Best Operators in Rainbow Six Siege January 2021

As of January 2021, there are 58 different operators in Rainbow Six Siege. With the cast being evenly split between attackers and defenders, it's hard to tell which operators are good which are situational. The best attackers are operators that have a good primary weapon, have an easy way to create soft destruction, and can easily provide intel for teammates. The best defensive operators not only have a strong primary weapon, but also make entering site for attackers a nightmare. With that in mind, here are the best operators on attack and defense come January.

For attackers, the best operators are Ace, Thatcher, and Zofia. Ace is one of the few operators with a hard breach utility, the S.E.L.M.A Aqua Breacher. On top of that, Ace's gadget can be thrown, meaning it can be activated from farther away. Also, Ace's AK-12 is one of the better assault rifles in the game in terms of damage output.

Thatcher's utility has to considered in almost every lineup. Thatcher's EMP grenade disables electronics temporarily, giving teammates enough time to execute a plan of attack onto site. Yes there are other operators that can do what Thatcher does and arguably have better weapons. However, no disables electronics as easily as Thatcher, which makes him such a priority. Lastly, Zofia is the swiss army knife of attackers.

Zofia's LMG means that ammo will never be a concern of hers. On top of that, Zofia's KS79 Lifeline launcher means that players can easily destroy soft walls and use concussion rounds to aide their attackers. Zofia also is one of the few characters that can pick herself up when downed.

Best Operators in Rainbow Six Siege January 2021

For defenders, the best operators are Aruni, Bandit, and Smoke. Aruni is the newest operator to Rainbow 6 Siege. Aruni's utility makes entering site annoying. Her Surya Gate destroys utility and does plenty of damage when players walk through it.

The only downside to Aruni is the lack of ammo in her submachine gun, the P 10 Roni. Bandit is one of the few operators that has access to electricity. This makes Bandit useful on most sites since electrified walls destroy equipment and mitigate hard breach utility. On top of that, the MP7 is arguably the best submachine gun in the game.

Smoke's remote activated gas canisters are useful on any site. The canisters rack up damage, cover a large area, and last roughly 15 seconds. In Rainbow 6 Siege, 15 seconds feels like an eternity. The gas canisters are also effective against shield operators such as Montagne and Blitz since the gas forces them to move. Smoke's FMG-9 submachine gun may not be spectacular, but the amount of time that Smoke can kill with his canisters makes him one of the best anchors on defense.