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Just like in any RPG, leveling up is a vital part of the gameplay inPersona 5 Royal. Players who fail to level up their team will struggle against late-game bosses and need to waste time level grinding in Mementos. As an updated re-release ofPersona 5,Persona 5 Royalhas many quality-of-life changes and 20 hours of new gameplay.
Persona 5 Royalincludes a new semester for the Phantom Thieves and adds a few changes to pre-existing boss fights. With so much new content, it’s best to keep everyone’s levels high and know the quickest ways to get experience.
Updated June 02, 2025 by Renri Seong:Being over-leveled can makePersona 5 Royaltoo easy, but you’ll want to be the same level as the Palace Rulers - especially on a brand new file. There are several ways to make farming experience easier inP5Rfrom Confidant Skills to Jose in Mementos. Joker can also earn EXP for his non-active Persona with a passive skill. The following guide has been updated to include a new section on how to farm experience quickly with the help of the Insta-kill ability.
Accessories and The Moon Arcana
Mishima Yuuki’s Confidant
InPersona 5 Royal, players can download the free DLC from the Playstation Store to get the accessoryTeam Glasses. These will add 15% EXP gain from battle. In order for these to work, each character needs to have them equipped as theirAccessory.
Since players can only use Joker and three other Phantom Thieves in battle, the Phantom Thieves on the backline will get less experience once a battle has ended.
By ranking up theMoon Confidant (Yuuki Mishima)toRank 3andRank 5, backup team members will gain EXP. If the player chooses to get toRank 10of Mishima’s Confidant, then backup members will gain thesameEXP as those fighting on the front lines.
Increasing Mishima’s Confidant is fairly easy as long as players remember to select the dialogue option that appeals to him the most. It’s also advised to bring a Persona of theMoonArcana before hanging out with him.
As ofPersona 5 Royal, Mementos Missions assigned by Mishima are now tied in with his Confidant. This means if players are neglecting Mishima’s missions, then it won’t be possible to Rank Up the Confidant.
Mementos: Increase EXP Gain
Cognition of Mementos
Along with Yoshizawa and Maruki,Persona 5 Royaladded a new character named Jose. He may not be as plot-important as Kasumi and Maruki, but he can be a great help gameplay-wise.
Scattered around the depths of Mementos are “flowers” and “Stamp Stations.” Collect both of these, and they can be exchanged with Jose for items or changing the Cognition of Mementos. In the Cognition menu of Jose’s Shop, players have the option of increasingEXP,Money Rewards, orItem Rewards, but only in Mementos. Increasing the EXP from battle to 110% will cost 5 Stamps, while getting the EXP Up to 200% (max) will cost 12 Stamps.
There are a total of 165 Stamps inPersona 5 Royal, but players will need atotal of85 Stampsif they want to max out the Exp Up. Stamp Stations can be found in “dead ends” on a Mementos floor behind breakable walls. When players go toa new floor of Mementos, they have a chance of running into Jose.
Fight the Reaper
What Level is the Reaper?
The Reaper is a powerful, recurring enemy of thePersonafranchise. He will appear in Mementos if players stay on a floor for too long. The screen will start blinking red and the sound of chains can be heard. Additionally, Morgana (or Futaba) will warn Joker of an ominous presence.
At the very start of the game,defeating the Reaper will be impossibleif players aren’t on a New Game+ file. The Reaper has -dyne tier spells and Support skills such as Concentrate and elemental Breaks (i.e: Fire, Wind, Ice, Elec Break).
He will belevel 85with extremely high stats. His Agility is his lowest stat (75), but it will be enough to outspeed the Phantom Thieves if they’re not strong enough.
However, successfully defeating the Reaper rewards an incredible amount of experience and money. All characters are likely to level once the Reaper is defeated.
It’s recommended to fight the Reaper atlevel 60 or higher. Have Defense-raising Support skills and cast Makarakarn to reflect the Reaper’s magic. Alternatively,those who bought thePersonaDLCwith Izanagi-no-Okami (Picaro) can stack Concentrate, Heat Riser, and then use Myriad Truths to deal heavy Almighty damage 3x.
Defeat Treasure Demons
How to Summon Treasure Demons
Treasure Demons are special Shadows that first appear in Madarame’s Palace. After the first encounter, they’ll start spawning in the Metaverse. Unlike most Shadows, Treasure Demons are harmless and will flee after a few turns.
There are several types of Treasure Demons, and each one has different Affinity Weaknesses and Immunities. However, all Treasure Demons will take regular damage fromAlmightyattacks. The best way to defeat Treasure Demons before they flee is bydowning them with Shinya’s Rank 1 Ability, Down Shot.This opens them up to an All-Out Attack.
Alternatively, players can try downing a Treasure Demon with a high-crit attack like Morgana’s Miracle Punch, so long as the Treasure Demon doesn’tnullPhysical attacks.
Treasure Demons appear in Palaces when thesecurity is high. Players can also craft the Treasure Trap infiltration tool, whichincreases Treasure Demons encountersin a Palace. The materials required for the Treasure Trap are the following:
Use Persona with EXP Skills
How to Get Growth Passive Skill
Any Persona that Joker does not equip at the end of battle will usually not earn EXP. However, if they have the Passive SkillGrowth, they’ll earn a percentage of experience from battle even if they’re not used for that fight. There are three types of Growth Skills:
Growth 3
Once players unlock theElectric Chairin theVelvet Room, they’ll be able to turn Persona into Skill Cards. Unfortunately, the Personas that could turn into Growth 1 and Growth 2 Skill Cards inPersona 5no longer do inPersona 5 Royal.Izanagi Picarois the only Persona that will become a Growth Skill Card (Growth 3) when used in the Electric Chair.
Growth 1 Skill Cardcannotbe obtained inP5R.
To get the Growth 2 Skill Card, players will need to take Caroline and Justine to Miura Beach onSeptember 2nd-September 29th. This can occurafterJoker has clearedevent 6 (Sky Tower). Joker can spend time withJustine and Caroline duringeveningsby speaking to them by the Velvet Room Door outside of Mementos.
Ryuji Sakamoto’s Confidant
How to Unlock Insta-Kill
Insta-kill is a skill that does exactly what it says it does: It allows Joker to instantly kill a Shadow without having to engage them in battle. To use Insta-kill, you need toambush the enemy. IfJoker’s level(not his Persona level)is 10 levels higher than the Shadow, they’ll be instantly defeated. In the originalPersona 5,Insta-kill would only defeat the shadows. InPersona 5 Royal, a successful Insta-kill gives you items, yen, experience, and (if you have room) a Persona.
You can tell if the Shadow can be insta-killed if you use Joker’s Third Eye ability. Shadows that have a green outline are susceptible to Insta-kill.
To get Insta-kill, you need to get Ryuji’s Confidant toRank 7. Fortunately, Ryuji doesn’t have any Social Stat requirement to advance his Confidant. In fact, his is one of the easiest to max out in the entire game. If you want Insta-kill immediately, then you should hang out with Ryuji and choose the best options to get the most points. It’s recommended you do thisbefore you start unlocking more Confidants.
