World of Warcraft: Forever is Blizzard’s own permanent-progression Classic Era client, currently in beta, and it is not a private server. It runs on a separate build from the usual Classic Era client, installed in its own _classic_beta_ folder, which is why addons built for regular Classic Era do not automatically carry over. This page covers addons built or confirmed to work for WoW Forever specifically.
What is different about addons on WoW Forever
The Forever client hides certain combat values from addons rather than exposing them the way Classic Era and private servers do. In practice, this means damage meters and boss-timer addons such as Details! or Deadly Boss Mods cannot read or total up damage, healing, or threat the way they do elsewhere, since those numbers are not available to addon code at all. Interface, questing, bag, map, vendor, and tooltip addons are not affected by this and work normally.
Because Forever is still in beta, Blizzard changes the client regularly, and an addon that works today can break after the next update. Regular Classic Era addons are not guaranteed to load correctly, so look for a version labeled for Forever specifically before installing anything.
Addon categories available for WoW Forever
- Quest tracking and leveling guidance
- Map, minimap, and exploration tools
- Bag and inventory organizers
- Auction house tools for buying and selling
- Interface overhauls and action bar replacements
- PvP unit frames for battlegrounds and world PvP
- Loot table and item lookup tools
Popular addons for WoW Forever
Questie Forever adds a quest tracker to the map, built specifically for the Forever client rather than ported from standard Classic Era.
Leatrix Plus and Leatrix Maps cover a wide set of interface and map quality-of-life fixes, with dedicated Forever builds available.
ClassicUI Forever is a full interface overhaul for players who want a cleaner layout than Forever’s default UI.
Bagnon combines your bags and bank into a single window and adds search and sorting.
Auctionator speeds up buying and selling at the auction house with saved searches and price history.
HandyNotes: WoW Forever adds map markers for points of interest across the world.
Spy (Forever) and BattlegroundTargets Classic Forever add nearby-player alerts and battleground unit frames for PvP.
How to install WoW Forever addons
- Download the addon as a .zip file, making sure it is built or confirmed for Forever rather than standard Classic Era.
- Extract it with 7-Zip, WinRAR, or the extractor built into Windows.
- Open your WoW installation folder, then _classic_beta_, then Interface, then AddOns. This is a different folder from regular Classic Era, so double-check you are not installing into the wrong client version.
- Move the extracted folder into AddOns. The folder containing the .toc file needs to sit directly inside AddOns, not nested inside another folder.
- Start the game and click the AddOns button on the character selection screen to confirm the addon is enabled.
What addons cannot do on WoW Forever right now
Damage meters, healing meters, and threat meters do not work on Forever, since the client keeps combat state such as health, power, and unit data hidden from addon code rather than exposing it the way Classic Era and private servers do. Boss mod addons that rely on health percentages or combat events for their timers run into the same wall. This is a limitation of the client itself, not something an addon update can fix.
In their place, Blizzard ships a built-in damage meter and a Cooldown Manager directly in the client, so you are not left without any combat tracking at all. Be cautious of any third-party addon advertising full damage meter or combat log support on Forever. A few have shown up claiming this, and it is not something the current client allows, so treat those listings as unreliable until Blizzard changes how combat data is exposed to addons.
Keeping up with WoW Forever addon updates
Because Forever is in beta, client updates can change or break addons with little warning. Checking for a newer version after a patch is worth doing before assuming an addon is broken for good, and sticking to addons with an active Forever-specific build reduces how often this happens.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use my regular Classic Era addons on WoW Forever?
Not reliably. Forever runs on a different client build, and some addons that work fine on Classic Era will not load or will behave incorrectly on Forever. Look for a version labeled for Forever before installing.
Do damage meters work on WoW Forever?
No third-party damage meter can fully work on Forever, since the client keeps combat state hidden from addons. Blizzard ships a built-in damage meter and Cooldown Manager instead, so you still have combat tracking without needing an addon for it. Be skeptical of any addon claiming full damage meter support here, since that is not something the current client allows.
Why did my addon stop working after an update?
WoW Forever is still in beta, and Blizzard updates the client regularly. An addon that is not actively maintained for Forever can break when the client changes. Check for a newer build before assuming the addon is no longer usable.