What are the best professions for Rogues in WoW Forever? Leatherworking and Skinning is the answer you'll hear most, and for levelling it's the right one: our data shows Leatherworking making almost every crafted item a Rogue wears from level 25 to 55, most of it Binds when picked up. But at level 60 the picture changes completely. The best crafted Rogue gear at 60 can all be bought, and the best crafted Rogue weapons come from a profession most Rogues never take.
We went through our Assassination, Combat and Subtlety Rogue BiS lists - at level 40, level 50, in pre-raid gear at 60 and in raid gear - and counted every crafted item: which profession makes it, and whether it's Binds when picked up (only the crafter can wear it) or Binds when equipped (anyone can sell it to you). Here's what that means for Rogue professions in WoW Forever.
Best professions for Rogues in WoW Forever: the short answer
- Best professions for Rogues while levelling: Leatherworking + Skinning. Leatherworking makes all 20 crafted items in every Rogue level 40 list, and 17 of them are BoP.
- The key set: Skulker's Leather - Agility, Strength and Stamina, made from skill 150 to 270, and every piece in our lists is BoP.
- At level 60: the top crafted Rogue picks - Outlaw's Collar, Dawn Armor, Might of the Timbermaw and Devilsaur Leggings - are all Binds when equipped. So are all five Blacksmithing weapons in the lists.
- Our level 60 pick: Alchemy + Herbalism for Assassination and Combat raiders, Engineering + Mining for Subtlety and PvP.
- In raids: just 6 crafted items per spec, none of them BoP.
- Every Rogue: First Aid (it now makes Healing Potions) and Cooking (it builds the campfire).
How we picked the best professions for Rogues
Every Rogue spec on our site has a BiS list with up to four ranked picks per slot - armor, trinkets, main-hand, off-hand and ranged - for level 40, level 50, pre-raid gear at 60 and raid gear at 60. The lists come from the WoW Forever game files (build 1.60.1.70532) and each spec's own stat weights: weapon damage first, then hit, Agility, crit and Expertise. For this guide we took every crafted item in those lists and noted which profession makes it and how it binds.
A Binds when equipped (BoE) item can be crafted by anyone and sold on the auction house, so all you need is gold. A Binds when picked up (BoP) item is soulbound to the crafter. Only a profession that makes BoP gear for your spec gives you something gold can't buy - and for Rogues, that's the key to the whole question.
The pattern is the same for all three specs. At levels 40 and 50, Leatherworking makes almost everything, and almost all of it is BoP. At 60, crafted gear fills even more of the lists - 26 to 29 entries - but only 6 are BoP, and none of those is a top pick. In raid gear, only 6 crafted items are left per spec, all BoE.
Leatherworking: the best profession for levelling a Rogue
WoW Forever Leatherworking has 592 recipes in the current game files, more than any other profession, and much of it is Agility leather. For a levelling Rogue it covers nearly every slot:
- Levels 20-30: Brawler's and Defender's Leather - helms, hoods, tunics and legguards from skill 100 to 125, all BoP.
- Levels 30-55: Skulker's Leather - belt, gloves, shoes, shoulders, bracers, gauntlets, waistguard and boots. Skulker's Leather Waistguard has +14 Agility, +12 Strength and +10 Stamina; Skulker's Leather Boots have +13 Agility, +11 Strength and +9 Stamina.
- Prowler's and Warden's Leather - sister sets with a different stat mix (Prowler's swaps Spirit for Intellect), which show up lower in the Rogue lists.
In our level 40 lists, Leatherworking makes all 20 crafted entries for every Rogue spec, and 17 of them are BoP. At level 50, the Skulker's Leather Shoulder, Skulker's Leather Waistguard and Skulker's Leather Boots are the top picks in their slots, alongside BoE Leatherworking items like the Helm of Fire, Warbear Harness and Stormshroud Pants. 19 of the 22 crafted entries at level 50 are BoP.
The Skulker's pieces share most of their materials - Thick or Rugged Leather, Cured Hides, Pristine Hide, Heavy Silken Thread - plus one special ingredient, Spider's Silk. That's why Skinning is the natural partner: you'll skin almost everything you need while you quest.
Why Skinning is the best gathering profession for Rogues
Leatherworking needs a gathering partner, and for a Rogue the choice is easy:
- Skinning feeds Leatherworking directly. The Skulker's set needs Thick and Rugged Leather, Cured Hides and Pristine Hide, and the level 60 patterns need 20 to 40 Rugged Leather each - plus Devilsaur Leather for the Devilsaur Leggings.
- Mining doesn't help Leatherworking at all. It's the better choice only if you plan to switch to Engineering at 60.
- Herbalism doesn't help Leatherworking either, but it's the right choice if you already know you'll switch to Alchemy.
Skinning also makes gold from the very first wolf you kill. Leather sells at every level, so even if you don't keep Leatherworking at 60, Skinning pays for your mount, your training and the next professions you'll pick up.
Leatherworking at 60: great gear, all of it BoE
At 60, Leatherworking still makes 20 to 22 entries in every Rogue pre-raid list. The best of them are excellent:
- Outlaw's Collar - +21 Agility, +31 Stamina and +21 Critical Strike Rating; the top pre-raid helm for all three specs.
- Dawn Armor - +37 Agility, +14 Critical Strike Rating and +10 Hit Rating; the top pre-raid chest.
- Might of the Timbermaw - +21 Strength, +14 Agility and +9 Stamina; the top belt.
- Devilsaur Leggings - +46 Attack Power and +14 Critical Strike Rating; the top legs.
Every one of these is Binds when equipped. The only BoP Leatherworking items left at 60 are the older Skulker's and Prowler's pieces, which rank third or fourth by then. So at 60, a Rogue Leatherworker has no gear that a non-Leatherworker can't buy.
That doesn't make Leatherworking useless at 60 - it makes it a gold profession. The Devilsaur Leggings need 14 Devilsaur Leather and 30 Rugged Leather; the Outlaw's Collar takes 3 Malleable Essence of Nature, 2 Fel Hide and 22 Fel Leather; Dawn Armor takes 20 Fel Leather, 20 Essence of Water and 10 Guardian Stones. Every Agility leather wearer will want these, and the first Leatherworkers with the patterns will sell them well.
Blacksmithing: every Rogue weapon, all BoE
Here's the twist. Look at the weapon slots in our Rogue lists at 60 and every crafted pick is Blacksmithing:
The Greenhammer is the top pre-raid main-hand for all three specs, with the Persuader and Ironwood Blade close behind; the Persuader is the top off-hand. The Heartseeker is the best crafted dagger and the Bagh Nakh the best fist weapon.
Our lists rank weapons by stats and weapon damage, not by type - so use your spec's weapon rules. Assassination's Mutilate is a two-dagger strike, and Subtlety's Hemorrhage and Ghostly Strike hit much harder with a dagger, so those specs will want the Heartseeker. Combat's Hack and Slash changes with your weapon - extra attacks with swords and axes, crit with daggers and fists, armor penetration with maces - which suits the Greenhammer, Persuader and Ironwood Blade.
All five are Binds when equipped, so you don't need Blacksmithing to use them. Kami Labs suggests Leatherworking + Blacksmithing for Rogues to cover these "one or two Blacksmithing weapons"; we'd rather buy them. Several need Legionite Bars - an Alchemy transmute with a 47-hour cooldown - so they'll be expensive early, but a weapon is a one-off purchase.
Assassination Rogue professions
Our Assassination Rogue BiS list has the most crafted entries of the three at 60 - 29, including 22 Leatherworking and 5 Blacksmithing weapons - and crafted gear is the top pick in five slots: the Outlaw's Collar, Dawn Armor, Might of the Timbermaw, Devilsaur Leggings and Greenhammer. All five are BoE.
Assassination is the poison Rogue, and its damage depends on landing poisons from hits that connect - so it weights hit highly. Our pick: Leatherworking + Skinning to 60, then Alchemy + Herbalism for raiding: Elixir of the Mongoose (skill 295) and Elixir of Greater Agility (255) cover your Agility buffs, the game files add a new Flask of Natural Swiftness at 320, and Free Action and Limited Invulnerability Potions are useful in raids and PvP alike.
Combat Rogue professions
Our Combat Rogue BiS list has 26 crafted entries at 60 - 20 Leatherworking, 5 Blacksmithing and the Frozen Heart of the Mountain from Enchanting - with the same five crafted top picks as Assassination. Combat weights hit and Expertise highest of the three specs.
Our pick: Leatherworking + Skinning to 60, then Alchemy + Herbalism. With no BoP gear left to make at 60, a steady supply of Agility elixirs and flasks is worth more to a raiding Combat Rogue than any crafted piece you could buy. Gamer Guides notes Alchemy + Herbalism is a popular choice with Rogues for exactly this reason.
Subtlety Rogue professions
Our Subtlety Rogue BiS list is the same as Combat's at 60: 26 crafted entries and five crafted top picks, all BoE. Subtlety is the stealth spec - Premeditation, Ambush and Vanish - and that's where Engineering comes in.
Our pick: Leatherworking + Skinning to 60, then Engineering + Mining.
See every crafted item in your Rogue BiS listOur Assassination, Combat and Subtlety BiS lists show where each item comes from - crafted, quest or dungeon - with links to every recipe.Open Rogue BiSEngineering + Mining: the PvP and dungeon pick
Gfinity picks Engineering + Mining as the endgame pair for Rogues, because Rogues "who stack stealth and crowd control with Engineering stun grenades" get the most out of it in PvP and dungeons. The game files have the full Engineering toolkit:
- Grenades and bombs: Thorium Grenade (skill 280), EZ-Thro Thorium Grenade (285), Dark Iron Bomb (305) and the Arcane Bomb (320).
- Control: the Gnomish Net-o-Matic Projector (230) and Goblin Sapper Charge (205).
- Utility: the Goblin Rocket Helmet (265), Parachute Cloak (245) and Masterwork Target Dummy (295).
Engineering also has the one ranged item in our Rogue Raid lists: the Core Marksman Rifle (BoE). And Mining pays for it all - every Blacksmith and Engineer at skill 300 needs Heavy Thorium Bars. We haven't simulated grenades, so we can't put a DPS number on Engineering, but for world PvP and dungeon farming it's the classic Rogue choice.
Enchanting: one BoP trinket
Enchanting makes one item in our Rogue lists: the Frozen Heart of the Mountain, a BoP trinket that's the top pick at level 50 and second at 60, mainly for its +9 Hit Rating. Enchanting also has the Agility enchants Rogues want - Bracer, Gloves, Cloak, Boots and Necklace - but any Enchanter can put those on for you. One trinket isn't enough reason to pick it.
Alchemy + Herbalism for Rogues: what to make
Alchemy has 193 recipes in the current files, and a raiding Rogue uses a lot of them. The Rogue shopping list:
- Agility: Elixir of Agility (skill 205, trainer), Elixir of Greater Agility (255, trainer) and Elixir of the Mongoose (295).
- New in Forever: the Flask of Natural Swiftness at skill 320.
- Utility: Free Action Potion (175), Swiftness Potion (90), Restorative Potion (225, trainer) and Limited Invulnerability Potion (275).
- Transmutes: Arcanite and Legionite Bars, which the best Blacksmithing weapons need.
Herbalism supplies all of it, and its Incense Candle camp feature is wasted on a Rogue - but the gold you save on elixirs every raid week more than makes up for it. Alchemy's Mana Well camp feature doesn't help a Rogue either, so you're picking this pair purely for the potions.
Raiding or PvP: picking your level 60 pair
The best professions for Rogues in WoW Forever at level 60 depend on what you spend your time doing:
- Raiding: Alchemy + Herbalism. Elixirs, flasks and potions are a cost every raid week; making them yourself saves the most gold.
- World PvP and battlegrounds: Engineering + Mining. Grenades, the Net-o-Matic and sapper charges give a stealth class more ways to control a fight, and Free Action Potions are easy to buy.
- Making gold: keep Leatherworking + Skinning. The best Rogue leather at 60 is BoE, and every Agility leather wearer wants it.
None of these choices locks you out of gear - that's the big difference between Rogues and classes like Warlocks or Paladins, who have BoP crafted items they need at 60. For a Rogue, it's about what saves or makes you the most gold.
Raiding: only 6 crafted items left
Our Rogue Raid lists have just 6 crafted items per spec: the Outlaw's Collar, Dawn Armor, Shifting Cloak, Molten Belt, the Tailoring Fel Cape and the Core Marksman Rifle. All are BoE.
So in raids, no profession gives a Rogue gear they can't buy - which is why we'd switch to Alchemy + Herbalism for raiding, or Engineering + Mining if PvP is your thing. Either way, the gear you wear in raids will come from bosses, not from your professions.
When each Rogue profession pays off
- Levels 20-40: Leatherworking - the Brawler's sets and the first Skulker's pieces, almost all BoP.
- Levels 40-55: Leatherworking - the rest of the Skulker's set, plus BoE pieces like the Helm of Fire and Warbear Harness.
- Level 60, pre-raid: nothing you can't buy. Leatherworking becomes a gold profession.
- Raiding: Alchemy + Herbalism for consumables, or Engineering + Mining for PvP.
Most Rogues will get the most out of Leatherworking + Skinning from level 1: the two level together while you quest, the gear is BoP, and Skinning makes gold the whole way. At 60, switch one or both professions depending on whether you raid or PvP. The leather and gold you've saved up will pay for levelling the new ones.
Can a Rogue skip Leatherworking?
Yes - and at 60 it's a real option. If you're levelling a second character, have a guild Leatherworker, or plan to buy your gear, you could go straight to Engineering + Mining or Alchemy + Herbalism from level 1. You'd give up the BoP Skulker's pieces between levels 30 and 55, but those are levelling items that dungeon drops and quest rewards will replace.
What you can't skip at 60 is gold. The Greenhammer, Outlaw's Collar and Dawn Armor all need new level 60 materials - Malleable Essence of Nature, Fel Leather and Legionite Bars - so they'll be expensive on the auction house for the first weeks. A Rogue with a gathering profession will get there sooner.
First Aid and Cooking: free picks for every Rogue
- First Aid now makes Healing Potions - from the basic one up to Major Healing Potion at skill 290 - so you don't need Alchemy for those. Its First Aid Kit camp feature gives 3 to 56 Stamina.
- Cooking builds the campfire every camp starts with, and the game files still have Thistle Tea at skill 100 - an energy drink for Rogues in the original game. We can't see its effect in the current files yet.
- Fishing feeds Cooking, and its Fish Bowl camp feature gives 8% to all stats.
Making gold as a Rogue
Rogues are in a good spot for gold. Skinning sells from level 1, and at 60 the best Leatherworking gear is BoE and wanted by three classes:
- Leather: Outlaw's Collar, Dawn Armor, Devilsaur Leggings and Might of the Timbermaw.
- Devilsaur Leather - the Devilsaur Leggings and Persuader both need it.
- Mining: Heavy Thorium Bars and Azerothium Bars for every Blacksmith and Engineer.
Best professions for Rogues in WoW Forever: FAQ
- What are the best professions for Rogues in WoW Forever? Leatherworking + Skinning while levelling. At 60, Alchemy + Herbalism for raiding, or Engineering + Mining for PvP.
- Is Leatherworking worth it for Rogues? Yes, while levelling - it makes all the crafted gear in our level 40 lists, and the Skulker's set is BoP. At 60, its best items are BoE.
- Do Rogues need Blacksmithing? No. Every crafted Rogue weapon in our lists is Blacksmithing, but all of them are BoE - buy them.
- Is Engineering good for Rogues? Yes, for PvP and dungeons - grenades, nets and sapper charges suit a stealth class.
- Do gathering professions give passive bonuses in WoW Forever? Blizzard hasn't confirmed any. Lists of Skinning or Mining perks have been traced to an AI-generated post - see our professions guide.
More Rogue guides: best race for Rogues in WoW Forever, the best DPS class in WoW Forever, and every camp feature in WoW Forever.
Sources
- Forever Upgrades Rogue BiS lists (Assassination, Combat and Subtlety, levels 40, 50 and 60, Pre-Raid and Raid), and recipes, materials and item binding from the WoW: Forever game files, build 1.60.1.70532, on our Professions pages (October 28, 2026)
- Gather Around the Campfire in World of Warcraft: Forever (Blizzard, October 21, 2026)
- WoW Forever Professions: Camp Buffs, Changes and Best Picks (Gamer Guides, updated October 18, 2026)
- The Best Profession Pairings for Every Class in World of Warcraft: Forever (Gfinity Esports, October 6, 2026)
- WoW Forever Professions by Class: My BiS List Picks (Kami Labs, October 25, 2026)