Crit Chance vs Crit Damage Calculator

How this is calculated

THIS ANSWERS A DIFFERENT QUESTION FROM A DPS CALCULATOR. A DPS calculator tells you what your damage IS. This tells you which stat to spend the NEXT point on, which is the marginal question and has a different answer at every point on the curve. The DPS Calculator on this site covers the first; this covers the second. THE MATHS IS SHORT AND WORTH KNOWING. Your average damage multiplier is 1 + chance x damage-bonus. Both stats appear once, multiplied together - which is why neither is universally better and why they balance rather than one winning. Adding chance is worth the crit damage bonus you already have; adding crit damage is worth the chance you already have. So each stat's value is set by how much of the OTHER one you own. THAT IS WHY THEY ALTERNATE. Stack chance and each further point is worth less while crit damage points become worth more, until crit damage overtakes. Then the same happens in reverse. The efficient path is not to pick one stat but to keep them near the balance point, buying whichever is currently ahead. ⚠️ THE CONVERSION RATES ARE THE PART THAT DECIDES IT, AND THEY ARE YOURS. How much crit chance and how much crit damage one point, one item slot or one upgrade actually buys differs by game, by slot and by tier - and it is what turns the abstract comparison into a real decision. Most games give considerably more crit damage than crit chance per point, which is exactly why crit chance usually wins for longer than players expect. Read the numbers off your own gear rather than assuming a ratio. ⚠️ THE BALANCE FIGURE IS THE USEFUL OUTPUT, not the winner. Being told 'chance is better' is a snapshot that expires the moment you act on it. Being told 'chance is better until your crit damage reaches 50%' is a plan you can follow for the next ten upgrades. DIMINISHING RETURNS AND CAPS ARE NOT MODELLED. Many games apply diminishing returns to crit chance, cap it at 100%, or cap crit damage - and the comparison here assumes neither. At or near a cap, further points in that stat are worth nothing regardless of what this says, which no formula can know about your game. THIS IGNORES EVERYTHING THAT IS NOT CRIT. Flat damage, attack speed, penetration and multipliers that stack differently all compete for the same points, and a crit stat winning against the other crit stat does not make it the best buy overall.

Common questions

How is this different from a DPS calculator?

A DPS calculator tells you what your damage IS. This tells you which stat to spend the NEXT point on, which is a different question with a different answer at every point on the curve - and one that changes the moment you act on it. Knowing you deal 4,200 damage per second does not tell you whether the next upgrade should be chance or damage. The DPS Calculator on this site covers the first question and this one covers the second; they take similar inputs because they describe the same character, not because they do the same job.

Why does neither stat just win?

Because they multiply together. Your average damage multiplier is 1 plus chance times crit damage bonus, so each stat's value is set by how much of the OTHER one you have. Adding crit chance is worth the crit damage you already own; adding crit damage is worth the crit chance you already own. Stack one and its next point is worth less while the other's points become worth more, until they cross over. That is why the efficient path is not to pick a stat but to keep them near the balance point, buying whichever is currently ahead.

Why does the answer depend on my gear?

Because the comparison is per POINT, and how much a point buys is entirely game-specific. If one point gives 1% crit chance or 2% crit damage, that two-to-one exchange rate is as much a part of the answer as your current stats are. Most games hand out considerably more crit damage than crit chance per point, which is exactly why crit chance keeps winning for longer than players expect. Read the rates off your own gear or skill tree rather than assuming - it is the input that turns an abstract comparison into a decision about the item in front of you.

Which output should I actually act on?

The balance figure, not the winner. Being told 'chance is better' is a snapshot that expires as soon as you follow it, because buying chance moves you toward the crossover. Being told 'chance is better until your crit damage reaches 50%' is a plan that holds for the next ten upgrades and tells you when to stop and look again. The ratio is there to show you how lopsided the current position is - a ratio of three means one stat is giving three times the return of the other, which is worth knowing before you spend anything.

Does this account for diminishing returns or caps?

No, and that is a real limitation. Many games apply diminishing returns to crit chance, cap it at 100%, or cap crit damage outright, and this comparison assumes none of those. At or near a cap, further points in that stat are worth nothing at all regardless of what the ratio says here, and no formula can know your game's rules. If your game has a chance cap you are approaching, the practical version of this tool is to treat the cap as the ceiling and let crit damage take everything after it.

What about stats that are not crit?

They are not in this at all, and it matters. Flat damage, attack speed, penetration and multipliers that stack in other ways all compete for the same points, and one crit stat beating the other crit stat does not make it the best purchase overall. This tool answers a narrow question well: given that you are choosing between these two, which one. Deciding whether to be in the crit conversation at all is a wider question, and generally a DPS calculator with your real numbers in it is the better instrument for that.

My crit chance is 0. Why do the numbers look odd?

Because with no crit chance at all, crit damage does nothing - every point of it multiplies a crit you never land, so its marginal value is zero and the ratio has no meaningful denominator. That is mathematically correct rather than a bug, and it is also the clearest possible statement of the rule: crit damage is worthless without chance, and chance is worth little without damage. Practically, if you have no crit chance and no way to get any, crit damage is not a stat you should be buying.

Take it further with AI

Copy this into ChatGPT or Claude with your own numbers filled in. It hands over the figures this calculator worked out, so the answer is built on real arithmetic instead of a guess.

I used the Crit Chance vs Crit Damage Calculator at https://www.bfcbrilliance.com/tools/crit-chance-vs-crit-damage-calculator.

What I entered:
- Your crit chance (%): ___
- Your crit damage bonus (%): ___
- Crit chance one point buys (%): ___
- Crit damage one point buys (%): ___

What it calculated:
- Chance gain ÷ damage gain: ___
- Crit damage at which they balance: ___
- Your damage multiplier now: ___
- Damage gain from one chance point: ___
- Damage gain from one crit damage point: ___

Use those figures as given — they are already worked out, so please don't recalculate or estimate your own. Help me turn them into a plan: what to buy or do, in what order, roughly what it should cost, and the mistakes people most often make with this job.

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