Four endings split across one boss fight and one Pantheon. Three hinge on a single charm: the Void Heart.
Hollow Knight has four endings. Per the wiki, three of them are decided at the final boss in the Black Egg, and the fourth is a separate climb through the Godmaster DLC. Which one you get depends almost entirely on whether you have the 
Void Heart charm.
According to the wiki, the first ending is the default: beat the Hollow Knight without the Void Heart. The second and third both need the Void Heart and change based on whether you use the 
Awoken Dream Nail during the fight. The fourth comes from the Pantheon of Hallownest.
The wiki specifies there is no penalty for getting the easy ending first. Each ending is saved to its own slot, and replaying the final fight with a different setup simply records the next ending. In practice, most players see the Hollow Knight ending, then come back for the Void Heart ones.
This guide walks through all four endings, the exact requirements for each, the bonus Passing of the Age cutscene, and which one the community treats as the true ending.
The Hollow Knight beat the final boss with no Void Heart.
Sealed Siblings beat the boss with the Void Heart; Hornet seals in with you.
Dream No More Awoken Dream Nail the boss to fight and kill the Radiance.
Embrace the Void clear the Pantheon of Hallownest and Absolute Radiance.Per the wiki, the whole ending tree comes down to two choices: do you have the Void Heart, and do you use the Awoken Dream Nail in the final fight. The fourth ending sits apart in the Godmaster content.
| Ending | Requirement | Achievement |
|---|---|---|
| The Hollow Knight | Beat the boss, no Void Heart | The Hollow Knight |
| Sealed Siblings | Beat the boss with Void Heart | Sealed Siblings |
| Dream No More | Void Heart, then Awoken Dream Nail the boss | Dream No More |
| Embrace the Void | Clear the Pantheon of Hallownest | Embrace the Void |
According to the wiki, the Void Heart is the single most important item for endings. Without it, you can only ever get the first ending. With it, the final fight opens up two more outcomes depending on the Dream Nail.
The wiki notes the Void Heart is found in 
the Abyss, by taking the Kingsoul charm to the Birthplace at the bottom. In actual play, grabbing it before the final fight is the one preparation step that matters for the better endings.
This is the default ending. Per the wiki, it plays when the Knight defeats the Hollow Knight boss in the 
Black Egg Temple without having the Void Heart equipped or obtained.
According to the wiki, the Knight absorbs the Infection and the Hollow Knight's Shade, then takes its place sealed inside the Black Egg. The cycle simply repeats: a new Vessel holds the Radiance, and Hallownest is left in the same fragile state.
The wiki specifies this ending grants the "The Hollow Knight" achievement and the Infected menu theme. In practice it is the ending most players reach first, since it needs nothing beyond beating the final boss.
Per the wiki, Sealed Siblings plays when the Knight beats the Hollow Knight with the Void Heart obtained but without using the Awoken Dream Nail. Hornet appears partway through the fight to help and ends up sealed inside the Black Egg alongside the Knight.
According to the wiki, the outcome is close to the first ending, except Hornet shares the seal. The Knight still becomes the new container for the Radiance, but this time it is not alone. The achievement is "Sealed Siblings."
The wiki notes this is the ending you get by accident if you have the Void Heart but never trigger the dream sequence. In actual play, it is a half step toward the real Void Heart ending, Dream No More.
This is the base game's deepest ending. Per the wiki, with the Void Heart equipped, the Knight uses the Awoken Dream Nail on the Hollow Knight during the fight. That pulls the Knight into the dream to confront 
The Radiance directly.
According to the wiki, defeating the Radiance ends the Infection at its source. The void siblings rise up, consume the Radiance, and the Knight dissolves into the void rather than being sealed away. Hornet survives, and Hallownest is freed instead of patched over.
The wiki specifies this ending grants the "Dream No More" achievement and the Void menu theme. In practice, the community treats Dream No More as the base game's true ending, since it is the only base outcome that actually breaks the cycle.
Per the wiki, the Awoken Dream Nail upgrade is required for Dream No More; the standard Dream Nail will not trigger the Radiance fight. In real runs, upgrade at the Seer first, then go for this ending.
The fourth ending comes from the Godmaster DLC, not the Black Egg. Per the wiki, the Knight must clear the Pantheon of Hallownest inside 
Godhome and defeat Absolute Radiance at the very top of that gauntlet.
According to the wiki, beating Absolute Radiance triggers the Embrace the Void cinematic. The void floods out of the Godseeker, the Shade Lord rises, and the Radiance is destroyed for good. This is the most decisive ending in the game and grants the "Embrace the Void" achievement.
The wiki specifies a hidden variant of this ending. If the Knight gives the 
Delicate Flower to the Godseeker before clearing the Pantheon, the ending cutscene changes to a quieter scene of the world moving on. Handing over the flower makes the normal Embrace the Void cutscene inaccessible on that save.
Per the wiki and the developers, Hollow Knight does not have a single official "true" ending. Team Cherry has said they avoided naming one so each outcome stays valid. That said, the community leans on two answers.
For the base game, Dream No More is treated as the true ending because it is the only one that destroys the Radiance and frees Hallownest rather than re-sealing it. For the full game with the Godmaster DLC, Embrace the Void goes further, ending the Radiance permanently through the Shade Lord.
In actual play, the practical reading is simple: the Hollow Knight and Sealed Siblings endings continue the cycle, while Dream No More and Embrace the Void break it. The void endings are the ones the story builds toward.
The endings tie the Dreamers, the Void Heart, and the Godmaster climb together. These spokes pick up the connected threads.
Game data and screenshots adapted from hollowknight.fandom.com, used under CC BY-SA 3.0. Original content remains the property of the wiki contributors and Team Cherry.