D&D Monster Armor Class Comparison

Official 5e Armor Class, from Gelatinous Cube at 6 to Tarrasque at 25. Pick any two.

Entry A

Amount of A

Entry B

Amount of B

Unit

Amount in unit

Visual comparison

Linear scale: bar lengths are directly proportional to value, relative to the largest entry.

Tarrasque25 Armor Class

Ancient Red Dragon22 Armor Class

Young Red Dragon18 Armor Class

Beholder18 Armor Class

Knight18 Armor Class

Aboleth17 Armor Class

Lich17 Armor Class

Guard16 Armor Class

Goblin15 Armor Class

Troll15 Armor Class

Mind Flayer15 Armor Class

Orc13 Armor Class

Displacer Beast13 Armor Class

Owlbear13 Armor Class

Mimic12 Armor Class

Ogre11 Armor Class

Commoner10 Armor Class

Gelatinous Cube6 Armor Class

All values

Click any row to load it as Entry A.

Name	Value	Context	Source
Gelatinous Cube Lowest here. Almost always hit.	6 armor class	Large ooze, MM p. 242	D&D 5e Monster Manual: Gelatinous Cube AC 6
Commoner Four over the Cube. Street baseline.	10 armor class	Medium humanoid, MM p. 345	D&D 5e SRD: Commoner AC 10
Ogre One over Commoner. Hide armor.	11 armor class	Large giant, MM p. 237	D&D 5e Monster Manual: Ogre AC 11
Mimic One over Ogre. Natural armor.	12 armor class	Medium monstrosity, MM p. 220	D&D 5e Monster Manual: Mimic AC 12
Orc Ties Displacer Beast and Owlbear at 13.	13 armor class	Medium humanoid, MM p. 246	D&D 5e Monster Manual: Orc AC 13
Displacer Beast Ties Orc. Displacement is separate.	13 armor class	Large monstrosity, MM p. 81	D&D 5e Monster Manual: Displacer Beast AC 13
Owlbear Ties Orc.	13 armor class	Large monstrosity, MM p. 249	D&D 5e SRD: Owlbear AC 13
Goblin Ties Troll and Mind Flayer at 15.	15 armor class	Small humanoid, MM p. 166	D&D 5e Monster Manual: Goblin AC 15
Troll Ties Goblin. Natural armor.	15 armor class	Large giant, MM p. 291	D&D 5e Monster Manual: Troll AC 15
Mind Flayer Ties Goblin. Brain over brawn.	15 armor class	Medium aberration, MM p. 222	D&D 5e Monster Manual: Mind Flayer AC 15
Guard One over Goblin. Chain plus shield.	16 armor class	Medium humanoid, MM p. 347	D&D 5e SRD: Guard AC 16
Aboleth Ties Lich at 17. Natural armor.	17 armor class	Large aberration, MM p. 13	D&D 5e Monster Manual: Aboleth AC 17
Lich Ties Aboleth. Natural armor.	17 armor class	Medium undead, MM p. 202	D&D 5e Monster Manual: Lich AC 17
Young Red Dragon Ties Beholder and Knight at 18.	18 armor class	Large dragon, MM p. 98	D&D 5e Monster Manual: Young Red Dragon AC 18
Beholder Ties Young Dragon. Natural armor.	18 armor class	Large aberration, MM p. 28	D&D 5e Monster Manual: Beholder AC 18
Knight Ties Beholder. Full plate.	18 armor class	Medium humanoid, MM p. 347	D&D 5e SRD: Knight AC 18
Ancient Red Dragon Four over the Knight. Natural armor.	22 armor class	Gargantuan dragon, MM p. 98	D&D 5e Monster Manual: Ancient Red Dragon AC 22
Tarrasque Top here. Three over the Ancient Dragon.	25 armor class	Gargantuan monstrosity, MM p. 286	D&D 5e Monster Manual: Tarrasque AC 25

About these numbers: Values are printed Armor Class before cover, spells and magic items. Shield adds 2 and cover adds 2 to 5 in play, so rows pin the print only.

About this converter

The Monster Manual prints one Armor Class per monster from 6 to 25. Gelatinous Cube opens at 6, Commoner at 10, Ogre at 11, Mimic at 12, Orc, Displacer Beast and Owlbear tied at 13, Goblin, Troll and Mind Flayer tied at 15, Guard at 16, Aboleth and Lich tied at 17, Young Red Dragon, Beholder and Knight tied at 18, Ancient Red Dragon at 22 and Tarrasque at 25. That spread decides whole fights: a Goblin needs a 15 to hit while the Tarrasque needs a 25. Every value here is the 5e print with cover and buffs left out.

How to use it

Pick two monsters and a unit in the top row. The three boxes below stay linked. Change any box and the other two update. One box holds a count of the first, one holds the matching count of the second, one holds the total in Armor Class. Try 1 Tarrasque against Goblins.

Challenge ratings for the same monsters run on the companion ratings page, since AC and CR measure different things. Player characters break this scale with plate plus shield plus magic, so this table pins monsters only. Lair actions never change these prints.

FAQ

What is the Tarrasque AC?

25, the highest here. Ancient Red Dragon follows at 22.

What is Goblin AC?

15 with leather armor and shield. Orc sits at 13.

What is Beholder AC?

18 natural armor. Young Red Dragon and Knight tie it.

Why no player armor?

PC builds stack plate, shields and magic past these prints, so rows pin monsters.

Sources

D&D 5e Monster Manual (Gelatinous Cube 6, Ogre 11, Mimic 12, Orc 13, Displacer Beast 13, Goblin 15, Troll 15, Mind Flayer 15)
D&D 5e Monster Manual (Aboleth 17, Lich 17, Young Red Dragon 18, Beholder 18, Ancient Red Dragon 22, Tarrasque 25)
D&D 5e Systems Reference Document free rules (Commoner 10, Owlbear 13, Guard 16, Knight 18)
D&D 5e Basic Rules combat chapter (AC definition, cover and shield bonuses noted)

Last verified: 2026-09-28 · 18 entries

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