10 Best DPS Characters in Genshin Impact

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Reviewed by Ashley Johnson

There are plenty of ways to play Genshin Impact depending on your unique team and playstyle. No matter how you play, though, you’re going to want at least one or two DPS characters — high damage dealers that cut through mobs like a hot knife through butter.

If you’re looking to pick up the best DPSers, there are a lot of options. As of Version 2.6, there are twenty-seven characters with DPS potential. Today, we’ll be going over the top ten DPS characters in Genshin Impact, covering their pros and cons and how you can play them most effectively.

Let’s get started!

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Top 10 Best DPS Characters in Genshin Impact, Ranked

We’ve ranked the best DPS characters in Genshin Impact from worst to best, starting with number ten. This is an “all else equal” ranking, so do keep the following points in mind:

• This is a general overview of the DPS characters and their strong suits.
• We assume full ascension for each character (all their passive talents are unlocked).
• Team comps can change how effective certain characters are.

Finally, we just want to mention that, with the right build and weapon, any of these characters can be a game changer for your team. Pick the characters you enjoy playing — don’t just go with whatever the meta says is strongest!

With that in mind, let’s get to our ranking.

Honorable 4-star Mention: Noelle

This list is filled with 5-star characters, but we wanted to specially mention the best 4-star DPS character. The 4-star Geo claymore battle maid for the Knights of Favonius is a great character for new players. Noelle is also good for anyone who doesn’t feel like taking up gambling.

(For players going the free-to-play route with Genshin who haven’t had any luck with wishing, don’t worry. We’ve also ranked just 4-star characters! Click here to check that out.)

What makes Noelle so good?

Noelle unfortunately has low DMG unless you can get her constellation to C6. At that point, her burst damage scales with her DEF and you can actually start dealing some decent damage. 

Her final constellation also adds duration to her elemental burst by one second for each enemy defeated.

Artifact Sets

Stat priorities for Noelle will be DEF %, DEF %, and more DEF%. Since her elemental skill does heal, you can also look for artifacts with a Healing Bonus, but this is a DPS list.

Even if you haven’t gotten Noelle to C6, you’ll still want to focus on upping her DEF, so equipping her with the four-piece 5-star Husk of Opulent Dreams will be your best option. Four-piece Defender’s Will is the next best thing in 4-star sets if you haven’t unlocked Inazuma yet. 

10/10

Yoimiya

To start off our list, we have the heiress to the Naganohara Fireworks Empire, Yoimiya! Yoimiya is a 5-star Pyro bow user with a bubbly personality. She’s well-liked throughout Inazuma, but don’t let her chipper attitude mislead you — she’s a huge pyromaniac.

What makes Yoimiya so good?

The best thing about Yoimiya is her high Pyro damage potential. You’ll want to keep her at mid-range even though she’s a bow user — her charged shots do some extra damage, but her elemental skill and burst are more effective when used closer to her target.

Her elemental skill imbues normal attacks with Pyro damage. It’s great in combination with another character’s element!

Her burst, Ryuukin Saxifrage, deals AOE Pyro damage and marks a single enemy with Aurous Blaze. Any damage the enemy takes from other team members while marked will deal small AOE Pyro damage. If the marked enemy is defeated before the duration ends, the effect will move to another nearby target.

The low energy cost of this burst makes it great for rapidly dealing Pyro damage, but it generally works best alongside other party members. Yoimiya’s second passive talent, Summer-Night’s Dawn, grants other party members an ATK boost while her burst is active. This is especially helpful for teams with a second or sub-DPS.

The main drawback to Yoimiya is that she’s really not great at going up against mobs. Despite her burst’s AOE damage, it’s still pretty centralized — she can easily get knocked around if she’s surrounded. Her normal attacks also target enemies at random, meaning she can switch targets while that hilichurl is still coming at you.

Artifact Sets

For the best Yoimiya build, you’ll want to support her Pyro damage. The best stats to prioritize are as follows:

• ATK %
• Pyro DMG Bonus
• CRIT Rate/DMG

Giving her a four-piece 5-star Crimson Witch of Flames will really get you dealing high damage numbers in no time. You can also give her a four-piece 5-star Shimanawa’s Reminiscence to boost her ATK. If you’re looking for a 4-star alternative, a four-piece Martial Artist will also increase ATK damage.

9/10

Tartaglia (Childe)

Coming in ninth on our list of the top DPS Characters in Genshin Impact is everyone’s favorite Harbinger, Childe! He’s a 5-star Hydro bow user with a complicated history. Whether you love him or hate him, you have to admit that Tartaglia is one of the strongest characters in the game. 

What makes Tartaglia so good?

When Childe’s elemental skill is managed properly, he becomes a real threat to any enemy you come across. Utilizing Foul Legacy: Raging Tide lets you absolutely demolish mobs by switching into a melee stance to get up close and personal with his enemies.

Similarly to Yoimiya, Childe can mark his enemies. The difference is that enemies affected by Childe’s Riptide effect take AOE hydro damage when he attacks them, rather than relying on other party members to step in. He also doesn’t need to use his burst to apply this effect — his passive, Sword of Torrents, allows him to apply it whenever he hits an enemy while in melee stance and whenever he crits.

Unfortunately, Childe is one of the most complex characters and can be tricy fro newbies. While he has incredible damage potential, you’ll need to keep a close eye on how long he stays in melee stance to avoid long skill cooldowns. He also can’t perform plunging attacks while in melee stance, so he can get taken out if you fall off a cliff at the wrong time.

Artifact Sets

You should prioritize the following stats for Childe:

• ATK% or Elemental Mastery
• Hydro DMG Bonus
• CRIT Rate/DMG

The best artifact set for Childe is the four-piece 5-star Heart of Depth, which increases both his Hydro damage and his ATK damage after using his elemental skill. The 4-star Martial Artist is a good substitute if you haven’t made it to Dragonspine yet. 

8/10

Raiden Shogun

We would be remiss if we tried to rank DPS characters without including the 5-star Electro polearm, Raiden Shogun. Inazuma’s Electro Archon is a formidable warrior who can fit into most teams with ease. Her range of roles allows her to be an asset even if you aren’t using her as a DPS.

What makes Raiden Shogun so good?

There are a few ways you can play Raiden. She can work as a DPS, a sub-DPS, or even a support (depending on your team comp). Since we’re ranking DPS characters, though, let’s talk about her straight DPS potential.

Raiden’s elemental skill, Transcendence: Baleful Omen, deals Electro damage in conjunction with your party’s attacks when they deal damage to enemies. This gives her a whole lot of elemental damage combo potential. As useful as her skill is, though, her burst is what really gets players’ attention.

Not only does her burst, Musou Shinsetsu, deal a huge amount of Electro damage, it also regenerates energy for the party when she hits opponents. This makes her a heavy hitter who can also help out characters with high-cost bursts. Her elemental burst also switches her weapon from a polearm to a sword — the duration is much shorter than Childe’s, but she’ll be able to make plunging attacks with it.

One of Raiden’s few drawbacks is that her burst can be incompatible with some characters, like Beidou.

Artifact Sets

Artifacts for Raiden Shogun should prioritize the following stats:

• ATK %
• Energy Recharge
• Electro DMG Bonus
• CRIT Rate/DMG

If you’re looking for the best artifact sets for Raiden, your top two options will be the 5-star Emblem of Severed Fate set or the 5-star Noblesse Oblige set. Severed Fate lets her use her burst more often, while Noblesse increases her burst damage without increasing frequency.

The Exile is a great 4-star substitute set and also increases energy recharge, like Emblem of Severed Fate.

7/10

Arataki Itto

No matter what he says, Arataki “Numero Uno” Itto didn’t make our top spot. Instead, the lovable 5-star Geo claymore oni sits at number seven on our top DPS characters list.

What makes Arataki Itto so good?

Itto is the definition of a heavy hitter. His playstyle is all about using charged attacks to deal high damage after gaining Superlative Superstrength stacks. His elemental skill summons the Geo construct Ushi, who draws aggro from nearby enemies. Ushi is the auxiliary member of the Arataki Gang and deals high Geo damage upon summoning. He also gives Itto Superlative Superstrength stacks after getting hit.

If you use Itto’s skill while using his burst, Ushi’s already high damage is bolstered even more. Then all you need to do to clear the field is start swinging charged attacks. You won’t even consume stamina when consuming Superlative Superstrength stacks, so feel free to slash away!

While Itto has the perk of having a high base CRIT Rate, his highest-damage attacks take some time to set up. Gaining Superlative Superstrength stacks is a process that can only be rushed so much. His burst also has a high energy cost, so you’ll spend most of your time relying on his elemental skill.

Artifact Sets

You’ll want to prioritize the following stats with Itto:

• DEF %
• Geo DMG Bonus
• Crit Rate/DMG

Since Itto’s skills scale based on his DEF, you’ll want to equip him with the four-piece 5-star Husk of Opulent Dreams set. This will give him a 30% DEF boost on top of extra temporary DEF boosts when dealing Geo damage.

For a 4-star alternative, Defender’s Will also gives a 30% DEF boost, but doesn’t synergize with Itto’s Geo damage like the Husk set does.

6/10

Xiao

As a yaksha, the 5-star Anemo polearm Xiao is about the closest thing to a demon slayer that Genshin Impact has thus far (sorry, Chongyun!). His status as one of the fiercest warriors of Liyue has thus earned him spot number six on our top DPS characters list.

What makes Xiao so good?

Xiao is one of the few characters that can use plunging attacks on demand, and his burst converts that plunging damage into Anemo damage. If ever you need a character to clear out a mob, Xiao is definitely your guy.

When using his elemental burst, Xiao puts on his yaksha mask and is able to leap great heights. Not only that, his attack AOE and DMG are both increased continuously while wearing the mask. He does continuously lose HP in this state, though, so keep an eye on his health bar. 

The best part about using Xiao is dealing as much plunging damage as you can by jumping and attacking enemies below. With the right build, each attack can deal 15k+ damage to grouped up enemies per hit, which is pretty epic. 

His elemental skill, Lemniscatic Wind Cycling, allows Xiao to surge forward and deal Anemo damage to enemies. That in itself is pretty average, but the cool thing is that you can also use his skill in the air (up to two times) to surge forward while gliding.

The annoying thing with Xiao is that, while using his burst to deal plunging damage, you can also push enemies away. Spread too far and enemies become harder to hit, which can prolong your battles. 

Artifact Sets

When picking artifacts, look for the following stats:

• ATKm%
• Anemo DMG Bonus
• CRIT Rate/DMG stats

Version 2.6 saw the release of Xiao’s own 5-star artifact set, Vermillion Hereafter. The four-piece effect for this artifact works directly with his decreased HP post-burst and increases his ATK. If you don’t want to grind for the right artifacts, 5-star Gladiator’s Finale is a great second choice. 

The four-piece 4-star Berserker set is another good choice for Xiao, since it also plays off decreased HP. 

5/10

Kamisato Ayato

The young Yashiro Commissioner Kamisato Ayato is a 5-star Hydro sword user who has already climbed the ranks of our Genshin DPS list. His intellect and battle prowess make him deadly enough that even Abyss Lectors would think twice about taking him on.

What makes Kamisato Ayato so good?

Unlike the other DPS characters on our list, Ayato’s strong point doesn’t lay in singular high damage attacks. His burst places a large AOE field that deals Hydro damage to enemies within it and increases allies’ normal attack damage. It’s a good skill, but you aren’t going to see any impressive hits dealing 20K or more damage. Realistically, it will be around 7K if you’ve got a strong build.

What truly makes Ayato strong is his elemental skill, Kamisato Art: Kyouka. When using his skill, Ayato creates a Hydro afterimage of himself and swiftly strikes enemies with high amounts of Hydro damage. His rapid attacks in this state can easily deal 60K+ damage over multiple hits.

While the elemental skill does have a bit of a cool down, it begins as soon as the skill is activated, even while Ayato is still using it. By the time his attacks return to normal, it won’t be long at all until he can activate his skill again.  

Artifact Sets

Artifact stat priorities should be as follows:

• ATK %
• Energy Recharge
• Hydro DMG Bonus
• CRIT Rate/DMG

Xiao wasn’t the only character to get an artifact set released in Version 2.6. The other 5-star set released along with Vermillion Hereafter was Echoes of an Offering. Both sets increase ATK by 18% at the two-piece level, but Echoes has a chance to increase ATK by an additional 70% when normal attacks hit an opponent. That effect works well with Ayato’s elemental skill.

For now, the best 4-star artifact set alternative is the Martial Artist set, which increases normal and charged attack damage.

4/10

Eula

At number four on our list is the Captain of the Reconnaissance company of the Knights of Favonius, The 5-star Cryo claymore user, Eula! Miss Lawrence may not be welcomed by the majority of Monstadt’s residents, but anyone who’s gotten to know her knows there’s a heart of gold under her icy exterior.

What makes Eula so good?

Unlike other characters in Genshin Impact, Eula’s elemental burst primarily deals physical damage, rather than elemental damage. It does still deal Cryo damage, but the biggest hit is AOE physical damage. You’ll have to play her a little bit differently, but with the right build, her burst damage potential is over 100K — ideal for clearing out enemy mobs and boss monsters.

The biggest reason Eula is so high in our ranking is her high burst damage. It also helps that she also resists interruptions while attacking due to gaining Grimheart stacks (a huge plus for claymore users with slow ATK speeds).

Even if you don’t end up using Eula on your primary Genshin team, her passive talent, Aristocratic Inspection, is a blessing to any player. It gives a 10% chance to double talent materials when crafting — super helpful to anyone leveling up other characters’ talents.

While Eula has huge damage potential, she takes some setup to deal her top damaging hits. Her skill cooldown is also pretty slow, so she works best on teams with a secondary or sub-DPS

Artifact Sets

When looking for artifact sets, look to prioritize:

• ATK %
• Physical DMG Bonus
• CRIT Rate/DMG

In order to really up Eula’s burst damage, you’ll want to get the four-piece 5 star set, Pale Flame. It boosts physical damage and increases ATK after using an elemental skill (stacking twice, which is perfect for Eula). If you’d rather not farm artifacts, you can give her a two-piece Bloodstained Chivalry to focus on upping her physical damage bonus.

For players looking at 4-star alternatives, the Martial Artist set won’t boost physical damage, but will still up normal and charged attacks. 

3/10

Kamisato Ayaka

The young lady of the Yashiro Commission is undoubtedly one of the most versatile DPS characters in the game. This 5-star Cryo sword user is able to switch between DPS and sub-DPS while also being incredibly handy for players who just want to explore Teyvat. 

What makes Kamisato Ayaka so good?

Ayaka has a ton of good points, so it’s hard to pick just a few to highlight. Her passive talent, Kamisato Art: Senho, is an alternative sprint that allows her to run on water. When she stops sprinting, Ayaka can apply Cryo to nearby enemies, and her attacks are also infused with Cryo for a short time.

We’ve mentioned characters who deal rapid smaller amounts of damage with their elemental skills, as well as characters who deal high damage with their bursts. Ayaka is one of the few characters who does both both extremely well. 

Her elemental skill deals Cryo damage in a small AOE while boosting normal and charged attack DMG. It also launches small enemies, giving her some space to deal with stronger enemies first. Her burst creates an icy storm that slashes at enemies before exploding. It deals high damage to enemies and is great at freezing when coupled with a Hydro character.

Artifact Sets

Unlike other characters on this list, Ayaka has a high base CRIT Rate. Artifact stats should prioritize the following:

• ATK %
• Cryo DMG Bonus
• CRIT Damage.

The best 5-star set for Ayaka is the four-piece Blizzard Strayer set. Not only does it boost her Cryo damage, it also increases her CRIT rate against enemies affected by Cryo.

Players looking for a 4-star alternative should go with the four-piece Martial Artist set to increase normal and charged attacks. 

2/10

Hu Tao

At number two on our list of the top DPS characters in Genshin Impact is the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor’s director, Hu Tao! Our favorite creepy 5-star pyro polearm has been a shoo-in for the top DPS ranks ever since her introduction in Version 2.2. 

What makes Hu Tao so good?

When talking about damage potential, Hu Tao is hands-down one of the top dogs in the game. Her burst deals huge amounts of AOE Pyro damage, and deals even more if her HP is below 50%. While her burst also consumes HP, it grants a regenerative effect that heals characters. Don’t count on it for much healing, though — it’s one of the weakest healing effects in the game.

Even without relying on her burst, Hu Tao’s stats alone are some of the highest in the game. She has high base HP, DEF, and even CRIT DMG. She can also increase the CRIT Rate for other characters in your party, which is invaluable for dual DPS teams.

Hu Tao’s main drawback is the intense HP management that goes into playing her well. Her highest damage dealing is done when she’s in the red, so even a stray swing from a common hilichurl could take her out.

Artifact Sets

Since HP is so important to Hu Tao you’ll want to prioritize the following:

• HP % (over ATK %)
• Pyro DMG Bonus
• CRIT Rate/DMG

Going with the four-piece 5-star Crimson Witch of Flames artifact set is the best way to take advantage of Hu Tao’s high Pyro damage burst attacks while also boosting elemental reaction damage.

While you’re working on getting the right Crimson Witch pieces, you can also use four-piece 4-star Berserker artifacts. The Berserker set increases CRIT Rate when HP is below 70%, taking advantage of Hu Tao’s own strengths and constant need for low HP.

1/10

Ganyu

Our number one pick for the top DPS character in Genshin Impact is Ganyu! Who else but Liyue’s local secretarial adeptus could have taken our number one spot? This 5-star Cryo bow user may get a little tired from time to time, but don’t sleep on her during her next banner rerun.

What makes Ganyu so good?

The most important thing for Ganyu is her charged shot. It deals massive damage. It also creates a small AOE, which is fantastic for taking out mobs… Or Timmy’s pigeons. 

Most of Ganyu’s attacks are actually AOE. Her elemental skill creates an icy flower that draws aggro and explodes, and her elemental burst creates a sphere of Cryo energy that rains icicles down in the affected field. Both her skill and burst deal large amounts of Cryo damage and are great to use against single or multiple targets.

Another perk to Ganyu is her high base CRIT DMG. While playing Ganyu, it’s incredibly satisfying to attack enemies from afar and see their HP drop by over 10K in single hits. 

Thanks to her passive talent, Harmony between Heaven and Earth, Ganyu also increases Cryo damage by 20% while party members are within her burst AOE.

Artifact Sets

Artifact stats should prioritize the following:

• ATK %
• Cryo DMG Bonus
• CRIT Rate/DMG

Depending on how you want to play Ganyu ,there are multiple artifact sets that work well for her. If you want to stick with the main DPS role, the four-piece 5-star Shimanawa’s Reminiscence will be your best bet. Its increased charge attack damage is perfect for Ganyu’s charged shots.

The best 4-star set alternative would be a four-piece Martial Artist to again get that (lesser) charged attack bonus. 

Join the High Ground

That’s our list of the top DPS characters in Genshin Impact. Did your main make the list? Is there a character we overlooked who deserves to be in the top ten? Let us know in the comments below! We have more Genshin content coming, so check back soon for the latest guides and tips.

Happy gaming!

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