Dead by Daylight killer tier list June 2026 – all DBD killers ranked

Ten years in, the Dead by Daylight character roster is bigger than ever, and thanks to that huge list of names and constant changes to perks and add-ons, it’s certainly difficult to keep track of who the best Dead By Daylight killers are.

Among the best PC games out there, the joy of asymmetrical horror games has always been the ability to be the bad guy. While there’s certainly something thrilling about fighting for your life (there must be a reason we all wonder how we’d do in a zombie apocalypse, right?), nothing gets the heart racing like shirking the lawful-good responsibilities of real life and taking on the role of a bloodthirsty killer. Every one of the following DBD killers has their own terrifying unique power, from ranged axe throws to infectious bile and close-range chainsaw attacks. But which is best? Find out with our tier list of all Dead by Daylight killers.

DBD killer tier list

Our tier list considers Behaviour’s difficulty rating for each killer, their unique power, and the strength of that power when played well. For example, The Nurse and The Blight are in S Tier, but these won’t be great picks for beginners thanks to their difficult abilities and attacks. In the hands of a DBD veteran, though, they’re by far the best characters available. Killers’ individual perks have only been taken into account slightly, as they can be unlocked and used interchangeably with any killer build. We haven’t considered Add-Ons.

Here is our Dead by Daylight killer tier list:

S-tier

The Nurse (Very Hard)

Like The Hag, The Nurse has the ability to teleport quickly across the map with her Blink ability, Spencer’s Last Breath. The Nurse can even chain Blinks together to cover large distances. The downside to this power, though, is the fatigue effect placed on The Nurse after blinking, so you will need to take some time to master the perfect timing of this skill, as a false move will slow your movement speed and allow survivors to escape. Use it correctly, and you could find yourself sacrificing all four survivors in record time.

The Nurse is one of the five killers included with any purchase of the base game.

The Blight (Very Hard)

The Blight is similar to The Nurse in that they’re incredibly difficult to master, but almost unstoppable once you do so. The Blight’s power, Rush, enables you to move extremely quickly across the map, closing in on survivors with little effort. While you can’t attack a survivor on your first Rush, slam into a wall or other obstacle to activate Lethal Rush, during which you can attack, giving valuable chances to close the gap between you and your victim. Careful though, if you miss a wall or obstacle on your first Rush, Blight will be briefly fatigued, and your survivor will have their chance to get away. Expect your early Blight matches to be painful, but sticking through it to get used to his incredibly quick speed will be worth it.

The Blight must be purchased through the in-game store, with Auric Cells or Iridescent Shards, or as part of the Macabre Tales DLC.

The Hillbilly (Medium)

The Hillbilly was Dead by Daylight’s answer to Bubba Sawyer before the licensed Leatherface chapter came about. He’s been through the wringer a bit, usually only played by a few hardcore Billy fans, and not cared for due to the difficulty to control his movements. However, Billy finally got some much-needed attention in the 7.5.0 update, bringing him back up the rankings again.

The reason Hillbilly can be so good is that his Chainsaw Sprint places even a healthy survivor straight into the dying state on a successful hit, making The Hillbilly an incredibly powerful villain for quick hooks. The trouble is that he is also fairly easy to avoid, though less so after the update. If you’re careful with your aim, try to avoid ‘bumping’ obstacles, and are lucky enough to get a straight line between yourself and your victim, you should have no problem downing victims. While Billy might not be S-tier for nice players, he certainly can be for those willing to insta-down and slug. In fact, you can end a game in a couple of minutes this way if you get lucky.

The Hillbilly is one of the five killers included with any purchase of the base game.

A-tier

The Slasher (Medium)

Seeing the popularity of DBD go wild around the 10th anniversary, The Slasher/Jason Voorhees has proven to be a very popular killer among both new players and experienced ones. Lots of players who’ve stuck around, not just coming back to the game around the killer’s release, think some of The Slasher’s abilities are overpowered. Since he’s testing, though, that may change over time.

His teleport ability is widely considered the best in the game, with it allowing him to track survivor footsteps via a visible mist trail and teleport to them. Combining that with his throwable spear weapon, which has a smaller hitbox than similar weapons, and he’s pretty formidable.

Also, his Rampage perk rewards breaking pallets and walls around the map by granting up to a 13% Haste boost when stunned. That makes him difficult to lose when he’s chasing you.

The First (Medium)

We came so close to adding another killer to the S-tier, but, for now, The First just misses out due to him requiring a good map knowledge for true domination, and the ability for survivors to counter him quite easily. Even so, at the time of writing, Henry Creel is one hell of a DBD killer.

It can take a few matches to learn how best to play The First, and a few more to really master it, but in the grand scheme of some of the other killers on this list, it’s actually relatively simple to get really good at using this power. The main thing to keep in mind is that (new) Vecna’s vine attack can be used to slow survivors, injure survivors, or, crucially, zome them. The latter is important. Survivors will instinctively try to avoid this ground attack, which means you can force them to play right into your hands.

Hitting survivors with this ranged attack injures them if they’re under the Worldeater effect, or grants them a token if not. With four tokens, they are then placed under the effect. The hardest thing to master is the other part of Henry’s power, Undergate. Use this to travel across the map quickly, and to trigger Worldeater, but beware of its painful cooldown.

If you want to take control of The Abyss, The First can be purchased as part of the Stranger Things Part 2 Chapter, available in the in-game shop or on Steam.

The Krasue (Medium)

The most horrifying killer to date, The Krasue is based on traditional Thai folklore. A beautiful female corrupted by her own desires, a Krasue transforms into a floating head to hunt at night, and that’s exactly what the DBD Krasue does in The Entity’s Realm.

Starting off as the beautiful Burong Sukapat, The Krasue can only attack with a normal M1. However, her secondary form – a disembodied head, complete with flowing entrails – allows her to Leech survivors with a projectile attack, and then injure and down them in this form, which moves faster and more stealthily.

Survivors can remove Leeching by eating glowing fungi found around the map at locations at which Sukapat has transformed, but, when played well, The Krasue has the ability to be one of the best killers in the game. We would consider her S-tier if it weren’t for her learning curve, as her projectile attack is quite tough to master and can be outplayed by good survivors.

If you want to fly around the map as The Krasue, organs and intestines akimbo, you need to purchase the Sinister Grace DLC in-game or on Steam.

The Ghoul (Medium)

The Ghoul is one of the most popular new killers of all time, and it’s no surprise given his incredible mobility. Using his Kagune, Kaneki can spring across the map, catching up with survivors in no time. In short range, he can still use this power to overwhelm survivors on loops, given them no real way to avoid injury.

Unlike some of the other top-tier killers in Dead by Daylight, The Ghoul is also relatively easy to learn. In fact, you might be wondering why he isn’t in the S-tier. It was a hard choice, and we could certainly justify putting him there given the limited ways to outplay him as a survivor, but his in-built QTE and cooldown times, and necessity to keep his power going, put him as high A. We also expect he could be nerfed any day.

If you want to give Kaneki a try – or even play as his counterpart Kamishiro Rize – you must purchase the DLC from the in-game store on on Steam.

The Spirit (Hard)

The Spirit is often placed in the S-tier or A-tiers in players’ tier lists, but we’ve decided to place her in the top tier based more on her performance once fully mastered. Again, like the killers above, Rin Yamaoka is difficult to get used to, not least since her power blinds her. That said, get to grips with her power (and wear a decent headset) and you’ll find that this is what also makes her so powerful.

The Spirit moves across the map in her spirit form, leaving her almost invisible to a survivor’s eye. To counter that powerful ability, survivors also become invisible to The Spirit as she moves through an alternate plane. As The Spirit phases through the map, she moves at a faster rate than normal and can still see environmental hints such as spooked wildlife, disturbed grass, and moving generators, clues to where survivors may be lurking. The key is using audio to take survivors by surprise, and, if you come out of power at the right moment, you can really take a survivor by surprise. As teleporting killers go, The Spirit is slightly easier for a beginner to master as the camera moves with her across the map, rather than simply reemerging in a new location – often discombobulated.

On PC, The Spirit is another killer that must be purchased from the in-game shop, with Auric Cells or Iri Shards, or as part of the Maddening Darkness DLC.

The Wraith (Easy)

One of the ‘easiest’ killers available, and yet still widely used by comp and long-time players, The Wraith really is a jack-of-all-trades killer, and incredibly popular to boot. Using his Wailing Bell power, The Wraith becomes almost completely invisible to survivors. If you’re paying close attention to your surroundings, he can be vaguely made out as a blur, but this means he can easily sneak up on players engrossed in repairs or healing. While cloaked, The Wraith has increased movement speed, making it easy to close the gap on wily players. The caveat is that he’s unable to injure or down them while cloaked. To do so, you must first uncloak, which slows The Wraith’s movement speed back down slightly.

While The Wraith is a superb killer for sacrificing survivors quickly, the trick to mastering the killer comes with knowing exactly when to cloak and uncloak. Also, don’t get tripped up by not holding the action button long enough to uncloak, as this will give your location away, but you still won’t be able to attack.

The Wraith is one of the five killers included with any purchase of the base game.

The Lich (Medium)

The Lich had some issues during the PTB, so naturally received some buffs before his full release. Now, the Matthew Mercer-voiced character is among the top killers in the game. There is a small learning curve to overcome at first, as Vecna’s spell wheel is an entirely new mechanic, putting four icons on your screen as you choose which spell you want to use. However, once familiar with where each spell is and what it does, you can use The Lich to control most of the map at once.

Using his four spells, the Dungeons and Dragons character is able to fly through obstacles (much like The Nurse), move or block pallets (like The Knight), send damaging projectiles through the world (similar to The Unknown or The Artist), or project an aura revealing sphere. That’s a lot of powers. Once you know how to use them well, any survivors wills struggle to counter play The Lich.

If you want to cast spells on unsuspecting survivors, you’ll need to purchase the Dungeons and Dragons Chapter from the in-game store, or get the character only using Auric Cells.

The Dark Lord (Hard)

Dracula, or The Dark Lord, like The Lich before him, has a combination of powers, some similar to those of other killers. As the first shape-shifting killer, Dracula can take the form of a wolf or a bat, as well as his own original vampire form, in order to track and chase survivors.

The bat form is similar to The Spirit’s power in that he cannot see survivors, but moves faster and can track scratch marks more easily. In this form, Dracula can also teleport. As a wolf, meanwhile, Drac can also travel fast and perform a lunge attack akin to The Demogorgon’s Shred attack. In his vampire form, The Dark Lord can hurls pillars of fire ahead of him, similar to The Executioner’s Punishment of the Damned. While switching between these powers isn’t easy at first, once mastered, you can see why having all of these skills at your disposal makes Dracula on of the best DBD killers right now.

The Dark Lord can be purchased as part of the Castlevania chapter DLC or on his own in the in-game store.

The Huntress (Moderate)

Most of our A-tier killers have some form of ranged attack, but our lovely Huntress was the first with a ranged weapon, her Hunting Hatchets. This power makes for a truly top-tier killer, as an eagle eye and a sharp shot can down survivors within seconds of starting a match. You still need to land two hits to down a player, but there is only a slight cooldown between throws and this can be reduced with add-ons. Injuring with the first hatchet will also slow a survivor’s movement speed as normal, so you can then go after them with your basic melee attack instead.

The greatest benefit to a ranged attack is the ability to hit a survivor with a pallet or window between you but be careful not to run out of hatchets. The Huntress is limited to five Hatchets in hand at a time (unless you have the Leather Loop add-on), so be sure to regularly restock your hatchets from lockers.

The Huntress is one of the five killers included with any purchase of the base game.

The Xenomorph (Medium)

The Xenomorph hasn’t really slipped from the A-tier since its introduction as part of the Alien DLC in August 2023. The only reason we’re leaving this killer out of the S-tier rank is because we’re trying to base this decision on the base character and not their perks and add-ons, but with those, our Alien friend could be even higher.

As a standalone character, no matter which perks you choose to kit it out with, The Xenomorph is still incredibly strong thanks to its base kit aura-reading abilities. While in underground tunnels, The Xenomorph can see player footsteps if they cross your path above ground. You can also hear generators while underground, too. This gives you the ability to locate players incredibly easily – and within moments of the trial start. Come out of the tunnel, and if you’re close enough those survivors might trigger Killer Instinct too, adding to the already OP aura-reading capabilities. The only thing holding this killer back from being too good is its slightly lower base speed and pesky flame turrets, used by survivors to counter this killer. That said, as discussed in our launch day opinion of the alien, those could still be buffed somewhat and The Xenomorph would still be a strong attacker.

If you wish to crawl around underground as the Xenokitty, I mean, Xenomorph, you must buy it on its own or as part of the Alien chapter.

The Executioner (Very Hard)

Fans of the Silent Hill franchise will instantly recognize Pyramid Head – The Executioner – from the official Silent Hill chapter. The Executioner is a complex killer to play, with a range of actions available, but can be an absolute powerhouse when played well.

Without going into too much detail with all of The Executioner’s components, the most important things to know about are Torment and Final Judgment. Use Pyramid Head’s power, Rites of Judgement, to carve an opening into the ground – particularly useful near hooked survivors or generators, or across doorways. If a survivor walks through this, they will be inflicted with Torment, which means they can be killed immediately (or Mori’d) if they have entered the struggle phase/second phase on the hook or in a cage – this is Final Judgment. Therefore, the best way to play The Executioner is to try and hook all survivors twice, rather than prioritizing that third and final capture. Then you can go and deliver that Final Judgment.

The Executioner is yet another character that must be purchased from the in-game shop on PC, or with the Silent Hill Chapter DLC.

The Mastermind (Medium)

Project W’s Wesker, or The Mastermind, might be everyone’s favorite DBD Daddy, taking over The Trapper and Trickster with his fan base, but he’s also a very strong killer. Combining a ranged attack with the ability to instantly carry a survivor when played well, there is no real downside to The Mastermind – once you’ve mastered how to play him.

Wesker has a standard melee basic attack, but can also lunge at survivors with his power, Virulent Bound. With a straight run at the Survivor, Wesker slams them against the wall, causing them to lose a health state, but even if you collide with an obstacle, you still injure the survivor. Either way, Virulent Bond causes the survivor to become Infected with the Urobros Virus. The Infection will slowly increase unless the survivor uses a First Aid Spray – a fully-infected Survivor is instantly picked up upon another successful attack, while using the spray reveals their location, so there’s a benefit to either outcome.

To infect survivors with the Urobros Virus, you must buy Wesker from the DBD in-game store either on his own or as part of the Project W DLC.

The Good Guy (Medium)

Chucky came straight out the gate as one of the best killers, for both beginners and experts. Even following his minor post-release nerfs, which changed the maneuverability in his Slice and Dice power, Chucky remains one of the most brutal killers. Despite his Slice and Dice action being a little hard to control for those who aren’t used to playing killer, Chucky’s other power, Hidey-Ho Mode, and his slight size mean he is still a phenomenally strong killer. Hidey-Ho Mode makes Chucky undetectable, and, since he is shorter than most windows, it’s incredibly easy to sneak up on unsuspecting victims, even as a new player to the killer side.

If you want to play The Good Guy, or The Good Gal, Chucky and Tiffany can be purchased from the in-game shop, or as a DLC.

The Nightmare (Medium)

Yep, that’s right, we’ve moved the ever-controversial Freddy Krueger right up to the low-A tier. In January 2025, The Nightmare went through some serious changes following years of hate as one of the worst killers to play.

Freddie’s power still puts survivors into the Dream World, and all Survivors enter Dream World automatically over time, while hits with a basic attack force them immediately into the dream state. Now, however, he has the power to create Dream Pallets and Dream Snares. When asleep, players cannot hear Freddie’s Terror Radius and are more severely affected by Dream Snares and Pallets.

Freddie can make Dream Pallets explode, injuring sleeping survivors within the area of effect, and accelerating the dream timer of awake survivors. This injure effect is one of the two most powerful moves, giving Freddie a remote attack. His Dream Snares speed up awake survivors’ sleep timer but Hinder sleeping survivors, significantly slowing them down. Survivors can wake themselves by missing skill checks or interacting with alarm clocks around the map, but while asleep, Freddy now has a strong advantage over them.

You can only become a dream eater if you buy The Nightmare from the in-game shop on PC with Auric Cells, or as part of the Nightmare on Elm Street DLC.

The Animatronic (Hard)

The Animatronic marked an important moment in Dead by Daylight history. The most requested killer of all time, Springtrap finally arrived with Chapter 36, and instantly made his mark as one of the best characters in the game. An easy A-tier killer.

The only things that hold The Animatronic back from being stronger are his slow speed and his fire axe’s sharp drop-off. If you’ve ever played The Huntress, let alone if you’ve ever mained her, this ranged weapon projectory takes some getting used to. While we don’t include add-ons in this list, the Help Wanted Ad common add-on shows the trajectory of the axe, so it’s worth using if you struggle, and probably boosts Afton’s tier ranking. The strongest part about The Animatronic is his mobility, using security room doors to get across the map fast, but you’ll feel his slow speed in chase.

To access the security room and jump scare survivors as the Yellow Rabbit, you must buy the FNAF chapter from the in-game store.

B-tier

The Houndmaster (Medium)

The incredibly bad-ass Houndmaster and her hound, Snug, arrived in Chapter 34, Doomed Course. At first, it was tough to see where she’d fit in a tier list thanks to bugs and other issues. However, she’s now settling into her place in the fog, and we can safely say Portia Maye is a high B-tier killer at the very least.

The reason for this is her beloved pet dog, Snug. While Snug can be tough to control at first (hence why The Houndmaster isn’t higher in the list), it’s a deadly power once you have it down. When Snug catches a Survivor, he latches onto their arm, preventing them from moving. This not only stops survivors in their tracks, making them easy to catch up to, but can also be used as crown control, similarly to The Knight’s Guards. Send Snug one way round an obstacle while you go the other way and the survivor has nowhere to turn.

To play as Portia and Snug, you must purchase the original killer from the in-game shop.

The Unknown (Medium)

Next to The Dredge, who’s up next, The Unknown is the scariest and creepiest original killer from Behaviour so far. This twisted being also provides some of the most fun gameplay you can have in either role, thanks to his cryptic voice lines, UVX power, and combination of a few existing killers.

Charging up The Unknown’s UVX allows you to hurl an explosive projectile at survivors, similar to The Singularity’s biopods. If the pod hits directly, the survivor is hindered, and they are weakened if hit by the blast. Weakened survivors can then be injured if hit again, similar to the Artist’s Birds of Torment, taking two hits to injure. Making it even harder to injure a survivor with this power, they can actually remove the weakened effect by looking at you for a short time, taking inspiration from the Ghost Face reveal.

This all might sound like The Unknown should be lower than B-tier. However, this power can actually be used in different ways to put pressure on the survivor, and it’s not always about hitting them directly. We’ve found the best way to use UVX doesn’t even have to hit a survivor, as avoiding the blast can simply force their movement, pushing them toward your basic attack. For example, it’s much harder for a survivor to loop The Unknown than some other killers, as you can force them to stop or turn back into you with a well-placed UVX pod.

Then there’s The Unknown’s Hallucinations, which appear sporadically throughout the game. While players can remove them, any that still stand act as teleport points for the killer, so you can move incredibly quickly across the map, putting even more pressure on survivors as they repair generators.

The Unknown can be purchased in-game with Iridescent Shards, or as part of the All Things Wicked DLC.

The Trickster (Medium)

A fan-favorite for his boyish good looks, The Trickster is surprisingly unpopular as a main. His ranged ability, Showstopper, allows The Trickster to throw multiple sharp blades at survivors, even over pallets and through windows. As a survivor up against him, he can sometimes feel impossible to avoid as your Laceration Meter rapidly increases. Every successful hit then charges The Trickster’s Event Meter, which, when full, unleashes an even more deadly onslaught of throwing knives. However, Showstopper slows The Trickster down so significantly that, without good aim, there’s no real benefit to him at all. The Trickster did get a big nerf to his powers, reducing the number of hits before Main Event to eight, but it didn’t seem to make him any more desirable – as a killer. If you do want to run The Trickster, perhaps try a build that will help in other areas, such as sabotaging Generator repairs and revealing survivor locations.

Unfortunately, if you do fancy your knife-throwing skills and want to try The Trickster, you’ll need to pick him up in the in-game shop, or as part of the Macabre Tales DLC.

The Knight (Medium)

The Knight is a tricky killer to place on this list, because he’s another that’s incredibly hard to get to grips with thanks to his three different Guards. However, while the Knight’s power is complex, it can be devastating for survivors when mastered. As The Knight isn’t alone, and his power ability summons guards to do his bidding, breaking pallets, damaging generators, and hunting survivors can be done at the same time as The Knight prowls, essentially creating a game with two killers – if you can use it right. You can either use this to take a survivor from healthy to dying in one fell swoop (one hit from a Guard and one from you), or simply leave your Guard to do its thing while you go on the hunt for another survivor entirely.

The Knight is available as part of the Forged in Fog chapter but needs to be purchased before you can start summoning your guards, either from the in-game shop or as part of the Endless Hunt DLC pack.

The Doctor (Hard)

The Doctor is another killer with only a basic attack, but if you make the most of his special abilities, he’s great for locating survivors and slowing their progress.

The Doctor’s power, Carter’s Spark, affects nearby survivors with Madness, which gets worse each time they are hit with it. The further they descend into madness, the more difficult skill checks become, with failed skill checks revealing their location and affecting Generator repair progress. Each time a player is hit with Carter’s Spark, they also scream, revealing their location, and Madness levels II and III also trigger illusions of the Doctor, which again help you locate a player’s approximate position. Once you master the accuracy of The Doctor’s Spark, you can delay the survivor’s progress while also keeping track of where they are, putting the game entirely in your favor.

An apple a day doesn’t keep The Doctor away in this case – he’s not coming anywhere near you unless you fork out and buy him from the in-game shop on PC, either with Auric Cells or Iri Shards. He is also part of the Maddening Darkness DLC Pack.

The Nemesis (Hard)

We know DBD fans love a Resident Evil crossover, with the first DBD “sequel” bringing Resi back in Chapter 25. The original chapter, though, brought us Nemesis, another killer with difficult abilities to master, but incredibly fun to play.

The Nemesis’ T-Virus power allows him to infect survivors, which counts as an additional health state, but victims will become injured with a second hit. This status is inflicted with The Nemesis’ tentacle, meaning it’s a ranged attack that can be used over pallets and through windows. The more successful T-virus infections you make, the more your powers grow, eventually adding the ability to break pallets and increase movement speed. Then there are The Nemesis’ zombies, which not only infect survivors who get too close and can therefore make them leave generators, but also alert you to their location if you pay attention.

You’ll need to pay up for The Nemesis on PC too, because they aren’t available automatically. Buy him with Auric Cells in-game, or as part of the Resident Evil DLC.

The Artist (Medium)

Another killer with a ranged attack of sorts, The Artist’s precious swarm of crows can do a lot of the work for you. Send out one to three crows with Birds of Torment and they’ll fly out in front of you, inflicting damage to any survivors in their immediate path. Their flight will continue, but instead of injuring distant survivors, they will instead attract a swarm around the survivor’s head, alerting you to their location. This combination makes it quite easy to take a few survivors down in close succession, but you still need to get up close to use your basic melee attack, and misplaced crow attacks will not only do nothing, but will alert survivors’ of your location to boot.

Put your paint brushes away and get your wallet out, because you’ll need to pay for The Artist on PC too, with Auric Cells or Iri Shards, or as part of the Endless Hunt DLC pack.

The Singularity (Hard)

The Singularity, or Hux-A7-13, was added alongside Gabriel Soma in the End Transmission chapter, the game’s first foray into sci-fi horror ahead of the official Alien chapter.

The Singularity, affectionately known as Singu, or even Larry, is incredibly strong – so strong, in fact, that there is only one small reason keeping him from S-tier in our opinion, and that’s your own ability and knowledge of Dead by Daylight maps. The Singularity works exceptionally well as an M1 killer (we even got a win without any perks in our first Singularity game), but to get the most out of Hux, you want to use his biopod power.

His Quantum Instantiation power allows you to place ‘cameras’ around the map in biopods, using them to spy on, locate, and even inflict the ‘Slipstream’ effect on survivors. Similar to The Twins, The Singularity will leave this motionless body on the map while you switch between camera views – but you need to remember where they are in relation to one another and your position to use them effectively or it can be a bit discombobulating.

One of the best uses of The Singularity’s power is the ability to teleport to survivors who are slipstreamed. Get a survivor in front of you with a biopod attached to them, and you can catch them in your sights and jump ahead quickly, breaking any pallets that might be at your destination. Survivors can counter biopods and slipstream by utilizing EMP devices located around the map.

The Singularity can be purchased on his own, or as part of the End Transmission DLC.

The Dredge (Medium)

The Dredge arrived in the Roots of Dread chapter and has some very unique abilities. However, if played well, The Dredge can be unstoppable.

When playing the Dredge, the main ability to utilize is its Special Ability, The Gloaming. Leaving a Remnant behind, The Dredge is able to teleport into any visible locker. This reveals any survivors standing within a small distance from a locker, so you’ll instantly know if anyone is nearby. If not, you can choose to leave anyway or teleport up to two more times. This is even better when Nightfall is activated, plunging survivors into Darkness and removing The Dredge’s Terror Radius for 60 seconds. There are so many ways of using The Dredge’s teleport skill, from jumping in front of a survivor in chase, to stopping generator progress, and simply finding their location. That said, in chase, Dredge is slow, and he’s also incredibly noisy, so survivors often hear you coming from a way off, even in Nightfall.

The Dredge must be bought from the in-game shop or as part of the Endless Hunt DLC pack.

C-tier

The Legion (Easy)

As a survivor, you may find yourself up against The Legion a lot, and you may even lose to them a lot, but that doesn’t automatically mean they’re a good killer. While The Legion is great for massively slowing down progress for survivors and prolonging the game, it’s difficult to actually down and hook victims, so after a long slog from both parties, it could end either way.

The problem with The Legion is that while their power, Feral Frenzy, increases movement speed, it can be quite hard to control. On top of that, their Special Attack, Feral Slash, requires five hits to down a survivor, rather than the usual two. If you get stunned or miss a hit, Feral Frenzy will come to an end, stunning you again and giving survivors a chance to get away and heal. The best play with The Legion is to simply use Feral Slash once and go on the hunt for another victim, inflicting the first with Deep Wound. Deep Wound is an additional injured state with a timer, forcing the Survivor to go and heal – or get healed – lest they enter the dying state once the timer runs out. All this time, they’ll be wasting valuable Generator repair time.

Get The Legion from the in-game shop on PC, with Auric Cells or Iri Shards, or as part of the Old Wounds DLC Pack.

The Plague (Hard)

Despite the protective nature seen in her backstory, Adiris, The High Priestess of Babylon, uses her infectious plague to cause harm to survivors. Another ranged attacker, The Plague might be good for new killers who dislike melee attacks, however, her Special Ability can slow things down, so you might find you struggle to sacrifice all four victims. Vile Purge infects survivors, only injuring them after some time – something they can also remove. A good trick is also knowing that you can ‘infect’ Generators and other environmental objects, to then infect players who interact with it. Survivors can heal themselves using a Pool of Devotion, but this pool can then in turn be used by you as The Plague, to activate Corrupt Purge – the ability to injure with your attack rather than infect.

The Plague must be bought from the in-game shop before you can use her on PC, with Auric Cells or Iri Shards, or as part of the Old Wounds DLC Pack.

The Hag (Very Hard)

The Hag used to be an S-tier killer, but has since slipped down the rankings and lost her crown. Rather than being due to any changes to The Hag herself, this is predominantly down to changes in her best perks, and survivor perks which are now better at working against her.

The Hag, AKA Lisa Sherwood, has the power to “shape mud to her will”, drawing Phantasm Traps into the ground. When a player stands on one of these traps, The Hag can instantly teleport to them, provided they are within 40 meters. Hiding Phantasm Traps around Generators, Hooks, and loops can catch survivors out when it will affect them most, but if they are placed in plain sight, survivors will avoid them as they’re not too well disguised. Survivors can also wipe traps away. Much like The Trapper, who has also dropped from glory, The Hag takes a lot of prep work for little reward.

On PC, you will not have access to The Hag automatically, and they must be purchased from the in-game shop or as part of the Maddening Darkness DLC Pack.

The Deathslinger (Hard)

They don’t come much wilder than the Wild West’s Deathslinger. Deathslinger’s incredibly unique power allows him to reel survivors in with a Harpoon attached to his modified rifle. While this doesn’t injure the survivor itself, you can bring them close enough to attack. Doing so while they are speared also inflicts Deep Wound. Try to do this in a clear area though, as survivors can free themselves from the spear, most easily by putting a wall or rock between you and pulling back. While this will inflict Deep Wound, it will also stun you, giving them a chance to get away.

Unfortunately, you’ll need to buy The Deathslinger from the in-game shop on PC, or as part of the Old Wounds DLC Pack, before you can start getting wild.

The Oni (Very Hard)

The Spirit’s great-great-great-great-great grandfather, Kazan Yamaoka, is an incredibly powerful killer, able to move across large distances at speed with his Demon Dash, and put survivors straight from the healthy state to dying with his Demon Strike. However, both of these require the absorption of Blood Orbs, left behind by injured survivors, meaning you need to land a lot of successful hits before activating your powers.

Pick up The Oni from the in-game shop with Auric Cells or Iri Shards, if you fancy your chances with this very hard killer, or as part of the Old Wounds DLC Pack.

The Twins (Very Hard)

The Twins, Charlotte, and Victor, are a somewhat terrifying DBD original. Having not grown properly, Victor emerged from the womb protruding from his sister’s chest.

In DBD killer terms, this means Charlotte can send a screeching Victor scuttling across the map to hunt down victims. All the while, Charlotte will remain in place, as you control her brother. This isn’t a bad power, as you use Victor’s increased movement speed to hunt down survivor locations. Victor can then pounce on the player, briefly incapacitating them, at which point you can start making your way over as Charlotte to finish the job. The downside is that, with a well-timed kick, survivors can stop Victor’s attack and escape, and Charlotte could be a fair distance away on a large map, rendering the power useless.

You’ll need to buy The Twins from the in-game shop on PC, or as part of the Macabre Tales DLC Pack, if you want to scuttle around as Victor.

The Pig (Hard)

Saw’s Pig is another interesting killer in that, used well, it can lead to success, but if used incorrectly, all it does is prolong your agony instead of the survivors’.

The best process for success is to try to get all players locked up in a Reverse Bear Trap as quickly as possible. These traps become active as soon as a Generator is completed and start counting down to a deadly attack. Not only do they take time to remove, but there are a limited number of Jigsaw boxes at which survivors can do so. This is time spent not repairing generators. Plus, if multiple players are trapped at the same time, they may have to travel further to find free Jigsaw boxes, wasting further time. If that countdown reaches the end before the trap can be removed, the survivor is instantly sacrificed, even if they’ve never been hooked. To counter the incredible power of these traps, you are limited to four per match, and they can be quick to remove – depending on luck.

This very unique killer also must be purchased before you can play as them on PC, either with Auric Cells in-game or as part of the Saw DLC.

The Clown (Medium)

The Clown’s power involves mixing potions and throwing them – a purple tonic for survivors to affect their vision and movement speed, and a yellow antidote for yourself to increase movement speed. But this is where the difficulty comes in because not only do you need to have excellent aim, but it’s also easy to throw the wrong potion when switching between them. Hitting a survivor with the antidote not only increases their movement speed but also cures them from the intoxicated effect caused by the tonic.

The Clown has moved up in our list a little following an increase to the number of potions he can carry at a time, making his power a little easier to deal with. Given that his Afterpiece Tonic slows survivors down in chase, one you master this killer and his power, he can be devastating.

Aptly named with how easy it is to throw the wrong potion, you’ll need to buy The Clown with Auric Cells from the in-game shop on PC, or as part of the Maddening Darkness DLC Pack.

The Ghost Face (Hard)

The Ghost Face is undeniably one of the most recognizable characters in Dead by Daylight, despite not actually being an officially licensed chapter (hence the intentional Ghost Face format of its name). Heavily influenced by the original horror villain though, The Ghost Face is one of the few stealth killers in Dead by Daylight.

One of the only killers in the game that is able to crouch, The Ghost Face can easily creep up behind unsuspecting survivors, especially those concentrating on Generator repairs alone. Activating his Night Shroud power also renders him Undetectable, and that lack of Terror Radius makes it even more difficult for survivors to know he’s behind them. While crouched and hidden, Ghost Face can Stalk survivors, and a complete Stalk action will mark the survivor and leave them Exposed for a time. With that in mind, all of this doesn’t change the fact that there is no bonus to Ghost Face’s only method of attack, which is a simple melee, so the only way to succeed with this killer is to master that stealthy Stalk ability.

Even though it isn’t an official crossover, you’ll still need to purchase The Ghost Face from the in-game shop on PC with Auric Cells, or as part of the Ghost Face DLC.

D-tier

The Cannibal (Medium)

The official Leatherface killer isn’t as good as the DBD original, Hillbilly. However, his Chainsaw Sweep provides a wide attack in contrast to Hillbilly’s lunge, so it might work well for you if you struggle to melee hit survivors. The sweeping attack affects the entire area in front of The Cannibal, while his Special Attack reaches the circumference around the killer, so both can hit multiple victims. However, the cons mostly outweigh the pros with The Cannibal, as survivors can see your attack coming and get out the way, movement speed is affected, and there is a heavy cooldown.

You’ll have to pony up if you want to feast on human flesh, as The Cannibal needs to be bought with Auric Cells from the in-game shop on PC, or as part of the Leatherface DLC.

The Shape (Medium)

Michael Myers, known in-game as The Shape, recently had an overhaul. While he’s a bit better than he was (though wildly different to play), he’s still not great. However, if you’re willing to bide your time with this stealthy stalker turned lunge killer, you can turn him from a figure in the shadows to a killing machine in the match’s final moments.

The Shape’s tiered power, Evil Within, starts you off with a permanent Undetectable status effect, meaning survivors are less likely to see you coming. However, you’re slow until you level up your power, and the second and third tiers have increasingly good bonuses. To level up, you must stalk survivors, which does take time, so this killer requires a lot of prep before he’s truly dangerous.

Once in tier three, which lasts 60 seconds before you’re demoted back to tier two, all players are exposed, so they can be downed from healthy. This is your time to shine. Use aura read perks to make the most of this minute and down as many survivors as you can, and be sure to use your early time wisely, and you can still get a 4k match out of Myers.

To take advantage of The Shape’s potential for a speedy ending on PC, you’ll need to buy him from the in-game shop with Auric Cells, or as part of the Halloween DLC.

The Demogorgon (Hard)

The Demogorgon can be quite fun to try, and even quite competitive with some significant practice, but is not the most fruitful killer compared to others. Taking things into the Upside Down, the Demogorgon’s power Of The Abyss quite literally sends you upside down. Place two portals, and you can traverse the spooky plane to travel between them. While this is similar to those powers of The Hag and The Nurse among others, it’s not quite as quick to trigger or easy to navigate, making it less valuable than theirs. However, it can be useful in the end game to move between exit doors, just remember to place portals at the doors beforehand.

The best Demogorgon ability is its Special Attack, Shred. Similar to those of The Hillbilly and The Blight, Shred is a lunge attack, closing the gap between killer and survivor and – on a successful hit – places the survivor in an injured or dying state. Combining The Demogorgon’s portals and Shred can make for a powerful killer, but it’s hard to truly master.

To enter Hawkins and the Upside Down, you must purchase the Demogorgon from the in-game shop, or as part of the Stranger Things DLC.

The Onryo (Hard)

Sadly, despite Sadako’s highly anticipated release in the Sadako Rising chapter, players haven’t really warmed to The Ring villain as a DBD killer, preferring the unlicensed Spirit knock-off in her place.

Sadako’s abilities are undeniably cool, with TV sets popping up on the map when she’s the killer, allowing her to teleport to them. And while the animation for that is awesome, it’s slow and obvious, so victims can see you coming from a mile away. But not only is it far more difficult to use to your advantage than, say, The Dredge’s similar power, if a survivor removes the tape from a TV, you can no longer teleport to it anyway. Sadako wasn’t loved before The Dredge, and now she’ll be left in her well even more so, unfortunately.

If you fancy giving Sadako a go despite her numerous drawbacks, you’ll need to buy her with Auric Cells from the in-game shop on PC, or as part of the Sadako Rising DLC.

The Cenobite (Very Hard)

Sadly, Hellraiser’s Pinhead, or The Cenobite, doesn’t raise much hell. While the chains from his Summons of Pain power can be frustrating to a survivor, they don’t really slow them down for long, with the only benefit coming during repairs or healing. However, as soon as a player picks up and completes the Lament Configuration box, which doesn’t take long, the chains recede. While the Cenobite can teleport to a player during the puzzle process, clever survivors can prevent this by completing the Lament Configuration puzzle while you’re otherwise engaged, for example, carrying another survivor. The only real reason to play as The Cenobite is for a bit of fun… and to hear his now infamous voice line, “I came.”

You’ll need to go to the in-game shop on PC for The Cenobite too, unfortunately, parting with Auric Cells, or hard cash for the Hellraiser DLC.

The Trapper (Easy)

The Trapper, or Evan MacMillan of the MacMillan Estate, is a melee attacker with an interesting ability, which can be extremely powerful when used well. As you can expect from the name, The Trapper, well, traps his enemies.

By placing bear traps around the map, you can incapacitate survivors, and when a survivor steps into one, visual and audio hints play, alerting you to their location. Once in the trap, they must attempt to free themselves which can take a few attempts, keeping them out in the open as easy prey. All of this makes Trapper an easy and powerful killer, as long as you use traps effectively, placing them by windows and pallets in strong loops.

Unfortunately, The Trapper has lost some of his shine over the years, slipping down DBD tier lists across the internet. Only having two traps to begin with, the capacity to carry only two at a time (without an add-on), and the rest of them being scattered around the map, unset, means there is a lot of setting up to a successful Trapper match. Now, with more survivor items and perks than when he was first released, you could lose the game before you’ve even started.

The Trapper is one of the five killers included with any purchase of the base game.

The Skull Merchant (Hard)

Due to her being widely disliked across the community, The Skull Merchant sees regular changes. The most recent nerfs her once again, presumably in an attempt to prevent players from disconnecting when going up against her, but this has, in our opinion, made her the worst killer in the game. The Skull Merchant’s drones now are much less of a problem to survivors, and, while the directional rotation can be changed by the killer, this is a hard mechanic to use well, especially when you’re concentrating on a chase. While many killers are tough to play against these days, The Skull Merchant is, sadly, the complete opposite.

If you still want to try playing as The Skull Merchant, you must purchase her in the in-game shop, or as part of the Endless Hunt DLC pack.

If you just can’t get enough of these enticing executioners, you might be interested in seeing some of them in an altogether different setting, in Hooked on You: a DBD dating sim, which we really enjoyed getting up close and personal with, and is one of our favorite dating sims. Back in the original game, make sure you’ve redeemed the latest DBD codes for some bonus Bloodpoints and Rift Fragments.