When to use ascensions in Cookie Clicker

Question

When should I ascend? Which heavenly upgrades should I purchase each ascension?

There is a tradeoff between ascending to get heavenly upgrades, and building up cookies in bank for this ascension.

Answer 1

Here is the guide from the Cookie Clicker Discord. I reproduce most of it here for ease of searching until it gets added to the wiki. https://pastebin.com/8W6i6PFr

Ascensions Guide - how to get all 129 heavenly upgrades in 23 progression ascensions or less

Last updated 2024/1/11

Helpers - Yershi (v2.019), 5h3i1ah (v2.021), Narrihson (v2.021), Phlap (v2.031), Gravity (v2.031), Katloverr (v2.031), Yoi Simp (v2.031), Indian Tech Support (v2.031) Finn (v2.052), Limes (v2.052)

[Psst! Hi Fillex, Fishy, Julian, Lookas, Vol, and CursedSliver! :3]

For each ascension, the first number is the target HC to get, which is a recommended minimum. The second number, "Total HC," is the total amount of HC required for all upgrades up to and including that ascension. The third number is the total cookies baked all time you'll need to complete this ascension. Remember, you're free to play the game however you like, but deviating from the guide may result in a longer time to complete the game.

This guide assumes a somewhat active playstyle, where Golden cookie effects are the primary method of gaining cookies. However, there are also notes for changes if you are primarily idle. The costs for the upgrades are not factored into the heavenly chip gain.

The upgrades in each ascension are listed from most to least important with unlock requirements in front.

Note: These are ascension minimums. If you're lucky with Golden Cookie combos you might get way more than an ascension minimum. That's okay. Just combine two or more consecutive ascensions or buy the most important upgrades (for a future ascension) in one ascension and buy the rest (for that future ascension) in a later ascension.

[Example: you overshot Ascension 3 and got 77 thousand HC. Then you can buy all of the upgrades for Ascension 3 and Lasting Fortune and Lucky Digit (Ascension 4), and buy the rest of Ascension 5 on the next ascension]

If you don't know what any of the heavenly upgrades do, check out this link: https://cookieclicker.wiki.gg/wiki/Ascension

It tells you what each and every one of the upgrades does, all sorted in the same order as you see below, except for unshackled upgrades grouped at the bottom. (They are in order but not divided by ascension)

Permaslots guide can be found at https://pastebin.com/qgT3GepD

1st - 365 - Total HC: 365 - 48.627 quintillion - 9/129

• Legacy (1)
• Heavenly Cookies (3)
• How to Bake Your Dragon (9)
• Box of Brand Biscuits (25)
• Tin of British Tea Biscuits (25)
• Box of Macarons (25)
• Heavenly Luck (77)
• Permanent Upgrade Slot 1 (100)
• Heralds (100)
• [- Skip Heavenly Luck (77) for this ascension if you have a completely idle playstyle. -]

2nd - 2 185 - Total HC: 2 550 - 16.581 sextillion - 13/129

• Season Switcher (1111)
• Golden Switch (999) - requires Heavenly Luck (77)
• Tin of Butter Cookies (25)
• Starter kit (50)

3rd - 12 301 - Total HC: 14 851 - 3.275 septillion - 20/129

• Twin Gates, Angels, Archangels, Virtues, Dominions (2 801)
• Kitten Angels (9 000)
• Persistent Memory (500)

4th - 62 217 - Total HC: 77 068 - 457.744 septillion - 26/129

• Halo Gloves (55 555)
• Lasting Fortune (777)
• Lucky Digit (777) - your PRESTIGE LEVEL AFTER ASCENDING needs to contain at least 1 7 for this upgrade to appear
• Starter Kitchen (5 000)
• Classic Dairy Selection (9) [cosmetic]
• Basic Wallpaper Assortment (99) [cosmetic]

5th - 127 776 - Total HC: 204 844 - 8.595 octillion - 29/129

• Permanent Upgrade Slot 2 (20 000)
• Residual Luck (99 999)
• Decisive Fate (7 777)

6th - 825 019 - Total HC: 1 029 863 (1.030 million) - 1.092 nonillion - 37/129

• Belphegor, Mammon, Abaddon, Satan (2800)
• Synergies Vol 1 (222 222)
• Divine Discount (99 999)
• Divine Sales (99 999)
• Divine Bakeries (399 999)
• [- Purchase Unholy bait (44 444) here too if idle playstyle. -]

7th - 2 568 911 (2.569 million) - Total HC: 3 598 774 (3.599 million) - 46.608 nonillion - 43/129

• Asmodeus, Beelzebub, Cherubim, Seraphim (268 912)
• Synergies Vol 2 (2 222 222)
• Lucky Number (77 777) - your PRESTIGE LEVEL AFTER ASCENDING needs to contain at least 2 7s for this upgrade to appear
• [- Purchase Elder spice (444 444) here too if idle playstyle. -]

8th - 32 900 000 (32.900 million) - Total HC: 36 498 774 (36.499 million) - 48.622 decillion - 48/129

• Inspired Checklist (900 000) [QoL]
• Genius Accounting (2 000 000) [QoL]
• Label Printer (5 000 000) [QoL]
• Unshackled Flavor (10 000 000)
• Unshackled Cursors (15 000 000)
• [- Purchase Sacrilegious Corruption (444 444) here too if idle playstyle. -]

9th - 210 266 660 (210.267 million) - Total HC: 246 765 434 (246.765 million) - 15.026 undecillion - 66/129

• Starspawn, Startrade, Starterror, Starlove, Starsnow (555 555)
• Unholy Bait (44 444)
• Elder Spice (444 444)
• Sacrilegious Corruption (444 444)
• Wrinkly Cookies (6 666 666)
• Permanent Upgrade Slot 3 (3 000 000)
• Five Finger Discount (555 555)
• Golden Cookie Alert Sound (999 999) [QoL]
• Wrapping Paper (999 999)
• Distilled Essence of Redoubled Luck (7 777 777)
• Lucky Payout (77 777 777) - your PRESTIGE LEVEL AFTER ASCENDING needs to contain at least 4 7s for this upgrade to appear
• Stevia Caelestis (100 000 000)
• Fanciful Dairy Selection (1 000 000) [cosmetic]
• Distinguished Wallpaper Assortment (10 000 000) [cosmetic]

10th - 1 600 000 000 (1.600 billion) - Total HC: 1 846 765 434 (1.847 billion) - 6.298 duodecillion - 69/129

• Sugar Baking (200 000 000)
• Sugar Crystal Cookies (1 000 000 000)
• Permanent Upgrade Slot 4 (400 000 000)
• [- Purchase Aura Gloves (555 555 555) here too if your cursor level is any more than 0. -]

11th - 6 838 860 718 (6.839 billion) - Total HC: 8 685 626 152 (8.686 billion) - 655.245 duodecillion - 80/129

• Unshackled Grandmas (1 920 000 000)
• Unshackled Berrylium (1 810 193 360)
• Diabetica Daemonicus (300 000 000)
• Sugar Craving (400 000 000)
• Sugar Aging Process (600 000 000)
• Aura Gloves (555 555 555)
• Keepsakes (1 111 111 111)
• Eye of the Wrinkler (99 999 999) [QoL]
• Lucifer, God (1 647 086)
• Chimera (40 353 607)

12th - 34 999 999 984 (35.000 billion) - Total HC: 43 685 626 136 (43.686 billion) - 83.371 tredecillion - 85/129

• Cat Ladies (9 000 000 000)
• Kitten Wages (9 000 000 000)
• Shimmering Veil (999 999 999)
• Reinforced Membrane (14 999 999 985)
• Sucralosia Inutilis (1 000 000 000)
• [- Sucralosia Inutilis decreases the chance of all special sugar lumps except for Bifurcated permanently, so you might not want to buy if you care about the achievements, or more Caramelized sugar lumps for combos (although it does increase lump gain on average). -]

13th - 227 777 777 776 (227.778 billion) - Total HC: 271 463 403 912 (271.463 billion) - 20.005 quattuordecillion - 88/129

• Fortune Cookies (77 777 777 777)
• Permanent Upgrade Slot 5 (50 000 000 000)
• Pet the dragon (99 999 999 999)

14th - 1 379 559 951 147 (1.380 trillion) - Total HC: 1 651 023 355 059 (1.651 trillion) - 4.500 quindecillion - 94/129

• Box of Pastries (333 000 000 000)
• Box of Maybe Cookies (333 000 000 000)
• Box of Not Cookies (333 000 000 000)
• Unshackled Blueberrylium (37 879 951 162)
• Unshackled Chalcedhoney (327 680 000 000)
• Cosmic Beginner's Luck (14 999 999 985)

[- Upgrades order doesn’t really matter past this -]