Diablo 4: Best Classes and Tier List (October 2023)

Our ranking of all five classes

by Khayl Adam Mon 2nd Oct 2023

Looking for the best classes and tier list for Diablo 4? Blizzard's epic action RPG is a true service game in its own right, and the meta will surely shift with time. Each of the five classes is worth playing in its own right, but some do actually perform more optimally on the battlefield than others (and the game encourages you to play multiple characters simultaneously). On this page, as part of our Diablo 4 guide, we'll put together a best classes and tier list and explain our thinking on the subject.

If you're looking to dig deeper, check out our Best Classes for Beginners recommendations and the Best Necromancer Builds and Skills through the links.

Diablo 4: Best Classes and Tier List (August 2023)

Below is our guide to the best classes and tier list in Diablo 4. With expansions already announced that will likely introduce new characters (and patches coming thick and fast), this page will be updated as clear leaders emerge and when the dust settles. In addition, as more and more players enter the Endgame, we'll take into account any revolutionary shifts that occur within the community.

"Best" is, of course, a wildly subjective term and likely to mean different things to different players. For our purposes, we mean most powerful in terms of raw damage output, but also taking into account essential factors like survivability, flexibility (in terms of Skills on offer and how they might affect potential teammates) and the experience of playing the class overall.

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To save your scrolling finger, at a glance, that list currently looks like this, but we'll explain our thinking in greater detail below:

Sorcerer
Necromancer
Barbarian
Rogue
Druid

S Tier

Class	Description
Sorcerer	The Sorcerer is best-in-class when it comes to raw damage potential, outputting an ungodly amount of either focused, single-target damage or across large swathes of the battlefield. While physically fragile, the Sorcerer is incredibly agile thanks to many abilities that enhance their speed, in addition to being able to Teleport out of harm's way. Add to that a repertoire of Crowd Control skills that allow them to dominate their foes and a sick sense of style, and it's easy to see why the Sorcerer is so popular. It's their mastery of AOE (Area of Effect) attacks that elevate them beyond all others, however, and the Sorcerer has one for every occasion. Core Skills like Frozen Orb or Fireball, or Mastery Skills such as Ball Lightning or Meteor are capable of clearing demonic hordes at every stage of the game. Ultimates like Unstable Currents or Deep Freeze add further utility, acting as the perfect panic button when you need to delete every enemy on screen.

Class

Description

Sorcerer

The Sorcerer is best-in-class when it comes to raw damage potential, outputting an ungodly amount of either focused, single-target damage or across large swathes of the battlefield. While physically fragile, the Sorcerer is incredibly agile thanks to many abilities that enhance their speed, in addition to being able to Teleport out of harm's way. Add to that a repertoire of Crowd Control skills that allow them to dominate their foes and a sick sense of style, and it's easy to see why the Sorcerer is so popular.

It's their mastery of AOE (Area of Effect) attacks that elevate them beyond all others, however, and the Sorcerer has one for every occasion. Core Skills like Frozen Orb or Fireball, or Mastery Skills such as Ball Lightning or Meteor are capable of clearing demonic hordes at every stage of the game. Ultimates like Unstable Currents or Deep Freeze add further utility, acting as the perfect panic button when you need to delete every enemy on screen.

A Tier

Class	Description
Necromancer	The Necromancer has been a popular class in the franchise since it was first introduced back in Diablo 2, and Blizzard continues to show the edgy pet master love all these years later. While summoning hordes of undead minions is undoubtedly a draw, players stay for the powerful Blood, Bone, and Darkness Skills, which allow this offensive caster to inflict terrible punishment. In addition, the player has numerous ways to heal themselves or their allies (living or dead) and offers a surprising amount of survivability. Ultimates like Army of the Dead and Blood Wave are show-stoppers, incredibly potent as well as have fantastic utility. Their unique Corpse mechanic returns with a few new tricks; Corpse Explosion, for example, upgraded to do Darkness damage instead over a wider area, allows for entirely new (and potentially overpowered) ways to play. The Necromancer offers a refreshing alternative to the Sorceress for players that prefer ranged DPS (Damage Per Second) but want more flexibility in their gameplay.

Class

Description

Necromancer

The Necromancer has been a popular class in the franchise since it was first introduced back in Diablo 2, and Blizzard continues to show the edgy pet master love all these years later. While summoning hordes of undead minions is undoubtedly a draw, players stay for the powerful Blood, Bone, and Darkness Skills, which allow this offensive caster to inflict terrible punishment. In addition, the player has numerous ways to heal themselves or their allies (living or dead) and offers a surprising amount of survivability.

Ultimates like Army of the Dead and Blood Wave are show-stoppers, incredibly potent as well as have fantastic utility. Their unique Corpse mechanic returns with a few new tricks; Corpse Explosion, for example, upgraded to do Darkness damage instead over a wider area, allows for entirely new (and potentially overpowered) ways to play. The Necromancer offers a refreshing alternative to the Sorceress for players that prefer ranged DPS (Damage Per Second) but want more flexibility in their gameplay.

B Tier

Class	Description
Barbarian	The Barbarian is a bruiser, a front-line melee combatant capable of withstanding incredible punishment and dishing it out manifold in return. With a wide variety of Skills related to mobility (Charge, Leap, Kick), they can dominate engagements, putting themselves in the most advantageous positions and rewarding an aggressive playstyle. Properly upgraded, Iron Skin gives a skilled player a Barrier which doubles as a self-heal. Add to that the powerful buffs gained while Berserking, and you have a melee monster capable of an almost self-perpetuating playstyle. The Barbarian's greatest strength is something of a double-edged sword, however, and they are vulnerable to concentrated ranged attacks, something which players will regularly face on higher difficulties.
Rogue	The Rogue is a high-skill-ceiling character and capable of inflicting terrible carnage in the right hands. Adept at weaving through combat in an elegant display of agility, players can focus on either dual-wielding swords and daggers or employ bows for ranged damage, or combine the two for further tactical options. Capable of inflicting the most single-target damage possible in the game, Rogue players will enjoy many different ways of increasing their Critical Rate still higher. Where they start to fall flat, however, is in the high skill and care that is required to get the most out of them. The Rogue is also a selfish class, offering allies little in the way of utility, and will find healing themselves a constant issue if they go the melee route.

Class

Description

Barbarian

The Barbarian is a bruiser, a front-line melee combatant capable of withstanding incredible punishment and dishing it out manifold in return. With a wide variety of Skills related to mobility (Charge, Leap, Kick), they can dominate engagements, putting themselves in the most advantageous positions and rewarding an aggressive playstyle.

Properly upgraded, Iron Skin gives a skilled player a Barrier which doubles as a self-heal. Add to that the powerful buffs gained while Berserking, and you have a melee monster capable of an almost self-perpetuating playstyle. The Barbarian's greatest strength is something of a double-edged sword, however, and they are vulnerable to concentrated ranged attacks, something which players will regularly face on higher difficulties.

Rogue

The Rogue is a high-skill-ceiling character and capable of inflicting terrible carnage in the right hands. Adept at weaving through combat in an elegant display of agility, players can focus on either dual-wielding swords and daggers or employ bows for ranged damage, or combine the two for further tactical options.

Capable of inflicting the most single-target damage possible in the game, Rogue players will enjoy many different ways of increasing their Critical Rate still higher. Where they start to fall flat, however, is in the high skill and care that is required to get the most out of them. The Rogue is also a selfish class, offering allies little in the way of utility, and will find healing themselves a constant issue if they go the melee route.

C Tier

Class	Description
Druid	The Druid is a casting class that uses the raw power of nature to drive back the hordes of Hell. Unlike the others, however, the Druid can be found on the front lines, Shapeshifting into a lithe Werewolf or hulking Werebear and wading into melee. With the ability to command Earth and Storm magic, and loyal creatures of the wilderness fighting at their side, they're a formidable force in the right hands. They are slow, however, and without dedicated Skills to alleviate the issue, the class can feel ponderous at times. Trample and Shred can be used in a pinch, but as the former has a long cooldown and the latter requires an enemy, this is only helpful sometimes. Compounding the situation is that the Druid relies on exploiting Crowd Controlled enemies for maximum damage, and not having the mobility to get where they need to go in a clutch moment feels frustrating.

Class

Description

Druid

The Druid is a casting class that uses the raw power of nature to drive back the hordes of Hell. Unlike the others, however, the Druid can be found on the front lines, Shapeshifting into a lithe Werewolf or hulking Werebear and wading into melee. With the ability to command Earth and Storm magic, and loyal creatures of the wilderness fighting at their side, they're a formidable force in the right hands.

They are slow, however, and without dedicated Skills to alleviate the issue, the class can feel ponderous at times. Trample and Shred can be used in a pinch, but as the former has a long cooldown and the latter requires an enemy, this is only helpful sometimes. Compounding the situation is that the Druid relies on exploiting Crowd Controlled enemies for maximum damage, and not having the mobility to get where they need to go in a clutch moment feels frustrating.

Did you find our best classes and tier list for Diablo 4 useful? Be sure to check out the rest of our ongoing Diablo 4 guide coverage for other helpful articles.