MHW Weapon Tier List: Best Solo & Multiplayer Weapons [2023] (2024)

Monster Hunter World is an RPG that lets players hunt down different monsters. They are allowed to choose from a wide range of different weapons. However, not every weapon is well-suited for every player. This is mainly because all weapons are unique in their own way. All of them have their own advantages and disadvantages.

Therefore, it can get a little confusing to decide which weapon can help you take down a powerful monster quickly. For this reason, we are going to write down an MHW weapon tier list.

Comparison Table

Here’s a quick look at each category along with their preferred mode and best weapon in MHW:

Our tier list below is going to focus on weapons for both solo play and multiplayer. We are going to list the weapons in five different tiers. We will also list the advantages and disadvantages of each weapon to further help you out. Here is the summary:

S-Tier

These are the most powerful weapons in Monster Hunter World. There isn’t any weapon better than them.

Great Sword (Solo)

The first weapon in the solo section of our MHW weapon tier list is the Great Sword. The reason why it’s mentioned in the S-Tier category is that the Great Sword offers the highest per-hit damage in the game. This alone makes it one of the strongest weapons to use against monsters. In fact, you can take down a powerful enemy in only a few hits with this weapon. The only thing which most players don’t like about it is its slow speed. However, its amazing range and the amount of damage it deals overshadow these flaws.

Although you will need to spend some time trying to learn how to control this weapon, the effort will be worth it. Once you have properly learned everything about the Great Sword in Monster Hunter World, no one will be able to stop you from going on a killing spree.

Heavy Bowgun (Solo)

The second weapon we would like to mention is the Heavy Bowgun. Without a single doubt, this weapon is the best-ranged weapon in Monster Hunter World. This is because no other weapon allows you to deal such a huge amount of damage while staying at a safe distance from the enemy. The only downside about the Heavy Bowgun is its low mobility, but that shouldn’t be a problem if you know how to keep the monster at a specific place. In addition to this, while mastering this weapon, it will be wise to learn how much damage it does at certain ranges.

Some players do complain about the Heavy Bowgun having a low ammo capacity, but you can simply visit the camp from time to time to restock the ammo.

Similar Tier Lists: Smite Tier List

Heavy Bowgun (Multiplayer)

The Heavy Bowgun was already one of the best weapons for solo play, and it does not shy away in multiplayer as well. In fact, you can call it the best weapon in Monster Hunter World. This is mainly because it offers amazing damage output and allows you to target your enemies from a safe distance. In multiplayer, when you’re team is busy bringing the attention of the monster towards them, you can use this chance to aim properly toward its weak point and deliver a powerful blow. In short, this weapon will never let you become a burden on your teammates.

Light Bowgun (Multiplayer)

The second weapon we would like to mention in the co-op section of our MHW weapon tier list is the Light Bowgun. You already know how it works in solo play. As for multiplayer, because of its amazing mobility, you can stay in the front with your teammates and help them take down the targets quickly and easily. While they use swords and other close-range weapons to eliminate the threat, you can stay at a relatively safe distance and fire your shots quickly.

A-Tier

A-Tier weapons in our MHW weapon tier list are extremely powerful and can help you take down powerful monsters quickly.

Hammer (Solo)

If you’re someone who likes to stay close to the enemy, then the Hammer is something you should carry around. This is because just like the Great Sword, the Hammer is also a weapon that does a lot of damage with each hit. Its high base damage is something that makes it one of the most hard-hitting weapons in Monster Hunter World. The only downside about it is that in order to take down the monster quickly, you will need to land most of the attacks on its heads. Otherwise, you won’t be doing much.

In any case, if you’re looking for a weapon that can help you become Thor in Monster Hunter World, then this weapon is for you. It might have its flaws, but you won’t notice them after you master it.

Switch Axe (Solo)

The reason why this weapon is called the Switch Axe is simple; it can switch from an Axe to a Sword whenever needed. If you need something that can provide high mobility with great range, then it will be wise to keep it in the Axe form. However, the Sword, the weapon does more damage. Another interesting thing about the weapon is that it can even perform combo attacks by using both forms at the same time. However, the slow animations between the attacks are something that can put you at a disadvantage.

Overall, the Switch Axe is a great weapon that can help you out in multiple situations. However, keep in mind that it is considered one of the most complicated weapons to use in Monster Hunter World, which is mostly because of its both forms. But if that isn’t going to be a problem for you, then there isn’t any reason why you shouldn’t give this weapon a try.

Bow (Solo)

Have you ever dreamed about becoming Legolas from Lord of the Rings or Hawkeye from The Avengers? Well, this is your chance. It is one of my favorite weapons because of multiple reasons, but mostly because it allows the user to take down monsters from a great distance. It also offers good mobility and deals a lot of damage for a ranged weapon. But while using this weapon, you must know about the weak spots of the monster you’re facing. Otherwise, your shots will go to waste.

Another thing to keep in mind about the Bow is that it feeds on stamina. You will need a lot of stamina in order to perform accurate and powerful shots. Therefore, make sure to use it carefully. Otherwise, you won’t have any stamina left to run if a monster comes running towards you.

Light Bowgun (Solo)

The Light Bowgun is the little brother of the Heavy Bowgun and is also capable of dealing a lot of damage from a great distance. The amount of damage it does is lower than the Heavy Bowgun, which is obvious. However, unlike the heavy variant, this one offers more mobility. For those who don’t know what this means, the Light Bowgun will let you shoot first, reload quicker, and will even let you reload while you’re on the run. These advantages are something enough to cover up the low-damage part.

Just like the Heavy Bowgun, the Light Bowgun also has problems with its ammo capacity. Other than that, considering it can do a lot of damage if you know how to accurately land the shots at the right spots, there isn’t any other long-ranged weapon in our MHW weapon tier list that offers this much mobility.

Switch Axe (Multiplayer)

The Switch Axe’s ability to transform into two different weapons is something that makes it worth using. The weapon is perfect for those who like to keep themselves close to the target. However, we will suggest you choose this weapon only if the entire team is opting for melee or close-ranged weapons. Otherwise, because of its poor defensive options, you won’t be able to defend yourself alone.

Bow (Multiplayer)

The Bow is yet another weapon that can help you attack your target from a safe distance while your teammates engaged with it in a closed-ranged environment. You can also make the best use of different status effects in multiplayer to make it even more powerful. Overall, it’s a great weapon that can help you assist your teammates in multiple situations.

Sword and Shield (Multiplayer)

The Sword and Shield might be one of the worst weapons to use in solo play, but in multiplayer, it’s one of the best weapons to use. The reason why it’s mentioned in the A-Tier category of our co-op MHW weapon tier list is that it is one of the few weapons that can help you support your entire team. This is mainly because it offers different added effects, such as status effects, stun effects, and a few more. In addition to this, the thing which I love the most about this weapon is its defensive options. In multiplayer, there can be times when you’re facing a powerful monster but your team is far away. However, if you have the Sword and Shield in your hand, then you will be able to defend yourself easily without relying on your team.

Similar Tier Lists: For Honor Tier List

B-Tier

These weapons are not that powerful, but can still help you hold your ground firmly against powerful monsters.

Charge Blade (Solo)

Like the Switch Axe which we talked about earlier, the Charge Blade also has the luxury to switch from an Axe to Sword, each offering different stats. The Axe is considered difficult to use and is also known for offering low mobility. However, the Sword form comes with a shield as well, thus providing more defense. In addition to this, the Charge Blade has a burst mode that deals a lot of damage and it also offers a lot of different moves.

Overall, the Charge Blade is a good weapon. However, for new players, we will suggest that they first try out the Switch Axe as that weapon is easier to control and master.

Dual Blades (Solo)

Unlike the Swords present in the game, the Dual Blades are not that huge in size and thus offer amazing attack speed. In fact, the weapon is regarded as the fastest weapon in the game when it comes to attacking speed. This alone is something that can help you with taking down powerful monsters quickly and easily. The Dual Blades even offer two different modes called Demon and Archdemon, with each one offering powerful combos. However, both modes use a lot of stamina so you should be careful while using them.

The only downside about the Dual Blades is that it doesn’t offer any defensive moves other than dodging. But it’s still the fastest weapon on our MHW weapon tier list, something that is enough for you to give it a try.

Long Sword (Solo)

The Long Sword is yet another powerful sword in Monster Hunter World. It offers a combination of mobility, attack speed, and defensive options. The biggest plus points of this weapon are its damage output and long range. The weapon also offers a Spirit Meter, which keeps on increasing as you perform combos. As the Spirit Meter goes up, the amount of damage the Long Sword deals increases significantly. This means that the weapon is rewarding for only those players who are a fan of performing different combos on their targets.

The only thing you will need to keep in mind while using this weapon is that your attacks must be precise. Otherwise, you’ll either fail to land the attack properly, or the amount of damage it will deal will be less.

Charge Blade (Multiplayer)

The thing which makes Charge Blade a B-Tier weapon for multiplayer in Monster Hunter World is its amazing combos. If your team manages to distract the target, then you can find enough time to land some well-charged combos that will deal a massive amount of damage. However, in the axe form, the charge blade might end up becoming a problem for your teammates because they might get hurt from the sweeping attacks. Therefore, make sure to use it carefully.

Hunting Horn (Multiplayer)

The Hunting Horn is yet another weapon in our co-op MHW weapon tier list that can help you assist your teammates in multiple situations. This is because it allows you to heal your teammates and provide them with different buffs as well. Furthermore, it performs well in combat as well considering it can do KO damage to the monster. Overall, it’s a great weapon for multiplayer because of its multiple uses.

Also Check: Soul Calibur 6 Tier List

C-Tier

These are some of the weakest weapons available in Monster Hunter World. They can help you out in only a few situations.

Insect Glaive (Solo)

For many reasons, the Insect Glaive is easily one of the most unique weapons in our MHW weapon tier list. First, it’s the only weapon in Monster Hunter World that can easily help you perform aerial attacks. Second, it allows you to control a Kinsect pet which you can use to bring Essence from different monsters. In addition to this, the Insect Glaive also allows the user to mount huge monsters easily and quickly.

Overall, the Insect Glaive is a great weapon that can help you out in multiple situations. However, it lacks attack power. Therefore, you shouldn’t expect a lot from it in combat.

Gunlance (Solo)

The Gunlance is a pretty interesting weapon considering it is one of those that allow you to shoot like a gun but perform melee attacks like a sword as well. It can free different explosive shells toward its target. Even though it offers poor mobility, it is one of the few weapons that can break the defense of the enemy and deal a massive amount of damage at the same time. The Gunlance also offers some good defensive moves.

In any case, the amount of damage it does definitely makes up for the low mobility it offers. The weapon might be a little difficult to use at first, but you’ll get the hang of it in no time.

Sword and Shield (Solo)

Most players think that this weapon is one of the worst weapons to use in Monster Hunter World. However, what they don’t realize is that it is one of the few weapons in the entire game that offers both offensive and defensive options. In addition to this, the Sword and Shield is the only weapon in our MHW weapon tier list that allows its users to use items like Potions and Bombs without the need for sheathing.

Overall, the Sword and Shield is a decent combination that provides decent stats. It isn’t something that is too powerful but isn’t the weakest one as well. It has low damage output that might make it a bit difficult to take down monsters, but its other advantages do make up for this.

Hammer (Multiplayer)

The Hammer is an A-Tier weapon for solo play because of multiple reasons. It’s extremely powerful, can do a lot of damage when charged, and does KO damage as well. However, in multiplayer, the Hammer isn’t one of the best weapons to use. This is mainly because you can accidentally hit your squadmates while using it as it’s harder to control when your team is around. Another downside about the Hammer is that you need to land most of the attacks on the target’s head in order for it to deal a good amount of damage, something that we mentioned before. However, in multiplayer, the target is always moving around and this makes it difficult to land the attack on its head.

Insect Glaive (Multiplayer)

The Insect Glaive gets the same placement in multiplayer as well because of many reasons. In multiplayer, it can let you help your teammates mount huge monsters quickly and easily. Furthermore, while your team is busy fighting the target from the ground, you can perform ariel attacks by using the Insect Glaive to make sure the target is being attacked from all sides. However, the thing which I don’t like about the weapon is its low damage output. Furthermore, you also need to worry about managing essences while using this weapon.

Lance (Multiplayer)

The Lance has a great range and offers multiple defensive options as well. But the thing which puts it off is that its multi-directional movement is pretty slow. However, most players still prefer using this weapon instead of Hammer because its attack doesn’t interfere with the teammates that much. Overall, it’s a great weapon that can help you and your team out in multiple situations, but you shouldn’t expect a lot from it.

Dual Blades (Multiplayer)

As mentioned before, the Dual Blades have earned the reputation of being the fastest weapon in Monster Hunter World. However, the reason why it’s mentioned in the C-Tier section of our Co-Op MHW tier list is that in multiplayer, it doesn’t have many uses. It can only help you quickly attack your enemy and that’s about it. And this isn’t something that will prove to be beneficial considering you need something that can at least assist your team in one way or another.

Also Check: Risk of Rain 2 Tier List

D-Tier

D-Tier weapons are the worst weapons in Monster Hunter World. You should avoid choosing them at all costs.

Hunting Horn (Solo)

The Hunting Horn is easily one of the weakest weapons to use in Monster Hunter World because of its slow attack speed, poor damage output, and poor defensive options. It fails to perform attacks that can deal a decent amount of damage. Overall, there isn’t any reason for you to choose this weapon as you will only become a sitting duck for the monsters while using it.

Lance (Solo)

Just like the Insect Glaive, the Lance also offers low attack power, something that makes you think twice about using it in combat. In addition to this, another reason why it’s ranked the lowest in our MHW weapon tier list is its poor movement, something that makes it difficult to evade attacks while using it. The only few things players like about this weapon are its great range and defensive options. Other than that, there is nothing much to it.

Great Sword (Multiplayer)

The Great Sword is one of the worst weapons to use in multiplayer because of many reasons. In fact, the advantages that make this weapon one of the best in solo play are what make it one of the worst in multiplayer. It is one of the most hard-hitting weapons in the game with amazing damage output. However, this is something that is useful when you’re taking on a monster all by yourself. Other than doing damage to the target, it has no benefits.

Gunlance (Multiplayer)

The second worst weapon in our co-op MHW weapon tier list is Gunlance. The only good thing about it is the amount of damage it deals via the explosive shells. However, the noise made from the explosion is something that can put you at a disadvantage in multiplayer. Furthermore, because the explosions are large in size, your teammates can get caught inside them as well. In short, there isn’t any reason for you to choose this weapon considering you have a lot of other better options.

Long Sword (Multiplayer)

The Long Sword offers great damage output which mostly relies on the Spirit Meter. However, it isn’t the kind of weapon that can help you a lot in multiplayer because there aren’t many uses for it. It can only help you land decent attacks on the target, and there’s isn’t anything more to it. This isn’t the kind of weapon that can help you assist your teammates or help you defend yourself when you’re isolated from your team.

This was all regarding our MHW weapon tier list. We hope that it will help you select the right weapons against monsters. Before you leave, make sure to check out our Marvel Strike Force tier list and Digimon Rearise tier list as well.