run away from you and suffer the extra damage they’ll take if they do. As a 1st-level Wizard spell, Find Familiar is always a darn good choice, as its Help action can provide your party with attack advantage once per round. Shield is another good option, giving you a +5 AC reaction for a full round, albeit only once a day.
There are other good options for Magic Initiate spell choices, but these two are the most popular reasons for a Cleric to pick up this feat.
4) Fey Touched
+1 Wisdom, the Misty Step spell, and one 1st-level Divination or Enchantment spell. Both of these spells can be cast once a day without expending a spell slot, and can be cast again using your spell slots.
The half-ASI is great if you’re sitting at an odd-numbered Wisdom score, and Misty Step (30-foot bonus action teleport) is a top-tier 2nd-level spell for increasing your otherwise lackluster mobility. Teleporting to be surrounded by enemies while your Spirit Guardians is up is an incredibly satisfying move. It’s also just great for getting out of danger or getting into a better position to protect or heal your allies.
For a 1st-level spell, I recommend Bless. Yes, Clerics already have access to this potent buffing spell (+1d4 to attack rolls/saving throws for 3 allies for 1 minute), but being able to cast it for free once a day gives you more spell slots to work with and an extra spell to prepare.
Other solid choices include Tasha’s Hideous Laughter (Wisdom save or fall prone and incapacitated for up to 1 minute) and Heroism (ally you touch is immune to the frightened condition and gain (Wisdom modifier) temporary hit points at the start of each of its turns). Neither are on the Cleric’s base spell list, and they can round out your utility and versatility in interesting ways (although they both eat up your concentration, which is less than ideal when you could be casting Bless or Spirit Guardians instead).
5) Telekinetic
+1 Wisdom, learn the Mage Hand cantrip (which is invisible and has double range as normal), and can use a bonus action to shove a creature within 30 feet (Strength save vs. your spell save DC) up to 5 feet toward or away from you.
Again, a half-ASI can be useful. And Mage Hand is an excellent utility cantrip for a number of reasons (read my guide on Mage Hand to see some of its most popular and powerful uses).
But the bonus action push is the most intriguing aspect of Telekinetic. For starters, Clerics don’t really have much competing for their bonus action (besides Spiritual Weapon and Healing Word), so you can use this shove pretty much every turn of combat.
And being able to push creatures into Spirit Guardians is a way to instantly trigger its damage. Not to mention all the other similar spells (Spike Growth, Moonbeam, etc.) and hazardous terrain (cliffs, lava, etc.) that you can push foes into from a distance.
Overall, Telekinetic is a fun feat that has a lot of practical applications to make playing your Cleric more active and engaging. Although, if you want to go with the standard Spiritual Guardians/Spiritual Weapon combo, then it’s not worth picking up, since you’ll need your bonus action for Spiritual Weapon each turn.
Good Cleric Feats Runners-up
These feats are neat and can be fun on a Cleric, but I don’t think they’re “optimal.” That said, they’re worth considering if they suit your character’s backstory, role in the party, or you just think they’re nify and would be cool in your campaign.
-
Chef. +1 Constitution or Wisdom, can cook (proficiency bonus + 4) food that heals 1d8 extra hit points at the end of a short rest for anyone who spends Hit Dice during a short rest, and can cook treats that gives (proficiency bonus) temporary hit points to anyone who eats it as a bonus action during a short rest. Half ASI extra short rest healing and temporary hit points for allies is a decent bonus for any Cleric who wants to keep their party alive longer throughout the day.
-
Skill Expert (Perception). +1 ASI, +1 skill proficiency, and +1 skill Expertise. Good for finishing off a max out in any ability of your choice and Expertise in Perception to help with passive perception is a good bonus for any character, especially if you’re already good in Perception. Spot traps and never let your party be snuck up on — not a bad choice if your character build is already complete in more important things.
-
Metamagic Adept. +2 metamagic options and +2 sorcery points. Extended Spell allows for Aid to last through a long rest, meaning your party always has bonus maximum hit points as long as you have a 2nd-level or higher spell slot to spare at the end of a short rest, which means always once you’re at a high enough level — solid, consistent bonus for your party’s survivability.
-
Observant. +1 Wis and +5 to your passive Perception and Investigation. Solid passive bonuses all around, especially when your Wisdom is already maxed out.
-
Alert. +5 initiative, and you can’t be surprised or attacked with advantage from unseen attackers. Again, a solid passive buff for you and your party’s sake.
-
Tough. +2 hit points per level. Good for maximizing HP, but I’d still recommend maxing out Constitution before taking this, even if it is worth twice as many hit points (Con saves are important for concentration checks and avoiding devastating enemy abilities).
-
Lucky. Can reroll 3d20 per day, including attack rolls against you. Technically good on any character in DnD 5e, but boring as heck.
DnD 5e Cleric Guides
Best Cleric Spells by Level
How Turn Undead Works
How Divine Intervention Works
Matt Zane
Author, DnD Lounge