Heroes of The Storm Tier List

Heroes of the Storm has been one of the powerhouses of the MOBA (Multiplayer Online Battle Arena) scene.

Now on its 5th year, the game manages to stay fresh thanks to constantly hefty gameplay and balance tweaks, and their colorful cast of 90 heroes.

It’s these heroes we’ll be focusing on in this piece and, specifically, how well they match up against the rest of the cast. Knowing this hierarchy beforehand is essential in MOBAs because it lets you strategize your play to gain the upper hand.

You’ll also get to know the best hero pairs and which specific hero is at a disadvantage when facing certain opponents.

So without further ado, let’s get started!

The Tier List

Team synergy, positioning and coordination are the building blocks to winning in the game. As such, each hero is ranked depending on these factors. Each hero in HOTS is assigned a role out of the six enumerated here:

Tank – Heroes that protect their team from incoming attacks. They usually last longer than others in clashes/team fights.

Bruiser – Not as defense-oriented as tanks. In turn, they have good damage potential, which makes them a hybrid balance of offense and defense.

Support – Heroes that provide buffs and utility skills to other allies. Conversely, they can also impede opponents’ advances through de-buffs and other status-changing abilities.

Healer – Heroes that focus on healing allies and mitigating the damage dealt to the party.

Melee Assassin – These are pure attackers that deal massive damage to opponents in close range.

Ranged Assassin – The same as Melee Assassin, but they attack from long range. They are also usually squishier (easier to kill) than their melee counterparts.

Now let’s dive right into the tier list.

S-Tier

These heroes are almost certainly picked first thanks to their ability to dictate the flow of the game. They have great stats, along with extremely useful skills that always give their team the advantage in fights.

Hero	Role	Description
Mephisto	Ranged Assassin	Mephisto excels at team play and securing kills. Overall a great pick for following up on your teammates and clearing the wave. Burst damage is what becomes a real problem for Mephisto, play around that and you have yourself a great meta pick.
Dehaka	Bruiser	A great pick for a bruiser, able to sustain himself with Essence Collection and dominate enemies with huge single-target damage and crowd control. Cannot go wrong with this hero.
Junkrat	Ranged Assassin	Scaling into the late game, clearing waves, zoning, and long-range, Junkrat has it all. Being able to deal damage to multiple heroes at once is a great bonus for this hero. He is one of those heroes that’s always a top tier if played right. Diving and crowd control are what stops him from demolishing everyone since he is so squishy. You have to be mindful of your positioning when playing Junkrat.
Tychus	Ranged Assassin	Tychus is good for chipping away at opponents’ huge health pools and clearing waves of enemies. His only drawback has been the positioning factor since he is very vulnerable to crowd control.
Diablo	Tank	Paired up with Assassins, Diablo becomes a great peel option and manages well with his self-sustain, damage, and enemy displacement which makes picking off very easy with almost no drawbacks.
Anub’arak	Tank	This aggressive Tank still manages to disrupt the enemy team with ease and stay in the top tier. He has a bit lower health pool than other tanks but manages to compensate for that with great damage.
Maiev	Melee Assassin	Maiev got a huge buff on this patch which easily takes her to S tier, she received an additional charge to Vault, more damage overall, and a silence which are making her a very strong pick.
Stukov	Healer	Stukov even before this patch was a great pick for a healer, his W got nerfed but now he gains more damage and heals which still lets him comfortably stay in the highest tier.

A-Tier

Heroes in the A-tier are good all-rounders that pair well with others in other tiers. These heroes make up most of the recent meta, so a lot of players will be decent in utilizing their skills.

Hero	Role	Description
Valla	Ranged Assassin	While Valla’s Hungering Arrow and Multishot builds got nerfed this patch, her auto-attack builds received some nice buffs which still make her a viable pick. Position well and she can comfortably be a top-tier hero.
Brightwing	Healer	The latest nerf on Brightwings heal and health put him down a tier. He still stays very viable but needs a bit more game knowledge and safe play to be as good as he was.
Uther	Healer	Uther has always been a great flexible pick in various roles. While receiving no buffs and no nerfs he’s still one of the better picks in the game.
Lucio	Healer	Lucio is a very mobile healer which gives teammates movement buffs, his mobility is what makes him a great pick since positioning is not a big problem. He excels at mitigating AOE damage and late-game healing. The only problem for Lucio is his low health pool and early game presence.
Malfurion	Healer	Malfurion is an outstanding healer who does great at picking off and zoning enemy heroes. His versatility and supporting enemies who heavily rely on mana are what make him a great pick.
Falstad	Ranged Assassin	Good for repositioning himself to where fights are going to be, offering a unique advantage against enemy roamers. His damage output is great and Falstad remains a great pick for those who know how to position.
Sylvanas	Ranged Assassin	Quick to reposition, Sylvanas is a pest in the backline despite her low damage output. Her versatility and being able to capture mercenary camps easily are what put her in this tier. Positioning and being careful in the early game is what will help you wreak havoc later on.
Leoric	Bruiser	Leoric’s Drain Hope skill is your best bet against enemy tanks. Additionally, his passive weakens the enemy team’s damage capability so they’re usually at a disadvantage during team fights.
Muradin	Tank	A tank with good self-healing capabilities will always be a hard target for the enemy team. To add to his versatility, Muradin also has an effective stun skill.
Hanzo	Ranged Assassin	Hanzo is able to poke enemies at long range, clear waves, and has great escape skills. He is also able to easily follow up and/or engage which makes him a great pick overall. Being at a safe distance isn’t that hard because of his range but is always your best bet because of his squishiness.
Deathwing	Bruiser	Deathwing has a massive health pool along with tough armor. His skills are a bit slow, but they hit very hard. Sieging and pushing waves is what he does great. Deathwing is pretty immobile and cannot be affected by buffs so keep that in mind when playing him.
Mei	Tank	Excellent hero for crowd-controlling enemies with decent damage and self-sustain. Note that playing her into enemy teams that have a lot of mobile heroes can be somewhat tricky.
Zul’jin	Ranged Assassin	Pick Zul’jin and watch the squishy enemies go down in a matter of seconds. He has great single target damage, survivability, waveclear, and is able to be at a safe distance from the enemy with his long-range. Be careful not to use Berserker too much or it might do more harm than good.
Varian	Bruiser	Varian is easy to learn and use but also easy to counter for opponents because of his simplistic play style. Versatile in terms of builds and great for peeling because of his Taunt skill.
E.T.C.	Tank	E.T.C.’s selling point is his flexibility to fit any team composition. He is decent in all areas, which makes him fun to play in team fights. His talents had a huge buff this patch so he is very well viable.
Gul’dan	Ranged Assassin	Has good AoE skills that clear waves of enemies and have enough impact on team fights. His sustain is incredible which helps him stay in the lane for longer times. Always keep an eye on Gul’dan’s health and mana while keeping distance from crowd control.
Xul	Bruiser	Xul’s lack of mobility is offset by his invaluable ability to push lanes quickly with his immense AOE damage. He’s great at sustaining and providing crowd control too. Being good at pushing comes with the disadvantage of being susceptible to ganks and crowd control.
Cassia	Ranged Assassin	Cassia’s downfall is her low range despite being a ranged assassin. She still has high damage potential though, so you must be experienced to use her effectively.
Rexxar	Bruiser	Good as a solo-laner, able to use Misha to gain the advantage over enemies, and has good crowd control. Rexxar lacks mobility and his trusty Misha is what keeps him usable, after Misha is taken down the power of this hero goes down by a lot.
Chromie	Ranged Assassin	Chromie does outstanding at long range and poke, her burst damage is also a force to be reckoned with. Untouched by the patch she stands as a great pick. The issues players run into when playing her are that the learning curve is high, she is pretty squishy and vulnerable to crowd control.
Sonya	Bruiser	An aggressive bruiser able to dish out immense damage to a single enemy while still being able to self-sustain pretty well. Sonya’s only issue is her low range, kiting her is quite easy so be careful when going for this hero.
Hogger	Bruiser	Hogger does great at crowd controlling, clearing the waves, and taking mercenary camps. He uses rage instead of mana so longer fights are to his advantage. Poking Hogger and being mobile is what counters him pretty hard.
Zeratul	Melee Assassin	Has high burst damage, but his slow animations before skills give time for opponents to react. It doesn’t help that Zeratul is a very squishy character, nonetheless learning how to play this hero will make you great at ganking and just being a problem to the enemy team.
Tyrael	Tank	Great at isolating enemies and being mobile is what makes Tyrael a great pick, ability to peel for the allies is just what puts the cherry on the cake. If you’re new to the game or learning how to play Tyrael try to combine him with another frontliner with strong crowd control.
Medivh	Support	One of the hardest heroes to master, Medivh will only be used by a handful of pre-made squads that build around his viability in fights. Once mastered this hero becomes a huge problem that is hard to deal with by the enemy.
Anduin	Healer	Anduin’s utility comes from his ability to sustain his teammates’ health but also save them from death when necessary. Great at dealing damage and sustaining allies with powerful heals.
Imperius	Bruiser	Imperius has a good stun skill, high survivability in team and solo fights, and a decent damage output. A great pick for those who want a versatile hero.  Be mindful that he is pretty dependant on Celestial Charge and lacks mobility.
Jaina	Ranged Assassin	Jaina is good at launching status effects that slow the enemy team down. Her skill cooldowns are painfully long though, so knowing when to properly use them is paramount.
Garrosh	Tank	Another hero with good armor rating, Garrosh is good for team fights because he can isolate a hero from the opposing team, making it easier to pick off.
Stitches	Tank	A great option for picking off enemies and putting them at a disadvantage, Stitches’ hook is what makes him so good next to being tanky and having great sustain. The lack of mobility is a big problem for this big chunk of meat. He can pick off enemies but after the hook has gone on cooldown enemy team will look for an opportunity to engage so keep that in mind when trying to engage enemies.
Nazeebo	Ranged Assassin	Nazeebo was always strong but this patch took him down to A tier. Where he lacks in mobility and early game, Nazeebo excels at zoning, crowd control, and burst damage.
Blaze	Tank	Good in team fights or by herself. Blaze can also force opponents out of their position with her abilities. Some of her skills rely on skill shots which can be a downside and she is quite immobile.
Tassadar	Ranged Assassin	Tassadar has a high range and great AOE damage while still being able to pick off enemies. The best usage of this hero would be in spots where enemies have to be grouped (choke points). His abilities can be dodged easily so picking him against mobile enemies can be a nuisance.
Li-Ming	Ranged Assassin	Li-Ming is a resilient hero because of that annoying teleport. She can deal high damage to individual heroes, but she’s sort on the wave-clear department.
Malthael	Bruiser	Malthael has good wave-clearing capabilities with minimum effort. His straightforward playstyle also means that it’s easy to play/counter him.
Lt. Morales	Healer	Has great single-target healing, which is good for partnering with roamers. In the later stages of the match, however, the lack of group healing makes Lt. Morales a liability.
Ragnaros	Bruiser	Ragnaros is a decent choice if you want to push a lane and defend it when enemies start appearing.

B-Tier

These are good heroes with a lot of utility in team fights, pushing, roaming or defending your lanes.

Hero	Role	Description
Chen	Bruiser	Chen is tough to kill and can harass his opponents thanks to his persistent skills. He struggles a bit with clearing the wave and the heroes who interrupt him.
Deckard	Healer	Deckard offers utility as a damage-dealer with healing capabilities. He has a decent range which is effective for zoning enemies. The AoE attacks also help clear waves and prevent the other team from pushing.
Samuro	Melee Assassin	Samuro is good when you’re facing off against beginners because they’ll likely get confused with his clones. More experienced players, however, will find this very easy to deal with.
Kharazim	Healer	Khazarim is a versatile hero that can heal teammates and deal some damage in fights. Because of this, he doesn’t stand out in any other aspect of the game.
Cho’gall	Tank	Great waveclear, exceptional late game, and huge health pool are how people would describe this hero. Having a great late game means his early game suffers which is something players need to consider when picking him.
Ana	Healer	Ana received some buffs this patch, her heals and Nano Boost is always a great combination with a hero that casts a lot of spells(usually mage). She is also great at mitigating enemy heals but is highly susceptible to enemies who can dive her.
Kerrigan	Melee Assassin	Kerrigan is sort of a one-trick pony that can deal massive damage with her skill combos, but isn’t flexible in different situations.
Abathur	Support	Abathur could reach higher tiers if paired with the right party composition. He has a unique playstyle that might not translate in most matches but is excellent in pre-made teams.
Yrel	Bruiser	Another hero that’s focused early on in team fights because her damage can be a nuisance if left alone. Kiting her and crowd control is what makes her lack in the late game.
Genji	Ranged Assassin	Genji has great mobility and decent damage, which makes him very fun to play. He’s good at initiating team fights and getting the jump on enemy teams.
Azmodan	Ranged Assassin	Opponents have to watch out for Azmodan because he can clear waves quickly. However, in team fights, Azmodan performs less than stellar.
Lunara	Ranged Assassin	Lunara is good for pressuring opponents because of her poison. While it doesn’t always finish them off, they’ll be a lot more cautious when pulling up in team fights because of this.
Whitemane	Healer	Unlike other healers, Whitemane’s heal is related to how much damage is given to the enemy. For beginners, this is tricky to manage, therefore adding to her liability in team fights if not played correctly.
Greymane	Ranged Assassin	Greymane is always a safe pick because of good burst damage and decent enemy harassment potential.
Qhira	Melee Assassin	Qhira has good damage as a close combat character, but needs to be controlled by skilled players to be truly effective.
D.Va	Bruiser	D.Va is more of a bait for other teams rather than a genuine threat. Her Self-Destruct is a good denial ability which also affects enemy teams.
Thrall	Bruiser	Thrall received some great buffs that help with his mana and sustain problems in the solo lane. If the enemy doesn’t focus Thrall instantly, his potential grows exponentially. Still a solid pick nonetheless
Johanna	Tank	Has a large amount of health for survivability. Additionally, Johanna can clear waves of enemies easily compared to other tanks.
The Lost Vikings (T.L.V.)	Support	The Lost Vikings can only be effective by the most skilled players because they require a lot of micromanagement. The upside is they have a huge push and zone potential.
Orphea	Ranged Assassin	Orphea has decent damage but not as burst, so it’s hard to get kills with her.
Tyrande	Healer	Tyrande should be higher in this list if it weren’t for her abysmal mobility and high skill cap. Her healing is useful in the right hands, though.
Kael’thas	Ranged Assassin	Living Bomb dictates the flow of combat every time. Used perfectly, this can disperse enemy units, making them easier to chase down.
Fenix	Ranged Assassin	Fenix is good for dealing potshots to the opponent and then clearing waves of enemies. The ability to warp out of sticky situations is essential for solo pushing.

C-Tier

These are average heroes that don’t stand out but are still useful under the right situation and setup.

Hero	Role	Description
Valeera	Melee Assassin	Valeera is useful when you want to focus on the biggest threat on the enemy team. She doesn’t do well by herself, so she fares better as part of a roaming assassination squad.
Alexstrasza	Healer	A good choice if you want a healer that can effectively zone. Alextrasza’s downside is that she’s not a very effective healer by herself.
Illidan	Melee Assassin	Illidan is very strong when used by an experienced player. He’s best as a roamer with other support heroes with him.
Zagara	Ranged Assassin	Zagara is useful for pushing and providing vision for the team. She doesn’t shine as much in team battles, unfortunately.
Auriel	Healer	Auriel is situationally good because her healing strength depends on her partner. A team with Auriel has to strategize who comes with her in the lane.
Murky	Melee Assassin	Murky is so squishy that it’s frustrating to play him early to mid-game. He does have late-game value though, so make sure you can farm and strengthen him by then.
Gazlowe	Melee Assassin	He’s good at pushing lanes and zoning opponents in his lane but doesn’t have much value in clashes.
Zarya	Support	Zarya isn’t suitable for dealing damage, rather she’s best at mitigating damage to allies because of her shield abilities.
Sgt. Hammer	Ranged Assassin	Good for potshots to harass enemies, but is also quite easy to kill.
Artanis	Bruiser	Artanis has a high skill cap that can turn off most players, but he can be effective once they master his skills and movement.
Arthas	Tank	Arthas is better at damaging rather than protecting allies. His subpar mobility hinders the effectivity of all that damage, however.
Raynor	Ranged Assassin	Raynor is a tanky offensive character able to survive fights while dishing significant damage. Beyond that Raynar doesn’t provide any viability because of his playstyle. He’s beginner-friendly, so there’s not much downside to having one in your party if trying to learn the game.
Alarak	Melee Assassin	Alarak is a true assassin. With high burst damage, he pairs well with other heroes that are good at roaming and picking off solo enemies on the map. He lacks in waveclear and is difficult to master.
Kel’Thuzad	Ranged Assassin	He can do insane damage with skill combos but can’t initiate nor finish off opponents because of his lack of lockdown skills.
Tracer	Ranged Assassin	Tracer has a low health pool, meaning she can’t be in the thick of the fight most of the time. Her mobility and damage make her good for hunting down stragglers after a clash goes down.

D-Tier

It will take good party composition and coordination to make these heroes shine. Consider using them only if the matchup calls for it.

Hero	Role	Description
Rehgar	Healer	Look for someone else if you want good healing. Rehgar’s best trait is his utility in battle because of decent damage and mobility.
Mal’Ganis	Tank	Mal’ganis is useful for harassing enemies in his lane because of sustained damage and self-healing, but he doesn’t have any disable skills to make him useful in group battles.

F-Tier

These Heroes all have much better alternatives in the Nexus.

Hero	Role	Description
Probius	Ranged Assassin	Probius requires a lot of setup before getting any kills. It doesn’t help that he has a low health pool.
The Butcher	Melee Assassin	When controlled early on in the match, The Butcher will have a hard time making an impact later on.
Li Li	Tank	Li Li is a good choice for beginners who want to learn the healer role but even after the buffs she rarely excels at what she does.
Nova	Ranged Assassin	Nova is easy to use, but her utility lies in her Snipe skill, which often leaves her out of position in fights.