Lv 15-20
First flier. Slow but covers you until Vanwyrm.
Best Flying Mounts in Palworld
All 17 flying mounts ranked by ride sprint speed — from Jetragon at 3,300 down to Nitewing at 750. Saddle-unlock levels, variant callouts, and the passive picks that stack to +100% effective speed.
Tier list by sprint speed
Ride sprint speed is the only objective metric for "best mount" — anything else is editorial. Values below come live from pal-stats.json stats.ride_sprint_speed.
| Tier | Mount | Sprint | Saddle | Elements |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| S |  Jetragon | 3,300 | Lv 50 | Dragon |
| A |  Frostallion | 1,500 | Lv 50 | Ice |
| A |  Frostallion Noct | 1,500 | Lv 50 | Dark |
| A |  Faleris | 1,400 | Lv 38 | Fire |
| A |  Ragnahawk | 1,300 | Lv 33 | Fire |
| B |  Beakon | 1,200 | Lv 28 | Electric |
| B |  Shadowbeak | 1,200 | Lv 44 | Dark |
| B |  Helzephyr | 1,100 | Lv 26 | Dark |
| B |  Suzaku | 1,100 | Lv 41 | Fire |
| B |  Suzaku Aqua | 1,100 | Lv 41 | Water |
| C |  Quivern | 950 | Lv 47 | Dragon |
| C |  Vanwyrm | 850 | Lv 21 | Fire · Dark |
| C |  Vanwyrm Cryst | 850 | Lv 21 | Ice · Dark |
| C |  Astegon | 800 | Lv 50 | Dragon · Dark |
| C |  Elphidran | 800 | Lv 45 | Dragon |
| C |  Elphidran Aqua | 800 | Lv 45 | Dragon · Water |
| C |  Nitewing | 750 | Lv 15 | Neutral |
S — Sprint ≥ 3,000 — endgame DPS-or-bust
A — Sprint 1,300–1,500 — legendaries + Faleris/Ragnahawk
B — Sprint 1,100–1,200 — best mid-to-late flyers
C — Sprint 750–1,050 — early/budget picks
DLC + post-Tides flyers (sprint data pending)
These flyers landed in Sakurajima / Feybreak / Tides of Terraria and the saddle is craftable in-game, but our paldex snapshot doesn't yet carry a published ride_sprint_speed. They're rideable today — we'll backfill speed values on the next paldex refresh. Until then: pick by element buff, not raw stats.
Faleris AquaWaterPartner skill: Tidal Predator
Can be ridden as a flying mount. While fighting together, Fire Pals drop more items when defeated.
Helzephyr LuxDark · ElectricPartner skill: Wings of Thunder
Can be ridden as a flying mount. Changes the player's attack type to Electric while mounted.
SelyneDarkPartner skill: Celestial Darkness
Can be ridden as a flying mount. Enhances Neutral and Dark attacks while mounted.
Best flying mount by game stage
Best passive skills for flyers
A maxed mount carries four passive slots. Speed passives stack additively — two Swift + two Runner = +100% movement on top of the base sprint number.
| Passive | Effect | Who carries it |
|---|---|---|
| Swift | Move Speed +30% | Random roll on any wild Pal — high-priority breeding target. |
| Runner | Move Speed +20% | Common drop; stack with Swift for a +50% effective mount. |
| Nimble | Move Speed +10% | Low-tier filler — replace with Runner when you find one. |
| Legend | Attack/Defense +20%, Move Speed +15% | Legendary-rarity Pals only (Jetragon, Frostallion, etc.). Cannot inherit through breeding. |
Element-buff flyers (combat mounts)
Most flyers above Lv 26 apply an element buff to the player's attacks while mounted. Use these when a Tower or alpha encounter needs a specific element.
Fire
Dark
Ice
Electric
Dragon
Water
How to ride a flying mount
- Reach the saddle's unlock level (Nitewing at 15, Vanwyrm at 21, Jetragon at 50, etc. — full list in the tier table above).
- Spend Technology Points at the Tech Menu to unlock the saddle recipe — typically 1-3 points each.
- Build the saddle at a Pal Gear Workbench. Costs scale by tier — Nitewing 5 Wood + 5 Leather, Jetragon 50 Carbon Fiber + 50 Refined Ingot.
- Equip the saddle on the matching Pal from the Pal Box, then summon and mount with F.
Saddle materials change per patch — check in-game tooltips for the current cost on your build.
Variants — Noct, Aqua, Cryst
Several flyers have a sub-species with the same speed but a different element buff. Pick by which boss you're prepping for — not by raw stats.
- Frostallion Noct — Dark variant of Frostallion. Same 1,500 sprint; swaps Ice buff for Dark.
- Suzaku Aqua — Water variant. Same 1,100 sprint; Water buff for the Ice Tower clear.
- Vanwyrm Cryst — Ice/Dark variant. Same 850 sprint; Ice resistance instead of Fire immunity.
- Elphidran Aqua — Water variant of Elphidran. Boosts Fire-Pal drops instead of Dark.
FAQ
What is the best flying mount in Palworld?
Jetragon. Ride sprint speed 3,300 — more than double the second-fastest flier (Frostallion at 1,500). Catch is a Lv 50 boss fight, and the saddle is the Lv 50 Missile Launcher saddle. Until you unlock Jetragon, the best in-progression flier is Faleris (1,400 sprint, Lv 38 saddle).
What's the first flying mount in Palworld?
Nitewing, unlocked with the Nitewing Saddle at Level 15. It's the slowest of the flying mounts (ride sprint speed 750) but it's the first one most players reach and it carries them through the entire mid-game until Vanwyrm or Helzephyr.
What are the best passive skills for flying mounts in Palworld?
Swift (+30% Move Speed), Runner (+20%), and Nimble (+10%) stack additively up to four passive slots. Two Swift + two Runner gives effectively +100% extra speed. For legendary-rarity flyers (Jetragon, Frostallion) the Legend passive is innate and adds +15% on top.
What level do you unlock flying mounts in Palworld?
Level 15 for the Nitewing Saddle (first flying mount), 21 for Vanwyrm, 28 for Beakon, 33 for Ragnahawk, 38 for Faleris, 41 for Suzaku, 44 for Shadowbeak, 47 for Quivern, and Level 50 for the Missile Launcher / Crystal Saddle on Jetragon and Frostallion.
Which flying mount is best for combat?
Shadowbeak — highest combat score among rideable flyers below legendary rarity, plus its Modified DNA partner skill applies Dark damage to the player's attacks while mounted. Endgame option is Jetragon with the Missile Launcher saddle — flying gunship.
How do flying mount subspecies (Cryst, Noct, Aqua) differ?
Same base sprint frame, different element buff and resistance profile. Vanwyrm Cryst is Ice/Dark instead of Fire/Dark, so it tanks Ice attacks but the partner-skill buff still routes through Dark. Frostallion Noct swaps Ice for Dark; Suzaku Aqua swaps Fire for Water; Elphidran Aqua swaps Dark-drop boost for Fire-drop. Pick by which Tower or alpha you're prepping — variant choice is a tactical swap, not a stat upgrade.
Are there flying mounts in the Feybreak / Tides of Terraria DLC?
Yes — Helzephyr Lux (Dark/Electric), Faleris Aqua (Water), and Selyne (Dark) are flagged as rideable in our paldex snapshot but their ride_sprint_speed isn't published yet. They're craftable today: see the DLC flyers section above for partner-skill details. Their tier placement will land once the next data refresh ships the speed values.
Sources: ride sprint speed + partner skills from games/palworld/data/pal-stats.json (via the isRideable helper in games/palworld/lib/paldex.ts). Saddle unlock levels cross-checked against in-game tech tree.