How This Street Fighter 6 Tier List Was Built

Tiers are not magic or secret knowledge. A good Street Fighter 6 tier list is just a structured way of answering one question: “Which characters give the most consistent results with reasonable effort?”

To keep things grounded, this list focuses on four pillars:

• Tournament performance: frequency in Top 8, not just random wins.
• Ranked results: how often a character reaches high ranks in real online play.
• Toolset quality: neutral tools, anti-airs, conversions, wake-up options and Drive usage.
• Execution demands: how hard it is to use those tools under real match pressure.

That means this tier list is not a lab fantasy. It reflects what works when nerves, lag and human mistakes are all part of the picture.

Street Fighter 6 Tier List Overview

Here is a snapshot of the current meta. Do not treat it as law — treat it as a map. Every fighter can win, but some demand more experience, sharper execution or deeper matchup knowledge.

If you want to win early and often, S and A+ tiers are the most forgiving. If you enjoy hard challenges and unique gameplans, B and B+ tiers are where the weirdos and specialists live.

S-Tier — The Characters That Define the Meta

S-tier in this Street Fighter 6 tier list does not mean “automatic win.” It means these characters:

• Have answers to almost every common situation.
• Exploit the Drive System especially well.
• Win rounds with fewer correct guesses than most of the cast.

Ken

Ken is the face of Street Fighter 6 right now. He has everything a modern rushdown character wants: fast Drive Rush, safe pressure, corner carry, solid anti-airs and devastating confirms. Even his midscreen pressure feels like a corner situation when the Ken player knows their routes.

• Strengths: amazing corner pressure, strong oki, simple and deadly confirms.
• Weaknesses: can struggle against very patient players who refuse to panic, and against characters who hard-check Drive Rush.
• Best for: players who like fast, proactive offense and constant momentum.

JP

JP is the zoning king. He controls the screen with spikes, projectiles, teleports and command throws that punish panic. Many characters must change their entire gameplan when JP is on screen, and that alone says a lot about his power level.

• Strengths: oppressive long-range control, strong anti-rushdown, big reward for one mistake.
• Weaknesses: can be overwhelmed by players who know how to parry, jump and Drive Rush through his setups.
• Best for: players who enjoy slow, methodical spacing and forcing the opponent to overextend.

Dee Jay

Dee Jay is a hybrid menace. He can throw fireballs, play footsies, rush you down and fake you out with feints and rhythm changes. His Drive Rush pressure, frame traps and ambiguous situations make him especially scary in ranked where reactions and matchup knowledge vary wildly.

• Strengths: versatile gameplan, strong offense and defense, great reward on Drive Rush hits.
• Weaknesses: requires good timing and rhythm; sloppy play turns him into a predictable character.
• Best for: players who like to switch between zoning and rushdown on the fly.

A+ Tier — Tournament Staples With High Skill Ceilings

A+ tier characters sit right under S-tier: slightly more demanding or slightly less dominant, but still absolutely top-tier in the right hands.

Luke

Luke is the modern “shoto-plus.” Great normals, good fireball, strong anti-airs, safe pressure and scary corner damage. He does not have the wild momentum of Ken, but he is extremely stable and teaches solid fundamentals.

Juri

Juri is mobile, stylish and precise. Her Fuhajin stock system rewards planning ahead, and her Drive Rush pressure lets her bully people up close after playing a slippery neutral game at midrange.

Cammy

Cammy is pure speed. Her movement, divekicks, spiral arrows and throw pressure make her a relentless attacker. She does not need many fancy setups — her basics are already terrifying when applied consistently.

Chun-Li

Chun-Li is the tech monster: countless routes, stance transitions and confirms. She offers some of the best normals and anti-airs in the game, but she asks for strong execution and knowledge to unlock her full power.

A Tier — Strong but More Matchup-Sensitive

A-tier fighters are still very much capable of winning majors, but their weaknesses show more clearly against specific characters or strategies.

• Ryu: honest zoning, strong Drive Rush cancels on fireball, good anti-airs. Straightforward and rewarding for clean play.
• Marisa: armor, huge damage, scary corner guess situations. Struggles when forced to chase agile characters.
• Blanka: tricky movement, unusual angles, hard-to-punish tools if unfamiliar. Loses value when the opponent knows the matchup.
• Guile: classic wall of sonic booms and anti-airs. Suffers when cornered or when Drive Gauge is constantly drained.

A-tier characters shine when you consistently put opponents into the situations they hate the most. They are not autopilot picks, but their reward is absolutely worth the effort.

B+ Tier — Specialists and Momentum Monsters

B+ tier is where you find characters who look weak on paper but become absolute terrors in the hands of specialists.

Manon

Manon’s medal system turns every successful command grab into future terror. Medal level 4–5 command grabs can erase rounds by themselves. The trade-off: reaching those levels requires strong neutral, good defense and matchup knowledge.

Kimberly

Kimberly is a vortex of mix-ups, sprays, teleports and ambiguous jumps. She is fast and creative, but her damage and pressure often rely on setups and conditioning. Once those are known or scouted, winning becomes harder.

Lily

Lily is slow on the ground but hits like a truck with Windclad stocks. Her command grabs and big buttons can feel unfair when she gets rolling, yet she struggles to catch mobile characters or escape the corner safely.

B Tier — Tricky, Fun and Demanding

B-tier characters usually have obvious weaknesses or steep learning curves. They are far from useless; they simply demand more work than the characters above them.

Dhalsim

Dhalsim wants to keep you at arm’s length. His long limbs, teleport and fire patterns make him uniquely annoying. But once an opponent gets in, he has to guess correctly over and over to survive.

Honda

Honda brings huge damage and simple inputs. At low and mid ranks he feels overpowered. At high ranks his predictable approach tools and vulnerable Drive usage drag him down the tier list.

Jamie

Jamie’s entire gameplan revolves around drinking levels. At higher levels he becomes flashy and dangerous, but until then he is forced to play a more honest and weaker neutral. Managing that transition is all the challenge and all the fun.

Drive System and Tier Strength

The Drive System is the beating heart of Street Fighter 6, and it heavily shapes the tier list. Characters who can:

• Use Drive Rush to safely extend pressure and convert pokes.
• Punish Drive Impact consistently.
• Stay threatening even when burned out.

naturally drift toward the top of any Street Fighter 6 tier list. Ken, JP and Dee Jay are strong partly because their core tools already work well, and the Drive System multiplies that power rather than patching weaknesses.

If you are unsure who to pick, ask one question: “How good is this character with Drive Rush active, and how bad are they when their Drive Gauge is empty?” The bigger that gap in your favor, the stronger the character feels.

Tier List by Player Level

Some characters are godlike in tournaments but frustrating at lower ranks, and vice versa. Here is a quick look at how the same tier list feels at different skill levels.

If you are climbing your first ranked ladder, it makes sense to pick someone from the easy-strong column first and only then branch out to more demanding characters.

How to Choose a Main Beyond the Tier List

It is tempting to just lock in the highest tier character and call it a day. But Street Fighter is a long-term relationship kind of game — you will spend dozens or hundreds of hours with one fighter. If you hate how they move or sound, no tier list will save you.

Ask yourself:

• Do I like rushdown, zoning, grappling or balanced play?
• Do I want high damage, high control, or a mix of both?
• Am I okay practicing execution-heavy combos, or do I prefer clean, simple routes?

Then align that with tiers:

• If you love rushdown: Ken, Cammy, Dee Jay, Kimberly.
• If you enjoy zoning: JP, Guile, Dhalsim, Luke.
• If you prefer grapplers: Manon, Marisa, Lily, Honda.
• If you like balanced tools: Luke, Ryu, Chun-Li, Juri.

The best character is the one that makes you want to queue “just one more game” even after a rough loss.

How to Use the Tier List to Improve

A tier list is not only for picking a main; it is also a training tool:

• Study S and A+ tier: you will face them most often, so learn their patterns, ranges and weak spots.
• Check your character’s tier: know what you realistically get “for free” and where you must work harder.
• Build counterpicks: if you love a B-tier main, having a secondary from A or S tier can help in terrible matchups.

Used this way, the Street Fighter 6 tier list stops being an argument topic and becomes a practical roadmap.

FAQ

Who is the best character in Street Fighter 6 right now?

Most players would point to Ken or JP. Ken leads in sheer popularity and performance, while JP shapes a lot of matchup decisions with his zoning and traps.

Can I reach Master with a B-tier character?

Yes. Tier affects how hard you have to work, not whether it is possible. If you focus on fundamentals, defense and matchup knowledge, you can absolutely hit high ranks with Dhalsim, Jamie, Lily and others.

Does Capcom balance around tournament play or ranked?

Balance decisions mostly follow high-level competitive play, but ranked statistics and player feedback clearly have some influence. The result is a game where almost everyone is viable, even if some are more comfortable picks.

Should I switch characters every time the tier list changes?

No. Constantly swapping mains makes it harder to build deep knowledge and instincts. It is better to commit to one or two characters you enjoy and make small adjustments when patches drop.

Is it bad to pick a top-tier character?

Not at all. You are supposed to give yourself a good chance to win. What matters is how you use the character, not whether they are popular.

Final Thoughts on the Street Fighter 6 Tier List

The Street Fighter 6 tier list is a living thing. As new tech appears, patches land and players refine their strategies, fighters climb or fall a little — but the core idea stays the same: some characters give more consistent value with less effort and fewer mistakes.

Right now, Ken, JP and Dee Jay sit at the top thanks to their synergy with the Drive System and their powerful, flexible toolkits. Luke, Juri, Cammy and Chun-Li anchor the A+ tier as reliable tournament staples. The rest of the cast fills in a rich spectrum of playstyles, from honest Ryu to chaotic Jamie, from oppressive Manon to ghostlike Dhalsim.

Use this list as a compass, not a cage. Let it guide your practice, your matchup prep and your expectations — but let your personal taste, fun and curiosity pick your main. In every Street Fighter, the strongest resource is not a character slot; it is the player behind the controller.