Sniper Elite 5 – Best skills to unlock

Not all skills in Sniper Elite 5 are made equally. Some skills give you a sweet, small, passive boost, while others are essential to being a great military assassin. Each skill is specific to the type they belong to, so we've taken each skill group and ranked them in what order you should get their skills in. You'll notice that it's more important to focus on skill than combat because you're trying to sneak around.

What are the best skills in Sniper Elite 5?

The game's difficulty does not affect these skills, so they may be more helpful as the game becomes harder. Below are the best overall skills in the order you should get them and how much they cost:

1. Swift Hands - two skill points
   • This gives you the ability to loot your enemies after a takedown. It is always a good idea to loot enemies, but you can waste a lot of time looting while also revealing yourself to others. It's better to search enemies as you kill them so you can move on quickly.
2. Maintain Focus - one skill point
   • Any playthrough would be incomplete without Focus, which is the best skill in the game. This feature allows you to see enemies through walls, highlight items, and even see enemy patrol paths. When you use Focus too much, it won't work as well over time, but this skill pretty much prevents that.
3. Focus Range - one skill point
   • You can use this to increase the range of your Focus, which is handy when you're uncertain if an enemy is in the distance.
4. Carry more Decoys - one skill point
   • Decoys seem stupid and useless at first, but once you start using them, you realize how helpful they are. This allows you to carry more Decoys, which can help a lot.
5. Extra Item Slot 1 - one skill point
   • These add more item slots, which are essential. When you try to remain concealed for a long time, you'll quickly discover that you use a lot of items. It is better to use items than to kill someone loudly.
6. Extra Item Slot 2 - two skill points
   • Same reasoning as above.
7. Cardio - one skill point
   • By itself, it reduces the heart rate increase while sprinting, but paired with Deep Breath, this is worth the skill point.
8. Deep Breath - one and two skill points
   • By itself, it reduces your heart rate increase while using Empty Lung. Having Deep Breath with Cardio gives you almost entirely steady aim.

You'll notice that this list is almost without Combat Skills. Since enemies tend to appear out of nowhere just to join a firefight, Combat Skills aren't really what you should focus on in SE5. A game like this won't make you invincible, so either hide or die.

Related: Sniper Elite 5 Season Pass One Content Roadmap, explained

Best Body Skills to unlock first in SE5

Your body is a temple, and it will only be as strong as you make it. Your body skills are probably the most important because they help you set up your shots and keep you calm when you are aiming. Here's the order you should unlock them:

1. Maintain Focus - one skill point
2. Focus Range - one skill point
3. Cardio - one skill point
4. Deep Breath - two skill points
5. Health Boost 1 - one skill point
6. Focus Movement - two skill points
7. Speedy Recovery - one skill point
8. Health Boost 2 - two skill points
9. Stabilized - two skill points

Best Equipment Skills to unlock first in SE5

Your equipment is essential to staying stocked up. If you haven't unlocked many Body Skills yet, you can pretty much ignore this group. When you're ready, go ahead and unlock your skills in this order:

1. Carry more Decoys - one skill point
2. Extra Item Slot 1 - one skill point
3. Scavenge Weapon Ammo - one skill point
4. Extra Item Slot 2 - two skill points
5. Pistol Special Ammo - two skill points
6. Rifle Special Ammo - two skill points
7. Carry more Traps - one skill point
8. Carry more Explosives - one skill point
9. Secondary Special Ammo - two skill points

Related: Sniper Elite 5 Tips: 5 Essential things to know before playing

Best Combat Skills to unlock first in SE5

If you're trying to be a Sniper that gets into fights, then we won't stop you. The following skills are necessary to make that easier, so you won't end up dead before the mission ends:

1. Back in the Fight - one skill point
2. Combat Medic - two skill points
3. No Time to Bleed - one skill point
4. Steady Hand - one skill point
5. Triangulation - one skill point
6. Grenade Throwback - one skill point
7. Quick Trap - one skill point
8. Advanced Triangulation - two skill points
9. Swift Hands - two skill points

For more on Sniper Elite, check out How to bury Baumann in concrete in Sniper Elite 5 and Sniper Elite 5 Trophy Guide here on Pro Game Guides.