Fate Grand Order Tier List (2025): A Player’s No-BS Guide to Who’s Actually Worth Your Mats
If you’ve typed “fate grand order tier list” into Google at 2 a.m. while staring at a half-leveled Servant and an empty QP wallet… yeah, same. FGO is the kind of game where every upgrade feels expensive—materials, QP, skill gems, lores, you name it—so a good tier list isn’t about calling your favorites “bad.” It’s about helping you spend scarce resources like a veteran, whether you’re chasing smoother 3-turn farming, trying to stop getting bullied in Challenge Quests, or just figuring out why your “big damage” Servant hits like a wet noodle without the right supports.
Also, we need to be real about the elephant in the room: FGO JP is ahead, and NA is behind by roughly about two years, which means the “best” Servants (and farming setups) can look different depending on your server and what banners you realistically have access to. That’s why this guide is written like an actual player talking to another player: I’ll explain the why behind placements, not just throw names into a tier and leave you guessing.
I. Introduction & Why Fate Grand Order Tier Lists Matter
A. What codes—wait, wrong game. What tier lists actually provide in FGO
A tier list in FGO is basically a resource survival guide. There are hundreds of Servants, and a shocking number of them can be “good”… if you define good as “eventually clears content after you feed them 8 lores, 60 million QP, and the soul of your firstborn.” What most players really want is:
Farming efficiency (Can this unit clear waves fast and consistently?)
Boss/Challenge Quest value (Does this unit bring safety, control, or burst?)
Roster flexibility (Does this unit work with what I own, not just in a perfect YouTube setup?)
Longevity (Will I still use them a year later, or are they a “new player trap”?)
B. Why meta matters more than “raw stats”
FGO isn’t like some games where a higher rarity automatically means better performance. The meta is shaped by support Servants and systems (NP charge, refund, card-type buffs, trait damage, defensive tech). A Servant can be mediocre alone and become a monster with the right support.
C. The time factor: JP vs NA reality check
Because NA lags behind JP, a “fate grand order tier list” has to be honest about timing: who is available now, who becomes insane later, and what you should do if you’re missing the big meta supports.
D. The player promise of this tier list
I’m not going to tell you to “reroll until you quit.” I’m also not going to pretend every Servant is equal because “waifu/husbando.” Here’s the deal:
Tiers are about account value, not character love.
Context matters: farming vs CQ vs story.
Your roster matters: the same DPS can feel S-tier or C-tier depending on your supports.
II. Tier Ranking System Explained (EX → D)
To keep this readable (and actually usable), I’m ranking Servants by practical performance across the three things most players do: farm, farm more, and then get punched in Challenge Quests.
EX Tier (Meta-warping / account-defining)
These are the Servants who change what your account can do. They enable looping, trivialize CQ mechanics, or compress multiple roles into one slot.
S Tier (Top-tier power, consistently useful)
Incredible units that carry hard, but might be slightly more roster-dependent than EX.
A Tier (Strong, flexible, worth investing)
Great returns on investment. If you lack EX-tier pieces, A-tier can still clear basically everything with good planning.
B Tier (Solid, niche, or early-game workhorses)
Useful, but usually replaceable or requires more effort to shine.
C Tier (Limited value, outdated kits, or very narrow niches)
Can work, but you’re usually investing because you love them or because you’re resource-locked.
D Tier (Avoid heavy investment unless you know exactly why)
This doesn’t mean “unplayable.” It means you’ll regret spending rare mats here unless it’s for personal reasons.
III. How I Place Servants (Methodology You Can Argue With)
When I decide where a Servant lands on a fate grand order tier list, I weigh:
NP access & charge (self battery, team battery, ease of firing NP)
Damage reliability (does the kit actually land consistent results?)
Farming performance (wave clear, looping potential, plugsuit dependence)
CQ tools (hard defense, debuff cleanse, buff removal, gimmick answers)
Team compatibility (works with common supports, not just one perfect comp)
Investment scaling (does NP2 matter, do they need MLB CEs, do they require append 2, etc.)
Accessibility (welfares and low-rarity kings get credit because you can actually own them)
And yes—this is still subjective. The goal is to be useful, not to declare holy truth.
IV. The “Big Pillars”: Supports That Basically Define the Game
If you only remember one thing from this entire guide, make it this: FGO is a support-driven game. A top support can turn three “okay” DPS into a farm machine.
A. Castoria (Arts queen, CQ safety queen) — EX Tier
Castoria is the kind of support that makes you feel like you installed a cheat code by accident. She enables Arts looping, gives absurd survivability tools, and fits into way more teams than people expect. Even when you’re not looping, she provides:
huge Arts performance buffs
attack buffs
NP charge
defensive utility that makes many CQ mechanics dramatically less scary
If you want one support that improves both farming and hard content, Castoria is the poster child.
B. Koyanskaya of Light (Buster farming engine) — EX Tier
This is the support that took Buster from “big single NP damage” to “repeatable 3-turn clearing in modern nodes.” A lot of Buster farming comps revolve around double Koyanskaya + Oberon for the final burst.
Important note: players sometimes mix up Koyanskaya variants. When people say “Buster loop support,” they generally mean Koyanskaya of Light, not Darkness.
C. Oberon (the “nitro boost” finisher) — EX Tier
Oberon is the guy you swap in and suddenly your final wave evaporates. He’s famous for being the “last push” that makes high-HP nodes and tougher farming stages possible. Players routinely describe him as the finisher that upgrades Buster farming comps when you’re trying to clear the most demanding nodes.
D. Skadi (Quick engine, still relevant) — S Tier
Skadi defined an era. Quick isn’t always the “default best” anymore, but Skadi remains extremely valuable—especially if your roster includes Quick DPS you love, or if you’re on a server stage where Quick is a practical stepping stone. She’s also a huge quality-of-life pick because Quick setups can be straightforward once you understand refund.
E. Merlin (Buster + CQ comfort) — S Tier
Merlin is still Merlin: strong Buster support, sustain, and CQ comfort. His value often shows up when fights get messy and you need a plan that isn’t “kill it before it moves.”
F. Waver (the universal battery that refuses to die) — A/S Tier depending on your roster
Even in a world of newer supports, “bring 50% charge” never stops being good. That’s why Waver stays relevant in many accounts, especially if you’re missing one of the modern specialists.
V. The Real Tier List: What You Should Prioritize by Role
Instead of pretending one ranking fits everything, I’m breaking this fate grand order tier list into the way people actually play: farming and bosses.
VI. Farming & Looping Efficiency (The Meta That Eats Your Life)
A. Understanding looping in plain English
Looping means: NP on Wave 1, refund or recharge, NP on Wave 2, repeat on Wave 3. The “how” depends on card type:
Arts looping: often refund-based, boosted by Arts performance and NP gain tools
Quick looping: refund-based, can be more sensitive to enemy count/hit counts
Buster “looping”: usually not refund-based; it’s charge-stacking and cooldown tricks, often with heavy support batteries
B. The classic Buster farming structure (why people obsess over it)
A very common modern structure is: Double Koyanskaya + Oberon + a DPS with enough charge/skills/append.
What this does for you as a player: it reduces farming to a near-daily autopilot routine (minus card RNG when you’re on weird nodes).
C. Farming tiers (role-based)
EX Tier Farmers (account-defining farming value)
These are not always “highest damage ever,” but they make farming consistent, fast, and flexible.
Top supports for farming: Castoria, Koyanskaya of Light, Oberon (already covered)
Top “universal farming DPS” archetypes:
AoE Servants with solid batteries
Servants with multi-wave tools (NP charge, cooldown reduction, damage steroids that line up cleanly)
Servants who can farm with minimal plugsuit dependence
S Tier Farmers (amazing but a little more node-dependent)
These shine hard, but might need specific conditions (enemy count, class distribution, CE options).
A Tier Farmers (your realistic daily drivers)
Most players live here—and that’s not an insult. A-tier farmers clear events efficiently and don’t demand perfect gear.
D. “Farming vs Bossing” is why tier list arguments never end
Some Servants are farming monsters but feel awkward in CQ. Others are CQ gods but slow for farming. A good account usually has both.
VII. Boss Fights & Challenge Quests (Where Tier Lists Get Personal)
Challenge Quests are where you find out if your team has:
a way to survive NPs
a way to remove buffs (enemy invincibility, guts, damage cut)
a way to cleanse debuffs (stuns, skill seal, poison stacks)
control tools (stun, NP drain, taunt walls)
reliable damage windows
A. EX Tier CQ tools (the “I refuse to die” kit)
Hard defense + team utility supports (Castoria-style protection, Merlin sustain, etc.)
Control supports (NP drain, stun loops, buff removal)
Defensive anchors like Mash (yes, she matters)
B. Mash Kyrielight: the free unit that quietly carries accounts
Mash isn’t flashy, but she’s one of the best “I need to not die” buttons a new player owns from day one. She’s especially useful because team cost matters and she’s always there.
VIII. Class Basics (Because Half of “Tier List Skill” Is Matchups)
FGO’s class system is simple on paper and brutal in practice. Main classes (Saber/Archer/Lancer plus cavalry) and Extra classes shape damage. Servants are grouped into Knight, Cavalry, and Extra categories.
A detail many players miss: classes also have hidden damage multipliers (for example, not every class hits at exactly “1.0” baseline).
What this means in player terms: two Servants with similar kits can “feel” different in damage because of class modifier and matchups.
IX. “Top Tier Servants” Without Lying to You
Here’s the honest version of “top tier” in FGO:
A. Universal supports are the closest thing to “must-have”
Castoria / Koyanskaya of Light / Oberon are the modern farming pillars, and Merlin/Skadi/Waver remain extremely valuable depending on your roster and server timing.
B. Top damage dealers are often “top” because supports make them top
A DPS rarely becomes S-tier alone. The best DPS are the ones that:
scale ridiculously with buffs
have batteries that fit common farming templates
bring something extra (trait damage, survivability, utility)
C. Quick correction on a common misconception: “Jalter is a Berserker”
Regular Jeanne d’Arc (Alter) is an Avenger. The Berserker version is Summer Jalter. If you ever see a tier list mixing those up, be cautious.
X. F2P-Friendly Tier List: What Matters When You’re Not Whaling
Let me say the quiet part out loud: FGO is generous in viability, not in convenience. You can clear a ton of content with low-rarity Servants, but you’ll work harder without premium supports.
A. The “F2P EX Tier” concept
These are units that feel above their rarity because they provide:
survival tools
utility that solves CQ gimmicks
or extremely efficient damage for their cost
B. Why welfares matter more than people admit
A good welfare at NP5 can outperform a random NP1 SSR in farming consistency. If you’re building an efficient account, welfares are your backbone.
C. My practical new-player advice (the stuff tier lists forget)
If you’re new, don’t try to build “the perfect team.” Build:
one stable farmer
one stable boss killer
one survival core (Mash + a good support + a friend support)
That setup clears events, story, and most hard content with time.
XI. Card Types, Brave Chains, and Why Your Damage Feels Random
A. Card types in player language
Buster: big numbers, less natural NP gain
Arts: smooth NP cycling, strong sustained teams
Quick: crit stars and refund tricks, can be more condition-dependent
B. Brave chains and deck reality
Your Servant’s deck composition matters. Some units feel amazing because they can reliably access their good cards. Others feel “inconsistent” because their damage windows are harder to line up.
C. NP Overcharge and refund basics
Overcharge and refund systems can get technical fast, but the practical point is: some setups depend on how NP charge is consumed and refunded across the team.
XII. How to Use This Fate Grand Order Tier List Without Getting Tricked
Here’s how tier lists accidentally mislead players:
A. “This Servant is S-tier” (…with three limited supports you don’t own)
Always ask: S-tier in what team? Farming teams and CQ teams are not the same.
B. “This Servant is bad” (…but they solve one specific boss mechanic perfectly)
Niche counters can be more valuable than generalists in certain events.
C. Your roster changes everything
A-tier Servant + perfect support can outperform an S-tier Servant with no support. That’s why supports get ranked so high.
XIII. Common Questions (FAQ)
Q1: Who is the best all-around Servant in FGO?
If you mean “best account upgrade,” it’s usually a top support, not a DPS—because supports multiply your entire roster.
Q2: Should I roll supports or damage dealers?
Supports first, unless you have a specific love or need. One strong support can upgrade ten DPS you already own.
Q3: Are 3-star Servants viable long term?
Yes. Some are legitimately excellent when invested correctly, especially for utility and survival roles.
Q4: How often does the meta change?
Not weekly like some games. Meta shifts happen when:
major supports arrive
new farming node formats appear
buffs/strengthenings reshape older kits
Q5: JP vs NA—should I plan ahead?
If you’re on NA, planning is one of your biggest advantages because you can “see the future.” Just don’t let planning ruin your enjoyment.
XIV. My Practical “If You Only Do Three Things” Checklist
If you want the fastest real improvement from this fate grand order tier list, do this:
Prioritize 50%+ NP charge supports (your farming quality-of-life skyrockets)
Build one consistent AoE farmer (events become painless)
Build one CQ survival shell (Mash + defensive support + a reliable DPS)
That’s it. That’s the foundation that keeps you from feeling broke and stuck.
A fate grand order tier list is only useful if it helps you make decisions you won’t regret six months later. And in FGO, the most “meta” thing you can do isn’t chasing every shiny new DPS—it’s building a roster that farms efficiently, survives gimmicks, and adapts when the game throws weird mechanics at you.
If you take one message from this guide, take this: supports are your account’s engine, and farming consistency is what funds everything else. Once your farming is stable, you can invest in favorites guilt-free—because you’ll actually have the QP and mats to do it.