You've seen them everywhere. Someone drops a tier list ranking every pizza topping. Someone else ranks every superhero film ever made. Your friend posts one at 2am ranking fast food chains and suddenly your whole group chat is awake and arguing.
Tier lists are everywhere because they work. They take a messy opinion and make it visual, shareable, and impossible to ignore. And making one is genuinely easy once you know the steps.
This guide walks you through exactly how to make a tier list — from picking what to rank to hitting share. Whether you want to rank items for fun, for content, or just to settle an argument once and for all, you're in the right place.
What Is a Tier List?
A tier list is a visual ranking system that organizes items into horizontal rows called tiers, usually labeled S, A, B, C, D, and F. S tier is the best. F tier is the bottom. Everything in between is somewhere in the middle.
The format exploded in gaming communities because players needed a way to rank characters, weapons, and strategies quickly. Now it's used for literally everything — movies, snacks, workout routines, programming languages, and yes, even types of grass.
The appeal is simple: instead of writing a long explanation, you drag some items into rows and the hierarchy speaks for itself. People get it instantly. And they immediately want to argue about it, which is half the fun.
If you want to dig into why our brains love this format so much, check out our article on the psychology of ranking and why we love tier lists.
How to Make a Tier List: Step by Step
Step 1: Decide What You're Ranking
This sounds obvious, but it's where most people rush. Before you open any tool, get clear on two things:
What are you ranking? Pick a specific set of items. "All RPG games" is too vague. "Every mainline Final Fantasy game" is something you can actually work with.
What's your ranking criteria? Are you ranking by personal enjoyment? Objective quality? Competitive viability? Nostalgia? These will give you very different results. I once made a tier list of coffee shops ranking by "vibes only" and it turned out completely different from my "actual coffee quality" list. Both were valid. Both caused arguments.
Being clear on criteria upfront saves you from second-guessing yourself halfway through and ending up with a list that's trying to measure three things at once.
Step 2: Choose Your Tier Structure
The classic setup is S, A, B, C, D, F. But you don't have to use that. Some creators use custom labels that match their topic better. A food tier list might use labels like "Would eat every day," "Solid choice," "Only if nothing else is available," and "Actively bad." That communicates more than a letter.
A few rules of thumb:
- 4 to 6 tiers is the sweet spot. Too few and you can't show nuance. Too many and every difference feels meaningless.
- If most things end up in one tier, restructure. A good tier list spreads items across tiers somewhat evenly. If everything is A or B, your criteria might be too lenient.
- S tier should mean something. Reserve it for truly exceptional items. When everything is S tier, nothing is.
Step 3: Open a Tier List Maker
You could technically make a tier list in a spreadsheet, a photo editor, or even PowerPoint. But a dedicated tool is faster and looks much better.
TierListMaker.org is free, requires no account, and lets you start ranking immediately. The drag-and-drop interface works on desktop and mobile without fighting you. You can upload your own images, use existing templates, or start from scratch with custom text items.
We'll talk more about tool options in a later section. For now, just pick one and open it. You can spend 20 minutes comparing tools or you can spend 20 minutes actually making something.
Step 4: Add Your Items
Most tier list tools give you an item pool at the bottom of the screen. You add all your items there first, then drag them into tiers.
For images: Upload your own or use a template that already has the items you need. TierListMaker.org has a library of templates covering games, anime, movies, sports, and more. Find your topic, load the template, and half the work is already done.
For text items: Type them in directly. This works well for abstract things like "types of meetings" or "every Radiohead album ranked."
Pro tip: add all your items before you start ranking. When you can see everything at once, you make better decisions about placement. Ranking as you add items tends to produce inconsistent results because you're comparing each new item against different mental benchmarks each time.
Step 5: Start Ranking — But Don't Overthink It
Drag your items into tiers. Start with the obvious ones. What is clearly S tier? What is clearly F tier? Place those first. Then work your way inward from both ends.
The items in the middle are the hard ones. Here's a trick: instead of asking "where does this go?" ask "is this better or worse than X?" Compare directly rather than trying to assign an abstract quality score. It's much easier.
Don't spend ten minutes on one item. If you're genuinely unsure, place it provisionally and come back. Your gut ranking is usually right, and staring at something longer rarely helps.
Step 6: Review and Adjust
Once everything is placed, step back and look at the whole picture. A few things to check:
- Does the distribution make sense? A wildly uneven tier list often means something's off.
- Are items that feel similar actually in similar tiers?
- Would a stranger understand your choices, or do they need context?
This is the stage where you move things around. It's normal to shift 30% of your placements during review. That's not second-guessing — that's seeing the full picture for the first time.
Step 7: Add Context if Needed
If your list has controversial placements, add a note. Most tier list tools have a description or caption field. Even a single sentence helps. "I ranked gameplay feel, not story" or "this is based on competitive viability only" prevents 90% of the "how did X end up there" comments.
You don't owe anyone an essay. But a little context turns a tier list from a statement into a conversation.
Step 8: Save, Export, and Share
Hit save or export. Most tools generate a shareable link or let you download an image. TierListMaker.org gives you both — a link you can drop anywhere and a clean image ready for social media, Discord, Reddit, or wherever you're starting fights.
Tips for Making Better Tier Lists
Be Consistent With Your Criteria
The most common mistake is unconsciously switching criteria mid-list. You rank the first five items by gameplay, then the next five by story, and suddenly your tier list is measuring two different things. If you notice you're thinking about different qualities for different items, stop and realign.
Separate Opinion From Objective Quality When Possible
There's a difference between "this is S tier because it's objectively the best" and "this is S tier because I personally love it." Neither is wrong, but mixing them creates a confusing list. Pick your lane.
Don't Force Even Distribution
You might have four S-tier items and zero D-tier items. That's fine. Don't move things down just to fill a tier. The tier labels should reflect your actual assessment, not maintain a bell curve.
Update It
Things change. Games get patched. New seasons come out. Your opinion evolves. Some of the most popular tier lists are ones that get revisited regularly with updates explaining what moved and why. "Updated for Season 12" in a title gets clicks.
Best Tools for Making Tier Lists
TierListMaker.org
TierListMaker.org is the tool we built because we were frustrated with the alternatives. No signup, no watermarks, no upsell interrupting you mid-ranking. Load the page, pick or create your items, and start dragging. The interface is clean on both desktop and mobile.
The template library covers hundreds of categories, so you rarely have to start from scratch. And when you do start from scratch, adding custom items takes seconds.
For a deeper look at how it compares to other tools, check out The Ultimate Guide to Tier List Makers, which covers the full landscape of what's available and when to use each one.
TierMaker.net
The original and still popular. Has an enormous template library built by its community over the years. Can feel a bit slow and cluttered, but the range of templates is hard to beat.
Canva
If you need complete visual control and are comfortable with a design tool, Canva's template system can produce beautiful results. It takes longer but the output looks professional. Best for creators who want something polished rather than quick.
Spreadsheets
Genuinely fine for simple text-based ranking when you need to share internally or iterate quickly. Not ideal for anything visual or meant for social sharing.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Ranking too many items at once. Once you go past 50 items, fatigue sets in and your rankings get sloppy. If you have a huge set, consider splitting it into multiple lists or eliminating items that are clearly middle-of-the-road before you start.
Skipping the criteria step. Every unfocused tier list comes down to this. Five minutes of upfront thinking about what you're actually measuring saves you from restarting halfway through.
Making it too long to share. If someone has to scroll three screens to see your full list, you've lost them. Keep it tight enough that the whole thing is visible (or nearly visible) in one view.
Treating your list as objective fact. Tier lists are opinions, not verdicts. The best ones invite discussion. Present yours as a perspective, not a pronouncement, and you'll get engagement instead of defensiveness.
Ignoring image quality. If you upload blurry or mismatched images, the list looks sloppy regardless of how good the rankings are. Use consistent image sizes and decent resolution.
FAQ: How to Make a Tier List
What does S tier mean in a tier list?
S tier is the highest ranking category in a standard tier list. The "S" comes from the Japanese word "sugoi" meaning excellent or outstanding. Items in S tier are considered the best of the best — exceptional by any measure you're using. The full standard ranking goes S, A, B, C, D, F from best to worst.
How many items should a tier list have?
Anywhere from 10 to 50 is a comfortable range for most topics. Below 10 and the format doesn't add much over just listing your favorites. Above 50 and decision fatigue makes the middle tiers inconsistent. If you have a huge category, consider narrowing your scope or splitting it into themed sub-lists.
Can I make a tier list without images?
Yes. Text-only tier lists work well for abstract topics, opinion categories, or anything where images would be too similar to be useful. TierListMaker.org supports text items directly. The visual punch is slightly lower without images, but the format still works.
How do I rank items when I'm unsure about placement?
Use direct comparison rather than abstract scoring. Instead of asking "how good is this?" ask "is this better or worse than the item one tier up?" Work by comparison rather than assignment. Also, trust your first instinct more than your fifth. Extended deliberation on a single item usually just produces anxiety, not better rankings.
What is the best free tier list maker?
TierListMaker.org is free with no account required, no watermarks on exports, and a clean drag-and-drop interface that works on desktop and mobile. For a full breakdown of options, our tier list maker guide covers every major tool with honest pros and cons.
Wrapping Up
Making a tier list is genuinely straightforward once you break it down. Decide what you're ranking, choose your criteria, pick a tool, add your items, drag and drop, review, and share. The whole process can take ten minutes for a small list or an hour for something ambitious.
The key is starting. You can tweak endlessly, but you learn the most by actually making one, sharing it, and seeing how people respond. The first tier list you post will not be your best one. That's fine. Make it anyway.
Head over to TierListMaker.org to start right now. Pick a template or build from scratch. No account needed, no nonsense. Just you, your opinions, and a drag-and-drop interface that gets out of your way.
Your controversial take is one tier list away.
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