Best guns in CoD Vanguard Season 4 Reloaded: Every weapon ranked

Andrew Highton
CoD players carrying Vanguard weapons

Sledgehammer Games has stacked Call of Duty: Vanguard with a ton of incredible weapons for players to use, and we’ve gone through and ranked every Season 4 Reloaded gun, as well as ranked the top 10 weapons in the game.

At the end of the day, all guns in CoD: Vanguard have one job, to take down opposition players as efficiently as possible. Sledgehammer Games have done their best to make this possible by giving players a wealth of options to choose from.

From devastating Assault Rifles to speedy SMGs, there is pretty much something for everyone in Call of Duty: Vanguard, and we’ve taken it upon ourselves to go through the game’s weaponry and rank every gun in the game.

Best guns in Call of Duty: Vanguard ranked list

wade using a pistol in cod vanguard

Before we deliver an in-depth look at our top 10 Vanguard weapons ranked list, we will first quickly assign a position to all of the game’s current guns. As always, some guns are going to be meta monsters used by everyone, and some will be left to gather heaps of dust.

Here’s every main weapon in Vanguard ranked:

  1. M1 Bazooka
  2. Panzerschrek
  3. Panzerfaust
  4. Top Break
  5. MK 11 Launcher
  6. Klauser
  7. Machine Pistol
  8. 1911
  9. FS Fighting Knife (Katana, Sawtooth, Sledgehammer, Ice Axe, Skal Crusher, Push Dagger)
  10. M1 Garand
  11. Type 99
  12. Gracey Auto
  13. Type 11
  14. Einhorn Revolving
  15. Double Barrel
  16. SVT-40
  17. MG42
  18. Itra Burst
  19. Combat Shotgun
  20. DP27
  21. Ratt
  22. AS44
  23. NZ-41
  24. Sten
  25. Bren
  26. G-43
  27. KG M40
  28. Combat Shield
  29. 3-Line Rifle
  30. M1916
  31. PPSH-41
  32. Gorenko Anti-Tank Rifle
  33. M1928
  34. Owen Gun
  35. UGM-8
  36. Marco 5
  37. Nikita AVT
  38. Armaguerra 43
  39. Welgun
  40. H4 Blixen
  41. Bar
  42. Type 100
  43. Volk
  44. Kar98k
  45. Whitley
  46. STG44
  47. Vargo-S
  48. Cooper Carbine
  49. MP-40
  50. Automaton

CoD: Vanguard best weapons ranked

10. BAR

bar vanguard

The BAR is extremely similar to the Whitley as it is an absolute laser beam of a weapon. However, due to its Assault Rifle association, the BAR is lighter and thus easier to move around with. The one downside of this weapon is the slow fire rate which may annoy some players. It certainly shoots slowly but if you hit your shots there are few ARs that kill quicker.

9. Type 100

type 100 smg in cod vanguard

The Type 100 is a ton of fun to use as it’s a very solid weapon, and also has the potential to become even better than it already is.

The Type 100 kills incredibly quickly, and some players feel it’s the best SMG in Vanguard. Unless you’re using the game’s best attachments, we don’t feel it quite boasts the firepower that our best SMG does, we’ll come onto it shortly, but if you use it enough, then it might well be the best for you.

8. Volk

Volk Vanguard AR

The Volk rose to prominence during Vanguard Season 2 thanks to its viability in competitive Call of Duty. The Assault Rifle excels at medium-range gunfights, and as a versatile weapon, it took the CDL by storm.

Nerfs from the Vanguard Season 3 update did not hold the Volk back as they were quite minor. This weapon is perfect for the aggressive Assault Rifle player.

7. Kar98k – Best Sniper Rifle in CoD Vanguard

kar98k gun in cod vanguard

A weapon that will be familiar to long-time Call of Duty players, as the Kar98k has been a strong option in numerous games, and the same applies to Vanguard.

The key to the Kar98k’s unbelievable success is its speed, as its ADS time is terrific for such a long-range weapon, thanks to a major buff to Sniper Rifles. As long as you have an Ammo Box or extra ammo with you, then Vanguard offers a great deal more Sniper-friendly maps for you to go crazy.

6. Whitley – Best LMG in CoD Vanguard

Whitley LMG Vanguard

The Whitley LMG was a new addition to Vanguard as a part of the Season 2 update. With the correct attachments, this LMG is one of the most fearsome weapons in the game. Its minimal recoil and massive magazine capacity can torment multiplayer lobbies. The Whitley has legitimate two-shot kill potential which makes it the best Vanguard LMG around.

5. STG44

stg44 gun in cod vanguard

The STG44 only makes it to number five on our ranked list, and it’s very worthy of its spot, as most Call of Duty: Vanguard players will attest to.

Most lobbies will usually have several players using some form of STG44 loadout as it’s an incredible Assault Rifle. It has everything you need from an AR — superb damage range, awesome recoil control, and enough stopping power to make the enemy team cry. It’s a pretty much flawless gun. But why isn’t it first on our list?

4. Vargo-S

Best Vargo-S loadout Vanguard

Vanguard Season 4 Reloaded’s new Vargo-S pushes the popular STG44 to the fifth spot on this list. The Vargo-S is immediately deserving of a top five spot as it has legitimate two-shot kill potential thanks to the overpowered .30-06 20 Round Mags.

Unfortunately, this attachment makes the weapon so powerful that they’re likely to get nerfed soon. If the attachment does get nerfed, the Vargo-S should still be strong enough to crack the top ten but it will certainly drop out of the top five.

3. Cooper Carbine

Cooper Carbine AR

Much like the Welgun, the Cooper Carbine is a post-launch weapon that completely dominated the meta following its arrival during Vanguard Season 1. There isn’t much this weapon can’t do thanks to its excellent fire rate and damage output.

Some players prefer to use it as a close-range Assault Rifle while others value its aiming stability at long-range. Regardless of your preference, the Cooper Carbine will kill enemies incredibly quickly.

2. MP-40 – Best SMG in CoD Vanguard

mp-40 gun in cod vanguard

No, you are reading this correctly, the MP-40 is not our top weapon, and we’ll come onto that shortly. But the MP-40 is well-deserving of its second-place spot as it has all the necessary characteristics to make it the best SMG in the game.

It has a reputation for being unstoppable in previous Call of Duty games – looking at you World at War – and it retains this identity with ease in Vanguard. Very accurate, even over long distances, and if you manage to equip the optimal attachments, then it will shred through your enemies.

1. Automaton – Best Assault Rifle in CoD Vanguard

automaton gun in cod vanguard

Because the Automaton AR has all of the STG’s qualities with the bonus of being a tiny bit faster. The Automaton went from underrated to one of the most widely used weapons in Vanguard and it’s currently the best in Vanguard Season 4 Reloaded for great reason.

One of its most appealing traits is its easy-to-learn recoil pattern as even without attachments it only moves vertically. It’s very easy to use, very easy to score a ton of kills with, and for our money is the best weapon to use in Call of Duty: Vanguard.


That covers our extensive look at every weapon in Vanguard with a full ranking of them all. Even though there are over 50 weapons in the game already, we expect Sledgehammer Games to keep adding more with the Season 5 update.

For more guides and content on Call of Duty: Vanguard, check out the best Ranked Play loadouts for Vanguard Season 4 Reloaded.

Image Credit: Activision / Sledgehammer Games

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