Diablo 4 season 4 leveling guide: Best XP farm strategy in season 4

Leveling up your character quickly in Diablo 4 season four is key to accessing most of the new endgame content, like The Pit, Masterworking, and Torment Bosses. Fortunately, we already know the best way to reach level 100 as fast as possible thanks to the PTR.

Diablo 4 season four leveling strategy summary

1. Start a new Seasonal Character in World Tier 2, skipping the campaign.
2. Begin the Season Quest and advance until you can farm Wolf Honor in the Helltide.
3. Farm Helltides and their events, preferably in groups, and hold your Cinders to spend near the end of the Helltide, because the higher your level, the more experience you’ll gain from them. Repeat this cycle until at least level 35.
4. Adjust and optimize gear during Helltide breaks and do your Class quests.
5. After level 35, clear the Cathedral of Light capstone dungeon. If you can’t clear it, farm more levels in the Helltide first.
6. Change to World Tier 3.
7. Helltide group again or farm Strongholds a bit if you’re struggling to keep up with mobs in the Helltide.
8. After level 55, clear the Fallen Temple capstone dungeon.
9. Switch to World Tier 4.
10. Farm Helltides until at least level 65-70.
11. Clear Nightmare Dungeons until level 100, optimizing gear along the way.

The strategy above is based on many players’ experience of season four during the Diablo 4 PTR. Even though the live servers can be a bit different from the tests, the changes Blizzard made to Helltides are a core component of season four and will not be changed. This means you can now start farming Helltides as soon as level one in World Tier Two, which is recommended over old dungeon methods.

Additionally, you want to level up your World Tier as soon as your build and gear allow you to. The bonus XP you’re getting from higher World Tiers has increased considerably compared to previous seasons. So if you have good gear and a great leveling build early on, you should push for early Cathedral of Light and Fallen Temple capstone dungeon clears to switch as soon as possible to a higher World Tier and enjoy the massive XP bonus they give.

Diablo 4 season four leveling strategy breakdown

Levels 1 to 35 (or 45)

You want to start your Seasonal Character in World Tier Two so you can get 50 percent extra XP right off the bat from clearing any content. Then, you should get the Seasonal Quest because the Iron Wolves quests and Honor system are what will give you special seasonal bonuses in season four. Follow the quest until you’re sent to the Helltides.

In the Helltides, group up with other players or at least follow them. The new threat meter mechanic makes it so the more monsters you kill in the Helltide, the more they spawn around you, up to a limit where it starts depleting. If you’re around other players, their meters will help yours fill up and vice-versa, ensuring you always have a bunch of mobs surrounding your group to get even more XP than you would alone. Remember to also do any events you find in the Helltide for massive XP bonuses. Finally, save your Cinders to spend them in the last few minutes of the 55-minute timer of the Helltide, since these Cinders will give you more XP the higher your level is. That means if you farm for almost an hour and spend them all at once at the very end, you’ll get considerably more XP than if you spend them randomly. Of course, if you’re struggling to clear mobs, it’s okay to spend some Cinders early on to get a power boost.

After level 35, you should try clearing the Cathedral of Light capstone dungeon to unlock World Tier Three. Some players in the PTR reported being able to clear the dungeon as early as level 35, though you might need to be closer to 45 if your gear and build aren’t optimized. When you clear it, switch to World Tier Three immediately to get a 150 percent XP bonus.

This is also the perfect time to optimize any gear you have. Use Temper Manuals, apply Gems, and do anything you can to improve them.

Levels 35 to 55 (or 60)

Once in World Tier Three, check if you’re able to farm the Helltide straight away efficiently, since the mobs will be level 55. If you’re taking too long and struggling, go clear some Strongholds first since they will always be your level and also give you the 150 percent bonus XP. Once you’re closer to level 45 or 50, go back to the Helltide to farm it until at least level 55, or level 60 if your build and character still aren’t ideal.

Once past level 55, try to clear the Fallen Temple Capstone Dungeon to unlock World Tier Four. Just like in the previous section, go get some more levels in the Helltide if you can’t clear the dungeon too early. Once you do get the clear, immediately switch to World Tier Four for 250 percent XP bonus.

Level 55 to 70

After you’re in World Tier Four, guess what? Helltide time again! While you should be close to being able to clear Nightmare Dungeons, you’ll likely need more time to clear them efficiently, which is why it’s generally recommended to not start them until you’re at least on level 70 with some decently optimized build and gear.

Level 70 to 100

Once you start running Nightmare Dungeons at level 70, play on the highest tiers you can clear reasonably quick. You’ll get more XP per hour clearing a lower tier Nightmare Dungeon over and over again quickly than spending half an hour on a high tier one. Test out and see what high tiers give you that nice balance between difficulty and clear speed and farm them until level 100.

If you’re still thinking about what character you want to play in Diablo 4 season four, you should check our class tier list.