Support is one of the most played and beloved roles in Overwatch, and it’s not hard to see why. Each character carefully combines the potential to heal, provide utility and dish out damage. Gifting this role one of the most vibrant and varied play styles in the game.
But, despite Blizzard’s endless patches and tweaks, all heroes are not built the same. Some are simply more viable than others. So let’s break down which support heroes you should be playing as to achieve your potential.
Anatomy of a Tier List
A tier list ranks the characters from strongest to weakest. So you should always just choose S-tier characters, right? Not quite.
While the heroes at the top of this list certainly have some of the greatest potential, particularly in the current meta, that doesn’t necessarily mean they will always be the best choice for every situation. If you’re also curious about damage heroes, take a look at our Overwatch 2 DPS Tier List to see how the damage-dealing role compares.
There are many reasons why you may want to pick a hero from tiers other than s-tier:
- Your team comp may require a different style of healer.
- You may simply perform better as a different hero.
- A map or enemy comp may be particularly good at countering your pick.
- There may be stronger synergies with your other team mates.
Ultimately, Overwatch is a dynamic and incredibly well balanced game. All heroes are viable in the right situations, or in the right hands. But some characters find themselves more widely applicable – particularly in the competitive scene. If you want to play with the best competitive players, you can use Overwatch 2 Boosting to get there.
As such, this tier list will establish the heroes bests suited to high-level competitive play. But, always remember that good players know when to switch.
This Overwatch 2 Support tier list evaluates support heroes based on their performance in the current meta. Each hero’s placement considers their healing potential, utility, survivability, and synergy with popular team compositions. While this tier list offers a snapshot of the most viable support heroes, you’ll find detailed insights and strategies for each character below, highlighting what makes them stand out or where they might fall short.
S-Tier: Meta Defining
- Juno: Dominates the meta with exceptional healing output and team utility, paired with unmatched mobility via her glide boots and speed boost.
- Ana: A consistent top-tier pick offering powerful healing, damage, and utility through her Biotic Grenade and Sleep Dart, making her a cornerstone in both offense and defense.
- Kiriko: Highly mobile with immense healing potential and a game-changing Suzu ability. Excels in countering dive comps and pushing team engagements with her impactful ultimate.
A-Tier: Strong and Reliable
- Brigitte: A versatile support with passive healing and effective area control, ideal for protecting fellow supports and enabling close-quarters team comps.
- Baptiste: A hybrid healer with burst healing via his grenade launcher and damage-dealing capabilities. His immortality field and amplification matrix provide significant utility.
- Moira: A survivable support with high healing and damage potential. Her ability to evade and sustain herself makes her a reliable pick, especially for less coordinated teams.
B-Tier: Situationally Strong
- Lifeweaver: Brings exceptional utility, such as repositioning teammates and providing high-ground advantages, but requires team synergy and precise execution to maximize his kit.
- Lúcio: Offers invaluable speed boost and sound barrier for countering enemy ultimates, though his burst healing can fall short compared to other supports.
- Mercy: Highly effective with damage boost when paired with strong DPS heroes, but her healing alone lacks impact unless used strategically with a sniper or high-damage hero.
C-Tier: Challenging Meta Position
- Illari: Best suited for holding chokepoints and angles with her healing pylon. However, her effectiveness heavily depends on her ability to land precise shots for additional value.
- Zenyatta: A hybrid DPS/support with Discord Orb amplifying team damage. While powerful, Zenyatta’s lack of mobility makes him an easy target, requiring strong team protection to thrive.
S-Tier: Meta Defining
These are the current cream of the crop. Effective at keeping your team alive, while boosting your offensive potential to boot.
Juno
The latest support, Juno totally redefined the meta when she emerged. Despite seeing various nerfs since then – particularly to her ranged healing and damage output – she remained a top pick. And it’s obvious why.
Her healing output potential is huge, while her utility gives her the ability to reposition herself (with glide boots) while providing utility to the whole team via her speed boost.
Juno’s only weakness is to dive. Meaning she can be easily picked off if left alone. But if paired with another good support, Juno is top-tier.
Ana
Ah Ana. The most reliable support pick for years now. Ana’s potential is clear the moment you play with her. Not only are her healing and damage output seriously impressive, but her dart and biotic grenade offer incredible utility for both offensive and defensive plays.
This potential for powerful offence and defence resonates across the entirety of Ana’s kit, making her a formidable pick.
Kiriko
Blessed with speed, mobility and huge healing potential, Kiriko has become a core main healer. But her kit is worth far more than the healing numbers. Her ultimate is excellent for pushing forwards, while her Suzu can be game-changing – offering the potential to save your teammates from burst damage like enemy ults.
Because of Kiriko’s mobility, she is a particularly good pick for countering dive – as she isn’t easy to pin down.
A-Tier: Strong and Reliable
Brigitte
While certainly situational – mainly depending on your team comp’s togetherness – Brigitte has emerged as one of the strongest supports in Overwatch. Her ability to dish out damage and control space WHILE passively healing make her a game changer.
Although you won’t see much of brig in the lower ranks, the key reason she is such a top-tier pick in competitive games is that she is great at keeping her fellow support alive by denying enemy aggression. Pairing Brig with Juno, Ana or Bap makes for a seriously formidable support duo.
Baptiste
Somewhat akin to Ana, Baptiste shines at healing a closely-kit group of allies with his grenade launcher while dishing out damage on the side. Allowing him to work well as a primary or secondary healer.
The real reason Baptiste ranks so highly is his utility. His immortality shield can be a game-changer when used correctly. While his jump boots help to keep him out of danger, and window, although difficult to use, has good potential.
Moira
Love her or hate her, Moira can dish out some serious healing and damage, often becoming the first to gain ult on the team. The true benefits of Moira are her survivability. Thanks to her dash, grasp, and orb, Moira can survive most types of enemy aggression without any support, allowing her to assist the other support hero.
B-Tier: Situationally Strong
Lifeweaver
Packed with utility, Lifeweaver has the potential to shake up any moment of the game. Providing your team with high ground advantage, pulling heroes out of the fray and more. However, while his potential is huge, his kit can be hard to make the most of. Making Lifeweaver an incredibly effective pick IF you have the right map or the right team to take advantage of it.
Lúcio
While Lucio mains will still be searching for boops and solo kills, Lucio’s support capability is still there. Beat and speed boost have game-changing potential when used correctly to deny ultimates, reposition your team or totally steamroll the enemy.
Of course, Lucio can lack burst healing output making him a more effective secondary healer.
Mercy
Placing Mercy in B-tier may be controversial as she is so commonly picked. However, her potential is very dependent on your composition. While many think Mercy is effective due to her healing potential, truth is her best ability is damage boost. When paired with a sniper, your team gains the ability to one-shot most characters from across the map.
But, of course, you need your DPS to be landing their shots for that to work.
C-Tier: Challenging Meta Position
Illari
Often criticized for being quite one-dimensional, Illari is best used for holding angles and chokes. To get the most of her kit, you need your healing pylon to stay active as long as possible, even after your death. And, hate to say it, but you also need to be landing your shots to get picks.
Because of this somewhat restrictive kit, Illari is one of the less chosen heroes.
Zenyatta
Everyone’s favorite omnic monk, Zenyatta is an incredibly powerful DPS hero masquerading as support. Discord orb is one of the most powerful abilities in the game, and transcendence is not far behind.
However Zenyatta is always a sitting duck thanks to his non-existent mobility. So it can be very difficult to get a lot of value from Zenyatta unless your whole team plays around you.
Picking Your Support
As we’ve discussed, the best support hero for you will depend on your team’s needs, the map you’re on, and your personal playstyle. To stay informed on the performance trends, check out Overbuff’s support role statistics for real-time data. While the S-tier heroes on this list offer incredible potential, it’s wise to master at least 2-3 support heroes with diverse kits, ensuring you’re prepared for any situation.