Street Fighter 6 Best Characters [Top 10]
Learn about the Street Fighter 6 top ten characters that you should play based on difficulty & playstyle.
Choosing the best character in Street Fighter 6 can dramatically alter your gameplay experience. Picking the best fighter can give you a strategic edge, enhance your understanding of the game’s mechanics, and, ultimately, lead to more victories. So, let’s delve into who could be the SF6 best character for you & answer your “Which is the most popular Street Fighter 6 character” question.
- Street Fighter 6 features 18 total base roster characters, with 4 more planned to roll out as part of Fighter Pass 1 DLC.
- The characters in SF6 all have unique playstyles and difficulty levels.
- SF6 includes more aggressive characters like DJ and Juri, or characters focused on zoning/keep-away, like Chun-Li and JP.
- Some characters like Marisa and E. Honda are easier to use, while Juri and Chun-Li can be highly difficult to master.
- To choose the best Street Fighter 6 character, you must figure out your own playstyle and the amount of time you are willing to put in to master your favorite character.
SF6 Best Characters Comparison Table
Here is a table of the 10 strongest and most popular characters in SF6, a brief introduction to their playstyle, and their level of difficulty.
| S.no | Best For | Character | Playstyle | Difficulty |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | Best Character For Beginners | Ryu | Slow-pace, High Damage | Beginner |
| 9 | Best Damage Dealing Character | Marisa | Pressure, Armor, High Damage | Beginner |
| 8 | Best Sumo Based Character | E. Honda | Reactive, Unorthodox | Beginner |
| 7 | Best Zoning-Footsies Hybrid Character | Chun-Li | Zoning, Defensive | Advanced |
| 6 | Best Anti-Zoning Character | Cammy | Aerial, Rushdown, Pokes | Intermediate |
| 5 | Best Drive-Rush Character | DJ | Rushdown, Mixups, Pressure, Aggressive | Intermediate |
| 4 | Best Aggressive Rushdown Character | Juri | Rushdown, Pressure, Install | Advanced |
| 3 | Best Fundamental Based Character | Luke | Pressure, Mid-Range, All-Rounder | Beginner |
| 2 | Best Beginner Friendly Top Tier Character | Ken | Rushdown, Fast-Paced, Mixups | Beginner |
| 1 | Best Zoning Character | JP | Zoning, Set-play, Defensive | Intermediate |
10. Ryu
| Difficulty | Health Points | Forward Walk Speed | Backward Walk Speed |
| Easy | 10,000 | 0.047 | 0.032 |
- Why I Chose This: Beginner-friendly and is able to dish out massive amounts of damage.
Ryu is a popular choice for beginners in SF6 due to his balanced playstyle and ability to teach fundamental skills. He has classic moves like fireballs and DP’s, coupled with high damage, making him effective for newcomers. Additionally, his throw-loops offer pressure in both corner and midscreen situations. However, he may lack appeal for high-level players.
- Ryu does not stand out from the rest of the cast and has many bad matchups that put him at a disadvantage.
- His Denjin charge is way too slow for very little reward.
- Ryu has to sometimes sacrifice Okizeme to get the Denjin charge.
- His anti-fireball move is the tatsu, which is extremely unsafe on the block while being too slow to be effective.
- Ryu can be an amazing choice for beginner players looking to understand Street Fighter 6. However, a lot of the high-level players will expose Ryu’s weaknesses and make it harder for you to win.
- Ideal pick for learning the game’s basics.
- Has a balanced platstyle.
- Beginner friendly and does high damage.
- Has a plethora of weak matchups.
- Not as unique as other characters.
9. Marisa
| Difficulty | Health Points | Forward Walk Speed | Backward Walk Speed |
| Easy | 10,500 | 0.039 | 0.027 |
- Why I Chose This: Armor on moves, devastating damage, and not having any particular bad matchups.
Marisa is a powerful addition to SF6, focusing on dealing massive damage to opponents. She lacks bad matchups due to her ability to quickly two-touch with her high damage output. Her command grab punishes overly defensive players, and her Gladius provides armor, making her plus on block. Marisa’s simplicity in execution makes her suitable for players aiming for early wins. However, her weakness lies in inconsistent anti-airs, but her damage compensates for it.
- Devastating damage-dealing capabilities.
- Versatile.
- Has a command grab and armor on certain moves.
- Weak anti-air moves.
8. E. Honda
| Difficulty | Health Points | Forward Walk Speed | Backward Walk Speed |
| Easy | 10,500 | 0.045 | 0.025 |
- Why I Chose This: Provides moves that can win neutral situations as well as moves that can prove quite hard to anti-air.
E. Honda is a common sight in SF6 online matches due to his simplicity, making him popular among players. His Sumo Headbutt enables skipping neutral, anti-airing, and pressuring opponents simultaneously, reducing mental load. Additionally, his Sumo Smash is difficult to anti-air even for high-level players. However, Honda’s weaknesses, such as close-range pokes and a strong Drive Rush, are still debated among top players, despite his lack of major tournament wins in SF6.
- Sumo headbutt allows for free neutral wins.
- A strong beginner friendly character.
- Lacking close-range poking moves.
- Slow drive rush.
7. Chun-Li
| Difficulty | Health Points | Forward Walk Speed | Backward Walk Speed |
| Hard | 10,000 | 0.050 | 0.037 |
- Why I Chose This: This character’s mind-blowing mix-ups and fireball enable strategic approaches from behind.
Thanks to her versatility, Chun-Li is a favorite among many top SF6 players. She has one of the fastest walk speeds and some of the best fireballs in Street Fighter 6. Her game plan revolves around zoning and frustrating the opponent’s patience, which allows Chun-Li to DR behind her fireball and go on the offensive.
Here are some of Chun-Li’s strengths:
- You get an invincible reversal with Chun-Li to get out of tricky situations.
- She does not lack in mix-ups either, thanks to her overhead from the Serenity Stream stance.
- Although Chu-Li does not have traditional throw loops without a DR, she makes up for their absence with high-low mixups.
- Chun-Li’s walking speed combined with great jabs allows her to play footsies better than most of the cast.
- She gets safe jumps from most of her knockdowns, allowing Chun-Li to bait reversals while maintaining pressure.
- Her 5MK is a great one-button anti-air tool.
In Street Fighter 6, Chun-Li is considered to be one of the best characters. However, I think this is not true for beginner players because of the high amount of execution and spacing skills required to play Chun-Li.
- Versatile.
- Fast walk speed and strong fireballs.
- Great mix-up capabilities.
- Needs high execution for optimal play.
- Lacking strike throw mix-ups.
6. Cammy
| Difficulty | Health Points | Forward Walk Speed | Backward Walk Speed |
| Medium | 10,000 | 0.0505 | 0.033 |
- Why I Chose This: The versatility and the ability of this character to bypass zoners.
In Street Fighter 6, Cammy is without a doubt a contender for one of the best characters. She is the most fast-paced character thanks to her dive kicks. Cammy’s dive kick is likely the most diverse move in SF6. You can use it as a neutral tool to bait out an anti-air, an offensive tool to stagger or reset your pressure, and a defensive tool to punish throws or fake pressure.
Here’s what Cammy is good at:
- You can use her spin knuckles to go through fireballs. This makes her a great counterpick against zoners.
- Cammy has a relatively fast DR. If used correctly, it can be almost impossible to check.
- 2MK has a lot of range and is cancellable into DR or special moves.
- Cammy’s Hooligan allows for some nasty mix-up loops.
- She has an amazing 2HP that is +1 on the block, which leads to more pressure and mixups.
- Cammy gets throw loops in the corner without the need for DR.
- She objectively has the best level 3 in Street Fighter 6. It’s fullscreen, 9 frames startup, and goes through everything.
Cammy is extremely strong at all levels of play. She is also one of the few characters in SF6 with little to no bad matchups. If you enjoy fast-paced, rush-down characters, I suggest that you play Cammy.
- Fast-paced gameplay.
- Fast drive rush.
- Great walk speed and mixups.
- Versatile.
- Does low damage compared to other top tiers.
5. DJ
| Difficulty | Health Points | Forward Walk Speed | Backward Walk Speed |
| Medium | 10,000 | 0.043 | 0.032 |
- Why I Chose This: The fastest drive rush in the game which is almost impossible to check on reaction with great pressure on top of it.
DJ is another classic Street Fighter character. His main focus is putting opponents in pressure situations with all the various normals that are plus on the block. DJ also has the fastest Drive Rush in Street Fighter 6, which means you cannot check it on reaction.
These are all the things that make DJ strong:
- DJ has backsway, which is his most diverse move. DJ can use it to bait out reversals and mess up your spacing.
- DJ has a fake fireball, which he can use to bait out anti-fireball moves.
- His 5MP extends DJ’s hitbox and is + on the block, making it a great spacing and pressure tool.
- DJ also has a true invincible reversal.
However, DJ does have a few weaknesses. His level 1 is not fully invincible, which means that he has to wait until he has 2 bars before he can do a super with invincibility. Additionally, his anti-air DP is a charge input, which can make it difficult to anti-air consistently.
- Plus on block normals for great pressure.
- The fastest drive rush in the game.
- Great at baiting opponents using the fake fireball.
- No level 1 invincible super.
- Difficult charged anti-air input.
4. Juri
| Difficulty | Health Points | Forward Walk Speed | Backward Walk Speed |
| Medium – Hard | 10,000 | 0.047 | 0.032 |
- Why I Chose This: Great level 2 super, relentless pressure, and a low fireball which can prove useful against other fireballs.
When SF6 was first released, many players considered Juri to be one of the best characters in the game. However, as Street Fighter 6 progressed, players started seeing some weaknesses in her game plan, and she fell off. But I still think Juri is great because of her fast Drive Rush and unrelenting rush down.
- Juri’s 5MP is + on block and is her main pressuring tool.
- Her 5MK extends Juri’s hitbox beyond the hurt box, making it nearly impossible to interrupt.
- Juri’s level 2 gives her Reverse Beat and allows you to put your opponents in checkmate situations.
- Her fireball is low to the ground and can go under most of the other fireballs in SF6.
However, Juri undeniably has some weaknesses, especially against very defensive players. If Juri fights a zoner like Guile or even Chun-Li, her options become highly limited. If you’re not worried about a few bad matchups and want a fast rush-down character with a fireball, Juri is for you.
- Fast drive rush.
- Great pressure capabilities.
- Level 2 super allows for the reverse beat.
- Not great against highly defensive players.
- Lacks against zoners.
3. Luke
| Difficulty | Health Points | Forward Walk Speed | Backward Walk Speed |
| Easy | 10,000 | 0.047 | 0.032 |
- Why I Chose This: The defense this armor provides is second to none and the skills at max level provide great damage.
In SF6, Luke is also considered one of the best characters. This is mainly because of his solid game plan and how well he can execute the traditional shoto gameplay. Luke has amazing fireballs, great buttons, and an invincible DP. If you want a solid fundamental-based character who is also very cheap, Luke is the character for you.
This is what Luke does well:
- In my opinion, Luke’s best button is his 2MP. It allows him to poke, whiff punish, and maintain pressure because it’s + on block.
- Luke has the best level 1 in SF6, as it can punish fireballs from a distance.
- He has an amazing 5MK poke because that normal is very hard to punish.
- Luke has some of the highest damage in Street Fighter 6.
Luke is a popular Street Fighter 6 character in not just the beginner ranks, but also at top-level play. In Street Fighter 6, he has always been know to be one of the best characters.
- Fastest fireballs in the game.
- Great poking buttons.
- High damage.
- Lacks against highly aggressive players.
2. Ken
| Difficulty | Health Points | Forward Walk Speed | Backward Walk Speed |
| Easy | 10,000 | 0.047 | 0.032 |
- Why I Chose This: Top Tier character that has the potential to be the best character in the game.
Many professional Street Fighter 6 players consider Ken to be at least top 2. I cannot agree more. Ken is a beast when it comes to doing everything in Street Fighter 6. He is also a great character for beginner and high-level players alike. You simply cannot go wrong when picking Ken at the character select screen.
Here are some of Ken’s strengths:
- Ken gets meterless side switch combos from any hit, which can flip the entire flow of the match.
- He has an incredibly fast DR, which becomes almost impossible to deal with if you use his fireballs correctly.
- Ken’s Dragonlash can play neutral for you.
- His Jinrai high/low is potent at the highest level.
- Ken’s 2MK is only 7 frames, making it a great counter-poking tool.
- All of Ken’s supers are fully invincible.
If your goal is to simply win while playing an easy but fun character, Ken is for you.
- High damage.
- Great buttons for poking and pressure.
- Fast drive-rush and strong neutral.
- Lacks great zoning capabilities.
1. JP
| Difficulty | Health Points | Forward Walk Speed | Backward Walk Speed |
| Medium | 10,000 | 0.037 | 0.025 |
- Why I Chose This: The immaculate zoning capabilities on top of the high damage output.
JP is widely regarded as one of the most powerful characters in Street Fighter 6, with a versatile toolkit including set-play with portals, strong zoning tools, and a potent counter. His damage output rivals that of Marisa, and many professional players consider him in a tier of his own. While JP lacks bad matchups, his slow walk speed may deter players who prefer faster-paced characters. However, given the overall balance in SF6, JP is not necessary to win, and players can excel with various other characters.
- Portals provide great help in neutral.
- The best zoner in the game.
- No bad matchups.
- Great damage.
- Low walk speed as compared to other characters.
Other Honorable Mentions
Here are some other great SF6 characters that are also worth trying:
- Guile: A quite experienced character, but he has a limited range on regular strikes and also has slow walking speed.
- Blanka: A character with high mobility and unpredictability rate but sometimes he misses his attacks and faces the consequences.
- Dhalsim: His combos and pressure can be unpredictable because they depend on maintaining the ideal distance from your opponent.
My Opinion On The SF6 Best Character
I’ve personally played over 500 hours in Street Fighter 6 since its release and participated in countless tournaments. Here’s a link to my Steam profile and a screenshot of my hours in Street Fighter 6:
Playing at a high level, I have developed a deep understanding of SF6 characters. In my honest opinion, Ken and JP take the podium as the Best Characters in Street Fighter 6. I always find myself utilizing either one of the two whenever I’m in a serious game.
With this, I end up with my take on Street Fighter 6 best characters & you must have a clear-cut idea of which is the most popular Street Fighter 6 character. While fighting games usually do not have interesting lore, this Street Fighter 6 Plot guide contains some interesting facts & figures about the franchise that can make you inclined toward playing SF6. If you make up your mind to buy SF6, don’t be hasty & check first all Street Fighter 6 editions & what each offers.
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