Persona 5 Royal Confidants - Who are the best companions?

Official Persona 5 Royal splash art of the characters in their costumes.

Official Persona 5 Royal splash art of the characters in their costumes.

Persona 5's popularity and the Phantom Thieves' adventures aren't done yet! The game has just released across all major platforms, so let's dive back in and take a look at the Persona 5 Royal Confidants available to us in the game.

Each confidant character in Persona 5 Royal has a different schedule, and won't be available all the time. Juggling this, school, jobs, and Metaverse exploration can be tricky. Pay attention to what each confidant's ranks will give you, and plan your choices accordingly. Some give bonus skill points, others provide Palace exploration help, and others can reduce prices in their shops.

Excited to play Persona 5 Royal, either for the first time or a re-do? Check out our Switch review of the game to see what we thought. If you're a big Atlus fan, we also reading up on Soul Hackers 2 demons.

All Persona 5 Royal Confidants

Here is a quick rundown of each confidant, including who it is, which card they are represented by, and what they offer.

Character
Who are they
Confidant
How to unlock confidant
How to rank up
Rank up bonus
Igor
Velvet Room master
The Fool
Automatically unlocked
Automatic with story
Shadow negotiation, Velvet Room bonuses, Third Eye sense
Ryuji Sakamoto
Phantom Thief
The Chariot
Automatically unlocked
Hang out with character
Chance to Insta-Kill shadows, increases stealth in Palaces
Anne Takamaki
Phantom Thief
The Lovers
Automatically unlocked
Hang out with character
Chance to cancel enemy attacks, can retry negotiations
Morgana
Phantom Thief
The Magician
Automatically unlocked
Automatic with story
Unlock infiltration tools, ability to steal items
Sojiro Sakura
Leblanc owner
The Hierophant
Unlockable after Kamoshida's Palace is cleared
Hang out with character
Unlocks coffee and curry making
Yusuke Kitagawa
Phantom Thief
The Emperor
Automatically unlocked
Hang out with character
Unlocks skill card duplication and creation, chance to perform follow-up attacks
Caroline and Justine
Velvet Room attendants
Strength
Automatically unlocked
Complete Fusion tasks
Velvet Room benefits like triple fusion, pay for stronger Personas, and reduces cost
Tae Takemi
Doctor
Death
Visit the clinic and speak to Tae
Hang out with character
More purchasable items in clinic, cost discount, increases Guts stat
Sadayo Kawakami
School teacher
Temperance
Can begin after Madarame's palace, approach Mishima in Shibuya Central Street at night
Hang out with character
Can perform activities while in classes, ability to go out at night, Sadayo can brew coffee and do other tasks for you
Kasumi Yoshizawa
School student
Faith
Automatically unlocked
Hang out with character
Chance to avoid being surrounded in Palace, grows max HP, can ambush with the grappling hook,
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All of your on-field teammates have the same perks that unlock in later ranks. Namely, they have a chance to endure fatal attacks, a chance to shield Joker, and can perform a healing move. They will also receive two Persona transformations when their rank is maxed out in each semester.

How to max out Akechi's Confidant

Look away now if you don't want spoilers until you reach this point in the game!

Still here? Good. Akechi is a problematic character in terms of story. You will need to reach rank 8 of his confidant in order to access the true ending of the game.

To do this, look for the following options in dialogue, and choose them:

  • During rank 7's hangout, choose "You're my rival".
  • During rank 8's hangout, beat him in battle, and then choose "I accept".
  • After the events of Shido's Palace, tell him "I want to keep our promise".

Choosing these correctly will unlock the correct endings, and keep Akechi around.

Image of eight black-and-white characters in Persona 5 Royal.
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What are Persona 5 Royal Confidants?

Confidants are friends and allies that you form bonds with during the story of Persona 5 Royal. Usually, when Joker first has a meaningful moment or experience with a character, the screen explaining their confidant will arise and the first rank will unlock. From there, further ranks will unlock extra perks, rewards, or skills for you to use.

Generally speaking, to rank up your confidants, you need to check which are available on the map, and go hang out with them. Some dialogue options can upgrade your rank quicker, but you'll get there no matter which you choose. By the way - unlocking later confidant with female characters will unlock a romance option, but don't feel obligated to go down that route.

A couple of them rank up automatically with the story, like Morgana and Igor, so you don't need to think about them. You'll need to pick the rest carefully, though.

Screenshot of all the female confidants in Persona 5 Royal
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Which Confidants should I prioritise in Persona 5 Royal?

To begin, you will want to prioritise Kasumi, Maruki, and Akechi's confidants. They are important to the story, and are needed to unlock the 'Royal' part of the game: the third semester.

Other than that, the best confidant rewards come from Shinya in the arcade, Iwai at the model gun shop, Hifumi the shogi player, and Ryuji. Mishima's rewards unlock Mementos requests, so are highly suggested, too. Kawakami, in the final rank reward, will allow you to venture out at night, giving you another time slot to fill with activities. This is highly recommended, though a slog to get to.

Sojiro's coffee and curry is a big help if you don't have time to go shopping for items, and Yusuke's card creation is a bonus for those who frequently use them. Tae Takemi's clinic shop is another helpful location, and her confidant rewards will add more stock of healing items.

Looking for a new game to dive into? Check out our list of the best RPGs around, like Genshin Impact, Tower of Fantasy or Epic Seven.