Palworld 1.0 tier list: the best Pals to catch first

Palworld 1.0 is out, Pocketpair has reworked things, and the starting area isn't quite the same as it was in early access. Windswept Hills remains your playground for the first few hours, but the core mechanics and the Pals that cover them deserve a fresh look. Whether you're setting foot on Palpagos for the first time or coming back after a long break, the real question stays the same: which Pals should you catch first before level 20?

Here's our beginner Palworld 1.0 tier list, with 11 creatures ranked into S, A and B tiers. No filler: for each one, you'll know where to find it, what it actually brings to your base, and why it's worth the detour in the early hours. Some of these Pals are absolute monsters of versatility. Others are highly specialized but irreplaceable in their role. And a few manage to be both at once - that's rare, and it's earned.

S Tier - The must-haves from day one

These four should be in your Paldex before level 10. Not before level 15, not "whenever you get around to it." Before level 10. They completely change your pace of progression.

Cattiva - the camp's Swiss Army knife

Where to find it: everywhere across the starting plain, around the Sanctuary of the Beginning. Impossible to miss.

What it brings: Handiwork, Gathering, Mining and Transporting, all four at level 1. In plain terms, it can do everything from day one: crafting, gathering, mining and hauling crates to the chest. Its partner skill also increases your maximum carrying capacity when it's in your active party — a detail that matters enormously when you come back loaded down like a pack mule from a farming run.

Why catch it early: two or three Cattiva assigned to base cover the majority of essential tasks. It has the best simplicity-to-payoff ratio in the game. Honestly, if you don't have at least two by level 7, you're making life harder for yourself for nothing.

Lifmunk - five jobs in a single Pal

Where to find it: in the meadows and forest edges south of the spawn zone.

What it brings: it's the ultimate all-rounder Pal. It stacks five work suitabilities - Planting, Handiwork, Gathering, Lumbering, Medicine Production - all at level 1. Five. No other early Pal does that. In the field, its partner skill lets it accompany you wielding a submachine gun once the corresponding saddle is unlocked. Yes, a squirrel covering you. That's Palworld for you.

Why catch it early: no other early Pal ticks so many boxes at once. Assigned to Medicine Production, it crafts your potions while you farm elsewhere. Assigned to Planting or Lumbering, it handles chores while you do something else. That's real freedom in Palworld.

Vixy - the free Pal Sphere farm

Where to find it: in the flowering meadows south of the first fast travel tree.

What it brings: Gathering and Farming at level 1. Its real strength lies elsewhere. Placed on a Farm, its "Dig and Dig" skill regularly unearths basic Pal Spheres - and sometimes bonus gold coins. Automatically. Without you lifting a finger.

Why catch it early: three Vixy in a pen, and you never need to manually craft starter spheres again. Your wood and paldium resources can finally go toward something else. That's a massive time saver throughout early game progression.

Eikthyrdeer - your first real mount

Where to find it: in the dense forests northwest of Windswept Hills, a bit harder to reach (recommended level 9-10).

What it brings: level 2 Lumbering - very rare this early in the game. Once its saddle is crafted, it becomes a mount that allows double jumping and greatly speeds up tree felling when you attack while mounted. Two early-game problems solved at once: the chronic wood shortage and slow on-foot travel.

Why catch it early: the Palpagos map becomes noticeably less of a chore to cross once you're mounted. And you'll need wood in industrial quantities for every building tier. Eikthyrdeer solves both.

Tip: before setting off to hunt Eikthyrdeer, set up a small Vixy farm. Basic Pal Spheres are enough for a first attempt, and you'll need several: its resistance is well above average for the area.

A Tier - The companions that change the game

A notch below the must-haves, but these four unlock important milestones: hot cooking, night mining, safer fights, unlimited food. Skip one of them, and you create a bottleneck in your progression.

Foxparks - the fire your camp was missing

Where to find it: on the rocky plateaus east of the spawn point, often in small groups.

What it brings: the level 1 Kindling suitability, essential to run a furnace, a cooking stove or a primitive forge. In your active party, it also reduces the impact of cold during early morning excursions.

Why catch it early: without Kindling at base, you can't refine ore or cook properly. Zero. A single Foxparks assigned to your furnace unlocks an entire branch of crafting at once. It's the kind of Pal whose importance you only realize the day you try to run a forge without it.

Depresso - the night miner

Where to find it: only at night, on the main island and surrounding islets. It's a Dark-type Pal — it doesn't spawn during the day, no point looking then.

What it brings: Handiwork, Mining, Transporting and Farming, all at level 1. That Mining + Transporting combination is particularly efficient: it clears out a stone deposit and drops the blocks directly into your chest without any input from you.

Why catch it early: it fills a gap that Cattiva doesn't really cover (repetitive mining over time), and its capture rate is high. Watch for it as soon as night falls for the first time. Seriously, don't miss it.

Daedream - the small support that makes a difference in combat

Where to find it: also nocturnal, in the wooded areas around the starting plain.

What it brings: Handiwork, Gathering and Transporting at base, but above all a ghostly companion role in combat. It stays by your side and continuously fires dark projectiles at your targets — even when you're not doing anything special. Passive, effective, kind of eerie to watch in action.

Why catch it early: it doubles your passive firepower. Very useful for weakening a stubborn Pal before throwing a Sphere without killing it. The classic clean-catch method. If you're struggling to catch certain tough Pals, Daedream is often the answer.

Chikipi - the domestic egg reserve

Where to find it: everywhere in the starting meadows, often alongside Lamball. Impossible to miss.

What it brings: level 1 Gathering and Farming, but above all eggs laid regularly when it's assigned to a Farm. Simple. Effective.

Why catch it early: hunger inflicts a permanent stat penalty until your pantry is stocked. It's annoying, and it lasts longer than you'd think. Two Chikipi in a pen, and your egg reserves fill themselves. The basic food problem is solved effortlessly.

Tip: nocturnal Pals like Depresso and Daedream disappear at sunrise. Camp out just before nightfall, sleep on a makeshift bed if needed, then hunt during the night window. Your back-and-forth trips will be cut in half.

B Tier - Reliable picks not to overlook

No flash, but genuinely solid. They round out your base roster nicely once the S Tier stars are in place, and each one plugs a specific gap the others don't cover.

Lamball - the versatile, docile sheep

Where to find it: abundant throughout the starting plain. The capture rate is excellent, even with basic Spheres.

What it brings: Handiwork, Transporting and Farming at level 1. It can also be penned up to produce wool, an essential raw material for early armor and cold-weather clothing in icy biomes.

Why catch it early: it's the "safety net" Pal if you're still short on Cattiva. And you'll need its wool sooner than expected as soon as you push toward cold zones. Worth noting: even though its profile is modest, replacing a missing Lamball mid-progression costs needless time.

Fuack - the dedicated waterer

Where to find it: along rivers and ponds in the starting area.

What it brings: Watering, Handiwork and Transporting, all at level 1. Its real value is watering: it single-handedly keeps your first berry plots fed, essential once you set up a proper kitchen.

Why catch it early: as soon as you start planting, you depend on a waterer. Without one, your crops die before harvest. As simple and as brutal as that.

Mau - the gold coin machine

Where to find it: rarer than the others, often in caves and dark areas north of the plain. It takes a bit of effort to find - worth it.

What it brings: Gathering and Farming at level 1, but above all a partner skill that regularly drops gold coins when placed in a pen. Passive, profitable, practically effortless.

Why catch it early: you'll be short on gold to buy schematics and resources from traveling merchants - and that happens faster than you'd think. Two Mau at the farm, and you can comfortably fund your purchases without ever having to farm gold actively.

What's next? Heading toward advanced areas

Once you have these eleven Pals in your Paldex, you'll have a self-sufficient base, a wooden mount, a real combat roster and a gold stash that climbs on its own. It's the ideal foundation for tackling the first towers and pushing toward tougher biomes - including the areas introduced with 1.0 that demand Pals better prepared elementally.

A quick reminder: this tier list is calibrated for levels 1-20 and Windswept Hills. Past that point, priorities shift. Some Pals here become permanent base workhorses (Cattiva, Lifmunk), others will be replaced by stronger variants in advanced biomes. But without them in the early hours, progression is noticeably more of a grind.

Our Palworld section on Playnews lists more guides for what comes next: crafting advanced gear, breeding mechanics, managing incidents affecting your Pals at base, and everything there is to do in the new areas of version 1.0. Happy hunting on Palpagos!