Spells that deal damage are the bread and butter of DnD 5e’s spellcasters. Sure, buffing and healing allies, debuffing enemies, and providing utility are all useful. But, at the end of the day, someone needs to kill the monsters you battle.
I’ve put together a list of all 163 damaging spells in 5e, along with their average damage on a hit. Note that the average damage value doesn’t take into account the spellcaster’s spellcasting modifier.
| Spell Name | Level | Avg Dmg |
|---|---|---|
| Acid Splash | 0 (cantrip) | 3.5 |
| Booming Blade | 0 (cantrip) | 4.5 |
| Chill Touch | 0 (cantrip) | 4.5 |
| Create Bonfire | 0 (cantrip) | 4.5 |
| Eldritch Blast | 0 (cantrip) | 5.5 |
| Fire Bolt | 0 (cantrip) | 5.5 |
| Frostbite | 0 (cantrip) | 3.5 |
| Green-Flame Blade | 0 (cantrip) | 0 |
| Infestation | 0 (cantrip) | 3.5 |
| Lightning Lure | 0 (cantrip) | 4.5 |
| Magic Stone | 0 (cantrip) | 3.5 |
| Mind Sliver | 0 (cantrip) | 3.5 |
| Poison Spray | 0 (cantrip) | 6.5 |
| Primal Savagery | 0 (cantrip) | 5.5 |
| Produce Flame | 0 (cantrip) | 4.5 |
| Ray of Frost | 0 (cantrip) | 4.5 |
| Sacred Flame | 0 (cantrip) | 4.5 |
| Shocking Grasp | 0 (cantrip) | 4.5 |
| Sword Burst | 0 (cantrip) | 3.5 |
| Thorn Whip | 0 (cantrip) | 3.5 |
| Thunderclap | 0 (cantrip) | 3.5 |
| Toll the Dead | 0 (cantrip) | 4.5 |
| Vicious Mockery | 0 (cantrip) | 2.5 |
| Word of Radiance | 0 (cantrip) | 3.5 |
| Absorb Elements | 1st-level | 3.5 |
| Armor of Agathys | 1st-level | 5 |
| Arms of Hadar | 1st-level | 7 |
| Burning Hands | 1st-level | 10.5 |
| Catapult | 1st-level | 13.5 |
| Chaos Bolt | 1st-level | 12.5 |
| Chromatic Orb | 1st-level | 13.5 |
| Dissonant Whispers | 1st-level | 10.5 |
| Divine Favor | 1st-level | 2.5 |
| Earth Tremor | 1st-level | 3.5 |
| Ensnaring Strike | 1st-level | 3.5 |
| Guiding Bolt | 1st-level | 14 |
| Hail of Thorns | 1st-level | 5.5 |
| Hellish Rebuke | 1st-level | 11 |
| Hex | 1st-level | 3.5 |
| Ice Knife | 1st-level | 12.5 |
| Inflict Wounds | 1st-level | 16.5 |
| Magic Missile | 1st-level | 10.5 |
| Ray of Sickness | 1st-level | 9 |
| Searing Smite | 1st-level | 3.5 |
| Tasha’s Caustic Brew | 1st-level | 5 |
| Thunderous Smite | 1st-level | 7 |
| Thunderwave | 1st-level | 9 |
| Witch Bolt | 1st-level | 6.5 |
| Wrathful Smite | 1st-level | 3.5 |
| Zephyr Strike | 1st-level | 4.5 |
| Aganazzar’s Scorcher | 2nd-level | 13.5 |
| Branding Smite | 2nd-level | 7 |
| Cloud of Daggers | 2nd-level | 10 |
| Cordon of Arrows | 2nd-level | 3.5 |
| Dragon’s Breath | 2nd-level | 10.5 |
| Dust Devil | 2nd-level | 4.5 |
| Flame Blade | 2nd-level | 10.5 |
| Flaming Sphere | 2nd-level | 7 |
| Heat Metal | 2nd-level | 9 |
| Maximilian’s Earthen Grasp | 2nd-level | 7 |
| Melf’s Acid Arrow | 2nd-level | 15 |
| Mind Spike | 2nd-level | 13.5 |
| Moonbeam | 2nd-level | 11 |
| Phantasmal Force | 2nd-level | 3.5 |
| Scorching Ray | 2nd-level | 7 |
| Shadow Blade | 2nd-level | 9 |
| Shatter | 2nd-level | 13.5 |
| Snilloc’s Snowball Swarm | 2nd-level | 10.5 |
| Spike Growth | 2nd-level | 9 |
| Spiritual Weapon | 2nd-level | 4.5 |
| Tasha’s Mind Whip | 2nd-level | 10.5 |
| Blinding Smite | 3rd-level | 13.5 |
| Call Lightning | 3rd-level | 16.5 |
| Conjure Barrage | 3rd-level | 13.5 |
| Crusader’s Mantle | 3rd-level | 2.5 |
| Erupting Earth | 3rd-level | 19.5 |
| Fireball | 3rd-level | 28 |
| Flame Arrows | 3rd-level | 3.5 |
| Glyph of Warding | 3rd-level | 22.5 |
| Hunger of Hadar | 3rd-level | 14 |
| Life Transference | 3rd-level | 18 |
| Lightning Arrow | 3rd-level | 27 |
| Lightning Bolt | 3rd-level | 28 |
| Melf’s Minute Meteors | 3rd-level | 7 |
| Spirit Guardians | 3rd-level | 13.5 |
| Spirit Shroud | 3rd-level | 4.5 |
| Thunder Step | 3rd-level | 16.5 |
| Tidal Wave | 3rd-level | 18 |
| Vampiric Touch | 3rd-level | 10.5 |
| Wind Wall | 3rd-level | 13.5 |
| Blight | 4th-level | 36 |
| Control Water | 4th-level | 9 |
| Elemental Bane | 4th-level | 7 |
| Evard’s Black Tentacles | 4th-level | 10.5 |
| Fire Shield | 4th-level | 9 |
| Guardian of Faith | 4th-level | 20 |
| Ice Storm | 4th-level | 23 |
| Mordenkainen’s Faithful Hound | 4th-level | 18 |
| Phantasmal Killer | 4th-level | 22 |
| Shadow of Moil | 4th-level | 9 |
| Sickening Radiance | 4th-level | 22 |
| Staggering Smite | 4th-level | 14 |
| Storm Sphere | 4th-level | 21 |
| Vitriolic Sphere | 4th-level | 37.5 |
| Wall of Fire | 4th-level | 22.5 |
| Banishing Smite | 5th-level | 27.5 |
| Bigby’s Hand | 5th-level | 25 |
| Cloudkill | 5th-level | 22.5 |
| Cone of Cold | 5th-level | 36 |
| Conjure Volley | 5th-level | 36 |
| Dawn | 5th-level | 22 |
| Destructive Wave | 5th-level | 35 |
| Dream | 5th-level | 10.5 |
| Enervation | 5th-level | 18 |
| Flame Strike | 5th-level | 28 |
| Holy Weapon | 5th-level | 27 |
| Immolation | 5th-level | 28 |
| Insect Plague | 5th-level | 22 |
| Maelstrom | 5th-level | 21 |
| Negative Energy Flood | 5th-level | 32.5 |
| Steel Wind Strike | 5th-level | 33 |
| Synaptic Static | 5th-level | 28 |
| Transmute Rock | 5th-level | 18 |
| Wall of Light | 5th-level | 18 |
| Wrath of Nature | 5th-level | 14 |
| Blade Barrier | 6th-level | 33 |
| Bones of the Earth | 6th-level | 21 |
| Chain Lightning | 6th-level | 45 |
| Circle of Death | 6th-level | 28 |
| Disintegrate | 6th-level | 75 |
| Harm | 6th-level | 49 |
| Investiture of Flame | 6th-level | 23.5 |
| Investiture of Ice | 6th-level | 14 |
| Investiture of Wind | 6th-level | 11 |
| Mental Prison | 6th-level | 27.5 |
| Otiluke’s Freezing Sphere | 6th-level | 35 |
| Sunbeam | 6th-level | 27 |
| Tenser’s Transformation | 6th-level | 13 |
| Wall of Ice | 6th-level | 35 |
| Wall of Thorns | 6th-level | 31.5 |
| Crown of Stars | 7th-level | 26 |
| Delayed Blast Fireball | 7th-level | 42 |
| Finger of Death | 7th-level | 61.5 |
| Fire Storm | 7th-level | 38.5 |
| Mordenkainen’s Sword | 7th-level | 16.5 |
| Prismatic Spray | 7th-level | 35 |
| Symbol | 7th-level | 55 |
| Whirlwind | 7th-level | 35 |
| Abi-Dalzim’s Horrid Wilting | 8th-level | 54 |
| Earthquake | 8th-level | 17.5 |
| Feeblemind | 8th-level | 14 |
| Illusory Dragon | 8th-level | 24.5 |
| Incendiary Cloud | 8th-level | 45 |
| Sunburst | 8th-level | 42 |
| Tsunami | 8th-level | 33 |
| Blade of Disaster | 9th-level | 67.5 |
| Meteor Swarm | 9th-level | 140 |
| Power Word Kill | 9th-level | 0 |
| Prismatic Wall | 9th-level | 35 |
| Psychic Scream | 9th-level | 49 |
| Storm of Vengeance | 9th-level | 7 |
| Weird | 9th-level | 22 |
