As if life wasn't hard enough already in the Lands Between, some lone Tarnished is about to single-handedly cause economic deflation by hoarding all the Runes. Luckily, there are plenty of merchants all throughout Elden Ring ready to place those Runes back into circulation by selling their stuff to the Tarnished.
But as Tarnished, players would also want to know which among these merchants can give them their Runes' worth. So here's a ranking of the in-game merchants. For the sake of simplicity, we'll only be considering merchants who actually have tangible wares to sell. Specialists who sell only spells or weapon skills in Elden Ring are exempted for now.
Updated November 11th, 2022, by Sid Natividad: Elden Ring continues to be a compelling game months after its release that players likely won't mind replaying again and again. In such an endeavor, it's good to know which among the best merchants in Elden Ring are worthy of the players' hard-earned runes. Thus, more merchants have been added to the roster here so players can optimize their builds and playthroughs better. They might not be selling wares or anything tangible, but their services are certainly more than welcome. Besides, magic builds will benefit from these additional Elden Ring best merchants.
15 Thops
Thops gets props for being in the right place at the necessary moment in the game. He simply resides by a ruined Church of Marika that overlooks the whole Liurnia of the Lakes area. He's even kind enough to provide a lore explanation and directions.
His spells, however, are a bit lackluster compared to Sorceress Sellen's. There's a lore explanation for that as well. However, if players finish his questline, he'll sell a useful barrier spell that's quite handy in keeping magic-based classes alive. Besides, he's one of the few good NPCs in the game.
Notable wares:
- Glintstone Pebble
- Glintstone Arc
- Starlight
- Thops' Barrier (after quest)
14 Hermit Merchants
Hermit Merchants are commonly found in mid to late-game areas so one could expect their inventory to be interesting or game-changing. Well, they're not. In fact, the things they sell aren't much better than their Nomadic or Isolated counterparts and those can be found earlier in-game.
Notable wares:
- Cookbooks
- Stonesword Keys
- Rune Arcs
- Lost Ashes of War
- Sentry's Torch
- Arrows
13 Pidia, Carian Servant
Pidia is a hidden merchant in Caria Manor that's easy to miss since he's tucked away in a tower under the eastern cliffs of the Three Sisters. He does offer an important map that's somewhat necessary for completing Seluvis' questline. Apart from that, there's not much in Pidia's inventory.
Most of the stuff he sells is either crafting materials or other wares that are low in quantity, making other merchants more appealing. Also, he may or may not be directly related to Seluvis since they both die at the same time. Some speculate that he's probably Seluvis himself.
Notable wares:
- Cookbooks
- Larval Tear
- Celestial Dew
- Ritual Pot
- Map
- Ash of War: Carian Retaliation
12 Isolated Merchants
These are the guys who complain that they get no customers and that they're hungry but then set up camp in some hidden crevice in a mountain or in the middle of nowhere. While not the savviest among their merchant tribe, some of them sell some handy stuff needed for PvP.
Notable wares:
- Cookbooks
- Lantern
- Festering Bloody Finger
- Beast-Repellent Torch
- Stonesword Keys
- Rune Arcs
- Lost Ashes of War
- Arrows
11 Sorcerer Rogier
Much like Thops, Rogier is a decent and honorable man in a world full of miscreants. That's why the mere sight of his big hat is enough to spark hope and comfort. Because that usually means he'll provide a semblance of sanctuary for the players. Sure enough, he does so in Stormveil Castle's church.
Rogier will be there, just waiting for the players while also offering some nifty Ashes of War that are build-defining. He doesn't exactly have as much to sell compared to other merchants, but all his spells are useful and sometimes even essential for early builds, making him one of the best merchants in Elden Ring.
Notable wares:
- Ash of War: Glintstone Pebble
- Ash of War: Carian Greatsword
- Ash of War: Spinning Weapon
10 Smithing Master Iji
Iji is the other, less grumpy blacksmith in Elden Ring and he seems to specialize in forging and upgrading magical items. This giant blacksmith is conveniently located along the road to Caria Manor making him both a sanctuary and also a guard to the whole place.
Players can go to him if they don't want to walk too much in the Roundtable Hold for upgrades. Meanwhile, his inventory isn't that generous but he does offer a lot of good and rare upgrade materials along with a talisman that's generally useful for most builds.
Notable wares:
- Somber Smithing Stones
- Carian Filigreed Crest
9 Nomadic Merchants
They're the most common and widespread among the merchant tribes in the Lands Between so Nomadic Merchants already have that advantage over their other cousins, which is a big reason why they are seen as some of the best Elden Ring merchants. They're spread all throughout Elden Ring and even offer some hint-related items and plenty of other wares that will surely catch the player's eyes.
Notable wares:
- Cookbooks
- Lantern
- Larval Tear
- Festering Bloody Finger
- Stonesword Keys
- Rune Arcs
- Lost Ashes of War
- Arrows
8 Merchant Kalé
He's the only member of the hobo merchant tribe who has a name so that automatically makes Kalé more approachable or human. There's also the fact that the's the first friendly face that players see and in a church nonetheless that's just beyond the Tree Sentinel boss area.
That's why Kalé holds a special place in players' hearts. But apart from his name and his location, Kalé also sells some crucial stuff. He gives players the gift of crafting for a small fee and also sells some utility wares. Kalé is also generally humble and friendly. Players will want to check with him repeatedly early game since he's part of Blaidd's questline.
Notable wares:
- Cookbooks
- Telescope
- Furcalling Finger Remedy
- Crafting Kit
- Torch
- Hints
- Arrows
7 Patches
More of a scoundrel than a merchant, Patches is a bittersweet ally who has trouble keeping his morals straight. If players decide to forgive him in the first encounter (which is a boss fight against him), then they'll be able to peruse Patches' wares. He actually sells some impressive items essential for both PvP and PvE.
The only problem is that he keeps changing locations so keeping a track of him during certain pivotal quest triggers can be annoying. So it's best to buy all his wares because one can never reliably know where he might turn up or even if he even turns up alive.
Notable wares:
- Cookbooks
- Gold-Pickled Fowl Foot
- Margit's Shackle
- Furcalling Finger Remedy
- Festering Bloody Finger
- Grace Mimic
- Stonesword Key
- Arrows
6 Knight Bernahl
Knight Bernahl might have strayed off from the honorable path, but he's nonetheless a helpful ally during the early levels and phases of the game. Players can find him relaxing in a hut in Limgrave (at first) and he'll be selling some Ashes of War for physical weapons, mostly.
He offers a good opportunity for players to test out which weapon skill they prefer though his fees can be rather high for low-level players. Some of his Ashes of War are also game-changing, and players would do well to buy them all in order to experiment with what's effective for their build.
Notable wares:
- Ash of War: Impaling Thrust
- Ash of War: Quickstep
- Ash of War: Parry
- Ash of War: No Skill
- Ash of War: Stamp (Upward Cut)
- Ash of War: Endure
5 Sorceress Sellen
Sorceress Sellen is practically the magic-build equivalent of Knight Bernahl. She offers not just mentorship, but some of the most ideal spells for those who are just trying out sorcery for the first time. Initially, her catalog is just modest, but players can keep coming back to her with sorcery scrolls if they want more spells.
In fact, Sellen is one of the few characters in the game whom the players might want to keep alive as long as possible. Because her spells are build-enabling. On top of that, she has an interesting questline that gives plenty of rewards for magic builds. Sorceress Sellen is certainly among the very best merchants in Elden Ring.
Notable wares:
- Glintstone Pebble
- Glintstone Arc
- Scholar's Armament
- Glintblade Phalanx
- Carian Slicer
- Swift Glintstone Shard
- Glintstone Cometshard
4 Gatekeeper Gostoc
That commoner zombie who locks unfortunate players in that Stormveil Castle room with a Banished Knight? He deserves cold steel between his ribcage but in this case, Gatekeeper Gostoc is worth more alive than dead. He has a lot of useful consumables that he likely obtained from pillaging and looting fallen Tarnished, including the players.
In any case, Gatekeeper Gostoc will sell a rather important and rare piece of upgrade material once players complete Nepheli's questline. By then, Gostoc will serve her and re-open his shop. So whatever happens, don't kill him out of spite.
Notable wares:
- Silver-Pickled Fowl Foot
- Furcalling Finger Remedy
- Festering Bloody Finger
- Ancient Dragon Smithing Stone
- Arrows
3 Miriel, Pastor of Vows
The other reason why players aren't fond of Brother Corhyn— apart from the fact that he's a bigot, is Miriel or Turtle Pope's existence. He offers more interesting services and is generally more accepting and tolerant of other beliefs. Plus, he's friendly and doesn't mind regaling players with much-needed lore explanations.
It's also recommended to give all the incantation books to Miriel instead of Corhyn since Miriel only stays in one place whereas Corhyn is too inconsiderate and moves around. All those reasons why Miriel should be here also weren't really that necessary; he's what the players want him to be, a Turtle Pope, and that's more than enough.
Notable wares:
- Incantations
- Sorceries
- Absolving players of sins
2 Enia
Enia is a translator who moonlights as both a fortune-teller and a merchant. When it comes to selling goods, however, she's the Gucci among thrift shops in the Lands Between. Apart from selling (or converting) boss Remembrances into some of the best weapons in Elden Ring, she also has the best armor store in the Lands Between.
Enia will sell players the armor or clothing of any major boss they defeat. Be it Radahn's armor set, Rennala's robes, or even Margit/Morgott's smelly cloak, Enia will procure it. These items do cost premium and hundreds of thousands of Runes but that's the price of vanity and peak Elden Bling.
Notable wares:
- Boss Armor
- Boss Spells & Weapons
1 Twin Maiden Husks
Despite Enia's high-end merch, she's not quite on the same level and versatility as these twins who are at the top of the Fortune 500 business people in the Lands Between. The Twin Maiden Husks are all about assimilating other small businesses (via Bell Bearings) and monopolizing everything in Elden Ring.
Most other merchants who died can have their Bell Bearings given to these two and they'll sell the dead person's items. That's not all though, they also sell unlimited upgrade materials up to +9, making build and weapon testing possible and easy. In hindsight, however, their business practice is unethical and even evil as the players tend to inadvertently act like their enforcer who bankrupts other small businesses so they can take over.
Elden Ring is available on PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, and PC.