Back 4 Blood best weapons: the most powerful weapons in Back 4 Blood

Discover the best weapons in Back 4 Blood, and the best attachments to use

Guide by Hayden Hefford Former Guides Writer

Updated on Oct. 26, 2021

Want to know the best weapons in Back 4 Blood? Once you’ve figured out the best characters for your playstyle, you’ll need to think about the best weapons for your build. There are over 30 weapons to choose from in Back 4 Blood, so you’re spoilt for choice in your fight against the Ridden.

The weapon that you choose will mostly come down to your playstyle. If you want to run and gun, an SMG will be best, whilst creating a sniper rifle build will suit those who want to pick off their targets from a distance. This guide will show you the best weapons in Back 4 Blood.

Best LMG in Back 4 Blood: RPK

The best LMG in Back 4 Blood is the RPK. Whilst the M249 has a much higher rate of fire, the RPK is far more accurate and deals a lot more damage. This makes it a much better LMG, even if it does fire a bit slower than the alternative.

If you’re looking for the best setup for your RPK, try to get these attachments:

Barrel: Compensator
Magazine: Extended Fast Mag
Stock: Light Tactical Stock
Optic: Holo-Sight

The compensator barrel gives you extra recoil control so that the RPK is even more accurate. With the extended fast mag, you can increase your magazine size by 50% and increase your reload speed by almost a third, which helps you get back in the fight against the dead. Since the RPK is a heavy LMG, you’ll need the light tactical stock if you want to quickly switch to your secondary weapon, as it increases your swap speed by 75%. Finally, attach the Holo-Sight for a slight boost to movement speed.

M16 assault rifle in the Back 4 Blood armory

Best Assault Rifle in Back 4 Blood: M16

If you’re looking for the best assault rifle, look no further than the M16. This burst rifle is reasonably strong, but what it lacks in power compared to other ARs it makes up for in accuracy. The burst has very little recoil, making it easy to control. Whether you are picking off a target from a distance, or just spraying into an approaching horde, the M16 is one of the best weapons in Back 4 Blood and deserves a spot in every arsenal. If you're using our Walker build, the M16 is crucial for picking off enemies and getting precision kills.

The best attachments for the M16 are:

Barrel: Long Barrel
Magazine: Extended +P Mag
Stock: Light Competition Stock
Optic: Reflex Sight

Usually, the M16 has a slightly lower range than some other assault rifles in Back 4 Blood, so use the long barrel to remedy that. Likewise, the extended +p mag slightly increases your bullet damage to bring the M16 more in line with other rifles. The light competition stock helps you snap to those zombie heads quicker by increasing your ADS speed, so you can pop off more heads than before. The reflex sight gives a 10% boost to movement speed when aiming, whilst also acting as a clean red dot sight to help you aim.

Phoenix 350L Sniper rifle in the Back 4 Blood armory

Best Sniper Rifle in Back 4 Blood: Phoenix 350L

The Phoenix 350L is the ideal sniper, offering high damage at a long range whilst only taking a short time to get a new bullet in the chamber. Whilst the Barett M95 is slightly stronger, the Phoenix is easier to control and can fire much quicker, making it one of the best weapons in Back 4 Blood.

Here are the best attachments for the Phoenix 350L:

Barrel: Compensator
Magazine: Fast +P Mag
Stock: Light Competition Stock
Optic: High Zoom Scope

The fast +p mag transforms the Phoenix from great to brilliant, as it increases the reload speed by 31%. This impacts both the reload and the rechambering each time you shoot, making the Phoenix much faster. Combining this with the compensator and competition stock helps you manage the recoil between each shot and increases ADS speed respectively, so you can quickly snap between targets and cover your team from a distance. The high zoom scope is a necessity if you want to use the Phoenix at long range, as it provides up to 4x magnification.

Sniper rifles like the Phoenix are best-suited to certain characters that benefit from precision kills, like Jim and Walker. To play as Jim you'll need to know how to unlock all cleaners in Back 4 Blood, as he will be locked at the start.

Best Shotgun in Back 4 Blood: AA12

The AA12 outclasses any other shotgun in Back 4 Blood thanks to its devastating damage, high rate of fire, and minimal recoil. It is incredibly accurate, and basically becomes a shotgun/assault rifle hybrid with the right attachments.

The best attachments for the AA12 are:

Barrel: Compensator
Magazine: Extended Fast Mag
Stock: Light Competition Stock
Optic: Reflex Sight

Like with the RPK earlier in this list, the AA12 uses the compensator and extended fast mag to help manage recoil, whilst increasing magazine size and reload speed. The light competition stock and reflex sight both increase your movement speed, helping you stay mobile whilst tearing the hordes apart. Pair the AA12 with some of the best cards in Back 4 Blood to increase the damage even further.

Best SMG in Back 4 Blood: Vector

The best SMG in Back 4 Blood is the Vector. This definitely isn’t what I expected when I started playing, but after testing them all out, the Vector was the clear winner. It deals a little less damage than the UMP45, which I expected to top the list, but beats the UMP45 in two key areas: recoil control and rate of fire. The Vector is much easier to control whilst also ripping through zombies at a much faster pace.

The best attachments for the Vector are:

Barrel: Compensator
Magazine: Extended +P Mag
Stock: Light Competition Stock
Optic: Reflex Sight

These attachments are very similar to those used on the M16 earlier on this list, with the only difference being the compensator barrel, which the Vector needs to make the recoil a little more manageable. The extended +p mag gives the Vector a needed damage boost, whilst also increasing the magazine size without compromising on the rate of fire, which is perfect for those adopting a run and gun playstyle with our Evangelo build. The reflex sight helps you aim more accurately, ensuring that you can kill zombies with speed and ease.

Desert Eagle pistol in the Back 4 Blood armory

Best Sidearm in Back 4 Blood: Desert Eagle

The best sidearm in Back 4 Blood is the Desert Eagle, and I didn’t expect anything different. The Desert Eagle is powerful and precise, making it the best weapon to have stowed away in your holster. Let's face it, the Desert Eagle is always the best weapon in any FPS.

The best attachments for the Desert Eagle are:

Barrel: Suppressor
Magazine: Extended Fast Mag
Stock: Light Competition Stock
Optic: Reflex Sight

Using the suppressor on the Desert Eagle felt like a strange choice at first, but it really does work. The suppressor doesn’t reduce your damage - in fact, it increases your damage by 25% against unaware enemies. It also reduces the distance from which enemies can hear your gunshots by 50%, which helps you quickly move through levels without attracting too much attention.

The extended fast mag increases your magazine size and improves the reload speed, which means you can spend more time shooting and less time looking at pretty reload animations. The light competition stock and reflex sight both increase your movement speed, making you a true stealth ninja.

Best Melee Weapon in Back 4 Blood: Machete

Out of the 4 melee weapons available, the Machete is the best. Whilst the fire axe and hatchet are both stronger, they only let you perform overhead swings, making them rather useless against hordes. The machete swings to the side, making it quicker and better for dealing with groups of enemies. Whilst the bat also sweeps through enemies, the machete uses less stamina, so you can deal more damage before needing to fall back and recharge. Of course, using our Holly build means you never need to worry about stamina, so you can slice away whilst listening to some of the awesome tunes on the jukebox.

Pipe bomb in player's hand about to be thrown towards zombies in Back 4 Blood

Best Explosive in Back 4 Blood: Pipe Bomb

Okay, so you might not tend to think about which explosive you need to use during a run in Back 4 Blood. It might seem like a simple premise - pick up the nearest boom device and chuck it into the crowd of zombies. But there definitely is a best explosive weapon which can wreak havoc on hordes and save your skin time and time again: the Pipe Bomb.

When you throw the Pipe Bomb, it attracts all zombies towards its pulsing red light with a serenade of high-pitched bleeps. Then, it blows them all into little zombie chunks. It's beautiful, really. It's also incredibly useful because it gives you and your team valuable time that you can use to get away from the Ridden and start moving towards the safe room. It doesn't distract special infected, but they should be easy enough to defeat now that your team doesn't have to panic about hordes. If you use our Hoffman build, you could have up to 5 Pipe Bombs in your inventory at once, meaning you never need to worry about hordes again.

That covers everything you need to know about the best weapons in Back 4 Blood. If you need some extra help to survive Nightmare mode, check out our Back 4 Blood tips and tricks. If you want to unlock more cards, take a look at our Supply Line guide to find out how to get Supply Points.