What are the best charms in Hollow Knight?

For value per notch: Unbreakable Strength (+50% nail damage), Quick Slash (much faster nail swings), Mark of Pride (longer nail), Shaman Stone (stronger spells) and Soul Catcher (more SOUL per hit). Which of them belong in your loadout depends on whether you are playing a nail build or a spell build, and how many notches you have.

What charms should I use early in the game?

With 3 notches, Soul Catcher plus Wayward Compass if you still need the map marker, or Soul Catcher plus Steady Body. Soul Catcher is the priority because SOUL fuels healing and spells alike. As soon as you can afford it, buy Shaman Stone (220 Geo) or Quick Focus (800 Geo) from Salubra in the Forgotten Crossroads.

How many charm notches are there and where are they?

11 in total: 3 at the start and 8 more. Salubra sells four (120, 500, 900 and 1,400 Geo, each requiring a minimum number of charms owned: 5, 10, 18 and 25). The other four come from Fog Canyon (needs Isma's Tear or the Shade Cloak), defeating both Shrumal Ogres in the Fungal Wastes, clearing the Trial of the Warrior at the Colosseum of Fools, and defeating Troupe Master Grimm.

Is overcharming worth it?

Rarely. Overcharming lets you equip one charm beyond your notch limit (try to equip it five times while at least one notch is free), but you take double damage from every source. It can make sense for a short, practised boss attempt where an extra damage charm ends the fight faster than your health runs out — never for exploration.

Nail build or spell build — which is better?

Both are strong. Spell builds are easier to execute because Desolate Dive and Howling Wraiths hit hard at a safe distance with Shaman Stone. Nail builds have higher sustained damage once you own Unbreakable Strength and Quick Slash, but they ask you to stand in melee range. Pick the one that matches how you play the fight.

Should I use Fragile Strength or wait for Unbreakable Strength?

Use Fragile Strength as soon as you can afford it (600 Geo from the Leg Eater in the Fungal Wastes). It breaks when you die and must be repaired, but +50% nail damage is worth the upkeep. Upgrade it to Unbreakable Strength through Divine (Grimm Troupe content) for 15,000 Geo when your Geo allows.

Hollow Knight Best Charms — Tier List and Best Loadouts

Most charm lists rank charms as if you already had all eleven notches. You do not, for most of the game. The question that actually matters is "what is the best use of the notches I have right now?" — so this guide ranks charms by what they do per notch, then gives a concrete loadout for every notch count.

Two numbers frame everything below. You start with 3 notches and can reach 11. And every charm costs 1 to 5 notches, so a single expensive charm can be a third of your budget.

Best charms ranked

The ranking axis is value per notch across a normal playthrough. Charms that are great but expensive (Kingsoul) or great only in one fight sit lower than charms that improve every encounter.

Unbreakable Strength / Fragile Strength — 3 notches +50% nail damage. Nothing else raises your damage this much for 3 notches. The Fragile version costs 600 Geo from the Leg Eater (Fungal Wastes) and breaks on death; Divine makes it unbreakable for 15,000 Geo. Soul Catcher — 2 notches +3 SOUL per nail hit (11 → 14). SOUL pays for healing and spells, so this makes every fight more forgiving. Found early in the Ancestral Mound. The best charm for the first half of the game. Shaman Stone — 3 notches Roughly a third more spell damage and larger spells. Turns Vengeful Spirit, Desolate Dive and Howling Wraiths into your main damage. 220 Geo from Salubra. Quick Slash — 3 notches Nail swings come out roughly 40% faster. Multiplies with Strength rather than adding to it. Hidden in Kingdom's Edge, so it arrives mid-game.

Mark of Pride — 3 notches About 25% more nail range. Lets you hit bosses from outside their contact range. Found in Mantis Village. Quick Focus — 3 notches Focus (heal) about a third faster, which closes the window in which bosses punish you. 800 Geo from Salubra. Excellent for players still learning fights. Spell Twister — 2 notches Spells cost 24 SOUL instead of 33 — a full SOUL meter gives four casts instead of three. Core of every spell build. Hidden above the Soul Master fight in the Soul Sanctum. Dashmaster — 2 notches Shorter dash cooldown and a downward dash. Makes dodging easier in fast fights. Under a statue in the Fungal Wastes. Longnail — 2 notches About 15% more nail range; stacks with Mark of Pride. 300 Geo from Salubra. The cheap version of Mark of Pride when notches are tight. Grubberfly's Elegy — 3 notches At full health, nail swings fire beams that deal half your nail damage. Strong with Joni's Blessing, which keeps you at full health. Reward for freeing all 46 grubs.

Sharp Shadow — 2 notches Shadow Dash damages enemies you pass through. Useful once you have the Shade Cloak; found in Deepnest. Soul Eater — 4 notches +8 SOUL per hit (11 → 19). Stronger than Soul Catcher but twice the cost. Worth it for spell builds at 9+ notches. Dreamshield / Weaversong — 3 / 2 notches A shield that orbits you, or weaverlings that fight beside you. Passive damage and protection that work without input. Good for difficult platforming fights. Joni's Blessing — 4 notches 40% more masks, but they cannot be healed by focusing. Only good as part of a Grubberfly's Elegy build. Kingsoul — 5 notches Slowly regenerates SOUL. Story-critical, but 5 notches for passive SOUL is poor value in combat.

Wayward Compass, Gathering Swarm — 1 notch each Quality of life only. Unequip them as soon as you know the map and stop needing to collect Geo by hand. Deep Focus — 4 notches Focus heals two masks at once but takes much longer. The slower heal is usually worse in a boss fight. Heavy Blow, Steady Body — 2 / 1 notches Knockback changes. Steady Body is a decent 1-notch filler early; neither earns a slot later.

The best loadout for every notch count

This is the table to come back to whenever you gain a notch. Costs are in brackets.

Notches	Loadout	Why
3	Soul Catcher (2) + Steady Body (1) — or Wayward Compass (1) while learning the map	Soul Catcher is the most valuable early charm; the remaining notch is filler
4	Soul Catcher (2) + Longnail (2)	More SOUL and safer hits. Longnail is only 300 Geo
5	Soul Catcher (2) + Shaman Stone (3)	Spells become a real damage option against bosses
6	Fragile Strength (3) + Quick Focus (3)	Nail damage plus faster healing — the most forgiving balance for learning fights
7	Nail: Strength (3) + Quick Slash (3) + Steady Body (1) / Spell: Shaman Stone (3) + Spell Twister (2) + Soul Catcher (2)	The point where you choose a build
9	Nail: Strength (3) + Quick Slash (3) + Mark of Pride (3) / Spell: Shaman Stone (3) + Spell Twister (2) + Soul Eater (4)	The two standard endgame builds
11	Nail 9-notch build + Longnail (2) or Dashmaster (2) / Spell 9-notch build + Dashmaster (2) or Sharp Shadow (2)	Spend the last 2 notches on whatever the fight punishes you for

If you cannot decide between nail and spell, play the fight once with each. Bosses that stay airborne or keep their distance favour spells; bosses that stay on the ground and give long openings favour the nail.

The two builds in detail

Nail build — Strength, Quick Slash, Mark of Pride. +50% damage, faster swings and more range multiply together: more hits per opening, each hitting harder, from further away. This is the highest sustained damage in the game, but every point of it is earned in melee range. Add Longnail at 11 notches if you are still getting clipped, or Dashmaster if you are being hit while repositioning.

Spell build — Shaman Stone, Spell Twister, Soul Catcher or Soul Eater. Desolate Dive and Howling Wraiths hit hard and grant brief invulnerability while you cast, which makes this build easier to execute against many bosses. Spell Twister means a full SOUL meter is four casts rather than three. The weakness is SOUL: if you miss nail hits, you run dry, which is why the SOUL charms belong in the build.

Grubberfly build — Grubberfly's Elegy, Joni's Blessing. Joni's Blessing keeps you "at full health" for the purposes of Grubberfly's beams, so every swing becomes a ranged attack. Fun and strong in the right fights, but you lose the ability to heal by focusing, so mistakes are permanent.

Where to get the charms that matter early

The order you collect charms in matters more than the final list. A sensible route:

Soul Catcher — Ancestral Mound, near the start. Equip it immediately.
Salubra's shop (Forgotten Crossroads) — buy Shaman Stone (220 Geo) or Longnail (300 Geo) first, then Quick Focus (800 Geo). She also sells notches, so check back as your charm count grows.
Dashmaster — Fungal Wastes, under a statue near Mantis Village. Same trip as the Shrumal Ogres notch.
Fragile Strength — 600 Geo from the Leg Eater in the Fungal Wastes. If it breaks when you die, the Leg Eater repairs it.
Mark of Pride — Mantis Village chest, after the Mantis Lords.
Spell Twister — Soul Sanctum, in the room above the Soul Master fight.
Quick Slash — a hidden room in Kingdom's Edge, mid-to-late game.

All 11 charm notches

Source	Requirement
Starting notches	3 from the beginning
Salubra (Forgotten Crossroads)	120 Geo, 5 charms owned
Salubra	500 Geo, 10 charms owned
Salubra	900 Geo, 18 charms owned
Salubra	1,400 Geo, 25 charms owned
Fog Canyon	Isma's Tear or the Shade Cloak to reach it
Fungal Wastes	Defeat both Shrumal Ogres
Colosseum of Fools	Clear the Trial of the Warrior
Grimm Troupe	Defeat Troupe Master Grimm

Salubra's notches are gated by how many charms you own, not by progress, so picking up cheap charms you will never equip (Wayward Compass, Gathering Swarm) still pushes you toward the next notch.

Overcharming — when it is worth it

If you try to equip a charm that exceeds your notch limit five times while you have at least one notch free, the game lets you overcharm. Your health bar glows purple and you take double damage from every source.

Overcharming is not a free extra charm. Every hit counts twice, so a fight you could survive eight hits in now allows four. It is only worth it for a short boss attempt you have already learned, where an extra damage charm ends the fight before the doubled damage matters. Never explore overcharmed.

Charms that waste notches

Fragile charms you cannot afford to repair. If you die often and keep losing Fragile Strength, use the notches on Quick Focus until you can pay for Unbreakable Strength.
Quality-of-life charms kept too long. Wayward Compass and Gathering Swarm are fine early, but once you know the map, those notches are worth more as Longnail or Steady Body.
Kingsoul as a combat charm. It is required for the story route to the true ending; it is not a good use of 5 notches in a boss fight.
Deep Focus for learning fights. Healing two masks sounds better, but the slower focus is exactly when bosses hit you.

Once your charms are set, the Boss Guide covers the fights these builds are for, and the Beginner Guide covers the early route where Soul Catcher and Salubra's shop come in. For where each area sits on the route, see the Exploration Guide.

★Honest Take: the notch budget is the real game

Hollow Knight's charm system works because it never lets you have everything. The moment it clicks is usually the moment you stop asking "which charm is best?" and start asking "what keeps killing me?" — then spend notches on exactly that. If a boss hits you while you heal, Quick Focus. If you cannot reach it, Mark of Pride or spells. If you run out of SOUL, Soul Catcher. Most walls in this game have a charm-shaped answer, and swapping charms is cheaper than grinding.