Dead By Daylight: Strongest and Fastest Killers in DBD (2024)

With 33 playable Killers in Dead By Daylight, each possesses unique abilities and perks, but not all are equal due to patches and new character releases. Our ongoing tier list highlights the best killers in DBD, and is subject to updates as the game evolves, so check back for the latest rankings.

The Fastest Killer in Dead By Daylight

In our opinion, the Hag is the fastest killer in DBD. Sure, she by default has some of the slowest move speed in the game, but this is only to balance out the most ridiculous mobility and map control she gets under certain conditions.

If a survivor gets stuck in one of her traps, she gains the ability to immediately teleport to them. This makes her incredibly oppressive and able to jump between crucial points instantaneously. Not to mention that the Hag’s Waterlogged Shoe add-on increases her movement by 7.5%, giving her one of the highest base speeds in the game.

Best Killers in Dead By Daylight: Ranked

This list will cover S, A, B, C, and D Tier, in alphabetical order. We will start with the best killers in the game, and work our way to the bottom of the barrel.

You can also check out our Survivor Tier List here.

Hag Perks (Official Description)

• Hex: The Third Seal: The last2/3/4 Survivorsh*t with either yourBasic AttackorSpecial Attacksuffer from theBlindness Status Effect. The Hex effects persist as long as the relatedHex Totemis standing.
• Hex: Ruin: AllGeneratorsautomatically regress at100/150/200%of the normal Regression speed whenever they are not being repaired. The Hex effects persist as long as the relatedHex Totemis standing.
• Hex: Devour Hope: Each time aSurvivoris rescued from a Hook when you are at least24 metersaway,Hex: Devour Hopereceivesone Token (The Hex effects persist as long as the relatedHex Totemis standing).
  • 2 Tokens:10 secondsafter hooking a Survivor, gain a3/4/5%HasteStatus Effectfor the next10 seconds.
  • 3 Tokens: Survivors suffer permanently from theExposedStatus Effect.
  • 5 Tokens: You are granted the ability to kill all Survivors by your own hand.

Max Thompson Jr. – Hillbilly

Hillbilly looks like the old-school Texas Massacre-style villain. Sometimes he’s hard to maneuver with when he’s sprinting, but when you are experienced with him, Max can truly wreak havoc on the Survivor team and efficiently kill them one by one because it’s very hard to stop him once he starts gaining up on a Survivor.

Hillbilly Perks (Official Description)

• Enduring: ReducesPallet Stunduration by40/45/50%.
• Lightborn: TheAurasofSurvivorsattempting to blind you with a Flashlight are revealed to you for6/8/10seconds. Lightborngrants immunity from being blinded byFlashlights,Firecrackers,Flashbangs, orBlast Mines.
• Tinkerer: Whenever aGeneratoris repaired to70%, you benefit from the following effects: Triggers aLoud Noise Notificationfor that Generator, revealing its location, and Grants theUndetectableStatus Effectfor the next12/14/16seconds.

Rin Yamaoka – Spirit

Rin is a master of mind games and illusion. Hard to master, but highly rewarding if played right. She’s one of the fastest killers in the entire game. She can wander into the Spirit Realm, allowing her to pass through objects, but making it so that Rin cannot see Survivors, and Survivors cannot see Rin. In that state, all players must rely on sound more to determine the position of the enemy.

Spirit Perks (Official Description)

• Spirit Fury: Each Pallet you break magnifies the wrath of The Entity. After breaking4/3/2Pallets, the next time you are stunned by aPallet, TheEntitywill instantly break it. You still suffer from the Stun penalty.
• Hex: Haunted Ground: Two trappedHex Totemswill spawn in the Trial Grounds. When either Hex Totem is cleansed or blessed, allSurvivorssuffer from theExposedStatus Effectfor40/50/60seconds. The second Hex Totem will immediately turn into a Dull Totem.
• Rancor: You becomeobsessedwith one Survivor (you can only be obsessed with one Survivor at a time). Each time aGeneratoris completed yourAurais revealed to theObsessionfor5/4/3seconds. All Survivors’ locations are revealed to you forthree seconds. And once all Generators are completed:
  • TheObsessionsuffers from a permanentExposedStatus Effect.
  • You are granted the ability to kill theObsessionby your own hand.

Sally Smithson – Nurse

The Nurse is probably the slowest Killer. However, she has the Blink ability which compensates for this, but it is high-risk, high-reward and can severely slow you down if you do not play it right. Nurse is definitely one of the best Killers in the game right now, but very, very hard to master.

Nurse Perks (Official Description)

• Stridor:
  • Increasesthe volume of Survivors’Grunts of Painby25/50/50%.
  • Increasesthe volume of Survivors’ regular breathing by0/0/25%.
• Thanatophobia: Each injured, dying, or hooked Survivor incurs a stack-able4/4.5/5%penalty to all Survivors’ Repairing, Sabotaging, and Cleansing Action speeds, up to a maximum of16/18/20%.
• A Nurse’s Calling: TheAurasof Survivors, who are healing or being healed, are revealed to you when they are within a range of20/24/28meters.

Talbot Grimes – Blight

Received a bump to S Tier with this update. Indeed, it has a high skill cap and a somewhat bigger learning curve than Nurse

A Tier – Excellent Killers, But Less Optimal Than the S Tier Killers

• Anna – Huntress
• Bubba Sawyer – Cannibal
• Carmina Mora – Artist
• Frank, Julie, Susie, Joey – Legion
• Herman Carter – Doctor
• Kazan Yamaoka – Oni
• Nemesis T-Type – Nemesis
• Philip Ojomo – Wraith
• Pyramid Head – Executioner
• Tarhos Kovács – Knight
• The Xenomorph
• Albert Wesker – Mastermind
• HUX-A7-13 – Singularity (New killer!)

Kazan Yamaoka – Oni

Oni is an absolute monstrosity if you manage to injure many survivors since they leak blood orbs when hurt. Getting enough of these blood orbs powers you up so much that you can one-shot Survivors if you hit your skill shot.

Oni Perks (Official Description)

• Zanshin Tactics: TheAurasofBreakable Walls,Pallets, andWindows are revealed to you within24/28/32 meters.
• Blood Echo: When hooking aSurvivor, all other Injured Survivors suffer from theHemorrhageandExhaustedStatus Effectsfor45 seconds. Blood Echocan only be triggered once every80/70/60seconds.
• Nemesis: Any Survivor who blinds or stuns you becomes theObsession. Anytime yourObsessionswitches to anotherSurvivorby any means, that Survivor then suffers from theObliviousStatus Effectfor40/50/60secondsand theirAurais revealed to you forfour seconds. You can only beobsessedwith one Survivor at a time.

B Tier – Above Average Killers

• Adiris – Plague
• Caleb Quinn – Deathslinger
• Charlotte & Victor Deshayes – Twins
• Danny Johnson – Ghost Face
• Druanee, The – Dredge
• Ji-Woon Hak – Trickster
• Adriana Imai – Skull Merchant (New killer!)

Dredge

Dredge can teleport to a Locker, making it a very deadly ability when combined with the Darkness Revealed perk since you can very easily place yourself near a Survivor.

Dredge Perks (Official Description)

• Dissolution: Three secondsafter injuring aSurvivorby any means,Dissolutionactivates for12/16/20seconds. WhileDissolutionis active, if a Survivor fast vaults over aPalletwhile they are inside yourTerror Radius, TheEntitywill break the Pallet at the end of the vault, deactivatingDissolution.
• Darkness Revealed: In your presence, places once thought to be safe are perhaps the most dangerous. When you search aLocker, theAurasof allSurvivorswithineight metersof any Locker are revealed to you for3/4/5seconds. Darkness Revealedhas a cooldown of30 seconds.
• Septic Touch: Whenever aSurvivorperforms a Healing action while they are inside yourTerror Radius, that Survivor suffers from theBlindnessand theExhaustedStatus Effects. These effects linger for6/8/10secondsafter the Healing action is interrupted by any means.

C Tier – Average or Under-Average Killers

• Elliot Spencer – Cenobite
• Demogorgon – Demogorgon
• Freddy Krueger – Nightmare
• Sadako Yamamura – Onryō
• Amanda Young – Pig
• Michael Myers – Shape
• Evan MacMillan – Trapper

Freddy Krueger – Nightmare

Nightmare has a unique ability to trap the Survivors in the Nightmare realm once they fall asleep. He can also teleport to a Generator. Freddy Kruger is a great Killer for beginners as he’s fairly easy to pick up and wields great power.

Nightmare Perks (Official Description)

• Fire Up: Each time a Generator is completed,Fire Upgrows in power. Gain a stackable3/3.5/4%Action Speed bonus to picking up and dropping Survivors, breakingPalletsandBreakable Walls, damagingGenerators, and vaultingWindows, up to a maximum of15/17.5/20%.
• Remember Me: You becomeobsessedwith one Survivor. Each time theObsessionloses aHealth State,Remember Megains1 Token which Increasesthe Opening time of bothExit Gatesby4 secondsper Token, up to a maximum of8/12/16additional seconds. TheObsessionremains unaffected by this penalty. You can only beobsessedwith one Survivor at a time.
• Blood Warden: As soon as oneExit Gateis opened,Blood Wardenactivates. TheAurasofSurvivorsstanding within the Exit-Gate area are revealed to you. Once per Trial, hooking a Survivor whileBlood Wardenis active calls upon TheEntityto block the exits for all Survivors for30/40/60seconds.

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