You finish an Artifact Domain in Genshin Impact, check the new 5-star piece you just received, and immediately face the same question:
Is this Artifact actually worth keeping?
It is tempting to look for CRIT Rate and CRIT DMG and discard anything that does not have them. But good Artifact evaluation is more complicated than that.
An Artifact is generally worth keeping when its main stat, substats, set, and potential character use work well together. You should also consider how difficult the piece would be to replace and whether enhancement rolls could realistically turn it into an upgrade.
You do not need to know whether an Artifact is perfect at +0.
You only need to decide whether it has enough potential to deserve another look.
Check the Main Stat First
For Sands, Goblets, and Circlets, the main stat is usually the fastest way to begin evaluating an Artifact.
Different characters can need very different main stats.
Depending on the build, useful main stats can include:
- ATK%
- HP%
- DEF%
- Energy Recharge
- Elemental Mastery
- Elemental DMG Bonus
- Physical DMG Bonus
- CRIT Rate
- CRIT DMG
- Healing Bonus
Do not automatically assume ATK and CRIT are good while HP and DEF are bad.
A DEF-scaling character may actively want DEF%. An HP-scaling character can benefit heavily from HP%. Reaction-focused characters may prefer Elemental Mastery, while other characters need enough Energy Recharge to use their Elemental Burst consistently.
The first question should therefore be:
Is there a realistic character or build that wants this main stat?
If the answer is yes, move on to the substats.
Flowers and Plumes Need a Different Evaluation
Flowers and Plumes are easier to judge by their substats because their main stats are fixed.
Flowers always have flat HP as their main stat.
Plumes always have flat ATK.
Because you cannot obtain different main stats on these slots, you can focus more heavily on:
- Substat combinations
- Artifact set
- Enhancement potential
- How the piece compares with Flowers or Plumes you already own
As your account becomes stronger, you can usually become more selective with Flowers and Plumes because obtaining the correct main stat is never an issue.
Check Whether the Substats Match the Main Stat
Next, look at whether the substats make sense for the kind of character that would use the Artifact.
For example, a damage-oriented Artifact might have:
- CRIT Rate
- CRIT DMG
- ATK%
- Energy Recharge
That is an obviously promising combination for many characters.
But other combinations can be just as meaningful.
An HP-scaling character might appreciate:
- HP%
- Energy Recharge
- CRIT Rate
- CRIT DMG
A reaction-focused character could value:
- Elemental Mastery
- Energy Recharge
- CRIT or another relevant stat depending on the build
A DEF-scaling character can turn DEF% into a genuinely valuable substat.
Instead of asking:
“Does this Artifact have the standard good stats?”
ask:
“Do these stats make sense together for someone who would use this piece?”
Stat synergy is often more useful than judging every substat individually.
Does an Artifact Need Double CRIT to Be Worth Keeping?
No.
Having both CRIT Rate and CRIT DMG at +0 is an excellent sign for many damage-focused builds, but it should not become a requirement for every Artifact you keep.
An Artifact with:
- One CRIT stat
- Energy Recharge
- ATK%
- An open fourth substat
could still develop extremely well.
Likewise, some builds do not prioritize CRIT as heavily as traditional damage builds.
Double CRIT should therefore be viewed as strong potential for the appropriate build, not as a universal definition of a good Artifact.
If you discard everything without double CRIT, you can easily throw away useful pieces.
Is an Artifact With No CRIT Stats Bad?
Not necessarily.
This depends entirely on who might use it.
Some builds prioritize stats such as:
- Elemental Mastery
- Energy Recharge
- HP
- DEF
over CRIT.
Support characters may care more about meeting an Energy Recharge requirement or maximizing the stat their abilities scale from.
Reaction-focused builds can also value Elemental Mastery far more than a conventional CRIT-focused build would.
So before rejecting an Artifact with no CRIT, identify its possible purpose.
If the piece has no meaningful stat synergy for any realistic user, then getting rid of it becomes much easier.
Check Whether the Stats Make Sense for the Artifact Set
A good stat combination can become more interesting when it matches the purpose of the Artifact set.
Imagine obtaining a piece with stats that are useful for the kinds of characters who commonly use that set.
That creates a natural fit.
On the other hand, an Artifact may have stats that do not appear to match the set’s likely users at all.
That does not automatically make it useless—off-set pieces exist—but it can reduce the number of realistic situations where the Artifact would be valuable.
When evaluating a piece, ask:
Who uses this set, and would those characters want these stats?
That simple question can eliminate many Artifacts that look acceptable individually but have little practical use.
What Makes a Goblet Worth Keeping?
Goblets deserve more patience than many other Artifact pieces.
They can roll several different main stats, including different Elemental DMG Bonuses, so obtaining exactly the main stat you need can be difficult.
A Goblet with the correct Elemental DMG Bonus can therefore be worth testing even when its starting substats are not ideal.
Goblets are also commonly used as an off-set piece because a character does not necessarily need all five equipped Artifacts to belong to the same set.
This means a strong Goblet can remain useful across multiple builds.
When in doubt, be more cautious about discarding Goblets with useful main stats.
What Makes a Circlet Worth Keeping?
For many damage-focused builds, CRIT Rate and CRIT DMG Circlets are obvious pieces to inspect.
But they are not the only Circlets worth keeping.
Depending on the character, useful Circlet main stats can include:
- CRIT Rate
- CRIT DMG
- Healing Bonus
- Elemental Mastery
- ATK%
- HP%
- DEF%
A useful main stat combined with relevant substats can make a Circlet worth testing even when it does not look like a conventional DPS piece.
Also consider what you need to balance the character’s overall build.
A CRIT Rate Circlet may be much more valuable than CRIT DMG if the character already has plenty of CRIT DMG but struggles to reach a useful CRIT Rate.
What Makes a Sands Worth Keeping?
Sands can have:
- ATK%
- HP%
- DEF%
- Energy Recharge
- Elemental Mastery
as their main stat.
All of them can be useful.
The value depends on the character.
Energy Recharge Sands can be particularly important when a character cannot consistently use their Burst without additional ER.
Elemental Mastery Sands can be valuable for reaction-focused builds.
HP% and DEF% Sands can be excellent for characters whose abilities scale from those stats.
So do not evaluate a Sands by asking whether it rolled ATK%.
Evaluate whether the main stat and substats form a combination that a real build needs.
Should You Keep a 5-Star Artifact With Only Three Substats?
Yes, if the existing piece looks promising.
A 5-star Artifact can begin with three or four substats.
When a three-substat Artifact reaches +4, it gains its fourth substat.
That makes +4 a useful evaluation point.
For example, suppose a piece starts with:
- CRIT Rate
- Energy Recharge
- ATK%
That piece already has potential.
Taking it to +4 gives you more information. If CRIT DMG appears, it becomes even more attractive. If another stat appears, you can reassess whether the original three are still good enough to continue.
Do not discard promising three-substat Artifacts simply because they did not start with four.
Should You Level an Artifact to +4 Just to Test It?
Often, yes.
You do not have to decide at +0 whether an uncertain Artifact deserves +20.
If a piece has the correct main stat and several promising substats, taking it to +4 can reveal additional information at a relatively early enhancement stage.
Think of +4 as a test, not a commitment.
If the Artifact develops well, continue evaluating it.
If it develops poorly and was already borderline, you can stop.
This staged approach is much more efficient than either discarding every imperfect +0 Artifact or immediately leveling every promising piece to +20.
How Many Good Substats Does an Artifact Need?
There is no universal number.
A piece with two highly relevant substats can be worth testing.
A piece with three relevant substats is obviously more promising.
But the importance of the main stat and rarity of the piece also matter.
For example, you might demand stronger starting substats from a Flower because Flowers are easier to replace.
You may accept weaker starting substats on an Elemental DMG Bonus Goblet that you have struggled to obtain.
The standard should change depending on replacement difficulty.
Compare the Artifact With What You Already Own
An Artifact does not need to be amazing in isolation.
It needs to be useful for your account.
Suppose you find a decent new Flower.
If you already own three Flowers from the same set with much stronger stats, the new one may have little practical value.
But if you obtain a mediocre-looking Goblet with the exact main stat you have been missing for months, it may deserve testing.
Ask:
- Do I already have a better piece?
- Does another character need this?
- Would this fill a missing stat or slot?
- How difficult would it be to obtain another one?
Artifact quality is relative to your account.
Your Standards Should Increase as Your Account Improves
A new or developing account should not evaluate Artifacts by the same standards as a long-term player.
If your characters have weak Artifacts, a piece with:
- The correct main stat
- One or two useful substats
may already be a significant improvement.
For an established account with strong builds, that same Artifact may not be worth leveling because it would need several excellent enhancement rolls just to compete with existing pieces.
This is why there is no universal screenshot or stat score that can tell every player whether an Artifact is worth keeping.
Your current alternatives matter.
Do You Need to Use CRIT Value to Judge Artifacts?
No.
CRIT Value can be useful for comparing CRIT-focused pieces, but it does not measure everything an Artifact contributes.
It can undervalue important stats such as:
- Energy Recharge
- Elemental Mastery
- ATK%
- HP%
- DEF%
depending on the character.
An Artifact with less CRIT can still produce a better overall build if it solves an Energy problem, improves reaction damage, or provides a stat the character scales from.
Use CRIT as one part of Artifact evaluation—not the entire evaluation system.
When Is an Artifact Probably Not Worth Keeping?
An Artifact becomes easier to reject when several problems appear together.
For example:
- The main stat has no realistic use for the set or your characters
- The substats have little synergy with the likely main-stat user
- You already own clearly better alternatives
- The piece is easy to replace
- It would need several extremely lucky upgrades to become useful
- You cannot identify a realistic character who would equip it
One weak substat does not make an Artifact bad.
But when the main stat, set, substats, and possible users all point in different directions, there may be little reason to keep it.
A Simple Artifact Evaluation Checklist
When a new Artifact drops, check it in this order:
1. Main stat
Can a realistic character or build use it?
2. Artifact set
Do the stats make sense for the set’s likely users?
3. Substats
How many of them contribute meaningfully to that possible build?
4. Rarity of the combination
Would another piece with this slot and main stat be difficult to obtain?
5. Your existing Artifacts
Do you already own something clearly better?
6. Enhancement potential
Could +4 or another early checkpoint realistically turn the piece into something useful?
If the Artifact passes several of these checks, it is usually worth locking or testing rather than immediately getting rid of it.
Quick Answer: How Do You Know If an Artifact Is Worth Keeping?
An Artifact is worth keeping when its main stat, substats, Artifact set, and potential character use make sense together, especially if the piece would be difficult to replace.
Do not judge every Artifact by double CRIT.
Start with the main stat, identify who could realistically use the piece, check whether its substats support that build, and compare it with the Artifacts you already own.
For uncertain 5-star Artifacts, leveling to +4 can be a useful test rather than immediately deciding between +0 and +20.
Be stricter with easily replaceable pieces such as Flowers and Plumes, and more patient with difficult-to-obtain Sands, Goblets, or Circlets that have the main stat you need.
Most importantly:
A good Artifact is not the one with the most impressive-looking stats. It is the one whose stats work together to improve an actual character or build.
