Best Arc Raiders guns and weapons meta tier list (March 2026)

The best Arc Raiders guns and weapons in the meta are all laid out in the tier list below, which we regularly check and update to ensure that balance and power hasn't changed - and more importantly, to ensure that all the S-tier weapons are still very much at the top of the charts.

Arc Raiders weapon tier list is a bit different from most games, as the fact that you have to acquire (and can then potentially lose) means that any guns you get have to justify their availability and cost in resources. A gun that's theoretically strong has to be strong enough to justify the fact that it's super rare and expensive to craft yourself, if you even can! In the wake of the Headwinds update, we'll explain how powerful every weapon is in our full Arc Raiders weapon tier list, with all the best guns laid out and ranked accordingly.

Best guns tier list

Below we've rated all the Arc Raiders weapons in a full tier list, up to date for the current meta.

• S-tier
  • Ferro
  • Kettle
  • Anvil
• A-tier
  • Stitcher
  • Burletta
  • Renegade
  • Tempest
  • Equalizer
  • Jupiter
  • Aphelion
• B-tier
  • Il Toro
  • Venator
  • Arpeggio
  • Torrente
  • Vulcano
  • Bobcat
  • Bettina
• C-tier
  • Rattler
  • Osprey
  • Hullcracker
• D-tier
  • Hairpin

We've ranked these weapons according to numerous criteria that fundamentally take a broad "payment versus payoff" approach, wherein rarer, more expensive weapons (like the Aphelion) need to provide a suitably superb payoff. For example, the Venator is, strictly speaking, a bit better than the Burletta in terms of pure numbers, even after being nerfed, but the Burletta's a lot easier to acquire or craft and still gives a strong performance.

Ultimately, here are the factors we take into consideration when ranking the weapons on our tier list:

• PvP performance. How well the weapon works in fights against other players. Speed of use, headshot damage, and short reload times are generally important here.
• PvE performance. How well the weapon works in general against Arc robots. Armor piercing, range, knockback, and ammo conservation matter here.
• Affordability. How expensive in terms of components the weapon is to craft, how rare the Arc Raiders blueprints for it are, how much it costs to buy from merchants, or how likely you are to find one in-game. A gun that's expensive to craft needs to justify that expense, and to be worth risking losing when you take it out.
• Community response. Obviously we test weapons ourselves, but we make sure to look at community trends in the meta for insight and feedback that informs our thoughts, as well as looking at commonly used weapons to see what players are most likely to be up against in PvE - for example, the current popularity of the Kettle.
• Best build. We're judging these weapons at their best - fully upgraded, as well as what they're capable of with the right attachments to compensate for their flaws. The meta doesn't really deal in second-tier options, after all.

It's all well and good bringing along the best guns you have for a run, but keeping stocked up is key to survival and extracting, so make sure you know how to call in Arc Raiders supply drops. You don't want to burn through ammo too fast.

S Tier weapons

• Ferro: Common, Battle Rifle, Heavy Ammo
  • This basic bolt action rifle is still a powerhouse, great against Arc and incredibly cheap to make. It also serves as probably the game's best long-range weapon, able to make precision headshots and target weak points without issues. The slow fire rate is the big downside, but if you can open a firefight with a headshot, you can just switch to your second gun and wrap up easily.
• Kettle: Common, Assault Rifle, Light Ammo
  • Incredibly strong in PvE and costing peanuts to craft, the Kettle thrives as a mid-to-close range weapon if you can master its recoil and focus on the target. The developers keep hitting it with gentle nerfs to try and bring it under control, like lowering its damage to 8.5 in Shrouded Sky down from 10, but it's still a beast - for now.
• Anvil: Uncommon, Pistol, Heavy Ammo
  • The Anvil is a pistol you’ll always want to bring with you for back up. It’s a single-action hand cannon that deals impressive damage, especially with headshots, and can shatter ARC enemies’ armor with ease. Not only that, but its solid range makes it a good weapon in most situations.

A Tier weapons

• Stitcher: Common, SMG, Light Ammo
  • This Stitcher was nerfed in Shrouded Sky, but not to the point of knocking it out of the A-tier. Now its damage has been lowered and bloom increased, it's a little lower in the rankings, but still very strong as SMGs go.
• Burletta: Uncommon, Pistol, Light Ammo
  • The Burletta is perfectly fine, a middle-of-the-road weapon that serves nicely in many encounters and has a general universality to it. It's a good choice if you're not sure what else to bring, and can be very strong in the quick-draw shooting matches of PvP - though it won't crack Arc armor.
• Renegade: Rare, Battle Rifle, Medium Ammo
  • This Western lever action rifle is a good, versatile alternative to the Ferro that's a bit more built for medium range and PvP. Ideally you'll want to be firing from an elevated position, but if you can land your headshots, you'll do major damage.
• Tempest: Epic, Assault Rifle, Medium Ammo
  • Another weapon that's generally universal, the all-purpose Tempest blasts down targets, but is pretty expensive to craft. Unlike its cousin, the Bettina, this one is more suited to PvP, as it has better control, is less ammo intensive, and worse armor penetration.
• Equalizer: Legendary, Special, Energy Clips
  • This minigun made from parts of the Queen is very powerful, but not quite powerful enough to justify the absurd steps needed to get it. It shreds armor and can work wonders against Arc, especially as it has a good range, but it's too slow against other players, meaning you're very likely to lose that gun you spent so long working towards.
• Jupiter: Epic, Sniper Rifle, Energy Clips
  • The game's best Sniper Rifle was just buffed into the A-tier, with a better zoom and handling to make it more viable in battle. There's no gun with headshot damage like this, making it great for targeting weak spots - though its so expensive to make, it's hard to justify as a regular thing.
• Aphelion: Legendary, Battle Rifle, Energy Clips
  • You'll need to kill a Matriarch to build the Aphelion, which again, isn't quite powerful enough to justify the absurd lengths needed to get it. Still, a recent buff has brought it up a notch to focus on PvP play, giving it better handling and rate of fire. If you want to risk a very costly weapon, you could do very well with this.

B Tier weapons

• Il Toro: Uncommon, Shotgun, Shotgun Ammo
  • A slow fire rate and crappy range balance out the Il Toro's pure power and spread. It thrives in cramped maps like Stella Montis, but out in Spaceport or the Dam Battlegrounds, it really only has power when you find your way into buildings, and there are certainly more deadly close quarters options. Still, ambushing a player with an Il Toro headshot is a way to basically guarantee victory for yourself.
• Arpeggio: Uncommon, Assault Rifle, Medium Ammo
  • Meh. The Arpeggio is fine and unremarkable, using burst fire to do average damage at average range with average results. You'll want to get attachments that focus its fire to spec it for longer distances, as there's really not much purpose to having this gun indoors. Ultimately, the Arpeggio just lacks teeth, especially when it comes to PvE.
• Venator: Rare, Pistol, Medium Ammo
  • The Venator's damage was lowered in 1.17.0, and right now it's clear that this is gun that does well in PvP, with good headshot damage, but lacks the armor penetration for anything but low level Arc skirmishes.
• Torrente: Rare, LMG, Medium Ammo
  • This handheld LMG is made for PvE, reducing Arc robots to shrapnel, but it's slow and inaccurate, meaning that it can be difficult to find the advantage against players. However, if you can get the jump on somebody, your initial attack will be hugely damaging - just keep in mind that this thing drinks ammunition like it's water.
• Vulcano: Epic, Shotgun, Shotgun Ammo
  • Shotguns struggle to find their niche, as the expensive Vulcano is barely better than the Il Toro, and suffers from the same problems. It has poor range, a poor fire rate, and can't break armor, though in cramped player matches it can do some serious damage.
• Bobcat: Epic, SMG, Light Ammo
  • The Bobcat is good, but barely better than the Kettle or Stitcher, which isn't ideal considering that it's so much harder to get. This thing has a real kick to it too, so make sure that you're adding attachments that reduce recoil for controlled fire.
• Bettina: Epic, Assault Rifle, Heavy Ammo
  • This AR is slower and punchier than most, designed for PvE fights against Arc's heavier minions. The downside is that it consumes Heavy Ammo and consumes it fast, so make sure you bring in enough to keep it running.

C Tier weapons

• Rattler: Common, Assault Rifle, Medium Ammo
  • Cheap to make and still hardly worth the price, the Rattler lacks punch and feels ill-suited to most combat encounters except those with the most basic Hornets and Wasps. Though it has decent armor penetration, this is an early game weapon waiting to be traded out for something better.
• Osprey: Rare, Sniper Rifle, Medium Ammo
  • Long range combat is nice in theory, but the Osprey isn't accurate or powerful enough to meet the needs of most players. You'll struggle to kill Arc enemies with its average armor penetration, and players are too evasive to be easily killed before they find cover. It can work as covering fire for allies on the ground or to weaken foes from stealth, but that's about it.
• Hullcracker: Epic, Special, Launcher Ammo
  • What used to be a powerful weapon is the victim of patches that have left it far less impressive. This grenade launcher-like weapon can still do a decent job of peeling armor from enemies like the Arc Raiders Bastions, but it's inaccurate and pretty terrible against other players, and you'll struggle to hit flying foes like the Rocketeers.

D Tier weapons

• Hairpin: Common, Pistol, Light Ammo
  • Even the description says it's "tricky in combat", which really isn't what anybody needs from... Y'know, a weapon. This pistol with a built-in silencer is just too weak to really bother anybody or anything that can threaten you, and any other gun would make a better substitute. Still, if you have one on you, try to use it as intended - for sneak attacks and headshots before swapping to a proper gun for actual combat.

Best weapons for PvP

These weapons are specifically suited to fighting other players in Arc Raiders - not that we would ever suggest you do something so horrible.

• Kettle
• Anvil
• Stitcher

These guns deal in fast use and quick damage without the need for armor penetration, capable of being quickly drawn and shredding opponents, especially in close quarters encounters where most players tend to see each other.

Best weapons for PvE

These weapons are better suited to fighting Arc robots - especially the heavier ones among them, like Bombadiers, Rocketeers and Bastions (among others).

• Anvil
• Ferro
• Renegade
• Torrente

These are weapons that are all about precision (especially at long range), high power, armor destruction and impact. Arc enemies are slower and more predictable than players, but they're also far more durable, requiring heavier firepower to break their metal shells open.

Arc Raiders free loadout: Running low?
How to revive in Arc Raiders: Don't fight alone
Arc Raiders Electromagnetic Storms: Weather check
Arc Raiders Hidden Bunker: Open the door
Arc Raiders field depot: Get some loot

Read moreRead less▼

View Deal

© GamesRadar+. Not to be reproduced without permission.