<p>A social hierarchy is an ordered ranking of individuals that arises through their interactions and governs relative access to resources and social influence. This form of social organization is pervasive across animal species and has a crucial role in shaping survival and reproductive outcomes. Across species, the routes to high status vary widely. As social groups become more complex, the basis of hierarchy shifts from simple residency rules to fighting-based dominance and finally to alliance-based systems. In this Review, we first examine the neuroendocrine and subcortical mechanisms that support status transitions in residency-based hierarchies. We then discuss plasticity within hypothalamic and mesolimbic circuits that underlie fighting-outcome-based social learning, through which fighting-based hierarchies emerge. Finally, we explore alliance-based hierarchies in cognitively complex species, in which individuals attain status through coalition formation, cooperation and reputation. We review evidence that cortical regions encode information about the strengths, emotions, experiences and intentions of other individuals and use this to navigate complex social interactions and attain status. As social hierarchies have shifted from primarily fighting-based to increasingly alliance-based strategies over evolutionary time, neural control of status has, thus, transitioned from subcortical social behaviour circuits to a more elaborated cortical network in humans.</p>