How to Get Every ESO Companion (and Which Ones Need DLC)

Companions · 6 min · updated 2026-06-16

✓ Current as of Update 50 (2026)🎮 Works on console (no add-ons)

The frustration“How do I actually GET a companion, and can I get one without owning any paid DLC?”

Companions are ESO's hireable AI allies — great for soloing tougher content. But guides explain what they are and skip the one thing you need: where each one comes from, and whether you have to own a chapter to get it. Here's the full list, current to Update 50 (June 2026), including the two companions you can get with no DLC at all.

How companions work in one paragraph

You unlock a companion by completing a short intro quest, after which they live in your Collections and can be summoned to fight alongside you (one at a time). You gear and skill them separately. The only barrier to getting one is owning the content their quest lives in.

The two you can get with NO chapter

If you don't own any chapters, these two are your companions — both come from the Crown Store (or free during an active ESO Plus membership), with an intro quest in a base-game zone:

Zerith-var — Crown Store / ESO Plus; no chapter required.
Tanlorin — Crown Store / ESO Plus; no chapter required.
(Pricing varies and changes — check the in-game store; they're sometimes bundled together or free while you have ESO Plus.)

The chapter-gated companions

The other six each require owning the content their quest is in:

Bastian Hallix — Blackwood quest (requires Blackwood).
Mirri Elendis — Blackwood quest (requires Blackwood).
Ember — High Isle quest (requires High Isle).
Isobel Velois — High Isle quest (requires High Isle).
Sharp-as-Night — Necrom quest (requires Necrom).
Azandar al-Cybiades — Necrom quest (requires Necrom).

Account-wide or per-character?

Once unlocked, a companion is available account-wide — you don't have to re-do the quest on every alt to summon them. (Their rapport and gear are managed per the companion, not re-grinded per character.) That's worth knowing before you dread doing the same quest eight times.

Count current as of Update 50 (June 2026): eight companions. Seasons could add more, so check in-game if a newer one appears.

Eight companions: six are tied to Blackwood, High Isle, or Necrom; Zerith-var and Tanlorin need no chapter (Crown Store / ESO Plus). Unlock is a one-time intro quest, then they're account-wide. If you're soloing, a companion is one of the biggest quality-of-life upgrades you can get. Current to Update 50 (June 2026).

Sources & further reading

What to do after level 50 Generate a cited build What changed since you left