COD Vanguard AR tier list - Every assault rifle ranked from best to worst

Call of Duty: Vanguard has officially launched and has attracted a large body of players eager to experience the immersive new features in the game. These features include brand-new maps, destruction mechanics and weather effects, perks, weapons, game modes and more.

For many Call of Duty fans, all of this content pales compared to the weapons they will use to shred their enemies to pieces. That's why we take on the task of providing our readers with COD Vanguard weapon tier lists, ranking weapons of each class based on each weapon's stats and performance in the meta.

So without further ado, here is our list of the best assault rifles at the launch of COD Vanguard, ranked from best to worst.

COD Vanguard Assault Rifle tier list

Assault rifles are all-purpose guns and the most-used class in the game. Depending on the attachments and loadout used, they can be designed for a multitude of playstyles. 

Description of the tiers

• S-Tier: The best of the best. Even with mediocre attachments, these guns are powerhouses that will blast enemies into smithereens.
• A-Tier: These weapons are incredibly powerful and may closely rival weapons in the S-Tier if paired with the right attachments.
• B-Tier: The middle of the pack ARs COD Vanguard. Using the perfect loadout allows you to compete with players boasting the A-Tier weapons. These are great for specific situations or playstyles. 
• C-Tier: These ARs shouldn't be your primary weapon and should be used circumstantially with another weapon or require adept level skill to shine.
• D-Tier: This is labelled the "trash tier" weapons list. You should not include ARs in this tier in your loadout at all.

AR tier list

There are currently only seven assault rifles in COD Vanguard. We have yet to see how the AS44 and Fedorov Avtomat will perform and have, therefore, left these weapons unranked for now.

Accordingly, while we endeavour to always keep our tier lists as accurate as possible, keep in mind that these tier lists aren't an exact science.

The developers Treyarch and Sledgehammer Games are expected to release new weapons and nerf or buff certain weapons in the future. When this occurs, we will update this list. Below, all seven assault rifles in COD Vanguard are ranked from best to worst.

S-Tier

• STG 44

The STG44 is a brute of an assault rifle, packing serious damage, low time-to-kill, and great recoil control. This assault rifle also demonstrated a fantastic effective damage range, which makes it perfect in mid-range combat.

It's a no-brainer that the STG44 is the strongest and most broken weapon in the game. But, to put the cherry on top, the STG44 is also highly versatile and balanced, which means that it can be built to match any play style.

A-Tier

• Volk
• BAR

The Volk and BAR are fantastic weapons that don't necessarily require an optimised loadout. However, paired with the right attachments, the Volk and BAR could closely rival some of the best weapons in COD Vanguard, like the STG44.

For example, the Volk demonstrates serious damage and has one of the fastest TTKs out of any weapon in the game. However, the Volk is held back by its heavy and unpredictable recoil. Therefore, equipping your loadout with attachments to attenuate this con could enable you quite literally to shred enemies into pieces.

On the other hand, the BAR has a low fire rate but packs immense damage potential. This makes the BAR less viable for aggressive, close-range engagements; however, it is perfect for holding angles or bursting enemies down long ranges.

B-Tier

• ITRA Burst

The ITRA Burst (or Breda PG 1935) is a 4-round burst semi-automatic rifle boasting decent accuracy and moderate damage. This makes it effective over long ranges. However, while the ITRA Burst can kill enemies quickly, you will have to land all the burst shots. Otherwise, if you miss a shot in burst, it's the slowest killing rifle in the game. 

C-Tier

• NZ-41

The NZ-41 was initially intended to substitute for light machine guns, which were in short supply during the war. Therefore, it makes sense why the NZ-41 isn't the higher up on this list. While the NZ-41 may be perfect for aggressive players given its high-damage rounds, it has poor recoil control, making it challenging to handle.

D-Tier

• None

Since COD Vanguard only recently launched, we feel like giving all ranked weapons on this list a fighting chance. Therefore, we have not demoted any of the assault rifles to the "trash tier" yet.

Unranked Tier

• AS44
• Fedorov Avtomat

So there you have it, our complete tier list for all ARs at the start of COD Vanguard. Do you disagree with our list? We don't care. To be even more disappointed, check out our other tier lists in our dedicated section.

• Read more: Best weapons in Vanguard beta: The strongest and most broken guns

For more Call of Duty content, be sure to visit our dedicated section filled to the brim with gun guides, news, leaks and much more.

Featured image courtesy of Treyarch.

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