If you’ve just downloaded Genshin Impact for the first time and scrolled through the character archive, you’ve probably wondered how many of those flashy, powerful units you can get without swiping your credit card. As someone who’s played the game as a free-to-play user since launch, I get this question from new players every week: are all Genshin Impact characters free? This guide breaks down exactly which characters you can get for free, how to earn premium currency to pull for limited units, and whether spending money is worth it for your playstyle, no confusing gacha jargon included.
Are All Genshin Impact Characters Free? The Short Answer
The short answer is no, not every character in Genshin Impact is available for free, but you don’t need to spend money to access 99% of the game’s content. HoYoverse releases two new limited-run 5-star characters almost every six-week patch, and these units are only available for a short window on special promotional banners, but you can still earn the currency to pull for them without spending real cash. You also get a large roster of permanent free characters just for playing through the main story and completing basic challenges, many of which are among the strongest units in the entire game.
It’s also worth noting that all story content, open world areas, events, and co-op play are completely accessible to free players. There are no paywalls blocking you from exploring new regions or progressing through the main plot, even if you never spend a cent on the game. The only thing you can’t get for free 100% of the time is every single limited-run character, but you can still earn most of the ones you really want with careful saving.
All Free Genshin Impact Characters You Can Unlock Right Now
There are dozens of characters you can unlock without spending any money, split into a few clear categories. As of the latest game update, you can build a full roster of strong, viable units entirely from free drops, no gacha pulls required:
- Permanent story unlocks: The Traveler (all 5 released elements so far), Amber, Kaeya, Lisa, Barbara, Xiangling, Collei, and Lynette are all guaranteed once you reach specific adventure ranks, complete main story quests, or clear Spiral Abyss Floor 3 Chamber 3. These units are yours to keep forever, no time limits or random chance involved.
- Limited time event rewards: Almost every six-week version patch gives away one free 4-star character for completing short, low-effort event quests. Past free units have included fan favorites like Fischl, Beidou, and Xingqiu, all of which are top-tier picks for endgame team comps. You just need to log in and complete the event before it ends to claim the unit permanently.
- Free promotional drops: HoYoverse occasionally gives away free characters for cross-promotions or game anniversaries, including the limited-time 5-star Aloy from Horizon Zero Dawn, released for all players for free back in 2021. These drops are rare, but they’re always available to all players, no spending required.
- Standard banner free pulls: You can earn Acquaint Fates for free by leveling up your adventure rank, completing achievements, or exchanging Stardust in the in-game shop. These fates let you pull for 4 and 5-star characters on the permanent standard banner without spending real money, so you can get extra units like Jean, Diluc, or Mona completely for free if you get lucky.
That adds up to more than 30 free characters you can get without spending a cent, as of the latest updates. Many of these are some of the strongest units in the game, by the way. Xiangling, for example, is a top-tier damage dealer that works in almost every team comp, and you get her just for clearing the first three floors of the Spiral Abyss, which is doable even at Adventure Rank 20 with basic gear. Xingqiu, one of the most universally useful 4-star supports in the game, was given away for free twice in past events, and many players have max constellation copies of him without ever spending.
How to Get Limited-Run Characters Without Spending Real Money
If you’re wondering how to get your favorite limited characters even if the answer to are all Genshin Impact characters free is no, saving primogems is your best bet. Primogems are the game’s premium currency, and you can earn thousands of them every month just by playing the game normally, no spending required. You get primogems for daily commissions, event completions, opening chests while exploring, clearing Spiral Abyss floors, and even for fixing bugs or server maintenance from HoYoverse.
On average, free players can earn between 6000 and 8000 primogems per six-week patch, which works out to 40 to 50 pulls on limited character banners. Limited character banners have a 90-pull pity system for 5-star characters, and a 50% chance the 5-star you get is the featured limited unit. That means if you save up for 2 to 3 patches, you can guarantee a limited 5-star character even as a fully free-to-play player, because pity carries over between banners of the same type. You don’t lose your pity progress if you don’t get a 5-star on one banner, it rolls over to the next limited character banner you pull on.
4-star characters on limited banners have a 10-pull pity system, so you can usually get one copy of the featured 4-star within 20 to 30 pulls, which is easy to earn in a single patch for free. Many free players make the mistake of spending their primogems on every new banner that comes out, which means they never hit pity for the characters they actually want. If you stick to saving for 1 or 2 limited 5-star characters a year, you’ll almost always get them without spending, as long as you do your daily commissions and participate in events.
Should You Spend Money to Unlock More Genshin Impact Characters?
The answer to this question depends entirely on your playstyle and budget. If you’re a casual player who just wants to enjoy the story and explore the open world, you don’t need to spend any money at all. All story content, open world areas, and events are accessible to free players, and you can complete all of it with the free characters you get. I’ve cleared every piece of story content in the game with a team made up almost entirely of free characters, and I never felt like I was at a disadvantage.
Spending money does not give you a competitive advantage in any PvP content, because Genshin Impact has no PvP modes. The only reward for clearing harder endgame content like the highest Spiral Abyss floors is primogems and minor cosmetic items, so you’re not missing out on any crucial content if you don’t spend. If you’re a player who wants to clear the highest Spiral Abyss floors or collect your favorite characters, spending can speed up that process, but it’s not required.
If you do decide to spend a little money, the monthly Blessing of the Welkin Moon is the best value by far. It gives you 90 primogems a day for 30 days, plus a one-time 300 Genesis Crystals, which works out to around 10 pulls a month for less than $5. It’s a small cost that makes saving for limited characters much faster, but it’s still completely optional. You should never spend more than you can afford on gacha pulls, because the system is random, and you might end up spending hundreds of dollars without getting the character you want, even with the pity system.
At the end of the day, the question of are all Genshin Impact characters free has a clear answer: no, not every unit is available without spending, but you can get dozens of powerful, fun characters for free, and even earn limited-run units by saving up the premium currency you earn just from playing the game. You don’t need to spend a cent to enjoy everything Genshin has to offer, and the free character roster is more than enough to beat every piece of content in the game. If you’re a new player, focus on leveling up your free characters first before you even think about spending money, you’ll be surprised how strong they are. Genshin is a game about exploring and having fun, not collecting every character, so don’t let FOMO pressure you into spending money you can’t afford.