Blue decks are known for controlling the game in terms of card advantage and board advantage brought about by strategies that use counter spells to deal with opponent’s threats. This list compiles the best decks that use the blue mana to gain a lot of advantage at any point of the game. 

10. Bant Enchantments

Enchantment-based decks are pretty rare even in the previous Standard rotations. This type of deck introduces a different style of play to Standard. With the enchantments, you will be able to extract a multitude of advantages against the opponent. 

What this deck excels in:

• The current meta does not have enough answers against enchantments. This deck then becomes a powerful deck especially in Bo1 since not a lot of decks run enchantment removal in their main deck
• This deck provides a unique type of gameplay that can help break the monotony of constantly playing aggro or midrange decks
• This deck can be considered as a dark horse since it has the potential to be a really powerful deck with just a few more tweaks

Deck list:

• 1 Shigeki, Jukai Visionary
• 1 Kodama of the West Tree
• 1 Colossal Skyturtle
• 3 Azusa's Many Journeys
• 3 The Restoration of Eiganjo
• 3 Katilda, Dawnhart Martyr
• 4 Teachings of the Kirin
• 4 Jukai Naturalist
• 4 Rite of Harmony
• 1 Brokers Ascendancy
• 3 Witness Protection
• 3 Hallowed Haunting
• 3 Wedding Announcement
• 1 Otawara, Soaring City
• 1 Eiganjo, Seat of the Empire
• 1 Boseiju, Who Endures
• 1 Adarkar Wastes
• 2 Dreamroot Cascade
• 4 Spara's Headquarters
• 4 Forest
• 4 Overgrown Farmland
• 4 Yavimaya Coast
• 5 Plains

9. Dimir Control

Disruption and control, the hallmarks of a Dimir deck. This color combination has been attributed to heavy counters and disruptive spells that can damage the opponent even before their spells leave their hands.

What this deck excels in:

• Unlike the usual control that has a lot of counterspells, this deck focuses mostly on creature removal. It can permanently remove creatures or just bounce them back to their owner’s hand to buy time
• This deck runs Invoke Despair which is almost a must in any deck that uses black mana. This card is very powerful as it answers a lot of different threats

Deck list:

• 1 Undercover Operative
• 1 Hullbreaker Horror
• 2 Lier, Disciple of the Drowned
• 3 Sheoldred, the Apocalypse
• 2 The Celestus
• 4 Reckoner Bankbuster
• 2 Rona's Vortex
• 2 Fading Hope
• 3 Infernal Grasp
• 4 Cut Down
• 2 Invoke Despair
• 3 Duress
• 1 The Cruelty of Gix
• 2 The Meathook Massacre
• 4 Liliana of the Veil
• 9 Island
• 15 Swamp

8. Bant Tokens

Tokens are a unique concept in the current meta in a way that there are not a lot of people that recognize its power, thus, only a few run with this deck. This deck works due to the number of effects that provide +1/+1 to the creatures as well as token generators.

What this deck excels in:

• This deck combines the aggressive aspect of most creature decks with the midrange capability brought by the modifiers such as +1/+1 counters
• Getting The Wandering Emperor to stick for more than 1 turn opens up a lot of advantages to you
• In longer games, you get cards like Serra Paragon and Ao, the Dawn Sky to help you close out the game

Deck list:

• 1 Ao, the Dawn Sky
• 1 Sigarda, Champion of Light
• 2 Serra Paragon
• 2 Dennick, Pious Apprentice
• 2 Shanna, Purifying Blade
• 3 Katilda, Dawnhart Prime
• 4 Resolute Reinforcements
• 4 Hopeful Initiate
• 2 Tail Swipe
• 4 Join the Dance
• 4 Brokers Ascendancy
• 4 Wedding Announcement
• 3 The Wandering Emperor
• 1 Eiganjo, Seat of the Empire
• 2 Plains
• 3 Yavimaya Coast
• 3 Adarkar Wastes
• 3 Forest
• 4 Deserted Beach
• 4 Overgrown Farmland
• 4 Spara's Headquarters

7. Jeskai Control

This deck is a great version of control as it was created to address all the pertinent threats in the meta. From the amount of saves, board wipes, and card advantage, this can be your go-to control deck.

What this deck excels in:

• All pertinent threats in the meta can be answered by this deck
• Aside from countering most of the meta decks, it also brings a lot of firepower
• Lier, Disciple of the Drowned is a very powerful card as it essentially allows you to cast your spells twice since you can cast them again using Flashback. This is especially useful against recurring threats

Deck list:

• 2 Archangel of Wrath
• 2 Lier, Disciple of the Drowned
• 1 The Celestus
• 4 Reckoner Bankbuster
• 2 Fading Hope
• 2 Destroy Evil
• 2 Negate
• 3 Flame-Blessed Bolt
• 3 Abrade
• 2 Sunset Revelry
• 4 Temporal Firestorm
• 3 Teferi, Who Slows the Sunset
• 4 The Wandering Emperor
• 1 Sokenzan, Crucible of Defiance
• 1 Plains
• 1 Otawara, Soaring City
• 1 Mountain
• 1 Island
• 1 Eiganjo, Seat of the Empire
• 4 Wind-Scarred Crag
• 4 Sundown Pass
• 4 Shivan Reef
• 4 Adarkar Wastes
• 4 Deserted Beach

6. Azorius Midrange

An iteration of mono blue midrange, this deck uses cheap creatures and a multitude of ways to protect them until they finish you off with their overwhelming number. The MVP of these decks is Delver of Secrets which is essentially a one-drop 3/2 flier. 

What this deck excels in:

• Cheap in terms of wildcards since you only need 2 Mythic Rares and 2 Rares (excluding lands)
• Aggressive in terms of early damage output due to the low mana-cost of the creatures especially Delver of Secrets
• This deck has a lot of ways to dodge removal and board wipes since it can phase out and protect its creatures

Deck list:

• 2 Spectral Adversary
• 2 Faerie Vandal
• 4 Illuminator Virtuoso
• 4 Stormchaser Drake
• 4 Delver of Secrets
• 1 Boon of Safety
• 2 Fading Hope
• 2 March of Swirling Mist
• 2 Take Up the Shield
• 3 Shore Up
• 4 Slip Out the Back
• 3 Homestead Courage
• 1 Security Bypass
• 4 Combat Research
• 1 Otawara, Soaring City
• 1 Eiganjo, Seat of the Empire
• 2 Deserted Beach
• 4 Plains
• 4 Adarkar Wastes
• 10 Island

5. Azorius Control

Control is not always about countering every spell the opponent controls. Control means generating every advantage that you can until you become overwhelmingly ahead of your opponent in all aspects. This deck does that with its card draw, life gain, board wipes, and many more.

What this deck excels in:

• This deck is powerful in Bo3 matches but it can still hold its own in Bo1. Most of its power comes from its ability to adjust against the opponent’s deck during sideboarding.
• Sunset Revelry is an underappreciated card as it allows you a lot of advantages for just 2 mana
• Each card in this deck is geared towards extracting any type of advantage against the opponent

Deck list:

• 2 Ao, the Dawn Sky
• 3 Dennick, Pious Apprentice
• 4 Spirited Companion
• 4 Reckoner Bankbuster
• 1 Syncopate
• 1 Destroy Evil
• 3 Make Disappear
• 2 Silver Scrutiny
• 2 Farewell
• 3 Sunset Revelry
• 4 Wedding Announcement
• 2 Teferi, Who Slows the Sunset
• 3 The Wandering Emperor
• 1 Otawara, Soaring City
• 1 Eiganjo, Seat of the Empire
• 2 Skybridge Towers
• 2 Adarkar Wastes
• 4 Deserted Beach
• 4 Tranquil Cove
• 5 Island
• 7 Plains

4. Mono Blue Delver

This deck is an instant-heavy deck that features a lot of counterspells. With these spells, it can easily fill up the graveyard with instants and allow Haughty Djinn to maximize its attacking power.

What this deck excels in:

• This deck is a great combination of aggressive creatures and control-based noncreature spells. With the number of counterspells, this deck can deal with a lot of threats even against top meta decks
• Haughty Djinn allows you to cast your instants more easily since it costs 1 less to cast for each Haughty Djinn in the battlefield
• The Djinn also increases you attacking power as the game progresses since you get to cast more instants

Deck list:

• 1 Ledger Shredder
• 1 Tolarian Terror
• 2 Faerie Vandal
• 4 Haughty Djinn
• 1 Essence Scatter
• 1 Syncopate
• 2 Essence Capture
• 2 March of Swirling Mist
• 3 Make Disappear
• 3 Ertai's Scorn
• 3 Impulse
• 3 Thirst for Discovery
• 3 Negate
• 4 Consider
• 4 Fading Hope
• 2 Combat Research
• 1 Otawara, Soaring City
• 21 Island

3. Izzet Control

Izzet Control is a typical control deck that uses counterspells and removal/burn spells to deal with the opponent’s threat. It is a great deck in the meta due to its ability to deal with most of the major threats that are present in prevalent Midrange decks such as Rakdos and Mono-Black. 

What this deck excels in:

• Powerful counterspells and removal spells can help protect you in the early stages of the game so you get to set up your board
• Flexible gameplay since it can turn into an aggressive deck against slower opponents

Deck list:

• 1 Hullbreaker Horror
• 1 Wandering Mind
• 2 Lier, Disciple of the Drowned
• 4 Fable of the Mirror-Breaker
• 1 The Celestus
• 2 Reckoner Bankbuster
• 1 Negate
• 1 Abrade
• 2 Make Disappear
• 2 Fading Hope
• 2 Memory Deluge
• 4 Flame-Blessed Bolt
• 4 Fires of Victory
• 4 Consider
• 1 Invoke the Winds
• 2 Temporal Firestorm
• 1 Sokenzan, Crucible of Defiance
• 1 Otawara, Soaring City
• 4 Stormcarved Coast
• 4 Swiftwater Cliffs
• 4 Shivan Reef
• 5 Mountain
• 7 Island

2. Esper Midrange

This deck is a fantastic counterbalance to the typical midrange and aggro Rakdos/Mono Black decks. It gets more potent in the early game due to its capacity to out-counter and out-remove the majority of decks. This deck can produce as much card and board advantage as possible thanks to the white and blue mana.

What this deck excels in:

• Cards like Ao, Kaito Shizuki, and the Wandering Emperor, all of which offer various benefits to you, are included in a unique midrange deck list.
• This deck now has blue mana, allowing you to add extra counterspells to your sideboard, which is quite helpful in Bo3 matches.

Deck list:

• 3 Cut Down
• 1 Spell Pierce
• 2 Make Disappear
• 1 Negate
• 2 Tenacious Underdog
• 2 Infernal Grasp
• 2 Reckoner Bankbuster
• 1 The Meathook Massacre
• 2 Resolute Reinforcements
• 4 Raffine, Scheming Seer
• 4 Raffine's Tower
• 4 Wedding Announcement
• 1 Sheoldred, the Apocalypse
• 4 The Wandering Emperor
• 3 Ao, the Dawn Sky
• 1 Kaito Shizuki
• 3 Adarkar Wastes
• 4 Shipwreck Marsh
• 3 Shattered Sanctum
• 3 Caves of Koilos
• 2 Eiganjo, Seat of the Empire
• 2 Otawara, Soaring City
• 1 Takenuma, Abandoned Mire
• 3 Deserted Beach
• 1 Phyrexian Missionary
• 1 Rona's Vortex

1. Grixis Midrange

Grixis is a variant of the well-known and potent Black Midrange deck that introduces a more control-oriented style of gameplay thanks to the inclusion of blue mana. You can play cards like Ertai Resurrected with blue mana, which is a terrific approach to counter your opponent's threats.

What this deck excels in:

• Being able to block an opponent's spell is incredibly helpful, especially considering that the bulk of games will involve midrange decks.
• A fantastic technique to break a deadlock against other decks that are designed for the later stages of the game is to use Rona's Vortex to delay the opponent's strategy.

Deck list:

• 3 Tenacious Underdog
• 3 Sheoldred, the Apocalypse
• 3 Ertai Resurrected
• 4 Bloodtithe Harvester
• 4 Fable of the Mirror-Breaker
• 4 Corpse Appraiser
• 2 Reckoner Bankbuster
• 2 Rona's Vortex
• 2 Fires of Victory
• 3 Voltage Surge
• 2 Soul Transfer
• 2 The Meathook Massacre
• 1 Mountain
• 1 Takenuma, Abandoned Mire
• 1 Sokenzan, Crucible of Defiance
• 1 Otawara, Soaring City
• 2 Swamp
• 2 Stormcarved Coast
• 3 Shivan Reef
• 3 Sulfurous Springs
• 4 Shipwreck Marsh
• 4 Xander's Lounge
• 4 Haunted Ridge

You may also be interested in:

• The 10 Best MTG: Arena Decks
• MTG Arena Guide, Tips and Tricks
• MTG Arena Best Packs To Buy – A Guide for Beginners and Intermediate Players
• MTG Arena: Best Ways to Get Cards
• Top 15 Best MTG Arena Mythic Rares
• MTG Arena Ranking System Explained
• The Best Singleton Decks in MTG Arena