Leveling route from 1 to 60 in Classic Era

Leveling from 1 to 60 in Classic Era means following the quests that give the most experience for the time they take, and moving on as soon as a zone runs dry. The route below lists the zones per level range for both factions, the dungeons worth one run, and the habits that save the most time.

How the route works

• Leave a zone when most of its quests turn green: they give far less experience.
• Skip long travel chains and escort quests, and do kill quests that sit close to other objectives.
• Grind a little between two quest hubs when the next quests are still a level too high.
• Use flight paths and your hearthstone to jump between hubs instead of running back.

Zones per level range

Levels	Alliance	Horde
1-12	Elwynn Forest, Dun Morogh or Teldrassil	Durotar, Mulgore or Tirisfal Glades
12-20	Westfall, Loch Modan or Darkshore	The Barrens, Silverpine Forest
20-30	Redridge Mountains, Duskwood, Wetlands, Ashenvale	The Barrens, Stonetalon Mountains, Hillsbrad Foothills, Thousand Needles
30-40	Arathi Highlands, Stranglethorn Vale, Desolace, Dustwallow Marsh	Arathi Highlands, Stranglethorn Vale, Desolace, Dustwallow Marsh
40-50	Badlands, Swamp of Sorrows, Tanaris, Feralas, The Hinterlands	Badlands, Swamp of Sorrows, Tanaris, Feralas, The Hinterlands
50-60	Un’Goro Crater, Felwood, Winterspring, Western Plaguelands, Eastern Plaguelands	Un’Goro Crater, Felwood, Winterspring, Western Plaguelands, Eastern Plaguelands

The starting zones follow your race: Humans start in Elwynn Forest, Dwarves and Gnomes in Dun Morogh, Night Elves in Teldrassil, Orcs and Trolls in Durotar, Tauren in Mulgore and Undead in Tirisfal Glades. Crowded zones can be swapped for another zone of the same level range without losing much.

Dungeons worth one run

Levels	Dungeons
13-22	Ragefire Chasm (Horde), The Deadmines (Alliance), Wailing Caverns, Shadowfang Keep
20-32	Blackfathom Deeps, The Stockade (Alliance), Gnomeregan, Razorfen Kraul
28-45	Scarlet Monastery, Razorfen Downs, Uldaman
42-52	Zul’Farrak, Maraudon
50-60	The Temple of Atal’Hakkar, Blackrock Depths, Lower Blackrock Spire

Collect the dungeon quests before a run: they are often worth as much experience as the run itself. Scarlet Monastery is split into four wings, which makes it easy to fit one wing into a session.

Levels 30 to 40 are the slowest

Quest hubs lie further apart in this range, and many quests send you across a continent. Stranglethorn Vale has a lot of quests, but its page quests and contested areas cost time. Mixing Arathi Highlands, Desolace and Dustwallow Marsh keeps the pace up, and a Scarlet Monastery wing is a good break.

The mount at level 40

From level 40 you can learn riding and buy your first mount. It makes every trip after that 60% faster, so having the gold ready at 40 saves hours. Sell green items and cloth on the auction house on the way, and skip buying items you will replace in a few levels.

Levels 50 to 60

Un’Goro Crater has many quests close together, Felwood and Winterspring follow, and the Plaguelands finish the route. Eastern Plaguelands has enough quests for several levels. With a group, Blackrock Depths gives good experience and gear that stays useful at 60.

Habits that save time

• Eat and drink right after a fight, and bandage with First Aid instead of waiting.
• Know the next three objectives before you reach a hub, so you pick up and hand in quests in one visit.
• Train new ranks when you already pass a trainer, instead of making a trip for it.
• Log out in an inn or a capital city to build rested experience.
• Avoid deaths: a corpse run costs more time than a careful pull.