Persona 5 Royal: Best ways to max all social stats & which to focus

Persona 5 Royal forces players to raise their social stats in order to get the most out of the game, but focusing on the right ones is more important than ever before.

Social stats serve as the primary gate for side content in Persona games. While Persona 3 was extremely unforgiving in this regard, Persona 5 Royal offers players a variety of different ways to raise each social stat. While it’s an overall manageable experience, that freedom can make it hard to keep track of how things work and what the most efficient option is.

That makes it worth going over all the options for raising social stats in Persona 5 Royal, and which are best.

The best ways to increase social stats in Persona 5 Royal

The best thing to do when playing Persona 5 Royal is to take advantage of passive opportunities to raise social stats. Though Persona 3 and Persona 3 Reload’s social stat grind basically boils down to a cycle of working jobs and then spending the money made from working, Persona 5 Royal is much more forgiving.

Players have more options for gaining social stats without having to dedicate a block of time. This allows for faster progression overall, both in terms of raising social stats and leveling up confidants. It’s also important to boost gains when raising social stats. For example, studying on a rainy day is better than studying on a sunny day. Players should also make sure to take advantage of Chihaya’s Luck Reading ability that boosts social stat gains from activities.

Past this, players have multiple hobbies or activities they can do that can raise multiple stats, similar to Persona 3’s arcade and dormitory PC. These include:

• Playing video games
• Watching movies
• Watching TV shows
• Reading books
• Working at the Crossroads Bar

These activities aren’t necessarily repeatable or reliable for raising specific stats. Because of this, players need to take advantage of several activities that offer boosts to a specific stat.

Which confidants require social stats to unlock and progress?

Kawakami, Futaba, Ann, Iwai, and other confidants all have social stat requirements or prerequisites that must be achieved to max them out.

Persona 5 Royal puts a much greater emphasis on raising social stats than other games in the series. While they’re important in Persona 3 and 4, and recent Persona-like Metaphor: ReFantazio has something similar in royal virtues, they’re a constant consideration in Persona 5.

While many of Persona 3’s social links had prerequisites for unlocking them, Persona 5 Royal’s confidants have social stat prerequisites and gates for progressing them. For example, Makoto is unlocked as a confidant in Persona 5 Royal with knowledge level three, then needs players to have level five charm in order to advance beyond a certain point in her story. Here’s a full breakdown of all the confidants that have prerequisites and checks during their story:

How to increase knowledge in Persona 5 Royal

Giving correct answers to classroom questions, completing crossword puzzles, and studying on rainy days are the best ways to raise the knowledge stat in Persona 5 Royal.

While answering questions in school to raise stats is a staple part of Persona games, Persona 5 Royal adds another option. Players can also raise their knowledge stat without advancing by finishing crossword puzzles. These are on the table in LeBlanc furthest from the door. Here are all the dedicated options for raising knowledge:

• Study
• Answer questions correctly in class
• Solve crossword puzzles
• Spend time with Hifumi

Studying is the go-to method for raising the knowledge stat, and players get double yields if they hit the books on a rainy day. There are also select opportunities for studying sessions with confidants that offer extra rewards.

Another key improvement in Persona 5 Royal over past games is that hanging out with certain confidants will raise social stats. For knowledge, Hifumi is the best bet.

How to increase proficiency in Persona 5 Royal

Visiting the batting cages and fishing are the best ways to quickly raise the proficiency stat. However, players have a number of other options at their disposal:

• Craft tools
• Visit the batting cages
• Go fishing
• Work at the beef bowl shop
• Spend time with Iwai

Unlike kindness, players have a broad variety of methods for raising proficiency. The trouble is that many of these options have smaller yields. Visiting the batting cages is the most reliable method, and can effectively be done at any time. Once fishing becomes available, players can cast a line for some proficiency, too. Crafting tools and working at the beef bowl shop also offer a smaller boost to the proficiency stat, coupled with items and money, respectively.

Players can also get a one-time proficiency boost by buying and repairing the broken laptop that becomes available in September. Repairing the laptop is worth doing on its own, offering access to Tanaka’s dark web shop. The social stat boost is just gravy.

How to increase guts in Persona 5 Royal

The best way to raise guts in Persona 5 Royal are trying the Big Bang Burger challenge and drinking coffee at the diner. Similar to proficiency, boosts to the guts stat are packaged alongside other gains, which makes it difficult to raise the stat quickly. Here are all the most reliable methods:

• Trying the Big Bang Burger challenge
• Drink coffee at the diner
• Study at the school library
• Spend time with Takemi

Though increasing guts is a challenge in Persona 5 Royal, it’s also the social stat that players should focus on raising early on. Guts unlocks multiple confidants, including Kawakami. Because of how important it is to raise guts, players should read books, play video games, and watch TV shows that boost the stat.

How to increase charm in Persona 5 Royal

Placing highly on exams and visiting the bathhouse on rainy days are the best options for raising the charm stat. Here are the most consistent methods for raising the stat:

• Place top-of-class in exams
• Visit the bathhouse
• Visit the maid cafe
• Spend time with Ohya or Yoshida

As mentioned, Persona 5 Royal players should focus on raising social stats without advancing time forward. Raising charm by placing highly on exams is the best example of this, offering both social stats and improved relationships with confidants.

In terms of reliable methods, visiting the bathhouse or maid cafe is the best bet. Visiting the bathhouse on Mondays, Thursdays, and rainy days is the fastest way to raise charm in Persona 5 Royal. The maid cafe also offers a guaranteed charm boost, alongside other perks that vary from visit to visit.

How to increase kindness in Persona 5 Royal

Feeding Joker’s potted plant and working at the flower shop are the only reliable means of raising kindness in Persona 5 Royal.

Relative to knowledge and charm, it’s difficult to raise the kindness stat. There are only a few reliable methods for doing so:

• Feed Joker’s potted plant
• Work at the flower shop
• Spend time with Sojiro or Oda
• Go to the movies

Joker’s room has a potted plant that can be given plant food just about once every two weeks. This is one of those valuable methods for boosting social stats without advancing time. Past that, the only reliable method for raising kindness is working at the flower shop, which offers both stats and money.

Though visiting the movie theatre is a method for raising multiple social stats, it’s one of the best options for kindness based on the scarcity of alternatives and how often kindness-boosting films are on offer. Finally, Sojiro and Oda both give players a boost to the kindness stat.

What social stat should I focus on in Persona 5 Royal?

Players should raise the guts stat to level three as quickly as possible when starting a new Persona 5 Royal game, and level up their knowledge regularly. The guts stat serves as a gate in three separate confidant questlines. Most important among them is Kawakami.

Kawakami gives players extra slots of free time during some school days. This allows the player to choose between a variety of different ways to fill the time, including crafting tools and reading books. Time is always a precious commodity in Persona games and Kawakami just gives players more time to work with.

Kawakami is one of three characters unlocked through the guts social stat. Takemi is available at guts level two, Kawakami is available at level three, and Iwai is available at four. Though Takemi and Iwai are both helpful, Kawakami is why guts is the social stat to focus on in Persona 5 Royal.

Knowledge is also important. Placing highly on exams offers a massive perk, boosting players’ charm stat and improving their relationship with all their classmates. As in previous Persona games, this is the toughest social stat to max out. That means slowly chipping away at it over the course of the entire game.