3rd-level necromancy · 2024 version below
You touch a creature that has died within the last minute. That creature returns to life with 1 hit point. This spell can't return to life a creature that has died of old age, nor can it restore any missing body parts.
You touch a creature that has died within the last minute, spend a diamond worth 300 gp, and it comes back to life with 1 hit point. That’s it: no long ritual, no penalties, and it takes a single action.
It’s the spell that makes character death survivable in 5e. A minute is ten rounds, so as long as the cleric or paladin can reach the body before the fight is long over, a fallen ally can be back on their feet the same combat. It can’t restore missing body parts, and it can’t save someone who died of old age.
One minute from the moment of death, which is 10 rounds of combat. After that you need Raise Dead or stronger magic.
Yes, diamonds worth at least 300 gp, which the spell consumes. A spellcasting focus or component pouch can’t replace a component with a cost.
No. It comes back with 1 hit point and no other drawbacks. That’s different from Raise Dead, which imposes a −4 penalty that fades over several long rests.
No. It can’t restore missing body parts, and a creature reduced to dust by Disintegrate leaves no body to touch. That takes True Resurrection or a Wish.
Revivify itself doesn’t say so. Raise Dead and Resurrection require a willing soul, and some DMs apply the same rule here.
No. The spell specifically can’t.
| Spell | How it compares |
|---|---|
| Raise Dead | 5th level: dead up to 10 days, a 500 gp diamond, an hour to cast, and a −4 penalty that fades with long rests. |
| Reincarnate | 5th level druid spell: dead up to 10 days, and the soul returns in a new, randomly chosen body. |
| Resurrection | 7th level: dead up to a century, restores missing body parts, and costs a 1,000 gp diamond. |
| True Resurrection | 9th level: dead up to 200 years, and it can create a new body. 25,000 gp in diamonds. |
| Gentle Repose | 2nd level: stops the clock on raising the dead for 10 days. Whether it also pauses Revivify’s one minute is debated, since the spell talks about days. |
| Spare the Dying | Cantrip: stabilizes a dying creature before it dies, so you never need Revivify. |
| Class | First available | Spellcasting ability |
|---|---|---|
| Cleric spells | 5th character level | Wisdom |
| Paladin spells | 9th character level | Charisma |
The 2024 Player’s Handbook revised many spells, and the SRD 5.2 carries the new text. What changed from the 2014 version above:
You touch a creature that has died within the last minute. That creature revives with 1 Hit Point. This spell can't revive a creature that has died of old age, nor does it restore any missing body parts.
2024 version from the SRD 5.2. Most tables settle on one edition, so check which one yours uses.
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