Master the best PUBG weapons like the M416, Groza, and Beryl M762 to dominate your next chicken dinner.

In the ever-shifting battlegrounds of PUBG, the question every player needs to ask themselves long before that final circle starts to shrink is a simple one: what weapons give you the best shot at that glorious chicken dinner? The opening scramble is pure chaos—a frantic dash to grab anything that goes bang—but once the dust settles, you have to make tough choices. With only two primary weapon slots, a sidearm, and a melee weapon on your back, building the perfect loadout is the secret sauce separating the survivors from the spectators. Some guns are loud and proud bullies in close quarters, others are silent death from a distant hilltop, and a few manage to walk the line between both worlds with a swagger all their own. Let’s break down the best of the best, category by category, so you never again stare at a pile of loot wondering if that shiny new rifle is worth dropping your trusty workhorse for.

Assault Rifles – The Jacks of All Trades

Assault rifles are the bread and butter of any serious PUBG player, and finding the right one often comes down to balancing raw damage with how much bellyaching you’re willing to endure from recoil. The M416 is the dependable old friend who rarely lets you down. Chugging along on 5.56mm rounds, it might not hit like a freight train, but its manageable kick and a rate of fire that’s just a touch quicker than the SCAR-L make it a dream to control. Where the M416 truly struts its stuff is in the attachment department—it has more slots than any other AR, begging you to dress it up with grips, scopes, and muzzle devices until it becomes an extension of your own trigger finger. If the M416 is the reliable workhorse, the Groza is the caffeinated cousin who shows up uninvited but instantly becomes the life of the party. Chambered in 7.62mm, it packs the second-highest damage per hit among ARs and pairs it with a scorching rate of fire, making it a delete button in close-to-mid-range fights. But there’s a price to pay: it only spawns in airdrops, you can’t slap a foregrip on it, and that three-second reload feels like an eternity when enemies are breathing down your neck.

For those who prefer their power a little more accessible, the Beryl M762 has settled into the role of a beloved underdog turned champion. It’s had a few nerfs thrown its way over the years, yet the Beryl still outshines the AKM in damage per second thanks to its blistering fire rate. The recoil can feel like trying to wrestle a bull, but you can tame it with a vertical or angled grip, and unlike the Groza, you don’t need to risk life and limb chasing a red smoke plume. Hey, sometimes a little extra practice on the training grounds is all you need to turn a wild cannon into a precision tool. Then there’s the M16A4, a quirky oddball that refuses to go full-auto and instead leans into its identity as a designated marksman trapped in an AR’s body. The 5.56 rounds fly out with a quick, single-shot rhythm that feels almost mechanical, and the recoil is so slight you’d swear the gun is whispering encouragement in your ear. It can’t mount an 8x scope these days, but it remains the king of long-range tapping, eagerly sniping away while other ARs are fumbling with spray patterns.

DMRs – The Sharpshooter’s Sweet Spot

Designated marksman rifles occupy the beautiful middle ground between the spray-and-pray chaos of automatics and the patience-testing precision of bolt-actions. The Mini 14 is the light, nimble side of that equation. On paper, it looks a little underwhelming—lower damage, slower fire rate—but in practice it’s a laser beam with a generous magazine. Slap a decent scope on her, and she’ll sing at ranges that make other players wonder if they’re fighting a ghost. The SKS, on the other hand, is the grizzled veteran that demands respect. 7.62mm rounds thump harder, and with more attachment slots than any other DMR, you can customize this thing until it feels just right. It’s not as pinpoint-accurate as the Mini, and the reload speed can leave you exposed if you’re not careful, but a well-placed headshot out of this blend of assault and sniper DNA will ruin anyone’s day.

And then, for the lucky few who chase down supply drops, there’s the Mk14. Think of it as the SKS after hitting the gym hard for a year—bigger damage, nastier recoil, and a secret weapon: a full-auto mode that turns it into a battle-rifle monster in a pinch. It’s versatile, it’s deadly, and it’s locked behind the airdrop lottery. If you can’t get your hands on an Mk14, the SKS will treat you just fine, but if you do… well, let’s just say the circle suddenly feels a whole lot friendlier.

Sniper Rifles – One Shot, One Story

Nothing strikes fear into the heart of a player quite like the sharp crack of a high-powered sniper round. The AWM is the undisputed god of this realm, a bolt-action myth wrapped in khaki green that laughs at Level 3 helmets. A single hit deals 100 damage, and with a reload that’s surprisingly brisk for such a beast, the AWM can chain kills with a terrifying rhythm. The catch? Both the rifle and its rare .300 Magnum ammo only spawn in airdrops, which means you’ll often have to pry it from the cold hands of another desperate squad. For those who prefer to keep their boots on the ground and their heart rate lower, the Kar98k is the faithful companion that’s been winning games since the early days. It won’t crack a Level 3 lid in one shot, but anything less gets deleted with that satisfying, echoing report. Accurate with any scope you care to attach, the Kar98k’s only real flaw is a leisurely bolt cycle that punishes misses with a cold, hard stare from your target.

LMGs and SMGs – Spraying with Purpose

When subtlety goes out the window and volume of fire becomes the name of the game, light machine guns and submachine guns step into the spotlight. The MG3 currently wears the LMG crown, having bumped the M249 into a standard world spawn and taken its place in crates. This thing is an absolute bullet hose, offering two fire rates—660 or 990 rounds per minute—and a built-in bipod that lets you turn any flat surface into a fortress of lead. Managing its recoil without going prone is a full-body workout, but in the right hands, it’s a squad-wiper. On the SMG side, the P90 has become a staple for those willing to chase airdrops. With a standard 50-round magazine, an integrated laser and suppressor, and dual optics for flicking between close and mid-range, it’s a compact terror that barely kicks. There’s a lingering fear that a nerf might eventually clip its wings, but for now, it’s the king of the bullet-hose hill. Outside of crates, the Vector snatches the all-rounder title. .45 ACP rounds hit a touch lighter, but the weapon’s sheer speed and whisper-soft recoil make it feel like a surgical instrument. The achilles’ heel? A magazine that starts at a paltry 19 rounds. Find an extended mag, though, and the Vector goes from a precision scalpel to a chainsaw in a phone booth.

Shotguns – The Room Clearers

Shotguns don’t care about your armor, your twitch reflexes, or your carefully practiced peeks—if you’re in the same room, they only have one line in their script. The S686 is the quintessential double-barrel menace, capable of firing two devastating 12-gauge blasts so close together they may as well be one. A clean hit deletes anyone in front of you, but if you miss? The silence after those two thunderclaps is the loudest sound in the game, and you’ll be scrambling to swap weapons while your opponent thanks the PUBG gods for the gift of your aim. The S12K offers a more forgiving take on the same carnage. It’s slightly less punchy, but it cycles shells at a rate that borders on indecent for a shotgun, holds a bigger magazine, and even lets you bolt on attachments to tame the hefty kick. Make no mistake, though—it’s still a weapon that only starts whispering sweet nothings inside ten meters.

Pistols and Throwables – Small Packages, Big Impact

Ah, the pistol. Nobody plans their game around one, but when you drop hot and all you find is a sidearm, you learn to appreciate the little things. The P18C is the standout of a category most players ignore the moment they find anything larger. Chambered in 9mm, it boasts a fully automatic fire mode that makes it more of a pocket SMG than a peashooter. It may have the lowest damage per hit among pistols, but thanks to its blistering speed, it still dishes out the highest damage per second. Nobody’s going to win a tournament with one, but in those desperate early seconds, the P18C is a tiny, angry hornet that buys you the time you need.

Then we come to the unsung heroes of the inventory screen: throwables. Grenades aren’t just for killing—they’re for manipulating the battlefield. The Molotov Cocktail is a master of area denial, splashing fire across doorways and windows like a grumpy landlord telling squatters to leave. The flames force opponents out of cover and into your waiting crosshairs, with any actual burn damage being a lovely bonus. The classic Frag Grenade is the ultimate endgame equalizer. Cooking one properly and banking it off a window frame can flush out that last pesky squad hiding behind rock, because when a frag lands at your feet, the only sensible reaction is to run—and that’s exactly when you line up the shot. And don’t sleep on the Smoke Grenade, the escape artist’s best friend. It’s situational, sure, but when you’re pinned in a field with no cover, popping a screen of gray is the difference between a forgettable death and a highlight-reel play.

Melee – The Pan’s Kitchen Nightmare

Forget the crowbars, machetes, and sickles. The only melee weapon that has earned a permanent spot in PUBG folklore is the mighty pan. It can deliver a one-hit headshot to unarmoured foes like a frying pan from a cartoon, but that’s not why veterans swear by it. The pan’s true glory lies in its ability to block bullets. Whether you’re spinning around to deflect shots on purpose or simply letting it dangle from your backpack like a steel-clad bodyguard for your buttocks, the pan has saved more lives than any piece of body armor ever could. It’s meme-worthy, it’s practical, and it’s god tier.

So there you have it—the arsenal that can turn a timid player into a battle royale champion. The best guns in PUBG are the ones that fit your style, but when the stakes are high and the circle is closing, knowing which iron companion to reach for can make all the difference. Now grab your pan, load your mag, and go get that dinner.