Dota 2 Calculator: The Buyback Calculator Tool for Dota 2

The Buyback Calculator Tool

The Buyback Calculator Tool answers the question every core asks before a fight: if I die now, can I still buy back? Move one slider to your game time and you see the buyback cost and the gold you need to keep. Done. Axe once bought back to fight Roshan alone. Axe lost. Axe would do it again.

1. Move the game time slider to the clock of your game and pick core or support.
2. Read the two big numbers: what a buyback costs right now, and how much gold to keep so a death does not cost you the buyback.
3. Optional: type your gold to see how much you can spend. Level, respawn, cooldown and your exact net worth are under “More info”.

Axe explains

Buyback in 10 seconds

1. 200base gold cost.
2. ÷13of your net worth on top.
3. 8 mincooldown.
4. +25son your next respawn.

Rich hero, expensive comeback. Axe is rich in muscles.

How much gold to keep for buyback in Dota 2

Having the buyback gold now is not enough. Dying costs gold too, and it happens right before you want to buy back. So you need both in your pocket:

Example: a core at 30 minutes has about 16,850 net worth. A death takes 421 gold, and the buyback after that death costs 1,463. So keep 1,884 gold. With 3,000 gold you can spend 1,116 right now and still buy back after dying.

Dying only takes unreliable gold. The tool counts all your gold as unreliable, so its number is the safe side: with some reliable gold you can spend a little more.

Gold above the red number is gold you can spend. Axe spends it on bigger axes. Then dies anyway. But with a bigger axe.

Saving for a big item at the same time? The Item Timing Calculator shows when it is done at your farm.

Not sure if your farm is any good? The GPM & XPM Calculator compares your GPM with other players of your hero.

Dota 2 buyback cost formula

The result is rounded down. Net worth counts your gold and all items you own. Example: with 20,000 net worth a buyback costs 200 + 1,538 = 1,738 gold. The richer you are, the more it costs, so the carry who needs it most also pays the most.

Do not know your net worth? Nobody does in the middle of a fight. The tool estimates it from the game time: about 561 gold per minute for cores and 350 for supports (the median of all core and support heroes in OpenDota's benchmarks). A core at 40 minutes has about 22,450 net worth, so a buyback costs about 1,926 gold.

Buyback cooldown and penalty

• Cooldown: 8 minutes. After a buyback you cannot buy back again for 480 seconds. The tool shows when it is back under “More info”: 30:00 + 8:00 = 38:00.
• Penalty: +25 seconds on your next respawn. It does not count deaths where you reincarnate, for example with Aegis.
• Reliable gold first. Buyback takes reliable gold before unreliable gold. Your unreliable gold stays, and that is the part you lose on your next death.
• No buyback while stunned after death by effects like Toss, Walrus PUNCH!, Walrus Kick or Winter's Curse, and none while reincarnating.

Items · Dota2FreaksAll Dota 2 items and recipesEvery item with cost and recipe. Buying an item does not change your buyback cost: your gold just turns into an item of the same value.→

Dota 2 respawn time by level

Buyback skips the rest of this timer. The higher your level, the more seconds you save, and the more a death without buyback hurts:

Seconds of respawn time per hero level. Dying to neutral creeps sets it to at least 26 seconds. Talents with respawn reduction lower it.

Gold you lose when you die

Every death costs net worth ÷ 40 in unreliable gold. Reliable gold is safe. At 20,000 net worth that is 500 gold, at 50,000 it is 1,250. Spend your unreliable gold before a risky fight and a death hurts less.

When is buyback worth it?

Buyback is expensive, has a long cooldown and makes your next death longer. It pays off when the next minute decides the game:

• A big fight starts while you are dead and your team needs you in it.
• Your base needs defending and your respawn is too long to make it.
• Your team won the fight you died in and goes for the final push.

It is almost never worth it just to farm faster. In the late game, keep enough gold for it: without buyback, one lost fight can end the game. Axe keeps buyback gold. Axe spends it on fights. Same thing.

The Roshan Timer and the Game Timer tell you when the next objective is up, and that is where the big fights happen.

Free tool · Dota2FreaksMMR Calculator: how far is your rank goal?Good buybacks win games. Set your rank goal and see how many games and how much time it could take to get there.→

Free guide · Dota2FreaksRank Up Guide: find the one thing holding you backFive quick questions about your role, your lane and your losses. You get one habit to fix and a free mission for your next three games.→

FAQ: Axe answers questions