How to Get Pips in Dead by Daylight


It doesn't matter if you're a beginner or a grizzled veteran, Dead by Daylight players still don't know how to get Pips - and we don't just mean 'get' in the physical sense, either.

The Pip System was introduced later on in Dead by Daylight's life cycle and has recently changed with the introduction of the grading system, so it's still rather confusing for those who don't read up on the game. And that's fine, because the game itself doesn't explain how to get Pips either. But don't worry, that's where we come in.

Read more: How to Get Bloodpoints Fast in Dead by Daylight

What Are Pips in Dead by Daylight?

Despite not really being a competitive game in the same vein as Overwatch or League of Legends, Dead by Daylight does its best to give you the incentive to do well through the earning of Pips after each trial.

Pips take the appearance of small 'dashes' that appear after the end of each trial. You'll be shown your Player Level and then your Online Ranking (now known as a Grade after Patch 5.2.0). As you can see below, you can see that if you fail to meet the Black Pip - also known as the Safety Pip - then you will lose a Pip.

Losing Pips can be daunting, especially when you're so close to the next Grade. However, since the Rank system changed to Grades, thresholds were introduced too. These thresholds mean that once you're in a certain class of Grades - for example, Silver (previously known as ranks 12 to 9) - you will not rank any further down than Silver IV (rank 12). This is until Rank Reset happens, obviously.

Your online rank, if you get below the Black Pip then you'll De-Pip
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Your online rank, if you get below the Black Pip then you'll De-Pip

Players can earn Pips through performing well in-game, either as a Survivor or a Killer. We talk a little more about what you can do to earn XP and improve your rank here.

How Pips Work in Dead by Daylight

To understand how to get Pips, you need to first understand the relationship between Pips, Emblems, and Rank (Grade).

First, let us explain Pips in relation to Grade. Your Grade is different from your Player Level, and player Grades go up and down depending on the number of Pips that you have connected to your Grade, as we explained above.

Below is a quick list of how many Pips are required to rank up (improve your Grade) in Dead by Daylight. It should be noted that the lower the Grade, the higher amount of skill displayed by the player. In theory, anyway.

Ash IV - III (Rank 20-19) - 3 Pips

Ash II - Bronze I (Rank 18-13) - 4 Pips

Silver IV - Iridescent II (Rank 12-2) - 5 Pips

Iridescent I (Rank 1) - 0 Pips

You're unable to rank down further from the Grade that you're in, so if you're Silver IV, you will not be able to go back to Bronze or Ash until Rank Reset. When you're Iridescent I (Rank 1), you're unable to rank up and any loss of points will take you to Iridescent 2 (Rank 2) with 4 Pips.

How to Get Pips in Dead by Daylight

To get Pips in Dead by Daylight, you'll need to earn a number of points in various categories throughout the trial. You can often do well how you do by looking at the Emblems that you receive after each trial. Survivors and Killers each have four Emblems but are different due to their unique roles.

There are four rarity types of Emblem you can earn in-game that indicate how well you did. Iridescent, Gold, Silver, and Bronze. Iridescent is the highest Emblem you can receive for each level of category as a Survivor or Killer.

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Survivor Emblems

  • Lightbringer - For your generator repair progress throughout the trial, as well as others who repair generators while you're in a chase. Cleansing Hex and Dull totems also give you points in this category.
  • Unbroken - The amount of time you're alive in a trial, aka it represents your ability to survive. Escaping without being downed once will give you the Iridescent Emblem, whereas dying will give you a Silver Emblem at the highest.
  • Benevolent - Represents how altruistic you are towards your team. This can mean safely unhooking a teammate, as well as healing them to full health and taking hits for injured Survivors.
  • Evader - Used to show your ability at escaping the Killer, or winning chases against them. To win you must evade them without being hit. You can earn points in this category by being near the Killer, but not being detected.

Killer Emblems

  • Gatekeeper - You gain points via this Emblem depending on how long you keep generators from progressing. For the first nine minutes of the trial, points are gained depending on the number of incomplete generators left on the map. Exit Gates being closed gives extra points.
  • Devout - Your ability to sacrifice Survivors to the Entity. Each Survivor that is eliminated from the game via Mori or sacrifice will give the Killer points. No points are given if the Survivor bleeds out.
  • Malicious - This represents the Killer's ability to stop the Survivors from helping one another, aka applying pressure to prevent them from healing. This can be done via hurting, interrupting or putting Survivors into the dying state. You lose points if Survivors heal.
  • Chaser - Exactly what it says on the tin. It represents your ability to find and chase Survivors. If you win the chase and capture Survivors, then you will earn higher points.

To earn pips, you'll need to get a high amount of points in these four categories. If you do bad in one, you may not earn a Pip or even worse, De-Pip. So be aware of these Emblems, what they mean, and their relationship to earning Pips in Dead by Daylight.

This article was updated on 19/10/2021 by Kelsey Raynor.

For more articles like this, take a look at our Dead by Daylight and Guides page.