The full Helldivers 2 tier list after Update 6.3: primaries, secondaries, armor passives and stratagems ranked S to D, with faction notes and unlock priorities.
Helldivers 2 Tier List (2026): Weapons, Armor, Stratagems & More Ranked
The best overall loadout in Helldivers 2 right now pairs an S-tier medium-penetration primary (the PLAS-101 Purifier), an anti-tank support weapon (AC-8 Autocannon or a disposable EAT), Democracy Protects or Siege Ready armor, and an Eagle 500kg for structure deletion. That combination works against all three factions because Helldivers 2's balance is built around roles, not raw numbers: penetration tier decides what you can hurt, faction matchups decide what's worth bringing, and the June 16, 2026 Update 6.3 patch reshuffled nearly everything that came before it.
This is the site's complete 2026 tier list across every category — primaries, secondaries, armor passives, stratagems and vehicles — built from u.gg's August 2026 data and cross-checked against the official Helldivers Wiki. Deep-dive pages for each category are linked inline: best weapons, armor and stratagems.
Official resources: Steam store page · Helldivers Wiki (wiki.gg) — Weapons · IGN — Best Weapons Tier List · u.gg — HD2 Primary Weapons Tier List · PlayStation — Helldivers 2
How to Read This Tier List
Three rules decide every rank below:
- Penetration beats damage. A weapon's armor penetration tier (light/medium/heavy) determines which enemies it can damage at all. A light-pen gun with great DPS still loses to a Charger; a medium-pen gun with average DPS handles everything short of tanks.
- Tiers are faction-dependent. Ratings below are given per faction — Bugs / Bots / Squids (Terminids / Automatons / Illuminate) — because a flamethrower that melts Terminid hordes is dead weight against Automaton armor. Where u.gg and other sources disagree, both ratings are listed.
- The meta moves with patches. Update 6.3 (June 16, 2026) rebalanced weapons, enemies and stratagems across the board, and it wasn't the first sweeping pass. Anything written before June 2026 is stale; this list reflects the post-6.3 state.
u.gg counted 51 primary weapons in the game as of July 2026 (patch 6.3.1), not counting secondaries or support weapons. No single page can give each gun a paragraph — that's why the category pages exist. This page gives you the rankings and the links to the detail.
Best Primary Weapons — Tier Table (2026)
Ratings: Bugs / Bots / Squids. Full stat tables and faction breakdowns live in the best weapons guide; this is the at-a-glance ranking.
| Tier | Weapon | Bugs | Bots | Squids | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| S | PLAS-101 Purifier | S+ | S+ | S+ | Polar Patriots; charged AoE + medium pen |
| S | SG-97 Sweeper | A | S | S | Superstore; slamfire flechettes + bayonet |
| S | AR-2 Coyote | S | B | S | Dust Devils; incendiary rounds, high capacity |
| S | Stoker | S | B | S | Dust Devils; underbarrel flamethrower |
| A | CB-9 Exploding Crossbow | A | A | A | Democratic Detonation; closes bug holes |
| A | R-36 Eruptor | A | S | A | Democratic Detonation; heavy-pen shrapnel |
| A | PLAS-1 Scorcher | A | S | A | Simpler Purifier; small mag |
| A | Torcher | S | C | A | Primary flamer; chaff shredder |
| A | Double Freedom | A | A | A | Superstore; double-barrel burst shotgun |
| A | Double-Edge Sickle | A | S | A | Servants of Freedom; heats up and burns user |
| A | BR-14 Adjudicator | A | A | B | Democratic Detonation, 20 Medals; the only AR with a 10x scope — a battle rifle, not a bullet hose |
| B | R-72 Censor | S/C | C/S | A/B | Redacted Regiment; suppressed, elite vs one faction |
| B | JAR-5 Dominator | A/C | A/B | A/B | Steeled Veterans; slow heavy rounds |
| B | SMG-32 Reprimand | B | B | B | Truth Enforcers; medium-pen SMG, 25-round mag |
| B | LAS-16 Sickle | A | B | B | Cutting Edge; infinite ammo via heat |
| C | SG-225 Breaker | B/C | C/A | B/A | Starter classic; still fine, no longer meta |
| C | AR-23 Liberator | B | C | B | Default rifle; quickly outclassed |
| D | Tenderizer / Liberator Concussive / Pacifier / Constitution | D | D | D | Both major tier lists agree: skip |
The headline takeaway: Purifier, Sweeper, Coyote and Stoker are the four "works everywhere" primaries; Censor, Eruptor, Scorcher and Double-Edge Sickle are the Automaton specialists; Torcher and Stoker are the bug/Voteless shredders. The Adjudicator is the sleeper A-tier pick — it demands burst discipline, but its medium penetration and 10x scope make it the closest thing to a marksman rifle in the AR category, and it only costs 20 Medals on Democratic Detonation page 1.
Official source: u.gg — Helldivers 2 Primary Weapons Tier List — "As of July 2026 – Patch 6.3.1 – Helldivers 2 has 51 Primary Weapons. Campaign Rewards are earned through participation, and will become available to all Helldivers at a later date through the Patriotic Administration Center."
Best Secondary Weapons (2026)
Secondaries are your panic button, your objective-free hand, and sometimes your best answer to a specific annoyance. The 2026 standouts:
- P-113 Verdict — the heavy-hitting medium-pen pistol; the default "good secondary" pick for most loadouts.
- P-92 Warrant — 300 Super Credits in the Superstore's Force of Law rotation. Guided homing rounds in burst fire (80 damage, 13-round mag, medium pen) that delete Shriekers, Hunters and Overseers; the lock-on doubles as a scouting tool since it can lock an invisible Stalker.
- GP-31 Grenade Pistol — a one-shot explosive sidearm that closes bug holes and fabricators, freeing your grenade slot. The anti-structure MVP.
- P-4 Senator — the six-shot revolver with serious stopping power and one-handed use; a community perennial.
- LAS-58 Talon — a one-handed laser pistol with a spin flourish; great for light chaff, but its low durable damage means it struggles against medium armor.
- M6C/SOCOM Pistol — the ODST crossover's suppressed sidearm; see the Halo ODST crossover guide.
If your primary is light-pen, take the Verdict or Warrant (medium pen). If your primary handles medium targets, take the Grenade Pistol for structure work or the Senator for a punchy fallback. The Warrant is the single most-requested Superstore rotation for good reason — its guided mode is genuinely unique in the game.
Best Armor Passives — Tier Table (2026)
Armor stats (light/medium/heavy) matter less than the passive. The gap between light and heavy armor rating is real but modest; the gap between a Democracy Protects set and an Extra Padding set is the difference between extracting and not. Full set lists are in the armor guide; the ranked passives:
| Tier | Passive | Effect | Best sets |
|---|---|---|---|
| S | Democracy Protects | 50% chance to survive lethal damage; no bleed on chest hits | DP-40 Hero of the Federation (page 5), DP-11 Champion of the People (page 10) |
| S | Med-Kit | +2 stims, +2s stim duration | CM-09 Bonesnapper, CM-21 Trench Paramedic |
| A | Engineering Kit | +2 grenades, 30% less recoil crouched/prone | CE-27 Ground Breaker |
| A | Fortified | 50% explosive resistance, 30% less recoil crouched/prone | FS-34 Exterminator, B-27 Fortified Commando |
| A | Siege Ready | +30% primary reload speed, +20% ammo capacity | DP-8 Mountain-Scaled (Superstore) |
| B | Servo-Assisted | +30% throw range, +50% limb health | SA-12, SA-25 Steel Trooper |
| B | Peak Physique | +100% melee damage, better weapon handling | SA-32 Dynamo, FS-23 Battle Master |
| B | Scout | Radar scans markers every 2s, -30% detection | SC-34 Infiltrator, SC-30 Trailblazer |
| C | Extra Padding | +50 armor rating | B-08 Light Gunner |
| C | Electrical Conduit | 95% electric damage resistance | FS-23, B-24 Enforcer |
Democracy Protects and Med-Kit are the consensus S-tier passives across PC Gamer's and games.gg's 2026 rankings. Siege Ready has climbed hard since the Cyberstan siege era because reload speed is the hidden DPS stat for shotguns and SMGs — and the DP-8 Mountain-Scaled that carries it is the armor most players associate with the 2026 Siege Ready meta.
The raw armor rating does not provide consistent damage reduction — community testing has shown hits are inconsistently mitigated, while friendly fire ignores rating almost entirely. That's why the passive is the real decision. Don't pick a heavy set for survivability alone; pick it for the passive and accept the speed penalty.
Best Stratagems — Quick Rank (2026)
The full list, codes and unlock economy are in the stratagem guide. At-a-glance:
| Tier | Stratagem | Why |
|---|---|---|
| S | AC-8 Autocannon | Best support weapon; S+ across all factions |
| S | Eagle 500kg Bomb | One-shot structure/anti-heavy tool; see our 500kg guide |
| S | Orbital Railcannon | Auto-targets the biggest enemy, one-shots Bile Titans/Hulks |
| S | Supply Pack | The squad's ammo engine; every team wants one |
| A | Orbital Precision Strike | Free, fast, reliable; the workhorse |
| A | EAT / Recoilless Rifle | Disposable or crew-loaded anti-tank |
| A | Machine Gun Sentry | 180s cooldown force multiplier |
| A | Quasar Cannon | No-ammo anti-tank with recharge |
| B | Orbital Napalm / Eagle Napalm | Holding bug breaches |
| B | Guard Dog Rover | Free DPS companion |
| C | Tesla Tower / most mines | Niche area denial |
| D | Orbital 380MM (in pubs) | Team-kill generator without comms |
Vehicles — Ranked (2026)
Vehicles are a loadout slot with a cooldown, so they earn their place only when they do something a stratagem can't:
- S — TD-220 Bastion Tank (35,000 Requisition Slips): the four-seat tank destroyer added for the Cyberstan offensive. 120mm cannon with 31 shells, a 2,000-round coaxial HMG, heavy armor, and the single highest destruction potential of any stratagem. Requires a driver + gunner at minimum; the fixed turret means the driver does the aiming. Update 6.3 reclassified it as heavy armor.
- A — FRV (Fast Recon Vehicle): 4 seats, good speed, zero protection. King of Super Credit farming runs.
- B — Exosuits (Patriot / Emancipator): big damage, short lifespan, no passengers.
- C — Lumberer / utility variants: situational.
Official source: PC Gamer on the Bastion tank — "The Bastion is packing more destructive capability in a single package than any other stratagem... I hope the Bastion tank is a sign of what's to come in Helldivers 2."
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best loadout in Helldivers 2?
The community's "works everywhere" 2026 loadout: Purifier (or Sweeper) primary, Grenade Pistol or Warrant secondary, Democracy Protects armor, and the stratagems AC-8 Autocannon + Supply Pack + Machine Gun Sentry + Eagle 500kg (or Orbital Precision Strike while you unlock it). It has anti-crowd, anti-tank, sustain and structure deletion, and it's 95% as good against all three factions.
What is the best weapon in Helldivers 2 in 2026?
The PLAS-101 Purifier is the best primary (S+ vs all factions, Polar Patriots Warbond, 80 Medals) and the AC-8 Autocannon is the best support weapon (S+ vs all factions, Level 10). The best new pick from 2026 content is the AR-2 Coyote from the Dust Devils Warbond.
What is the best armor in Helldivers 2?
Any set with the Democracy Protects passive (DP-40 Hero of the Federation is the easiest — page 5 of the free Warbond) for survival, or Siege Ready (DP-8 Mountain-Scaled, Superstore) for reload-speed DPS. Pick the passive first, then the weight class.
What is the best secondary weapon in Helldivers 2?
The P-113 Verdict for raw damage, the GP-31 Grenade Pistol for structure utility, and the P-92 Warrant (Superstore, 300 SC) for its unique guided homing rounds. The M6C/SOCOM is the stealth specialist from the ODST crossover.
Are crossover weapons worth buying in Helldivers 2?
Mostly no for gameplay. The Halo ODST and Killzone weapons (MA5C, M7S, StA-52, StA-11) rank B-tier or below because they can't take attachments, and both u.gg and GamesRadar+ rank the Killzone pair D-tier. The ODST Warbond's real value is the armor and the suppressed M6C/SOCOM; see the crossover guide for the full breakdown.
Related Guides
- Helldivers 2 Best Weapons — 2026 Tier List and Meta Guide
- Helldivers 2 Stratagems — Full List, Unlocks and Best Picks
- Helldivers 2 Armor Guide — Stats, Passives & Best Picks
- Helldivers 2 Super Credits Farm — Fastest Methods
- Helldivers 2 Eagle 500kg Bomb — Stats, Code & Aiming
- Destiny 2 Dungeons Guide
Last updated: August 13, 2026.
More Helldivers 2 Guides
Helldivers 2 Eagle 500kg Bomb guide: stratagem code, unlock (Level 15, 10,000 Requisition Slips), blast radius, post-6.3 damage numbers, and aiming tips.
Helldivers 2 armor explained: light/medium/heavy stats, all 28 passives ranked, the best armor sets in 2026, and how helmets and cosmetics work.
Helldivers 2 AC-8 Autocannon guide: full stats, APHET vs Flak ammo, crew loading, unlock (Level 10, 7,000 Requisition Slips), and the best loadouts.
The best Automaton loadout in Helldivers 2 for 2026: primaries, anti-tank support, armor passives, boosters and stratagems ranked against every bot unit.
Helldivers 2 Avengement Day explained: the annual in-game holiday Arrowhead declared after the community liberated Seyshel Beach from the Illuminate in 2025.
Bile Titans in Helldivers 2: weak points (head, underbelly sacs), best weapons and stratagems, spawn difficulties, and how to survive Terminid heavies.
Helldivers 2 builds for 2026: complete loadouts for Terminids, Automatons and Illuminate — weapons, armor passives and stratagems per role.
Helldivers 2 Cheat Engine use explained: how GameGuard detects it, the real ban risk, what the cheat tables do, and the legal modding alternatives.