July 4, 2022: We've updated this piece with the latest rankings.
In the right hands, any Dead by Daylight Killer can be effective against a group of Survivors no matter where they are on our DBD tier list. That said, there are some Killers who require more effort to make that happen.
With the new Roots of Dread Chapter having recently released, there's no better time to get into Dead by Daylight.
So check out the details below to learn just which Killers are the most effective and which ones you're going to have to really sweat with in order to win.
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DBD Killers Tier List - Ranked Best To Worst
For this Dead by Daylight Killer tier list, we've separated the tiers into three. While there are some mid-to-low Killers in the game, it's best to simplify them by just three so that you can get an understanding of which Killers have very few redeeming qualities.
Meanwhile, some fall in the middle bracket of having both big strengths and big weaknesses. As for the top tier, they too have their weaknesses, but they pale in comparison to their strengths.
| Tier | DBD Killers |
|---|---|
| High | The Blight, The Nurse, The Spirit, The Artist, The Executioner, The Hag, The Huntress, The Oni, The Plague, The Twins |
| Mid | The Cenobite, The Cannibal (Leatherface), The Deathslinger, The Demogorgan, The Hillbilly, The Nemesis, The Trickster, The Clown, The Doctor, The Ghost Face, The Legion, The Nightmare (Freddy Kruger), The Onryo, The Wraith |
| Low | The Pig, The Shape (Michael Myers), The Trapper |
We based this list off of a few subjects, including:
- Map Control
- Lethality
- Snowball (slugging, etc)
- Map Pool Versatility
- Perk Builds
- Add-Ons
- Power
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It should be noted that our Dead By Daylight tier list will be kept up to date as much as possible, and it currently follows the release of the last killer added to the game: The Dredge in Chapter 24
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+ 5Tier 1 - The Best Killers
- The Blight is a very powerful killer as he's able to bounce off surfaces and gain ground on survivors very quickly, meaning Survivors have to make quick decisions that may impact their survival. He's incredibly fast, and very dangerous, so watch out. He does have a harsh learning curve, but he's worth the trouble.
- The Nurse also has a pretty hefty learning curve with her blink, as you have to be able to time it well. Great blinks can allow her to travel far distances and cut off survivors. However, mess up a blink and you're hit with a wave of fatigue that takes a moment to recover from which can give survivors a lot of time to get away. The Nurse is a very high risk, high reward killer.
- The Spirit is a powerful killer if she uses her Yamaoka's Haunting Power as both the killer and survivors can't see each other and are instead revealed by scratch marks and breath sounds and environment interactions. This makes it a hard fight, but one full of mind-games.
- The Artist and her crows are a constant threat to survivors. If she uses three crows in an effective position, they can shut down areas, cause lethalities and gain map-wide advantages.
- The Executioner torments survivors using hazards around the map, such as pools of shards of glass. Hooks are a very effective tool for the Executioner, and he gets to torment survivors a lot around the map with his various tools.
click to enlarge + 5- The Hag revolves around creating phantasm traps. If they are triggered, she can instantly teleport them and hit the survivor who triggered the trap. By doing this, they can lock down key areas, have great map awareness, and end chases quickly.
- The Huntress is a deadly killer using ranged hatchets, making her a constant threat to survivors. She can send a hatchet out across great distances and end a chase in seconds.
- The Oni is an incredibly powerful killer. When survivors are injured, they leave behind a trail of blood orbs, which make the Oni more powerful over time. When he roars, he gains the ability to charge, which will down survivors in one shot if they're hit.
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- The Plague is a great killer because traditional healing methods don't work against her. If she uses her vile Purge and it affects a survivor then they are then infected with the plague. However, there are pools of devotion around the map that survivors can heal in. When they do this, it turns the pools red and ultimately makes the Plague more powerful.
- The Twins are a powerful duo, allowing Charlotte to unleash her twin brother Victor to move at high speeds where he can then hunt and strike with a pounce attack. By using this, you can down survivors with Victor and hook them with Charlotte.
click to enlarge + 5Tier 2 - Average At Best
- The Cenobite, AKA Pinhead is great at map-wide pain and suffering. If a chain hunt begins, survivors must find the Lament Configuration otherwise they will be taken over by shackles. The Cenobite can also bind survivors, which allows him to inflict punishment.
- The Cannibal, aka Leatherface, is great at using his chainsaw. If you're in his path when he's using his chainsaw, you'll be cut down in an instant. He is capable of hitting multiple targets in a single swing, but his swing can be very inaccurate and unruly, making him easy to dodge.
- The Deathslinger uses his handmade gun to pin survivors with a long-distance harpoon. He can be easy to dodge, but if he has an accurate aim or good predictions, then it could easily be over for the Survivors.
- The Trickster is armed with throwing knives. His trait is overwhelming survivors by throwing as many knives as he can. Simple actions such as throwing down pallets or trying to escape the killer can suddenly seem so much more difficult and can end up with your life on the line.
- The Demogorgon is a good killer, as they can teleport through portals and they are powerful. However, their scream when they travel through portals reveals their position on the map via sound, so it may be difficult to get kills as survivors will scatter when they hear you.
- The Hillbilly is far from subtle, but he is very efficient at killing survivors. He is good at traveling huge distances at a fast pace with his charge, and any survivors in his path will be knocked down. Another killer which has an inaccurate charge and can be dodged.
click to enlarge + 5- The Nemesis is one hell of a killer, as he is absolutely massive and can infect everyone with the T-Virus, which enhances his power. There are also zombies that roam the map and can down survivors if they aren't careful.
- The Clown isn't the best killer, as he revolves around using noxious concoctions. However, if he's not careful, he could throw the wrong one and anyone who passes through the yellow gas cloud will get a speed boost and would get away from him easily.
- The Doctor is a good killer as he causes mass disruption all across the map. By using shock therapy, it reveals everyone's locations as they scream. However, because he spends so much time causing disruption, it doesn't give him much time to kill.
- The Ghost Face is a stealth-focused killer. However, if the survivors spot you, they can cancel some of your attacks by face-tanking you. You have to be very map aware to be able to stealth and kill.
- The Legion can be a very powerful group of killers as they can constantly deal out injuries with Feral Frenzy, which is a high-level sprint that they can use to chase after survivors and deal damage. Because of how the Legion's damage works, survivors will constantly be tending to their wounds, making them very vulnerable and susecepitable to attack.
- The Nightmare can force survivors into the Dream World. Once in the Dream World, survivors will have no terror radius. He also uses dream snares, can deceive survivors using fake dream pallets, and can teleport to generators, creating pressure no matter what.
- The Onryo can condemn players by forcing them to take videotapes from the TV. She can teleport to TVs and emerge from them, making it easy for her to have all over access on the map. However, she can be countered by tapes being taken out of the TVs.
- The Wraith uses his Wailing Bell to make himself invisible, which allows him to hunt and track his prey with ease. However, his uncloaking has now been nerfed, and survivors have a bit more time to run when they hear his bell.
click to enlarge + 5Tier 3 - Weak Killers
- The Pig can knock players down and hit them with the reverse bear trap, which means players no longer are stressing about generators, instead it's wondering how to get the trap off of their head. Despite this being a revolutionary move, it's still easy to avoid.
- The Shape is another stealth-based killer, whose power revolves around stalking players and getting their power that way. However, if they can't find the players, then they don't get the power they need. If they do, however... it's game over for the survivors.
- The Trapper is an annoyance at most, as he places traps wherever he likes. They can mostly be seen where they're put down, and most Trapper players are predictable and put them in front of the hooks. However, if survivors are new to this strategy, it could cost them the game.
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That's all you need to know about the best (and worst) Killers to use in Dead by Daylight. Be sure to check back regularly to see how your build could be improved. In the meantime, check out the killers we wish to see in Dead by Daylight soon, or some games like DBD for when you need a break.
This article was updated on June 9, 2022 by Amy Eastland.