Best Brawlers to use in Brawl Stars

Supercell’s mobile game Brawl Stars includes almost 50 different Brawlers, and it can be daunting for beginners to chose which brawler to play depending on the situation. Some experience is needed to get a grasp of the game’s meta and all of its subtleties. Since gadgets and star powers were released, strategizing and customizing also became deeper.

If you’re saving your coins and don’t know who to level up or to main, here is a list of some of Brawl Stars‘ best Brawlers considering the last balance changes that affected them, their versatility, and skill cap. Keep in mind, though, that Brawl Stars is an incredibly well-balanced game. The modes and maps offer opportunities for many Brawlers to shine, so the most important thing is to play the Brawlers you are the most comfortable with and knowing how to adapt your choices.

The best Brawlers to use in general

Amber

Since she was released, Amber has been sitting comfortably in the highest tiers of the meta thanks to her unique basic attack and her strong damage over time. The firebreather can deal massive amounts of damage continuously and charge her super, which ignites a big area of the map.

She is viable in almost every situation and isn’t hard to play, although beginners might have to play a lot before earning her in random boxes since she has a legendary rarity. But players do get her, however, all of their coins can be spent to level her up and grab those easy wins.

Belle

The latest Brawler has rapidly found her place in the highest tiers of the meta. Belle established herself as the best sniper in the game, on top of Colt and Piper. She has a long range, her basic attacks bounce on targets and make her incredibly useful in choke points, and her super makes her target highly vulnerable.

She is strong both in average level and high levels of competition, as long as the players have a decent aim. Even though Supercell has made several efforts to make her more balanced, she’s still one of the best Brawlers at every level. Belle received two nerfs over the last two balance updates, first on her Star Power then on her damage dealt. Her passive, however, remains a strong asset that makes her good in almost every situation.

Stu

Shortly after his release earlier in the year, Stu has cemented himself as one of the strongest characters in the game. In this meta, which revolves around mobility, Stu is king. His super, Nitro Boost, charges up very quickly and offers him a dash to close gaps or escape bad engages.

With the Speed Zone gadget equipped, he can dominate a game with his team, who all receive a movement speed boost. In addition, he’s easy to obtain since he’s automatically unlocked upon reaching 10,000 total trophies. Although he received a nerf in late August’s balance changes, it only impacted his gadgets, and he remains viable. No other Brawler can match his mix of mobility, burn damage, and range.

Poco

Poco is currently the best support and healer in the game. On top of having every tool a support could dream of, he has been key to enabling tanks in Brawl Stars. If they’re still prominent, it’s majorly due to Poco’s help. His healing abilities are perfect and he has enough range to stay safe.

The musician is also strong because he’s very easy to play and his attacks pierce through enemies, making him viable in basically every scenario. In addition, beginners can unlock him easily since he has good chances of appearing in random boxes.

He outshines other supports in the game, but Pam and Byron also remain viable options to fill the same purpose. If Pam has the tools to keep her super safe, she’s incredibly useful. Byron, on the other hand, took Gene’s spot as a good support character since the latter received a heavy nerf in late August. Ultimately, it’s all about what you prefer based on your playstyle.

Max

Max is another good support due to her decent damage and superb mobility, which is very strong in this meta. Her base movement speed is “very fast,” the fastest category in the game, and her super grants her even more mobility by boosting her and her allies for four seconds.

She’s also a very fun support to play for those who like an aggressive play style—compared to Poco, who is played more defensively. The Brawler’s popularity remains, considering she is still unchanged by the latest balance updates.

Squeak

Since his release, Squeak has gradually replaced Barley, Tick, and other throwers who strive around multiple corners. Late August’s balance changes put the nail on Barley’s coffin with a buff to Squeak that made him top the popularity charts compared to those other characters. Those changes upgraded Squeak’s main attack with a boost in projectile speed and explosion effects.

Although the round attacker doesn’t throw his projectiles over the walls, which is the main advantage of thrower Brawlers, the explosion range of his bombs can reach the other side of the walls. He also boasts incredible area control with the range of the explosions, as well as a fast cooldown that allows Squeak to always have one bomb ready to explode on the map.

Another of Squeak’s strengths is that he remains useful even when other Brawlers have destroyed a part of the map’s environment. It’s not the case for throwers, who are defenseless in this situation. Due to his long range and straight projectile trajectory, Squeak still can deal some damage and defend himself against tanks, which makes him a great pick in pretty much every situation.

Buzz

Since his introduction in Brawl Stars last June, Buzz has been consistently picked by the players who unlocked him. He’s not that popular because it’s difficult to get the chromatic-rarity Brawler. He’s also not that easy to learn because his hook mechanic is unique in the game, but once the players get a hang of it, he becomes incredibly strong.

Buzz is the best tanky Brawler in the game for now. His auto attack deals decent damage in a large cone and his Super can change the tide of a game. It hooks on a target and stuns it for a short duration of time. Most times, it means instant death for the target. There aren’t many stuns in the game, which makes Buzz’s Super stronger.

Best situational brawlers

Edgar

Edgar remains popular in all the game modes that allow him to easily get in range without getting decimated first, particularly Showdown and Knockout. His popularity also increased after August’s balance changes buffed his solo-healing capacity, allowing him to survive more easily in close-ranged fights. Edgar isn’t that strong in maps with wide empty areas, however, so the players must be careful when picking him. In this playstyle, Bibi is also a very strong Brawler, so the players who didn’t unlock Edgar can pick her up too when they want to thrive in melee encounters.

Colonel Ruffs

Another support Brawler on this list, Colonel Ruffs is a hard-hitting support who can power up his allies thanks to buffs he drops on the map. He’s not that strong at every level, however. He’s mostly used in the highest tiers and in organized teams rather than alone. If his allies don’t know how to play around him, Colonel Ruffs loses a bit of his power.

Rico

Although he deals very strong damage, he’s in the situational section because he’s not easy to master. His main strength lies in his basic attacks, which have long range and bounce on environmental elements of the map.

When playing him, players will want to maximize his potential by using the bouncing effect rather than naturally looking for straight shots. He’s also harder to play in maps with wide areas, that’s why he’s picked more often in maps with choke points and walls.

Surge

Surge has become more popular recently. He’s the perfect counter to throwers, because he can teleport on the other side of the wall and get closer to them thanks to his gadget, Power Surge. It allows him to rush vulnerable opponents three times per round. Followed with his super, it can decimate the opposite team.

Since he has a very specific playstyle, however, he doesn’t fit in all kinds of maps. His super is also hard to use at its full potential, which makes him the strongest only with his Power Surge gadget equipped. Without this tool, it becomes too hard to hit targets with his Super. 

Leon

The hooded Brawler has been very popular in the past months, especially in Brawl Stars’ high-level competition. With his long-ranged main attack and increasing damage in melee range, he’s very versatile. But what makes him unique is his Super, Smoke Bomb, which allows him to become invisible for a short duration of time. 

Leon was put on the situational list because a crucial part of his strength lies in his gadget named “Lollipop Drop.” Upon activation, it allows him to “create a stealthy area for his team to hide in,” according to the in-game tooltip. If it’s used with tanks or skilled players, it can turn the tide of a game in a matter of seconds. Leon is a decent Brawler, but his gadget makes him exceptional. If you have yet to unlock it, it’s advised to pick other medium-ranged Brawlers instead of Leon to maximize your chances of victory.

Although the meta is beneficial to all the Brawlers listed above, players can still win games with any of them. The meta revolves around mobility and long-ranged fights, so short-ranged Brawlers like El Primo and Bull will require some skill to close the gap and grab the win unless you are in a composition with a good support Brawler.

It’s also harder to overcome a weaker strategy in Power League matches since they’re in a best-of-three format, which allows the teams to adapt to the opponents’ play style. Before heading to Power League matches, it’s a good idea to choose a selection of diverse Brawlers (like a support, a tank, a thrower, and a sniper), master them, and collect more trophies to strengthen them and maximize your chances at grabbing wins.