What this Honor of Kings tier list is based on
This is a live Honor of Kings hero tier list computed from public match telemetry across the global release operated by Level Infinite / Tencent. The composite MetaScore weighs win rate most heavily, followed by pick rate and ban rate. These are the same three pillars used for competitive HoK ranking in most Asian gaming publications. All data refreshes automatically within each patch cycle, so a hero's position on this list reflects the current balance state rather than last season's meta.
Honor of Kings is Tencent TiMi's flagship MOBA in China, and the global launch in mid-2024 brought the same hero pool, balance philosophy, and mechanical skill ceiling that drove that success in the domestic market. Understanding the current HoK meta is non-negotiable if you want to climb out of the onboarding ranks. The gap between S+ and C tier heroes is larger than in most Western mobile MOBAs, and picking into a bad matchup can lose a game before the first teamfight.
How to use this tier list at different ranks
Low-rank HoK players (Bronze through Gold) should treat S+ as aspirational rather than practical. Heroes at the very top of the meta typically require high APM, precise animation cancels, or deep matchup knowledge. Execution gaps in those brackets turn a theoretical S+ hero into a C-tier performance. Instead, focus on S-tier and A-tier heroes with clear, reliable kits. Team-fight ultimates with large hit boxes are the most forgiving for players still learning the game's timing.
Mid-rank players (Platinum through Diamond) start seeing S+ heroes hit their theoretical value, because opponents also start playing more carefully and you have time to execute your hero's full combo without getting blown up mid-animation. This is the bracket where drafting decisions matter most: picking a hero who hard-counters the enemy team's carry can swing a game before the first minute.
King and higher brackets play closer to the competitive HoK meta you'd see in the King Pro League (KPL). At this level, the S+ and S tiers represent the "meta floor". If a hero is not in those two tiers, you're making your lane harder than it needs to be by picking them outside of a narrow counter-pick scenario.
Patch context: what shifted recently
Tencent pushes Honor of Kings balance changes on a bi-weekly cadence, and major hero reworks usually land alongside new hero releases every month. The current patch's buff-and-nerf list drives most of the tier shifts above. A hero that moved from A to S is almost always benefiting from a specific stat tweak (cooldown reduction, damage scaling, new passive mechanic) from the most recent patch notes.
Watch especially for heroes whose pick rate spiked without a corresponding buff. That usually means a pro player or Chinese Weibo streamer popularised a new build, which then gets copied en masse and inflates both pick and win rate until the counter-strategy filters back down to solo queue.
Which Honor of Kings heroes to top up Tokens for first
Unlike some mobile MOBAs, Honor of Kings heroes are mostly earnable with free Battle Points if you play enough, but the Legendary skins and Epic-tier exclusive heroes are Token-gated. If you're topping up Honor of Kings Tokens for the first time, the efficient order is: (1) unlock your main-role S-tier hero if you don't already own them, (2) buy the current patch's featured Legendary skin if its animations give you a real cooldown readability advantage, (3) save remaining Tokens for the next major event or KPL finals skin drop.
The Weekly Card (S$1.24) and Weekly Card Plus (S$3.76) deliver daily Token drops over a 7-day window and are the best Token-per-SGD conversion for daily players. Stack a Weekly Card with a one-off 240-Token or 400-Token pack and you'll cover most single-month skin purchases without overspending.
Data sources and accuracy
Tier list data is sourced from public HoK telemetry and refreshed automatically. Hero images, skin assets, and lore are the property of Tencent TiMi Studio and Level Infinite. For the most up-to-date patch notes and balance changes, refer to the official Honor of Kings news page. Elitedias is not affiliated with Tencent; we're an independent top-up platform that delivers Tokens through authorised distributors. Our customer reviews are publicly readable on Trustpilot at trustpilot.com/review/elitedias.com.