Rarity is a statistic applying to all items, that loosely indicates their value and the difficulty with which they are obtained. An item's Rarity is indicated in-game by the color of its name text, as displayed, for example, when rolling the cursor over the item in an inventory slot. An item's Rarity can be raised or lowered by up to two tiers depending on its Modifier.
With few exceptions, any item with a Rarity of White or Gray will be destroyed upon contact with lava (exceptions being Obsidian, Clay Pots, Living Fire Blocks, Fireblossom, and Fireblossom Seeds).
- Certain Rarity colors appear very similar to each other in-game and are easily confused, eg. Green/Lime, Orange/Red.
- In the table below, click a rarity color to see a listing of items of that rarity (Note: Gray, White, and Amber rarities are not fully categorized on this wiki yet).
| Tier | Color | Description | |
|---|---|---|---|
| - | 
|
The lowest tier. Very few items have this as base rarity, but "junk" Fishing items do: Tin Can, Old Shoe, and Seaweed. This mainly consists of low-tier equipment with poor Modifiers, such as a Shameful Iron Broadsword. | Example: 
|
| 0 | 
|
Building materials, and low-tier tools, such as the Copper Pickaxe. Items from this tier will be destroyed in Lava, with a few exceptions. | Example: 
|
| 1 | 
|
Weapons and armor crafted from early ores, along with early accessories like the Shackle and Lucky Horseshoe. Also some non-craftable weapons, such as the Ball O' Hurt. Also includes Monster Banners, Trophies, Masks, and Dyes. Items in this tier and above will not be destroyed in Lava. | Example: 
|
| 2 | 
|
Midway pre-Hardmode items. These are mostly non-craftable, with the exception of Necro armor, Sandgun, Sunglasses, Obsidian Skull, and the Star Cannon. | Example: 
|
| 3 | 
|
Late-stage pre-Hardmode items: Weapons and armor made of Hellstone, Jungle and Underground Jungle items, Underworld items. Several Hardmode ores, crafting materials, and consumables (Greater Healing Potion and several Arrows and Bullets) also fall in this category. | Example: 
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| 4 | 
|
Early Hardmode items, such as those crafted from Hardmode Ores. | Example: 
|
| 5 | 
|
Mid-Hardmode (pre-Plantera) items, including those acquired from Mechanical Bosses, eg. Flamethrower, Dao of Pow; Hallowed armor and other Hallowed tools and weapons and the Suspicious Looking Apple | Example: 
|
| 6 | 
|
The rarest pre-Plantera items, like the Death Sickle and Ankh Charm. | Example: 
|
| 7 | 
|
Items acquired around Plantera and Golem, and the Hardmode Underground Jungle. Chlorophyte tools and weapons, Ankh Shield, Temple Key, and some Frost Moon drops. | Example: 
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| 8 | 
|
Late post-Plantera items, including those acquired from the post-Plantera Dungeon. Currently the most powerful endgame items (as of 1.2.4.1). Biome Chest items, Frost Moon and Pumpkin Moon drops; Duke Fishron drops; Shroomite, Beetle, Spectre armor sets; Spectre tool set; Terra Blade; all Mounts, except for the Minecart. | Example: 
|
| 9 | 
|
This tier is primarily for Lime and Yellow items that have high-level modifiers. Obtainable items generally do not have this as a base rarity, but the unobtainable developer-reserved items do. | Example: 
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| - | 
|
This special tier contains only "quest items" to be turned over to quest-giving NPCs for rewards. Quest items can only be obtained while on a quest, and are worthless otherwise. | Example: 
|