Quick TakeArticle at a glance
- Current as of BoogardMG's September 24, 2026 tier list, reflecting the Season 4 balance patch that shipped August 3, 2026.
- Per BoogardMG's list, published to EventHubs on September 24, 2026 , S-tier — characters with "zero weaknesses" — is Ryu, JP, Sagat, Mai, Blanka and Terry .
- A-tier is the largest and most contested group this season: Elena, Guile, C.
The best Street Fighter 6 characters in the current Season 4 meta are Ryu, JP, Sagat, Mai, Blanka and Terry, per pro player BoogardMG’s September 24, 2026 tier list — with Ryu, Mai, Blanka and Terry the safest picks since they’ve held top tier since the season’s earliest rankings back in August.
Current as of BoogardMG’s September 24, 2026 tier list, reflecting the Season 4 balance patch that shipped August 3, 2026. Last updated September 24, 2026.
Season 4’s S-Tier: Who’s Actually Winning Right Now?
Per BoogardMG’s list, published to EventHubs on September 24, 2026, S-tier — characters with “zero weaknesses” — is Ryu, JP, Sagat, Mai, Blanka and Terry. That list has moved around some since Season 4 launched in August, but Ryu, Mai, Blanka and Terry are the four names that have stuck at the top across every major list published since — including an earlier August 31 tier list co-authored by pros Tokido, Mago and Gachikun. If you’re picking up Season 4 for the first time, those four are the safest investment.
A-Tier: The Congested Middle
A-tier is the largest and most contested group this season: Elena, Guile, C. Viper, Jamie, Luke and M. Bison. Luke and Jamie were actually called out as the patch’s biggest individual winners back in VesperArcade’s mid-August analysis, before later lists settled them into A- rather than S-tier once the wider cast adjusted around them.
M. Bison’s presence here is also a reminder of how deep Street Fighter’s crossover with comics and film runs — see our breakdown of the live-action Street Fighter movie’s second trailer for how the studio is handling his live-action counterpart.
What Actually Changed in the Season 4 Patch
Capcom’s Season 4 update shipped August 3, 2026, and a handful of concrete numbers explain why specific characters jumped. Those are patch-note-level changes, not just “good normals” — and they’re why this season’s tier lists look meaningfully different from Season 3’s. Season 4 has now been live for roughly 2 months, running from that August 3, 2026 launch through today’s September 24, 2026 rankings.
Luke’s Sand Blast now knocks down on counter-hit, opening real mid-stage pressure combos, and his standing MP was buffed for neutral poking. Chun-Li’s medium Tensho Kicks now build 4,000 Drive gauge, up from 2,000, and Lotus Fist’s block advantage improved from -3 to +1. Dee Jay’s Overdrive Machine Gun Uppercut jumped from +23 to +52 advantage on hit, and Kimberly’s Shuriken Bomb stock rose from two to three.
Yasmine, Season 4’s New DLC Character, Is Still Bottom Tier
Yasmine arrived alongside the Season 4 patch on August 3, 2026 as the first fighter in the Year 4 Character Pass. Every major tier list published since has placed her near the bottom of the roster — BoogardMG’s September 24 list groups her with the “quite flawed” characters, and the Tokido/Mago/Gachikun list from August 31 put her in outright F-tier. She’s a legitimate new option for players who want to learn her from scratch, but nobody serious is calling her a competitive pick yet.
Where Does the Bottom of the Roster Sit?
Yasmine, E. Honda and Lily round out the bottom of BoogardMG’s September 24 list. That’s consistent with earlier Season 4 rankings too — E. Honda in particular has sat near the bottom of every list found since the patch, suggesting his kit simply didn’t get enough out of the August changes to keep pace with the rest of the cast.
If you’d rather see how another Marvel-adjacent fighter’s launch roster shook out, our Marvel Tōkon: Fighting Souls tier list covers the same kind of early-meta shakeout, and our ranking of the best superhero fighting games covers where both fit in the wider genre.
| Tier | Characters |
|---|---|
| S | Ryu, JP, Sagat, Mai, Blanka, Terry |
| A | Elena, Guile, C. Viper, Jamie, Luke, M. Bison |
| Bottom | Yasmine, E. Honda, Lily |
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is the best character in Street Fighter 6 right now?
Ryu, JP, Sagat, Mai, Blanka and Terry make up S-tier on BoogardMG’s September 24, 2026 tier list. Ryu, Mai, Blanka and Terry are the safest picks since they’ve held top tier across every major Season 4 list published since August.
When did the Street Fighter 6 Season 4 patch launch?
August 3, 2026, following server maintenance that began the evening before. The patch added new character Yasmine and rebalanced several existing fighters, including buffs to Luke, Chun-Li, Dee Jay and Kimberly.
Is Yasmine good in Street Fighter 6?
Not competitively, as of September 2026. Every major Season 4 tier list, including BoogardMG’s September 24 ranking and an August 31 list from pros Tokido, Mago and Gachikun, places her near or at the bottom of the roster.
Is Terry Bogard still viable in Season 4?
Yes. Terry has been placed in S-tier or A-tier across every major Season 4 list found, including BoogardMG’s September 24 list (S-tier) and the Tokido/Mago/Gachikun list from August 31 (A-tier).
Why do Street Fighter 6 tier lists disagree with each other?
There is no single official Capcom tier list — only individual pro players and analysts publishing their own rankings through the season. Exact tier placement varies between lists, but the characters at the very top (Ryu, Mai, Blanka, Terry) have stayed consistent across nearly all of them.
