Upon reaching World Tier 3, players will gain access to Diablo 4's Nightmare Dungeons, challenging maps that can be used to farm XP. Not all Nightmare Dungeons are created equal, though, and some are much better than others for leveling up fast. This guide is here to identify the Diablo 4 Nightmare Dungeons that are considered the best for XP farming, and fans should plan to clear them every time that they receive an associated Nightmare Sigil.
To note, players that are trying to maximize their XP farming in Diablo 4 should target Nightmare Dungeons with a Tier that is equal to their character level minus 51. For example, a fan that is Level 70 should look to clear Nightmare Dungeons that are around Tier 19. This setup makes it so that the mobs inside the Nightmare Dungeon are three levels higher than the player character, and this difference will cause the enemies to award 25% more XP than they would if they were at the character's level.
Updated July 20, 2023, by William Parks: Diablo 4 Season 1 is now underway, and it has altered the Nightmare Dungeons that are available for players to complete. This tier list has been updated to reflect those changes, and players that are looking to level up fast in Season 1 can find all the information that they need in what follows.
Diablo 4: Nightmare Dungeon XP Farming Tier List
There are four Nightmare Dungeons in Diablo 4 Season 1 that can be considered S-Tier for XP farming. Those dungeons are Dead Man's Dredge, Mercy's Reach, Sarat's Lair, and Uldur's Cave, and their high mob density and minimal backtracking are the reasons that they are so good.
Below those Nightmare Dungeons are Hoarfrost Demise, Komdor Temple, Nostrava Deepwood, Pallid Delve, and Tomb of the Saints, and they can all be considered A-Tier. Indeed, while these dungeons may not be quite as good as those from the previous group, they are still great options for XP farming, and players should be happy any time that they obtain their associated Nightmare Sigils in Diablo 4.
And in the B-Tier are Nightmare Dungeons like Ancient Reservoir, Akhan's Grasp, Charnel House, Garan Hold, Immortal Emanation, Kor Valar Ramparts, Mariner's Refuge, and Stockades. It is at this level that players may want to consider salvaging Sigils with affixes that are particularly difficult for their builds to address, though it is typically worthwhile to clear these Nightmare Dungeons.
This leaves Bastion of Faith, Betrayer's Row, Collapsed Vault, Domhainne Tunnels, Faceless Shrine, Forgotten Ruins, Halls of the Damned, Heretics Asylum, Iron Hold, Lost Keep, Path of the Blind, Shifting City, and Twisted Hollow. While these dungeons could be split between C-, D-, and F-Tier, Diablo 4 players that are farming XP are advised to simply avoid them all. Indeed, with so many other great options available, there is no real reason to spend time on these lesser Nightmare Dungeons.
Diablo 4 is available for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.