Apex Legends Best Sniper Guns, Ranked Worst To Best
There’s nothing more satisfying than Knocking an opponent from several hundred meters away. Just ask anyone who uses sniper rifles in Apex Legends. Although experienced players make it look easy, it takes patience and skill to use these guns effectively. It’s impossible to just point and shoot, and expect to hit your targets. You have to be willing to lead your targets, and you usually have to account for the bullet drop at greater distances.
All of that aside, in the picture above, Wattson is holding only one of the sniper rifles available in the game. It’s important to note which one will serve you best in your current situation since not all sniper rifles are created equal. In this guide, I’ll discuss the stats of each sniper rifle and rank them from Worst to Best. While ranking these guns, I’ll take into account the current stats, nerfs or buffs to each gun for Season four. I’ll also consider the skill level it takes to use these guns. Because of this, their ranking may be lower than if I only considered raw stopping power or damage per bullet.
The Season Five update brought about a whole slew of changes to Legends, meta, weapons, and maps, but for this guide there’s really only a couple that needs attention.
Best Apex Legends Sniper Rifles, Ranked Worst to Best
#5 - The Triple Take
This gun isn’t hard to find on either World’s Edge or King’s Canyon, and it’s also the easiest to use. Because of its horizontal bullet path, it makes a great weapon for targets that are moving from side to side or zig-zagging to try and avoid taking damage from you. It’s most useful during the first encounters and quickly loses viability as the match progresses.
- Its fire rate is on par with the Longbow, which allows you to belt out multiple shots on unarmored opponents.
- It has a higher DPS than most of the other sniper rifles, but its damage values are much lower than its counterparts. Coming in at roughly 20 to 46 damage per round, you can see why the Triple Take is best to use in the early game circles.
- It works well in close range fights as sort of an improvised shotgun, especially with the Barrel Choke.
- This weapon is not ideal for long-distance targets, which is sort of a contradiction to the type of weapon it’s supposed to be. You can equip a Barrel Choke on this weapon, which can control the spread, but charging it requires a longer time period. This lowers the fire rate and creates more opportunities for your targets to move to safety.
- Unfortunately, this weapon’s potential is far outweighed by its flaws even if it is a fan favorite.
Weapon Details:https://apexlegends.gamepedia.com/Triple_Take
#4 - Kraber .50-cal
It’s important to note that the Kraber .50-cal is a powerful example of what snipers can be; however, its cons, which contribute to its low rank, are why it cannot be ranked higher. I’m sure there are many who would disagree, but let’s talk it over. The Kraber is one of three Legendary crate-only weapons in Apex Legends and as such its sheer power is unmatched. Well-timed headshots can inflict over 250 damage per round, even on Legends with the Fortified passive ability. It is a bolt-action rifle and has a default magazine of four rounds and it comes with eight backup rounds.
- It comes standard with a 6-10x scope giving the user flexibility to fire from great distances and out of harm’s way.
- It has the highest DPS out of all the ranked sniper rifles in this guide.
- Unfortunately, it also has the lowest fire rate of all the sniper rifles, which directly ties into its major flaws.
- Due to the nature of this weapon, each time the user fires, the gun requires chambering to fully reload, de-scoping (so losing sight of the target), as well as the animation time.
- This gun requires an expert skill level to master and therefore use effectively. This would most likely remove it from the average player’s arsenal since it is the most unforgiving gun.
- And like all Legendary crate weapons, there is no additional ammo to be looted, finding another Kraber your only option.
Weapon Details:https://apexlegends.gamepedia.com/Kraber_.50-cal_Sniper
#3 - Sentinel
This sniper rifle seems to be a new fan favorite in Season Four. It’s a bolt-action rifle that has the capability of doing the highest damage per projectile, except for the Kraber .50-cal. This undoubtedly puts it above the Longbow, at least in terms of damage and it does consistent damage on all body shots that hit their mark.
That would have been mostly true, before the Season Five update. The ability of the Longbow to increase its damage multiplier for headshots without using shield resources puts it above the Sentinel now.
- A slightly faster reload keeps you shooting longer.
- Like the Longbow, yet better (63-70), this sniper rifle has a higher damage per shot.
- Its bullets penetrate, allowing you to hit multiple targets.
- It can fully break Body Shield health and has 0% leg damage reduction while charged with a Shield Battery.
- Unfortunately, the Charged shots also are limited in that they don’t do additional damage, but they are effective on Fortified Legends.
- Without a decent sniper stock, this weapon switches slowly.
- This weapon is a horrible hip-fire option and is best used by ADS.
- Similar to the Kraber .50-cal, the bolt-action reload could cost you if you miss your target, though it’s more forgiving than its legendary counterpart.
Weapon Details:https://apexlegends.gamepedia.com/Sentinel
#2 - Charge Rifle
It’s one of the most powerful guns in the game, and it’s a sniper rifle. The Charge Rifle is a single shot beam, hitscan weapon that doesn’t need a slew of attachments to be effective. Since its introduction in Season Three, it’s been a menace to gamers who like to track their targets from distance and play up close and personal. Even at a distance, the rounds don’t suffer ‘bullet drop’, which makes cover a necessity when avoiding damage from this weapon. It has the longest range of any of the other sniper rifles and is capable of using all scopes. Surprisingly, it doesn’t have a history of nerfs; however, the option to equip a magazine was removed.
Season Five updates have dropped this gun down a rank, but it still holds strong. Its fire rate and DPS are the stats that are holding this weapon back, but if they buffed this weapon anymore, then it would be overpowered.
- A world-drop weapon that deals ticking damage of 3 (up to 45) and then a final blast of 45 damage at the end. That’s with only one round.
- It has 0% damage reduction to the legs.
- It has the fastest quickdraw of any of the sniper rifles.
- It has the longest range and 100% accuracy in the air whether on Jump pads or Jump Towers.
- It has a low magazine capacity of four and no chance for equipping a higher magazine.
- Only a single fire weapon.
- Reload time from empty can take nearly five seconds.
- Beam shakes when used as a hip-fire weapon.
Weapon Details:https://apexlegends.gamepedia.com/Charge_Rifle
#1 - Longbow DMR
A mid-rank sniper rifle that’s just as viable in Season Four as it was in Season Three. High magazine capacity and a fast fire rate make this a prime weapon for early game and mid-game circles. It has low recoil close range and is great at hip-firing if necessary. It has a more noticeable recoil at long-range distances and often curves to the left. It has the stopping power to Knock unarmored opponents and do hefty damage that will force your opponents to run the other direction.
Season Five brought back a favorite Hop-Up among veteran players of the battle royale. While the DMR saw a headshot multiplier reduction from 2.15 to 2.10, the Skullpiercer Hop-Up pretty much cancels that change out completely. By equipping the Skullpiercer, the headshot multiplier jumps from 2.10 to 2.5. The ability of the Longbow to increase its damage multiplier for headshots without using shield resources puts it above the Sentinel.
It’s also apparent that with these minor, but fundamental changes, the Longbow DMR has achieved its former glory as the best sniper rifle in the game. While the Kraber may have a better damage output, the Longbow is more versatile and user friendly. It has a faster reload than the Charge Rifle and Sentinel, and the magazine capacity can’t be beaten. As mentioned, it doesn’t require extra resources, minus the Hop-Up, to increase the headshot factor. Without a doubt, it should take the top rank in this guide.
- With a base magazine size of 6 and a maximum of 12, this sniper rifle has the capacity to put a lot of Legends down.
- It has flexible sight options allowing you to equip a 1x all the way to a 4x-10x Threat Detector scope.
- It has a comparable damage profile that is on par with the other sniper rifles in the game.
- As mentioned, it has impeccable hip-fire accuracy making it deadly up close.
- Its bullets can penetrate allowing you to hit multiple targets with one shot. A good example would be when someone is reviving a fallen teammate.
- Although it has a high capacity magazine, it is very attachment-dependent and it could take most of the game to achieve this weapon’s potential.
- It has a slightly higher fire rate than the Triple Take, but a lower DPS.
Apex Legends takes sniper rifles seriously and provides its players with many options to consider when picking one of them up. Each of them has their pros and their cons and it’s up to you to bring out the gun’s hidden potential. Not every rifle is the best suited for every situation and their shortcomings can mean the difference between victory and defeat.
If you and your squad like to use sniper rifles, I suggest each of you carrying a different one to maximize your chances for coming out on top. Feel free to share your thoughts on this guide. Do these weapon ranks make sense? Should they be arranged in a different order?
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